The NBA’s trade season unofficially began on Dec. 15, when players who signed free agent deals over the summer became trade eligible. So far, we’ve seen a little bit of movement with two deals that were agreed to prior to that date, as the Golden State Warriors acquired Dennis Schröder and the Indiana Pacers traded for Thomas Bryant.
An unfortunate new reality of the first few years of the most recent CBA is that it’s more difficult than ever to swing big, blockbuster trades while teams are navigating the first and second aprons that can be destructive, especially during the season. Because the teams that spend the most money tend to be the best teams, that also kind of limits how much maneuvering some contenders can do as they try to position themselves in the championship race.
Having said that, in a year when there are no perfect teams, there are moves that contenders can make that either solidify things on the margins or act as the kinds of all-in moves that are statements of intent. Today, we wanted to identify the best teams in the league and try to figure out moves they can make as we move towards the most chaotic point of the NBA’s regular season.
Cleveland Cavaliers: A future second-round pick to the Sacramento Kings for Alex Len
Cleveland doesn’t urgently need anything as long as their main guys continue to stay healthy — as an added bonus, Max Strus should be making his debut sometime soon, providing another shooting threat to the league’s most effecting team from deep. We’re identifying a trade for Len from the Sacramento Kings just so they can add another bench big who can do a job and make them rely on Tristan Thompson a little less, but for the most part, the Cavs are in a great spot.
Boston Celtics: Jaden Springer and a 2025 second-round pick to the New Orleans Pelicans for Javonte Green
Like Cleveland, there’s not a ton that the Celtics badly need — probably the most important thing for them is to get Kristaps Porzingis 100 percent back to the level he was at last season. Having said that, Springer doesn’t really play, while Green is an ex-Celtic who can guard multiple positions. He hasn’t hit threes at a great clip this year, but perhaps getting a bunch of wide open looks that Boston’s system generates would help. If not, oh well.
New York Knicks: Robert Williams to the Knicks; Precious Achiuwa, Malaki Branham, two future second-round picks to the Blazers; Deuce McBride, Tyler Kolek to the Spurs
This would hurt the Knicks’ depth — McBride has been fun this year, Achiuwa is a reliable deputy for their frontcourt, and Kolek is a promising youngster. But they haven’t been afraid to give up a ton if it means getting a deal done to correct a need, and for all that Karl-Anthony Towns does well, he is just not a center who can protect the rim. The mix of getting Williams and the return of Mitchell Robinson means that they’d have a pair of options who could do that while sliding Towns to power forward, and while keeping Williams and Robinson healthy would be … let’s call it an adventure, Tom Thibodeau likes bigs who can protect the rim, and Williams can certainly do that. The Blazers should hold out for a first for Williams, but here, they get an effective rotation big in Achiuwa, take a flyer on Branham, and get a few future picks of their choosing, while the Spurs get a pair of fun young guards as they build around Victor Wembanyama.
Orlando Magic: Cole Anthony and a future lottery-protected first-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Dorian Finney-Smith
This would be a very un-Orlando Magic move, as the team tends to hold onto its guys and doesn’t like to make short-term trades. Having said that, there’s a real path for the Magic to compete to win the Eastern Conference this year once Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner get back from their respective oblique injuries. They have to get better from deep no matter what, as they’re 12th in the NBA in three-point attempts per game and 30th in three-point field goal percentage. Finney-Smith would fit on the defensive end as another long, tenacious wing, only he also connects on 45 percent of his 5.6 attempts per game from deep. And while the first wound be the bigger get for Brooklyn here, perhaps a change of scenery would be good for Anthony, who has seen his role dwindle this season in Orlando.
Milwaukee Bucks: Delon Wright to the Philadelphia 76ers for Eric Gordon
The Bucks run into the problem of being a second apron team that can’t trade much, so figuring something out for them is hard, plus they’re in the spot Cleveland and Boston are in where the real answer is getting an important piece completely up to speed (Khris Middleton). Having said that, they could always use a little more shooting, and while Wright is a good pro, he hasn’t exactly made a huge impact this season. As such, let’s have them call up the Sixers and see if they’re interested in what I’ll call a rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic trade where Wright gets turned into Eric Gordon, who hasn’t played a ton and has struggled to find his shot in a bench role this year. Again, they can’t do much — it’s hard to, say, convince a team to take Pat Connaughton’s deal unless they offer their 2031 first-round pick, which they probably shouldn’t do — so if the do something, it’ll be on the margins where they do something small like turning a guy on an expiring into a guy who has a player option for next year.
Oklahoma City Thunder: Aaron Wiggins and Utah’s 2025 first-round pick to the Utah Jazz for Jordan Clarkson
The Thunder are a brilliant team, but as the NBA Cup final against the Bucks showed, they could really use one guy other than Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who can consistently get his own shot — while he’s getting better at this, it’s not really Jalen Williams’ game right now. As such, let’s get them Clarkson, who absolutely does not have that problem under any circumstance. I completely understand the team’s desire to build something sustainable with a long-term view, which is why guys like Wiggins sign 5-year deals and they hold onto a ton of picks, but: 1. They have already built something really impressive, 2. Kicking the can down the road is a lot easier when you aren’t a title favorite like they are now. They have a bunch of guys like Wiggins, and sending Utah their top-6 protected 2025 pick doesn’t make an especially big dent into their war chest of assets.
Memphis Grizzlies: Marcus Smart and a future unprotected first-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Cameron Johnson
Someone should trade for Cameron Johnson, who has been playing some phenomenal basketball for the Nets this year and should be coveted by every single team with aspirations of winning a title. I really like the Grizzlies as a landing spot, as I think he fits into their tough, hard-nosed culture, would bring some much-needed shooting, and would be a menace on the defensive end — they’ve seemingly been in the market for a wing stopper forever. He’s not a guy who would ever take the ball out of Ja Morant’s hands, either. And while Smart hasn’t been great in what has mostly been a bench role this year, Brooklyn would get a future-facing asset in that pick and could probably flip Smart either before the deadline or in the summer.
Houston Rockets: Dillon Brooks, Steven Adams, and Jabari Smith Jr. to the Miami Heat for Jimmy Butler
I would completely get why Houston, despite being a preferred destination in Butler’s eyes, would not want to take the plunge for him, as teams usually don’t try to package guys for a star this early into being good. Having said that, the Rockets have been star hunting since James Harden got traded, Butler isn’t from too terribly far away, and this would be a statement of intent that Houston is ready to compete right now. Brooks has been a good culture settle the last year or two, Adams is a useful big, and Smith continues to show flashes of being an interesting two-way player, but putting Butler with guys like Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson, Tari Eason, and Jalen Green sure does have the potential to be awfully fun.
Dallas Mavericks: Maxi Kleber, Olivier-Maxence Prosper, and a 2025 second-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Dorian Finney-Smith
The Mavs can never have enough switchy wings who can shoot around Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, so why not go out and try to acquire an old friend who helped them land Irving in the first place? They’d have to give up Kleber, who is Jason Kidd’s safety blanket when the going gets tough, and they’d have to hope that Prosper and a second can beat a deal from another team that might offer them a first. But man, adding Finney-Smith to their arsenal of wing options alongside guys like PJ Washington and Naji Marshall would give opposing teams headaches once the postseason rolls around.
Denver Nuggets: Michael Porter Jr. and Zeke Nnaji to the Chicago Bulls for Zach LaVine
Denver’s interest in LaVine got floated by Sam Amick of The Athletic recently, and frankly, I love the idea — getting him would mean the Nuggets would have to try and win games 150-149, and that would kick ass. Porter is the kind of younger who is still under contract for a few more years that I assume would appeal to the Bulls (reporting has indicated that’s the case), and while Nnaji has never really taken off in Denver, perhaps a change in scenery would be good for him. But the big thing is LaVine has gotten to be a little underrated as a player recently due to his injury history and gigantic contract, and would give Denver a much-needed perimeter scoring option who is not Jamal Murray. In fact, he could probably help take some of the load off of Murray so he can take more time to heal up whenever injuries pop up.
Phoenix Suns: Bradley Beal and a 2031 lottery-protected first-round pick to the Miami Heat for Jimmy Butler and Alec Burks
I want to stress that I cannot fathom a world where this happens, because Beal would have to waive his no-trade clause and that is just such a difficult variable to predict. Having said that, Phoenix keeps getting floated as a landing spot for Butler, so I’ll take it seriously and imagine what this would look like in the event Beal can be convinced to waive it — I suppose there are worse things in life than getting to live in Miami. Anyway, the best asset in this trade is that first-round pick, especially if the Heat could get it without any protections. It’d be a bit weird if the Heat took on Beal’s contract, but that 2031 pick could be awfully juicy as they try to figure out what their team looks like in the post-Butler era.