Victor Oadipo rumors: Which team will blink first ahead of the trade deadline?
Who will blink first in the Victor Oladipo trade sweepstakes?
Heading into this week’s NBA Trade Deadline, there’s a growing sense (based on what continues to be reported) that we could be on the verge of an interesting next few days. One name that continues to see his name emerge in the rumor mill is Victor Oladipo.
Oladipo is a free agent after this season and has shown no willingness to re-sign with the Houston Rockets. That has led the team to shop the former all-star. In fact, according to ESPN, it’s at the point where Oladipo is expected to be moved by the deadline.
"The Houston Rockets are progressing on several fronts in talks to trade guard Victor Oladipo, and there’s strong confidence they’ll execute a deal ahead of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, sources told ESPN."
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The Miami Heat and New York Knicks have been long linked to Oladipo – both are big markets equipped with significant salary-cap space this offseason. It’s quite obvious that’s what Oladipo values.
The could lead to a diminished trade market for Oladipo over the next few days. That means that we could see an old-fashioned “who blinks first” type of negotiation between the Rockets and any other teams that are interested in Oladipo.
On one hand, you have the teams that are willing to give up a first-round pick (and perhaps not much more) for a chance at essentially renting Oladipo for the rest of the season. But, then again, those teams could be scared off if Oladipo is making it known that he will only re-sign with a handful of teams.
Then, you have the teams that Oladipo would re-sign with during the offseason. However, those teams likely won’t be offering much, if anything, in a potential Oladipo deal – which is where the Knicks and Heat stand, per the report.
And if the Heat and Knicks are willing to bet against themselves over the next few days, it could make trading Oladipo that much more difficult for Houston.
The general sense is that Victor Oladipo will be traded at the NBA Trade Deadline. Where he lands remains to be seen, and what the Rockets get in exchange is also one of the biggest questions heading into the trade deadline.
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With that in mind, who will blink first? Will it be the Heat, Knicks, or the Rockets? Or perhaps there will be a dark horse team out there that emerges?