NBA trade rumors 2016: Will the Kings trade away Rudy Gay before the trade deadline?

The National Basketball Association (NBA) rumor mill is about to heat up because the free agents who signed deals over the summer can now be traded starting Dec. 15. The trade market is now open, but the biggest name that has been popping up in trade rumors actually signed a contract extension a year ago.

It's no secret that Rudy Gay wants to leave the Sacramento Kings. There was even talk that he has already informed the Kings that he's going to opt out from his contract. The last year of his deal is a player option, by the way, so he can pack up and go after the season. Will the Kings move Gay before the trade deadline, or are they going to hold onto him and risk losing him?

In his latest podcast (via NBC Sports), Adrian Wojnarowski talked about why the Kings should trade Gay before it's too late.

"The one player who is going to have to move between now and the trade deadline is Rudy Gay. I don't think the Kings can make the same mistake New Orleans made last year with Ryan Anderson. Ryan Anderson was pretty clear he was not going to re-sign there and they lost him for nothing. Especially for a team so devoid of assets, they couldn't let him walk for nothing," he stated.

Wojnarowski made a good point. So, which team is waiting for the chance to grab him? "There's no question Oklahoma City. Indiana has had interest in him. Houston has had some peripheral interest. I don't think they have the pieces to trade," he said.

The Thunder obviously needs more scorers to lighten Russell Westbrook's load. Westbrook is a triple-double machine, but can he keep it up until the end of the season? Indiana also needs a consistent scorer to help Paul George. Same goes with Houston. They already have Ryan Anderson and Trevor Ariza starting in the forward positions, but Gay is just a different type of player.

Will the Kings pull the trigger? Where will Gay end up?