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Story byThe time has come for another edition of our Trade Rumors Rankings series, where we rank players by how often they have appeared in trade rumors over the previous week.
It’s another point guard-heavy edition this week, as some big-name floor generals continue to draw up intrigue on the trade market.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement5. Jonathan Kuminga (Golden State)
It's been another disappointing start to a regular season for the Golden State Warriors, and the scapegoat, again appears to be young forward Jonathan Kuminga, fair or not. Having just returned from injury, Kuminga has also seen his name come up in trade rumors this week, specifically one tying him to the Indiana Pacers, albeit back in 2022 (via Marc Stein's Substack):
Sources say Golden State did discuss the pursuit of Domantas Sabonis before the 2022 trade deadline that featured Indiana shipping the Lithuanian lefty to Sacramento for a package headlined by Tyrese Haliburton. The Pacers were known at the time to be big fans of Jonathan Kuminga, leading to various discussions between the two front offices that featured current Warriors swingman Buddy Hield, former Warriors swingman Andrew Wiggins and Sabonis in various frameworks.
Could that lead to a Pacers pursuit of the still-just-23-year-old Kuminga?
Kuminga's still got loads of promise as a player, a swingman who has done well to develop his midrange shooting, and who is an athletic slasher and finisher around the basket.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementPlus, the contract the Warriors got him to sign, one that has a team option for 2026-27, could be seen as appealing to teams who might not want to be tied down to a hefty long-term contract for a somewhat unproven player.
We'll see how this saga turns out, but the most obvious outcome is Golden State finally ending it by trading Kuminga to a team better fitting his timeline.
For the latest Jonathan Kuminga rumors, click here.
4. Keon Ellis (Sacramento)
The athletic Keon Ellis hasn't gotten much of a shot with the Sacramento Kings despite his four years with the squad, much to Kings fans' chagrin. This season, his minutes are down to 16.6 per game as Kings fans sarcastically cheer when he gets checked into games:
In his short spurts, Ellis has been quite effective, however, thanks to his fantastic shooting, his quickness and his two-way toughness:
That has naturally led to trade interest from teams around the league, including from, according to our own Michael Scotto, the aforementioned Pacers:
The Indiana Pacers have been among many teams to express interest in Keon Ellis this season and have previously targeted him, league sources told HoopsHype.
According to Stein, "more than half the league" has shown trade interest in Ellis, while the New York Times called him one of the most coveted Kings players on rival teams thanks to his expiring $2.3 million salary.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWe don't know how this story will turn out, but Ellis could be a savvy pickup for a smart contending team.
For the latest Keon Ellis rumors, click here.
3. Ja Morant (Memphis)
Someone who appears in this series weekly at this point, star point guard Ja Morant seems to be staying with the Memphis Grizzlies, at least for the time being. Via our own Scotto:
Following an argument with Grizzlies head coach Tuomas Iisalo and a one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team, rival NBA executives circled like vultures conducting due diligence to see if the Ja Morant era in Memphis was nearing an end. However, Grizzlies executive Zach Kleiman declined trade inquiries on Morant then and has since, for the time being, league sources told HoopsHype.
But that hasn't stopped teams from preparing for the possibility that Morant, along with other maligned guards around the league, becomes available by the trade deadline (via Stein):
They wanted this season to play out. Around the league, these three guards — LaMelo Ball, Ja Morant, and Trae Young — are being grouped together in the eyes of a lot of executives. Maybe they aren’t available right now, as we speak but these are players teams are anticipating could be available between now and the trade deadline on February 5th. And again, all three of these guys have been All-Stars.
Morant is averaging 17.9 points this season, the second-lowest mark of his career, on a paltry 35.9 percent shooting mark, and considering he's owed $44.9 million in 2027-28, teams are going to want to be certain he’s just mailing it in because he wants out in Memphis, not that he’s on the full-on decline, if they are going to trade for him this season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementFor the latest Ja Morant rumors, click here.
2. Anthony Davis (Dallas)
Last week, we talked about superstar big man Anthony Davis being connected with the Chicago Bulls, his hometown team, in trade rumors. Those were more speculative than anything, though.
Now, we have a bit more concrete reporting on the matter, courtesy of ESPN:
The Bulls have had internal discussions about how to proceed, including conversations about Dallas Mavericks star Anthony Davis, sources told ESPN, whom they believe could help the team's porous rim protection and defensive interior.
Davis would prove a good fit on his hometown team, at least if he returns to prior form, as the team has the eighth-leakiest defense in the NBA at the moment, one giving up 116.8 points per 100 possessions.
At his athletic best, Davis would greatly help improve Chicago’s stinginess around the basket, at the very least.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementESPN’s Tim MacMahon also said this week that he believes it’s likely Davis will be traded this season:
Trading AD is a real possibility—and I would even say likelihood—this season. Trading Kyrie is not something that's on the Mavericks' priority list, or it's just straight up not something that they are interested in doing right now."
Some fits just make sense, and Davis to Chicago fits that bill, as not only is it his hometown squad, but they could badly use his services, particularly on the less glamorous end of the floor.
For the latest Anthony Davis rumors, click here.
Nov 19, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) looks on in the first half against the Indiana Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images1. LaMelo Ball (Charlotte)
Winners of two in a row, the Charlotte Hornets now sit at 6-14, somewhat of an improvement from their form over recent years.
Interestingly enough, though, their win over the weekend against the Toronto Raptors came after the team went on a late 26-8 run… after benching LaMelo Ball, the subject of many a trade rumor this season. Charlotte head coach Charles Lee defended the decision, saying it was because the enigmatic point guard is still returning to form following an injury-related layoff, and it was the second night of a back-to-back.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementStill, that type of move won’t do much to calm down rumors about Ball’s future in North Carolina.
According to Stein, the Hornets continue to insist they aren't shopping the former No. 3 overall draft pick:
The reality is, there’s chatter out there — a lot of curiosity, most of it coming from rival front offices. Are the Hornets going to be open to fielding trade pitches for LaMelo Ball? To this point — and this will sound a lot like the Ja Morant situation in Memphis — the messaging is that the Hornets don’t want to field those pitches. They don’t want to trade him. There was a report this week from my pal in Houston, Kelly Iko, writing for Yahoo Sports. Kelly wrote that Ball is open to a trade, and that the Hornets are disillusioned with him on various levels. Both parties have come out and publicly denied that — insisting it’s not the case. Again, we haven’t even gotten to Thanksgiving. Trade season doesn’t officially start until December 15th. As of where we are right now, the Hornets insist they’re not gauging Ball’s trade value.”
Stein also reported that Charlotte has been frustrated with Ball's lack of progression after such an impressive start to his career:
LaMelo Ball is not a character concern off the floor by any means, to my understanding, even if sources say it's indeed true that he's been frustrated by the team's lack of forward progress. Ball has played in 47 or fewer games in each of the past three seasons due to injury. His shot selection also turns some teams off, but the durability questions resonate the loudest leaguewide. It's somewhat reminiscent of the situation Anthony Davis faces in Dallas. The Hornets are unlikely to get the sort of offers for Ball they'd be hoping for until their star guard can get through a stretch of sustained production, availability and ideally some winning. No wonder the Hornets, as league sources maintain, are not currently interested in looking to move him.
At the end of the day, all we can do is wait and see if any monumental trades do come into fruition.
Knowing the NBA, we'll get with a huge surprise or two by the time the trade deadline rolls around.
For the latest LaMelo Ball rumors, click here.
This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: NBA trade rumor rankings: Jonathan Kuminga, Ja Morant and more
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