The NBA trade rumor mill will start spinning even more as the February 20 deadline gets closer and names like Pau Gasol, Jameer Nelson, Ryan Anderson, Greg Monroe, Beno Udrih, Kyle Lowry, Paul Pierce, Andre Miller and Omer Asik are names that have come up and will likely come up again in deal options.
Pau Gasol's name has been in and out of trade rumors all season and that should continue as the trading deadline gets closer even if the Lakers say they want to keep him. Gasol has an expiring contract that could be very attractive to teams and on top of that there has been a little bit of friction between the big man and coach Mike D'Antoni. Gasol was nearly moved in a deal for Andrew Bynum that would have saved the Lakers a nice chunk of money and now he is the main player for the team until Kobe Bryant comes back and if Gasol gets traded, Bryant will be one player that is unhappy, as he has always been supportive of Gasol and said he was important to the team and winning.
Jameer Nelson and Glen Davis as well as Arron Afflalo have been mentioned in trade rumors for the Orlando Magic, with Nelson the most likely to move. Afflalo was mentioned in a number of deals earlier in the offseason, but ESPN.com reports that the Magic likely will be keeping him, while Davis has not generated as much interest as expected. Beno Udrih has asked for a trade from the Knicks and this comes as the point guard has felt disrespected in the offense and in general and that could lead to a split down the line, as the Knicks are playing terribly and have some major issues.
The Wizards are reportedly interested in Greg Monroe and that is a deal that likely could go down since the Detroit Pistons have shown that they want to keep Andre Drummond long term after declining to give him a contract extension. The Wizards feel like they have a run to the playoffs in them and after dealing for Marcin Gortat he could be an option as well. Paul Pierce has come up in trade rumors a bit since the Nets were playing so badly, but it's likely that he will be going nowhere since the team has been moving up the standings. Kyle Lowry was mentioned in deals to the Lakers and the Knicks, but with the Raptors in the top part of the east for now, they are hanging onto him.
