According to a report from the LA Times, the Los Angeles Clippers are potentially in the market for a big man this trade season, and one familiar name has come up: Thaddeus Young.
Check it out:
Though it is too soon to know whether the Clippers truly have trade intentions, they are sniffing around. NBA sources not authorized to speak publicly believe the Clippers are looking at players like Chicago power forward Thaddeus Young.
And there we have it, the first real trade rumor for the Chicago Bulls this season!
The LA Times’ Dan Woike shared this report in his recent article about the appeal and tradability of Clippers forward Maurice Harkless, who’d basically be a necessary financial component in any Clippers-deal for Young. Basically, Los Angeles already has $130.8 million in salary commitments this season. So with Young guaranteed $12.9M this season (plus two more seasons of control), Harkless and his $11M expiring contract would have to go.
As for the plausibility of this rumor, well, sure! It makes sense on the surface. Young is a true NBA veteran who can offer a relatively inexpensive, yet multi-year answer for a win-now squad like the Clippers … and the Bulls are not exactly a win-now squad.
There’s also those rumblings from Young’s camp potentially looking for a trade earlier this season. In short, if the Bulls didn’t increase Young’s minutes and/or improve his usage, he was allegedly hoping to be moved to a team that would. And while nothing more has developed publicly since then, Young’s minutes haven’t exactly been on the rise, either.
So in essence, if the Bulls were going to move anyone this season, Young feels like he would be at the top of the list. He’s got a reliable past, a contract that was mostly about helping the Bulls over the hump this season (if they somehow got off to a hot start), and a brief, but recent history of possibly seeking a trade. It’s just not surprising to see a contender like the Clippers looking at procuring his services.
With that said, the Bulls would miss Young’s leadership given their youthful roster. I can’t deny that. But with his stats down pretty much across the board, re-opening some cap space and flexibility with a trade might not be the worst move.
Plus, if Harkless is part of the return, he could be an interesting player to try working into an extension. That’s not necessarily baked into his current trade value, of course, but it is a nice side-effect of getting him into the organization and putting on the sell while he’s in house. The Bulls clearly need depth at small forward, and Harkless (26-years-old) is still a relatively young, useful piece for any rotation. An above-average defender, he’d also add to the Bulls “defensive identity” they seem to be creating for themselves. Given the issues the Bulls have had attracting free agent talent, perhaps this is a useful work-around. But we’re getting WAY ahead of ourselves. This is far from a no-brainer. Or, at least, I can see the front office making that argument.
Wisely or not, the Bulls likely still view the postseason as an achievable goal this season, and expect Young to play a significant role in making that happen. I suppose the front office could also see Young as a vital piece beyond this year, as well, but that’s a little less clear than shooting for that 8th seed in 2019-2020 (There’s nothing like covering your butts with a “We were technically a playoff team!” is there?)
The Clippers could also look elsewhere for help (Young likely isn’t their only target), but their cap situation does complicate things – particularly for players at Young’s level or higher. We’ll stay locked into this and see if anything else pops up. For now, we’re dealing with nothing more than a basic rumor, but at least it’s something to chew on!