Kelly Olynyk, Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors have quite an impressive young core but I'm not quite sure this team is ready to compete with the rest of the Eastern Conference. At this point, it may be unfair to expect the Raptors to even emerge as a threat to earn one of the final spots in the Play-In Tournament. And if this team is still 1-2 years away from a postseason berth, you can't help but wonder if it may be time for Toronto to explore trading a few of the veteran players on their roster. If there's one who could make sense of being moved at this year's NBA Trade Deadline, it's Kelly Olynyk.
Even though Olynyk signed a two-year deal with the Raptors this past offseason, it wouldn't be strange to see him traded. This happens all the time in the NBA. And objectively speaking, there's probably a contender where Olynyk would make much more sense at this point. As he just made his regular-season debut for the Raptors, the next few weeks could be the perfect showcase for him leading up to the NBA Trade Deadline.
Bobby Portis, Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks have had a pretty disappointing season thus far. Even though they've begun to play slightly better of late, this is still a team that carries plenty of uncertainty heading into the heart of the season. As the NBA Trade Deadline quickly approaches, the early indications are that the Bucks will be scouring the trade market for potential upgrades to their roster. If there's one veteran bench player who could find himself on the trade block on the Bucks, it's probably Bobby Portis.
Portis is averaging 13 points and eight rebounds per game on 46 percent shooting from the field and 37 percent shooting from 3-point range. Even though he's still a productive player for the Bucks, there's reason to believe that, at this point in his career, he could very much need a fresh start. And from Milwaukee's perspective, if they're going to make an upgrade at any point between now and the NBA Trade Deadline, you'd have to imagine Portis would almost certainly be involved in any deal.