NBA Trade Value 2017-2018
15. Jimmy Butler
Butler was traded for a post-ACL tear Zack Lavine, Kris Dunn, and Lauri Markannen. That may be a testament to how bad GarPax is but still isn’t that a bit concerning. The Celtics wouldn’t offer the third pick in 2016 for the guy. 2016!! Still, I love Butler, but I feel like Thibs is going to run him into the ground again. That makes me sad, let’s move on to 14.
14. Draymond Green
The defensive anchor for the Golden State Warriors. He may be the most important piece to this dynasty because, without his versatility, the Warriors would struggle heavily on defense. The scariest thing is there are still three more Warriors on this list to go. Thank god the 76ers are in the East.
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13. Kristaps Porzingis
Porzingis is basically Dirk Nowitzki if Dirk was 7-foot-3, Latvian, could block shots and hated James Dolan. I hate the Dirk to Porzingis comparison because Porzingis is a player we have never seen before. This is why he’s a unicorn because there will likely only be one of him. He has two years left on a great deal and seems to only get better.
The concerns with him are his injury history. Porzingis has failed to gain muscle in the two years he’s been in the NBA and as a result, he has been injured every season. If he does not improve his conditioning, he will become the next Blake Griffin. His value also is hurt by the fact that he wants out of the Big Apple and the Knicks are likely going to mess this up by likely getting a bunch of average players for Zinger in two years. Let’s pray the Knicks do this.
12. Kyrie Irving
Irving is basically what would have happened if Steve Francis played with a contender and had his head screwed on straight just a bit more. (I still think anyone who believes the Earth is flat is a bit off.) Irving is one of the best pure scoring guards and has been a perfect complement next to LeBron James. Without him, the Cavs would struggle significantly.
The cons of Irving are that he plays C- defense and has yet to prove that he can lead a playoff team without LeBron. The 2nd one will be unlikely to be solved in our time.
Phoenix offered Bledsoe and the 4th pick for Irving and the Cavs turned down the offer, showing the NBA world how much value Irving has for this team.
11. Klay Thompson
The perfect complement to Stephen Curry in the backcourt, Thompson fits perfectly with this team. He would fit perfectly with any team and the Warriors know this. They were offered Paul George for Thompson and they turned it down. Thompson is a great second banana and an insane third banana.
The only concern with Thompson is it appears he does not want to be the alpha dog on any team. He’s ok with getting 20-22 points per game on this Warriors team and that’s fine. But his lack of hunger will hurt him in the rankings.