The NBA trade market should start heating up over the next few weeks, although league executives aren't expecting the same type of fireworks that last year's trade deadline featured.
"All these guys are going to be stuck where they are," a Western Conference executive told ESPN's Tim Bontemps. "I don't think it will be as busy as people think, and I don't think the available players will be that good."
Giannis Antetokounmpo could upend the market if he officially requests a trade from the Milwaukee Bucks, although that's more likely to happen in the offseason (if at all) rather than between now and the Feb. 5 trade deadline. The realities of the NBA's new second-apron era make it difficult to swing blockbuster deals in-season unless another massive contract is involved.
However, a number of big-name players have surfaced in trade rumors in recent weeks. More could join them over the next month if their respective teams fall out of the playoff race.
Until then, here's a look at four of the stars who find themselves in trade speculation but don't seem to have a huge market.
Trae Young, PG, Atlanta Hawks
With Jalen Johnson breaking out as a face-of-the-franchise-caliber player, it seems increasingly likely that the Atlanta Hawks will soon be moving on from Trae Young. The problem is that it might have to happen in free agency rather than a trade.
When Young missed a month-and-a-half with a knee injury, the Hawks went 13-9 in his absence. Upon his return, they immediately lost six straight games. He then sat out the past few games, and the Hawks beat both the Minnesota Timberwolves and New York Knicks without him.
League sources told Sam Amick of The Athletic that the Hawks "are more open to discussing deals" involving Young. But "in the absence of clarity regarding legitimate suitors, and with league sources indicating that Young's market is widely considered minimal, it remains entirely possible that the Hawks will have to handle his situation in the summertime," Amick added.
Young is earning $46 million this year and has a $49.0 million player option for the 2026-27 season. Multiple league executives told Michael Scotto of HoopsHype that Young might have to pick up that option, as his free-agent market could be barren as well. That's a wild thing to say about someone who's received four All-Star nods since 2019-20, but questions remain about his defense and whether he rubs certain teammates the wrong way.
One rival scout told Amick that "Trae is an extremely difficult player to win at the highest level with." In the NBA's second-apron era, when teams need to be more cautious than ever about the type of player deserving of a max contract, Young might be an odd man out.
Ja Morant, PG, Memphis Grizzlies
Ja Morant is having yet another season from hell. He's shooting a career-worst 40.1 percent overall and 20.8 percent from deep, and he's already missed 16 of the Grizzlies' first 34 games.
One of those absences was self-inflicted. The Grizzlies gave Morant a one-game suspension in early November for "conduct detrimental to the team." According to ESPN's Shams Charania, Grizzlies head coach Tuomas Iisalo challenged "Morant's leadership and effort in a postgame exchange" after an early-November loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, "to which Morant responded in a tone deemed inappropriate and dismissive."
Shortly after his return, Morant missed 10 games with a calf strain and another four with an ankle injury. He's missed at least 20 games in each of the past four seasons, and he'll have to play in 44 of the Grizzlies' final 48 games to avoid stretching that streak to five years.
"The combination of pain in the ass, injury prone, not that good anymore and big contract is a bad one," an Eastern Conference executive said earlier this season, per ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Bobby Marks. Said executive added "that he wouldn't want Morant on his roster regardless of salary."
Morant is in the third year of a five-year, $197.2 million contract. He's earning $39.4 million this year, $42.2 million next year and $44.9 million in 2027-28. That's only expected to be around 25 percent of the salary cap each year, but that's still a steep price for someone who misses a ton of time each year and is mired in a career-worst shooting slump.
LaMelo Ball, PG, Charlotte Hornets
In late November, Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports reported that LaMelo Ball had "grown increasingly frustrated" with the Charlotte Hornets and was "open to a trade away from the franchise. Ball quickly refuted that report, although it wouldn't be a surprise if both sides were ready for a change.
The Hornets went 33-39 in their first year with Ball and 43-39 in his sophomore season, but they've been on a steady decline since. They've perked back up this year, in no small part due to No. 4 overall pick Kon Knueppel, although his emergence gives them a safety net in case they decide to move on from Ball.
The question is whether they'd get significant value in return for him. Ball has missed at least 35 games in each of the past three seasons, and although his talent is not in dispute, questions remain about his ability to meaningfully impact winning.
"He's definitely one of the top three most talented guards in the league," a West executive said earlier this season, per Bontemps and Marks. "But every [scouting] report I write on him has the word 'Globetrotter' in it."
Ball is shooting only 40.9 percent overall and has never shot better than the 43.6 percent that he did as a rookie. Like Young, he's one of the better playmakers in the league, but his shot diet and defense leave much to be desired. With three years and $130.7 million left on his contract, the Hornets might have a tough time finding a team willing to give up a major haul for Ball until he proves that he can help guide them to the playoffs.
Zach LaVine, SG, Sacramento Kings
Zach LaVine is one of the most efficient, high-volume backcourt scorers in the league. However, his production is not commensurate with his $47.5 million salary in the second-apron era.
Last year, LaVine averaged 23.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.2 made three-pointers per game while shooting a career-high 51.1 percent overall and 44.6 percent from deep across his time with the Chicago Bulls and Sacramento Kings. His numbers have dipped a bit this year—he's averaging only 20.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.7 threes and 2.3 assists—but he's still shooting an impressive 48.7 percent overall and 38.5 percent from deep.
The Kings appear ready to go into full fire-sale mode ahead of the trade deadline. However, Amick reported in mid-December that LaVine's "exorbitant salary… makes it nearly impossible to move him without attaching some sort of sweetener (draft assets) in return."
Amick and Scotto have reported that in their desperation to appease Giannis, the Bucks have done some "background due diligence" on LaVine, although any trade would have to include two of Myles Turner, Kyle Kuzma and Bobby Portis for salary-matching reasons. Swapping LaVine for a package built around Kuzma and Portis could help the Kings trim their payroll, but it wouldn't bring them any closer to playoff contention.
If LaVine was earning half as much as he currently is, he might be one of the more in-demand targets at this year's deadline. Instead, his max contract is an albatross that no team wants.