D'Angelo Russell, Clint Capela being shopped as NBA trade deadline looms
Lost in your excitement about the Super Bowl and the start of baseball season, you may not have realized the NBA trade deadline is just around the corner. Teams have until Feb. 6 to make a deal to try and push them over whatever edge they’re looking for.
With just a few days to go until the deadline, there’s a chance at least one significant deal happens before Thursday.
That deal could involve Golden State Warriors guard D’Angelo Russell. The Warriors are believed to be listening to offers for the 23-year-old Russell, according to Marc Stein of the New York Times. The Minnesota Timberwolves have shown the most interest in Russell, but a deal isn’t likely to get done unless Minnesota is willing to give up draft picks.
The Timberwolves are hesitant to do that, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
So far in the Warriors-Timberwolves talks, Golden State would only consider a deal that has significant draft pick compensation as part of any Minnesota package, according to league sources. As a team currently in a rebuild, the Timberwolves are reluctant to sacrifice too much of their own draft capital in deals, including one for Russell.
While a trade for Russell would require the Timberwolves to deal picks, at least the team would have Russell locked up for multiple seasons. Russell signed a four-year, $117 million deal with the Warriors in July. Russell is averaging 23.8 points and 6.3 assists per game with the Warriors.
Russell remains the biggest name on the market, but he’s not the only player drawing interest from other teams. Houston Rockets center Clint Capela is also being floated on the trade market, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Rockets are looking for a wing player and a center in exchange for Capela, but getting the players they want will require some extra work. The team is reportedly trying to deal Capela for draft capital which it would then turn around and deal for impact players. The Rockets have considered three-team trades to get it done.
Capela, 25, is averaging 13.9 points and 13.8 rebounds per game. The Atlanta Hawks have shown interest in Capela, according to Wojnarowski.
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