NBA Daily: Trade Watch: Atlantic Division

With each team in this division spiraling off in their own unique direction, the upcoming trade season should offer plenty of intrigue and mystery. For a contender like the league-leading Toronto Raptors, there likely won’t be much movement, certainly not in the case of moving somebody heavily entrenched in their presently-dominating rotation. But for the other four — two of them legitimate contenders as well — some interesting narratives have presented themselves already after a single month.

So whether these five franchises are looking to tank out, move an expiring contract or prepare for a deep postseason run, these are the players in the Atlantic Division worth keeping an eye on as the season unfolds.

Boston Celtics — Terry Rozier

Of course, Terry Rozier would end up here.

When Bill Simmons’ report about Rozier’s potential frustration went out to the masses about a week ago, it whipped up NBA Twitter into an immediate frenzy. For what it’s worth, general manager Danny Ainge quickly shot down those rumors on the radio, citing that Rozier would’ve come to him or head coach Brad Stevens with any playing time-related matters. Still, the overarching issue here remains that Rozier will be a restricted free agent this summer and there’s no clear road to the major minutes a young player like him deserves.

The Celtics committed a healthy sum to Marcus Smart last offseason following a semi-long standoff, while Kyrie Irving all but stated his intentions to stick around for the foreseeable future. Toss in Jaylen Brown, Gordon Hayward and Jayson Tatum as the other frequent ball-handling cornerstones, and there may just be too many mouths to feed. The Celtics have Finals-or-bust expectations, however, so they’re not going to move Rozier without getting substantial pieces in return. Throughout this brilliantly navigated, rapid-moving rebuild, Ainge has always had things fall into place perfectly — right place, right time — but this Rozier situation is far from being resolved.

Brooklyn Nets — Kenneth Faried

When Kenneth Faried and his expiring contract ended up with the Nets this July, it looked like a win-win situation for everybody involved. Brooklyn — a team that frequently offered up offensive rebounds for the opposition at the worst possible times last season — had acquired a low-risk, high-energy athlete who was once renowned for his work on the boards. And yet, Faried has been out of head coach Kenny Atkinson’s rotation from the very get-go, sharply behind Jared Dudley, Ed Davis, Jarrett Allen and second-round rookie Rodions Kurucs.

The final year of Faried’s 2014 extension is worth around $13.7 million, so any interested team would have to send back another big contract to grab the infrequently-used forward. The Nets are very much looking toward their gobs and gobs of free cap space this summer, so they’d have to be persuaded to make such a move. On the other hand, general manager Sean Marks has never shied away from a deal and even managed to move Tyler Zeller for a second-round pick last year — so Faried’s situation is an unusual one. As the 10th-worst rebounding team in the NBA currently, it’s surprising that Faried, who sports a career average of 8.2 boards per game, can’t find meaningful minutes. If Faried stays in Brooklyn and simply expires, that’s a win for the Nets, but if Marks can spin him into a future asset without taking back any big commitments — that’s also something to keep an eye on.

Brooklyn Nets — DeMarre Carroll

Given that the Nets’ once bright-seeming season is on the fritz following the brutal injury to Caris LeVert, a name to keep an eye on here is DeMarre Carroll — Brooklyn’s junkyard, do-it-all veteran. Carroll was incredible last season, rejuvenating his career — and shedding the tag of a salary dump once and for all — to the tune of 13.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and two assists per game on 41.4 percent shooting from the floor. At 6-foot-8, Carroll can guard multiple positions and contribute as a stretch four as well. Should the Nets decide that the waters are too choppy without their breakout star, Carroll becomes an absolute prime candidate to trade.

Similarly to Faried, the Nets will gladly let Carroll’s contract worth $15.4 million expire this summer and continue to stack that free agent piggy bank — but, inversely, Brooklyn could receive something valuable in return for the 32-year-old. Matching salaries in a cash-strapped league is always difficult, but postseason contenders will always need hard-nosed defense, gritty hustle and consistent three-point shooting. As of now, Carroll brings all three to the table for a Nets team that may not need it depending on the franchise’s chosen path.

New York Knicks — Courtney Lee

Unfortunately, Courtney Lee hasn’t featured for the Knicks yet in 2018-19 as recurring neck spasms have kept the 11-year professional out since training camp. Still, even if Lee was well enough to play, it’s tough to see where he fits in longterm with this young, rebuilding Knicks squad. If Lee can return to health, New York would certainly prefer to move his cap hit, worth about $25 million over the next two years, to a contender that needs a shooter. As the Knicks gear up to chase marquee free agents this upcoming summer — ahem, Kevin Durant — they’d really benefit from clearing out Lee by the trade deadline.

Lee, 33, averaged 12 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists on 40.6 percent from three-point range last season for New York and the shooting guard has been a model of reliability over his solid career. At this point, Lee would be competing with Tim Hardaway Jr., Frank Ntilikina, Emmanuel Mudiay and undrafted sensation Allonzo Trier for minutes, but the Knicks are committed to developing their growing bunch of future pieces and they don’t seem opposed to losing as many games as possible. Given in the added bonus of joining the Durant Lottery this offseason — which became far more interesting this week — and Lee’s eventual movement seems set in stone.

Philadelphia 76ers — Furkan Korkmaz

And then there’s Furkan Korkmaz, who may or may not desire to still be traded following the Sixers’ acquisition of Jimmy Butler. Through the first few weeks of the campaign, Korkmaz was averaging well-south of seven minutes per game, even racking up seven DNPs for good measure. Now into his second stateside season — and with Philadelphia declining his team option at the end of October — Korkmaz has been searching for answers. Korkmaz’s contract situation is not dissimilar to that of his former teammate, Jahlil Okafor, who had his team option declined and then got traded to Brooklyn during the 2017-18 season. Thanks to Philadelphia’s decision, any team that adds Korkmaz this year can only offer a new contract at his declined rate of about $2 million, thus putting any potential suitors in a tough place to keep him.

But the departure of Dario Saric and Robert Covington has invariably opened up some playing time for the Turkish sharpshooter. Since the deal on Nov. 10, Korkmaz has played 15 or more minutes in three of his four contests, even posting 16 points and four rebounds in a mid-week 10-point win over Miami. There’s been no public recanting of his trade request, but if the minutes stay steady, that whole thing could be water under the bridge soon enough. The 76ers’ bench is a weak spot in particular, so both Kyle Korver and the aforementioned Lee make plenty of sense as potential options. But while Philadelphia will surely look to add some pieces, their outgoing trade bait is running thin at the moment.

If Korkmaz’s moment in the sun is ultimately fleeting — it shouldn’t be — and the Sixers feel the need to upgrade, then the second-year player may finally get his wish.

With a little less than three months until the trade deadline, the trade market will only get spicier from here on out. Between the rotation crunch, salary dumps and expiring contracts, the Atlantic Division has a slew of players that could be on the move before all is said and done. While everybody is chasing the Raptors as of now, the Celtics and 76ers are in prime position to improve their respective rosters as well. The New York-based teams will have their gaze set firmly on those humid summer months once more, but can they bolster their future plans between now and February?

Only time can tell, but this is shaping up to be another excellent race to the trade deadline for every team in the Atlantic Division.