NBA News: Knicks fire sale? A top center off the market? New award, more

Morning Hoop Heads! Here’s the latest NBA news from around the league:

NBA News: Desmond Bane will be out for another 3–4 weeks.

Desmond Bane has already been out for a month, but he’ll be out for another month with an injured toe. The Memphis Grizzlies have treaded water without Bane, who was having a breakout season, helping the Grizzlies go 9-4, but they’ve only gone 6-5 without him thus far.

Fortunately, they’re tied for second in the West, and while they’ll have to wait a while longer to see their big three back together, they aren’t necessarily struggling at the moment.

NBA News: A New York Knicks fire sale?

The New York Knicks are trimming their rotation in hopes of improving their chances of making the playoffs. This means that several players, such as Derrick Rose, Evan Fournier, and Cam Reddish, are on the outside looking in. Rose is reportedly available, with teams such as the Dallas Mavericks reportedly interested in trading for him.

Fournier is also available, and the Knicks are apparently willing to attach Immanuel Quickley to move him and his bad contract. Meanwhile, Reddish, who was taken 10th overall in 2019, is available, with the Knicks and his agent working together to find a new team for him.

This is a surprising development considering the Knicks traded a first-round pick to the Hawks to acquire him a year ago. Now, they may not recoup their value for him at this point. Several teams are reportedly interested in him, but no trade has been made as of yet.

NBA News: Is a top center off the trade market?

Since the offseason, San Antonio Spurs center Jakob Poeltl has been expected to be moved, but a recent report by Spurs Talk’s LJ Ellis suggests that the Spurs are hesitant to do so. Instead, they hope to re-sign him and pair him with the likely No. 1 overall pick, Victor Wembanyama.

The report also states that the asking price for Poeltl, if he is to be moved, is two lightly protected firsts. The Warriors are among the teams interested in acquiring him, but it’s unclear if they have the assets the Spurs want or whether they will ultimately part with him.

NBA News: A New NBA Award

It’s not every day that there’s a new NBA award created, but the NBA recently announced that the Maurice Podoloff Trophy would be awarded to the team with the best record in the league after each regular season. 

Reactions to the new award have seemingly been mixed, at best, with some questioning the point. I have to say that I agree. The creation of a new award that recognizes a team for success during the regular season is, in theory, fine, but waiting until Year 76 of the NBA seems like odd timing. Either way, the Podoloff Trophy will now be awarded going forward. 

That’s all for now, hoops heads!