Jonathan Kuminga, Austin Reaves and 4 more names to watch as NBA trade market takes shape

You have to give something to get something.

It’s the age-old truth about trades in the NBA — or in any sport, for that matter. If you want to truly have a shot at landing one of the game’s greats when they become available, then you have to be willing to part ways with the kinds of players who truly move the needle for the team on the other side of the bargaining table (along with a Brinks truck full of draft picks, of course).

As this season gets into full swing, these players are worth watching with that backdrop in mind. The list could certainly be longer, but these are the names being bandied about most often among front-office executives and scouts who constantly track this sort of thing. It is a Western Conference-heavy bunch, perhaps because so much star power has already been secured in the East (Boston, Philadelphia, New York, etc.).

All of these players are elite talents in their own right, with some even showing signs of stardom themselves, but their teams are known to be on the lookout for proven All-Stars, and that means they could wind up being the difference-maker in a deal either before the Feb. 6 trade deadline or this summer.

Yet with the never-ending scouting process continuing inside their respective organizations and all around the league, the inquiries will inevitably come. It’s a sign of respect, really, no matter how uncomfortable these situations might sometimes seem. And how they play in these next few months will most certainly play a part in the conversations that ensue.

Age: 22
Contract (per Spotrac): $7.6 million this season (restricted free agent this summer)

As our Anthony Slater expertly detailed recently, the Warriors were — in the words of owner Joe Lacob — “ALL IN” on the prospect of landing then-free agent Paul George and Utah’s Lauri Markkanen this past summer. The continued greatness of Wardell Stephen Curry, and the desperate need to maximize his talents during this late stage of his career, were the driving forces behind the parallel pursuits. Had their plan worked, Kuminga would be in a Jazz jersey.

But Golden State’s post-Klay Thompson dreams didn’t come true, leaving it with another key decision to make heading into this season: whether to give Kuminga an extension. League sources say the gap between the two sides in negotiations was significant, with Kuminga aiming for an annual salary in the $35 million range and the Warriors topping out, per Slater, around $30 million. A deal did not get done.

All of this makes their current predicament even crunchier. Kuminga chose to bet on himself, with hopes of playing so well this season that he’d land a max-salary deal. That’s his right, to be sure, but that goal is quite lofty considering the context of this Warriors roster and his imperfect fit.

That reality came to the fore this week, when the Warriors lost Curry to a lower leg muscle strain and coach Steve Kerr decided to move Kuminga to a reserve role as a result. Kerr started Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield, Draymond Green, Moses Moody and Trayce-Jackson Davis in a win over New Orleans on Tuesday, then swapped Lindy Waters III for Hield in the Pelicans rematch a day later (another win). Kuminga, whose frustration with his role was well-chronicled last season, is clearly not happy about this latest development.

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The end certainly justified the means — two Warriors wins during a 4-1 start — but it also served as a reminder that Kuminga would probably be better off elsewhere. To be fair, Kuminga played more minutes and was more productive in those two Pelicans games than he had in the previous three (28 and 27 minutes, respectively; 17 and 16 points).

Yet while rival executives believe the Warriors are more willing than ever to include Kuminga in a trade of significant magnitude, the fact remains that they’re setting their sights very high in terms of possible targets. One name to monitor is Jimmy Butler, the 35-year-old Miami Heat star who league sources say drew interest from the Warriors during the offseason and who did not come to terms on an extension. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent next summer. — Amick

Age: 26
Contract: $12.9 million this season, $13.9 million next season, $14.9 million in 2026-27 (player option)

Let’s go back to that all-caps phrase Lacob shouted from the media mountaintops not too long ago: “ALL IN.”

Months before the Warriors pushed for George and Markkanen, they made an audacious bid for the Lakers’ LeBron James that was summarily refused. But there was an irony that came with that situation, as James and his co-star, Anthony Davis, have privately longed for the Lakers’ power brokers to show that sort of bold, strategic ambition for quite some time.

That’s where Reaves comes in.

If the Lakers have any chance of making a major move, it will almost certainly have to include the guard who is known to be a favorite of owner Jeanie Buss and president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka. This Lakers front-office group found him on the undrafted scrap heap in 2021, then saw him turn into one of their favorite in-house success stories. First-year coach JJ Redick is also known to be a huge fan of Reaves. Add that he’s on a very team-friendly deal, and it’s not hard to understand why there’s a strong reluctance to make him available.

But there’s a difference between greatly valuing a player like Reaves and deeming him virtually untouchable, as league sources say the Lakers have in the past. And if these Lakers find themselves falling behind in the West playoff race midseason, with star-player trade scenarios potentially crossing their proverbial desk, this is an internal discussion they’ll likely have to revisit. For now, Reaves (16.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists per game) is off to a strong start in his starting role during the Lakers’ 3-2 start. — Amick

Jalen Green signed an extension with the Rockets just before the season. (Alex Slitz / Getty Images)

Age: 22
Contract: $12.5 million this season, $33.3 million next season, $36 million in 2026-27, $36 million in 2027-28 (player option)

Yes, it’s strange to talk about a player like Green possibly being traded so soon after he signed a massive extension. And as my colleague John Hollinger will explain in a moment here, there are all sorts of reasons to believe Green will be with Houston at least through this season.

But the Rockets’ recent choice to add three years and a combined $106 million to Green’s contract changes nothing about their widely known aspirations to upgrade in the franchise-centerpiece department. As I wrote in late June, they’ve had serious interest in Phoenix’s Devin Booker, New Orleans’ Zion Williamson and Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell (who who signed a three-year, $150 million extension with the Cavs in July). It takes two to tango, though, and none of those players are even remotely gettable at the moment.

It’s worth noting, too, that the Rockets chose to give 22-year-old center Alperen Şengün a five-year, $185 million extension that seemed to reflect a greater level of long-term commitment. What’s more, the details of Green’s new deal are such that it would be much easier to explore the various star-player scenarios this summer. — Amick

(Take it away, John …)

Green’s deal will be very tricky to include in an in-season trade because his extension is subject to the “poison pill” provision on rookie contract extensions.

He makes $12.5 million this season and would only count for that amount as the salary match for Houston’s end. For a receiving team, however, Green would count as the average of this year’s salary and the two years on the extension before his player option ($33.3 million in 2025-26 and $36 million in 2026-27) — a final cap figure of $27.2 million.

But wait, there’s more! Green also has a 10 percent trade kicker on his extension that would count as an additional $6.9 million on the salary over the next two seasons (10 percent of the sum of $33.3 million and $36 million) unless he agrees to waive it. That would result in Green’s deal counting as $29.56 million as incoming salary for the team that acquires him.

The net impact of those numbers is that it becomes extremely difficult for a team working within the restrictions of the collective bargaining agreement’s first or second apron to acquire Green, and complicated (but more possible) for other non-apron teams to do the same as part of a multi-player blockbuster. — Hollinger

Age: 23
Contract: $2.97 million this season (extension eligible this summer), $4.9 million next season (restricted free agent in summer 2026 if no extension signed)

You get the sense Kessler is in the prove-it period of his time with the Jazz. We’re well past the honeymoon stage of his rookie season (2022-23), when the Rudy Gobert haters spent a few months claiming Kessler was as dominant defensively as the four-time Defensive Player of the Year big man he had replaced.

This Jazz team is bad, even with the recently extended Markannen shining amid the rough, and it needs to know whether Kessler is part of the long-term solution or merely a means to more precious draft assets during this post-Mitchell/Gobert rebuild. League sources say Jazz coach Will Hardy pushes Kessler quite hard behind the scenes, all with the goal of development and a clearer view of his value for the organization. After all, as noted above, Kessler is extension-eligible after this season and due for a hefty raise of some sort.

While our Jovan Buha recently reported the Lakers have interest in Kessler, a Jazz source indicated the possible framework of a deal — D’Angelo Russell and multiple first-round picks — would not be of interest. As noted above, though, there could be other Lakers iterations that might be of more interest.

As for the Jazz’s level of motivation on the star-gazing front, it can never be forgotten that Danny Ainge — who works alongside veteran general manager Justin Zanik — is heading their front office. He was the architect of Boston’s big three team that landed Kevin Garnett in 2007 before winning it all a year later and the 2013 Celtics-Nets blockbuster that ultimately paved the way for Boston’s latest championship (the picks in that deal led to the drafting of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown). Ainge’s history of going big, in a variety of ways, is certainly worth remembering. — Amick

Keegan Murray talks to Kings coach Mike Brown during a break in play in Houston. (Alex Bierens de Haan / Getty Images)

Age: 24
Contract: $8.8 million this season (extension eligible this summer); $11.1 million next season (restricted free agent in summer 2026 if no extension is signed)

Here’s the Kings’ dilemma: They’re legitimately all-in on Murray, which makes it quite challenging to be all-in on the prospect of adding another star from elsewhere. That was the case when they pursued Markkanen before the draft in June, just as it was in similar scenarios for other players before then.

But Murray is the only young player in the Kings’ employ who can change the course of a trade conversation, meaning he will likely be requested every time they are discussing the prospect of landing a player of any repute. As is the case with every other player on this list, the truth is that this season could change the internal calculus regarding their uncertain future.

If Murray is a pivotal part of another Kings playoff run, or maybe even a first-round victory that would be the organization’s first since 2004, then one would think an extension is forthcoming. But if Murray struggles to find his place in this crowded Sacramento offense, and if the Kings fail to take the step forward that is so crucial to their plans in the process, then the landscape could change.

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Four games in, Murray has managed to produce while sharing the load with heavy-usage players such as De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan and even Malik Monk. He’s averaging 14.3 points (on just 41.2 percent shooting) and seven rebounds for the Kings (2-2) and has the team’s best plus-minus mark at this early juncture (plus-44).

Age: 22
Contract: $7.2 million this season (extension eligible this summer); $9.2 million next season (restricted free agent in summer 2026 if no extension signed)

Mathurin scored 30 points and added 11 rebounds in the Pacers’ overtime win Wednesday over Boston, filling in after an injury to Andrew Nembhard sidelined him five minutes into the game. The 2022 lottery pick enters his third season in an uncertain role, however, after the Pacers made a run to the conference finals without him last spring. Mathurin missed the postseason with a torn labrum suffered in March, but his minutes had already been declining before that injury due to the ascent of Nembhard and arrival of Pascal Siakam.

This takes us back to the trade market and the Pacers’ scuffling start before the impressive win over the defending champs. Could Mathurin be the added chip to get Indiana another All-Star-caliber player around Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton? With Nembhard’s contract already extended through 2028, would they extend Mathurin, too, even with the positional overlap of the two Canadian shooting guards? Or are the Pacers better off using the combination of Mathurin, other salaries on the roster that can lump into a match and the two first-round picks they can still trade (in 2029 and 2031) to go big-fish hunting for more weaponry to fight Boston in future seven-game series? — Hollinger

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(Top photo of Austin Reaves and Jonathan Kuminga: Darren Yamashita / USA Today)