From the perspective of an NBA team, NBA players are a little like stocks. The time to acquire them is when their value is at their lowest and time to deal them is when their value is at their lowest. Other than superstars, players’ trade values are more fluid than we might think.
Coming off of his bubble success and with what was potentially a minor injury, Kristaps Porzingis’ value was much higher at this point last year. After another year he struggled to stay healthy, and struggled to maintain effective aggression, Porzingis would command the price of a used up mule rather than a pristine unicorn.