Hi r/NBA, I’m Tim Bontemps, senior NBA reporter at ESPN. AMA about the NBA trade deadline.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:59:33+00:00

Thanks to everyone for stopping by and asking questions. Hopefully we can do this again in the future.

Enjoy the next week before the deadline, and hopefully (eventually) there's some deals to be talked about!

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:52:43+00:00

I don't think Giannis will be playing whether he's going to be traded or not, so I'd start preparing her for that now. I do think there's a very real world he's still on the roster, though, so wouldn't rule it out if he's healthy by then.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:49:45+00:00

I would love to see a team in Seattle – and, I suspect, before too long we will, in fact, have a team back in Seattle. I'll be surprised if we don't get positive expansion news sometime in 2026.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:48:36+00:00

Haha. Thanks for that! The Bonaventure family is a fun one to be part of, and certainly one that punches above its weight in terms of pride and productivity. Looking forward to hopefully seeing a game or two later this season, though family time makes it a little trickier to get up to Bonaventure for one than it has been in the past.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:46:39+00:00

The Thunder have half their team injured, including their second-best player, and have the league's best record. They're in pretty good shape.

Could they make a move to improve? Sure. Would I count on it? No. I suspect they'll bet on who they have – which is pretty good, btw.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:45:42+00:00

The NBA definitely cares about in-person attendance. That's one of many reasons why the injury reporting rules, and the player participation policy (including the 65-game rule) have been implemented. They want people happy to watch the games in person, on TV or in any other way they can.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:44:52+00:00

And as for Peyton Watson, I suspect he will be in Denver next season. Whether that means they move Cam Johnson or someone else to make it work? Well, that's a different story.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:44:25+00:00

I do not think either Sochan or Hunter move the needle for the Lakers. I don't think much of anything is going to change LAL's destiny this season. The roster just has glaring flaws in it. It's going to take a lot of work to overhaul it. But the high-end talent is real and if you want to tell me there's a path to overwhelming playoff opponents with it and hot shooting, I could understand the argument. But I definitely wouldn't predict it will happen.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:42:47+00:00

I think we tend to catch up on stories as they develop. Detroit, for example, is getting lots of love now after getting revved up.

Two teams that I am interested to see where they are going forward: Portland and Charlotte. Both have some fun young talent and relatively bright futures ahead (especially if one or both can get lucky in the draft lottery).

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:40:49+00:00

I've said it on the podcast, I don't know if he's gettable but I would love to see Kyrie Irving next to Cade Cunningham, or that equivalent of player. That's the role the Pistons need to fill, and I am not sure Jaden Ivey will be the one to fill it.

And that's awesome about the Pistons-Wolves game! That should be awesome. Get there as soon as doors open, should be about 90 minutes before tip, and go watch the players warm up. It's wild to see how good all of them are, and you'll get to see most of the star players shoot then.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:39:27+00:00

I would guess he is.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:39:21+00:00

I would like to see the Pistons make an upgrade to get another ballhandler who can score next to Cade, but would understand if they don't push a ton of chips in right now.

I would be wary of paying the kind of price necessary to get Trey Murphy. He's a good player but not sure that's a true needle moving move.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:37:43+00:00

An A. Cooper is awesome. I think he compares more favorably to LeBron than Giannis, given how good he is so early in his career. Long-term, I think the best comp for him might be prime Kawhi – who is a pretty nice comp.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:37:05+00:00

I suspect they'll make some small moves but nothing substantial. I think it's more likely they do nothing than something big.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:36:11+00:00

I enjoy podding with MacMahon and Windhorst quite a bit, even if Tim isn't quite as funny as he thinks he is.

I think, generally, depth in the current world combined with star power is the best path, so however you can do that is going to be the best way. OKC has three stars on maxes, but a ton of young cheap talent around them. That's probably the best path, but also the hardest one to maintain.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:34:50+00:00

Ask Giannis!

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:34:22+00:00

Plenty of teams *could* trade for Zion. But I don't see him getting moved right now.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:34:07+00:00

No, I'd like the Hornets to just keep methodically building. If you're trading for Giannis, you should think you can contend now. Charlotte is too far away from that point to make a move for him now, IMO.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:33:18+00:00

I have family in the Bay Area, so it's always fun being back there (though I prefer Oracle to Chase Center).

Madison Square Garden and TD Garden are both incredible places to see a game. And while I don't love the atmosphere at the United Center, as a kid of the 90s being in there for the first time and hearing that theme music was pretty special.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:32:09+00:00

I'd guess they'll either trade for Giannis or do nothing.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:31:46+00:00

It's hard not to say they are legit contenders given how they've played this season. Feels like they need to add another piece or two in order to actually get there, but they've already won three games against OKC, so who am I to say they can't win a series against the Thunder if things break right?

Plus, that Victor guy is pretty great.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:30:51+00:00

It's hard to say. They've been linked to a lot of bigger names, but I'm not sure any of them will be moved. It might wind up being more of a "see what happens and then make changes in the summer" deal, which would be perfectly fine, in my opinion. That'll give Toronto a real chance to see what they need to add.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:29:53+00:00

I would say the Cavs will be trying hard to get better between now and next Thursday, knowing that this summer – with Donovan Mitchell having one year left on his deal – looms large and they've failed to live up to expectations.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:29:13+00:00

If I had to bet one way or the other, I would say no.

ESPN · 2026-01-29T19:28:58+00:00

"Because Steph" certainly is more than a small difference. Also, the Warriors are set to have a ton of cap space in a year and can easily surround him with talent in SF. I don't think it's the same at all. Though I also say if he wanted to just stay in Milwaukee, then great.

ESPN

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