We’re in a dead period when it comes to NBA trades but once we get into December and January the in-season hot stove will be scorching as teams will be allowed to trade free agents signed this summer.
One of the biggest names on the trade market this winter will be Thunder forward Danilo Gallinari, as Sam Presti will surely look to get whatever he can with Gallinari’s expiring contract. Gallinari had a resurgence last season with the Clippers as he posted a career high points per game average, and he is the type of player that could put a fringe contender over the top.
Two teams that will be active in the trade market to certain degrees ahead of the February deadline will be the Sixers and Celtics, who are both one more piece away from separating themselves from a sizable pack of elite teams. Philly could use another shooter, and Gallinari definitely fits the bill as he shot 43.3 percent from 3-point territory on 5.5 attempts per game last season (the fifth best mark in the league).
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The Celtics could also use another big man who can shoot (Gallinari is a sneaky 6-foot-10 inches) after losing Al Horford to the Sixers, but Boston’s biggest issue right now is finding a defensive-minded big man. It’s easy to envision Giannis or Joel Embiid having easy 40-point nights against the C’s the way they are currently constructed as Enes Kanter, Robert Williams and Tacko Fall are their options at center. None of them seem capable of providing anything close to the type of defense Horford displayed on Giannis and Embiid.
One sleeper team to watch for when it comes to Gallinari are the Knicks, who covet expiring contracts, but New York would also not mind bringing in Gallinari with the goal of signing him to short money deal next summer. Gallinari, drafted by the Knicks in 2008, was quite popular during his brief tenure in Manhattan and the Italian-born forward has always held a place in his heart for the organization (something you can’t really say for 99 percent of the players in the league).
