The NBA trade deadline is coming up and names like Goran Dragic, Deron Williams, Pablo Prigioni and Roy Hibbert could be targets for teams, as the Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings, LA Lakers, NY Knicks and Boston Celtics could be active participants and this comes as the top name in Rajon Rondo has already been moved earlier in the year.
Williams and Dragic are two of the top point guard options that could be available, while Prigioni is a backup piece the Knicks want to move. According to Marc Stein at ESPN.com, other names that are available at the deadline include Reggie Jackson, Lance Stephenson, Tyler Ennis, Gerald Green and Ty Lawson, while Greg Monroe is also a target but likely will be staying put. Stein wrote earlier in the season that Dragic could be a target for the Rockets, as they are looking for an upgrade at point guard over Patrick Beverley.
The Rockets have been one of the better teams in the western conference this season, but they are dealing with an injury to Dwight Howard and could be looking for some support. The Rockets have been interested in Dragic for some time and he was previously with the team and said he would be open to signing there in free agency. Dragic has a player option for next year and he is likely to hit the market and reportedly will be a target for the Lakers, Knicks and Pacers as well as the Rockets.
The Rockets looked into the Rajon Rondo deal and missed out on that and now they could try and pick up on some other players being dangled. Tyler Ennis is a trade option from the Suns along with Dragic, as he has not been getting many minutes behind the three headed monster of Dragic, Isaiah Thomas and Eric Bledsoe. Williams is another solid option, but he has been dealing with injuries all season and that could scare off some teams.
The Knicks have two potential options in Pablo Prigioni and José Calderon, as Phil Jackson is interested in trading anything that's not a future asset. Calderon is better than Prigioni, but teams may not be willing to trade for him since he has two years and a decent amount of money left on his deal. Calderon has been playing up and down for the season, but part of that has been how bad the Knicks have been. Calderon is averaging 9.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game, while Prigioni has been averaging four points per game and has not been getting into the rotation much.
The Detroit Pistons could be one of the teams in the market for a trade for a point guard, as they lost Brandon Jennings for the season to an injury. Williams has been back in action after dealing with a rib injury and he played in 29 minutes in his comeback game and scored 15 points. That was a promising performance for Williams with how much he has been injured this season and that could help the Nets in finding a trade partner. The trade deadline is after the All-Star break in February.
