The NBA Trade Deadline is almost here

Now that the NBA All-Star festivities have come to a close, there have been a heavy dose of trade rumors coming to the surface. The official trade deadline is this Thursday, February 18th, at 3 p.m. ET, and it is expected that we see a wide range of moves before that time. At the time of writing this, there have been no major trades to announce, but both New York teams have been heavily connected to a variety of moves. 

In all likelihood, the Nets and Knicks will NOT be pursuing bigger names such as Dwight Howard, Blake Griffin, and Al Horford, all of whom are expected to be dangled this week, so for the purpose of this article, the rumors surrounding them will be excluded. 

Starting with the Brooklyn Nets, there are rumblings that franchise player, center Brook Lopez, could be dealt to help expedite the rebuilding process. Lopez, who is in the first year of a 3 year, $63.5 million contract, has averaged 20.2 PPG along with 8.2 boards this year. As someone who has had an extensive history of injury issues, he has played (and started) every single game this season for the Nets, so this would be the ideal time for Brooklyn to sell high on his value. 

Another name that has popped up is PF Thaddeus Young, who the Nets acquired last year in exchange for aging forward Kevin Garnett. Young has enjoyed a very fine season, putting up 15.1 PPG with 9.1 rebounds. The only red flag with his game is his poor three point shooting percentage, which currently sits at a well-below league average 21%. It is important to note that he was never a high quality shooter, even during his prime with Philadelphia from 2007-2014, but it is still a cause for concern. 

Both Lopez and Young may be traded before tomorrow's deadline

According to several reports, the Raptors have shown extensive interest in both players. Point Guard Delon Wright has popped up in trade talks, as well as the 20th pick in this upcoming NBA draft, PF Patrick Patterson, and the 2016 1st round pick that Toronto had acquired in the Andrea Bargnani deal a few years back. 

As for my take on this, I'll keep it short and sweet. The Nets fired their head coach Lionel Hollins last month, and GM Billy King stepped down from his position. The franchise is currently crumbling as it does not have any first round picks for the foreseeable future, and little-to-no youth on the squad. Dealing a player like Lopez would be a big blow to the fan-base as he has been an icon to that team for several years now, but it is a move that needs to be done. Not only does it clear up cap space for this year's free agent class, but it should net them a first round pick or two that will give Brooklyn the opportunity to bring in young spark plugs from the 2016 draft class.

Now, moving on to the New York Knicks, 

If you talked to me six weeks ago, I would have told you the Knicks should be in "Buy" mode during trading season, but after dropping 9 of their last 10 games, and firing their head coach Derek Fisher, the team seems to have hit a stalemate. There is a decent pool of talent that they could ship off to acquire future assets, but the most notable name that they seem willing to part with is guard Jose Calderon.

Calderon, who was acquired in the Tyson Chandler deal a few years back, is owed $7.7 million next season, but could suit a decent amount of teams as a backup floor general. This season, he is averaging 8.2 PPG, 4.4 assists, while shooting 41% from downtown, and 87.9 percent from the charity stripe. Historically, his defensive metrics have fallen well below average, which has negated his positive offensive output.

Could we see Jose Calderon in a new uniform next week?

The team has talked to the Atlanta Hawks about All-Star guard Jeff Teague, as the team made him very available in the recent weeks. The Knicks have reportedly tried to add Kyle O'Quinn in a potential deal as a sweetener (similar to the Shumpert/Smith trade in 2014), but O'Quinn's value has fallen substantially in the past few months due to lack of playing time.

The only trade that I can see the Knicks doing is shipping out Jose Calderon, but an outside of the box idea would be to trade SG Arron Afflalo, who currently has a $8 million player option for 2016-2017 that will likely be declined. Afflalo has had his ups and downs with New York this year, but at a glance his numbers do not look half bad. As of the All-Star Break, he is averaging 14.2 PPG while shooting 37% percent from the 3 point line. The 30 year old could be dangled in the next 24 hours or so in hopes to acquire a draft pick or two.

Should the Knicks trade away Arron Afflalo?

The only other names I can see the Knicks pursuing in the future are: Ricky Rubio (T-Wolves), Brandon Jennings (acquired by Magic on 2/16/16), and Mike Conley (Unrestricted Free Agent after the 2015-2016 season). GM Phil Jackson will soon decide what direction he wants to take his franchise, whether that be shedding salary from Calderon/Afflalo, trading away star SF Carmelo Anthony for future assets, or acquiring a star in this upcoming free agent class.