1 Ambitious Trade Target for Every NBA Team
1 Ambitious Trade Target for Every NBA Team0 of 30
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The NBA offseason brings opportunity, optimism and no shortage of pie-in-the-sky transactional dreaming. In that spirit, Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale and Grant Hughes are here to suggest one trade acquisition that should occupy the top spot on each team’s offseason vision board.
Almost every player featured will be a little far-fetched, but that’s kind of the point. These are ambitious trade targets, players who could plausibly be acquired but not ones you’d ever deem likely.
In reality, most teams will aim lower. But why adjust expectations downward now, just before the dawn of the offseason feeding frenzy? Buzzkills can wait. For now, let’s get aggressively imaginative.
Atlanta Hawks: Alex Caruso1 of 30
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The Atlanta Hawks seem likely to bust up the Trae Young-Dejounte Murray backcourt, but it’s unclear which of the two guards is likeliest to go. If it’s Murray who winds up leaving via trade, Atlanta should focus on supporting Young with the best defensive running mate possible.
That sounds like Alex Caruso, an All-Defensive honoree in each of the last two seasons.
Caruso’s current team, the Chicago Bulls, already have Coby White in place as their point guard. That means a Murray-for-Caruso swap wouldn’t make sense. Atlanta could send Murray to a destination in greater need of his services and reroute some of the assets to the Bulls in a package for the star stopper.
No guard who logged at least 25 games last season posted a higher Defensive Estimated Plus/Minus than Caruso, who rates as one of the rare backcourt players whose impact approaches that of the typically more valuable paint-protecting big man. His ability to disrupt at the point of attack, blow up screening actions and force opposing ball-handlers away from their spots can change the outcome of entire games.
Murray overlapped more than expected with Young, and the Hawks didn’t look nearly different enough after adding him at the 2023 trade deadline. Caruso would bring a more fundamental change to Atlanta’s makeup, adding an element of predatory defense that simply hasn’t been there.
-Hughes
Boston Celtics: Derrick Rose2 of 30
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The Boston Celtics are basically the team with everything, making shopping especially tricky. Any improvements they’d make to the rotation have to come in the 7-9 range on the depth chart—the spots occupied by Peyton Pritchard, Sam Hauser and Luke Kornet.
All three players offer something significant to the Celtics’ operation, and second-apron restrictions make upgrading any of them tougher. Boston can’t, for example, aggregate salary. So that takes away the option of bundling Pritchard and Hauser to creep up toward $9 million in matching money.
Between Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Boston has four high-end advantage creators on offense. But that’s not quite the same thing as saying the Celtics have a true, old-school facilitator.
Considering Boston looks worse (a relative term) when its offense bogs down, maybe that’s the place to start.
Rose is nearing the end of the line and almost certainly isn’t a more valuable player on balance than Pritchard, whose minutes he’d probably cut into in this hypothetical. Still, the veteran guard has settled in as a useful locker-room leader, and he’s at least wired to run the offense to the benefit of others.
As you can see, Boston can have all the ambition it wants. But a stacked roster and the strictures imposed by the second apron make major talent additions almost impossible.
-Hughes
Brooklyn Nets: Trae Young3 of 30
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With their first-round picks in 2024 and 2026 (plus swaps in 2025 and 2027) owed to the Houston Rockets because of the James Harden trade, the Brooklyn Nets have little to gain by tanking.
That makes Trae Young a sensible target, as does the three-time All-Star’s track record of elevating a team’s offense. In every year from 2019-20 to 2022-23, Young boosted the Atlanta Hawks’ attack by at least 6.8 points per 100 possessions when he was on the floor. A Nets offense that ranked 23rd in scoring efficiency and 26th in effective field-goal percentage could certainly use a guy with career averages of 25.5 points and 9.5 assists per game.
With Ben Simmons’ expiring $40.3 million salary and loads of draft picks coming in from the Phoenix Suns and Philadelphia 76ers, Brooklyn might even be able to pull off a Young acquisition without giving up Mikal Bridges.
Plenty of other teams with offensive holes in the backcourt, led by the Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers, could use Young. But the Nets don’t have to worry about Young disrupting the growth of an already successful young core like Orlando does, and they can also significantly outbid LA.
-Hughes
Charlotte Hornets: Alperen Sengün4 of 30
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New ownership, a new front office and a new head coach mean the Charlotte Hornets are effectively starting all the way over. Sure, they’ve got LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller and some draft assets that allow for flexible planning. But this group should clearly be in the business of adding young players who could become cornerstones.
Most who fit that description aren’t available because their current teams value them too highly. That’s certainly the case with the target here, Alperen Sengün. But because the Houston Rockets have several recent lottery picks who’ll all need major extensions soon, and because their late-season surge came while Sengün was sidelined by injury, perhaps there’s a way to have a conversation about acquiring the up-and-coming center.
Houston can’t realistically pay down-the-line market rates for Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Amen Thompson, this year’s lottery pick and Sengün.
Charlotte could get aggressive and build the trade package around Ball if it’s not convinced he and Miller make sense together. Houston would have to send back significant cash to match Ball’s max salary, which might be doable with Jock Landale’s non-guarantee and Steven Adams’ expiring $12.6 million.
More likely, Charlotte could bundle three first-rounders with Nick Richards’ $5 million or Cody Martin’s $8.1 million as matching salary.
Sengün’s facilitation at the 5 could unlock some exciting offensive options—whether he works in tandem with Ball or as the primary playmaker on a version of the Hornets built around Miller instead.
-Hughes
Chicago Bulls: Brandon Ingram5 of 30
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The Chicago Bulls should target draft compensation, flexibility and young players in any trade scenarios. Unfortunately, that’s known in the biz as “a rebuild”, and the Bulls are very much not into the concept.
If Chicago is intent on being taken seriously by precisely no one and remains committed to its pursuit of a first-round ceiling, win-now help has to be the play. That’s tricky with what appears to be an increasingly likely Zach LaVine trade, but maybe there’s a way for the Bulls to move their highly compensated guard for another team’s out-of-favor star, thereby gaining a little flexibility without lowering their floor.
Brandon Ingram has one year left on his deal before 2025 free agency, which is actually more of a feature than a bug from the Bulls’ perspective. Chicago could build a trade by sending LaVine and his remaining three years to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for a one-year test run with Ingram.
That’d allow a season to evaluate his fit with fellow three-point-attempt-eschewer DeMar DeRozan (who seems destined to return in free agency) and Coby White. If things click, and if Ingram regains his All-Star form, Chicago can retain him on a new deal. But if things don’t work out, the Bulls will have at least gotten out from under LaVine’s contract without sliding too far down the standings in 2024-25.
-Hughes
Cleveland Cavaliers: Deni Avdija6 of 30
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It’s hard to know what the Cleveland Cavaliers will look like after the offseason shakeup that now seems imminent. In the wake of a post-elimination treatise that highlighted issues ranging from the roster’s lack of trust in coach JB Bickerstaff to the possibility of virtually everyone not named Evan Mobley being traded, the Cavs’ potential needs could be all over the map.
It’s a good thing Deni Avdija makes sense in every hypothetical form the Cavs might take after they’re done reshuffling. A rugged 23-year-old combo forward who defended at a high level from the moment he entered the league in 2020-21, Avdija became a 37.4 percent three-point shooter, dramatically upped his foul-drawing craft, took strides as a playmaker and averaged a career-high 14.7 points per game in his recently completed fourth season.
Avdija makes sense as an additional facilitator and versatile shutdown stopper, whether one or both of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland returns. And his improved shooting means he could function as a spacing 4 alongside Evan Mobley if Jarrett Allen winds up elsewhere.
The Washington Wizards’ rebuild is in its infancy, and they inked Avdija to a four-year, $55 million extension in October that registers as a colossal bargain just a few months later. They won’t part with him easily.
If Cleveland puts Allen on the table and considers including its 2024 first-rounder on draft night, it should be enough to get Washington’s attention.
-Hughes
Dallas Mavericks: De’Andre Hunter7 of 30
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De’Andre Hunter is not ambitious in the conventional sense. The Dallas Mavericks have the assets to aim higher, even after striking deals for P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford at the deadline.
This selection is aggressive because of the intent behind it.
Dallas can go prowling for bigger fish. But why would it? This core already reached the conference finals—and could go further. Rather than send out more first-round equity, the Mavs should be looking to augment their nucleus while preserving the assets they have left if they need more material changes.
To that end, Hunter is someone Dallas should be able sniff around without dangling a first-rounder out of the gate.
Teams tend to lust after 6’8″ wings who can knock down threes. Hunter fits that bill. And he cleaned up his shot diet this past year. But his defense isn’t write-home worthy, he has some injuries in the rearview, and his offensive impact has fluctuated season-to-season. With a not-so-small three years and $69.9 million left on his deal, Hunter is much less attractive than your typical plug-and-play wing.
At the same time, someone his size, with his outside touch and smattering of on-ball moments, is perfect for Dallas. Its defense has remained on fire since the trade deadline, but it could use a wing with more offensive skills who doesn’t torpedo its operations at the other end. Hunter fits that bill. And defensive improvement isn’t out of the question. He’s 26, and the Mavs have talented frontline tryhards that the Hawks do not. Hunter’s role would not be as taxing.
Does pitching Atlanta on Tim Hardaway Jr.’s expiring contract, a smaller salary and seconds get the job done? If the Hawks are worried about their long-term payroll or looking to enter a more wholesale shift after winning the No. 1 pick, perhaps it does. If it doesn’t, the Mavs can use Olivier Maxence-Prosper, Jaden Hardy or even Josh Green as a primary sweetener.
This might come across as a lot to Mavs fans. It’s really not. It stings more if you’re a big believer in Green—which…fair. But Hunter’s size is superior, and his three-point touch is more established. Plus, his value to Dallas goes through the roof if it gets outbid for Derrick Jones Jr. in free agency.
—Favale
Denver Nuggets: Dean Wade8 of 30
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Upgrading the roster on the margins after their semifinals loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves will be a trying venture for the Denver Nuggets. They forecast as a second-apron team if they re-sign Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (player option)—something they should absolutely do.
Losing the ability to aggregate salaries and take back more money will prove constrictive. It’s much less limiting if the Nuggets are willing to move Aaron Gordon, Jamal Murray or Michael Porter Jr., but going down that route qualifies as an overreaction. Maybe the perfect scenario shifts that stance. As of now, though, that deal is a combination of tough to spot and wildly unlikely.
Zeke Nnaji’s extension kicking in gives Denver some options. He’ll make about $8.9 million next season. The Nuggets can find a top-seven or -eight rotation player in that price zone.
Dean Wade comfortably fits into the dollar-for-dollar salary structure. He’s on the books for roughly $6.2 million next season. His injury history leaves room for doubt, but he can guard many bigger wings. Despite lacking the spatial thrust Denver gets from Christian Braun and Peyton Watson, he brings a degree of shooting and on-ball jiggle they do not.
Calling Wade an “ambitious’ target might be an understatement. Cheap impact combo forwards are hard to find, and Cleveland remains at a general wing deficit. Nnaji’s deal isn’t doing the Nuggets any favors, either. A four-year commitment at $32 million is an overpay relative to what he’s done in the league so far.
Denver does have draft sweeteners to attach. Forking over its 2031 first-rounder goes too far, but No. 28 and second-round compensation could do the trick. And who knows, the Cavs might value Nnaji’s theoretical floor-spacing as they (presumably) look to reorient their frontcourt makeup.
—Favale
Detroit Pistons: Draymond Green9 of 30
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The Detroit Pistons were among the teams rumored to be interested in Draymond Green during 2023 free agency. Though they didn’t land the four-time All-Star then, the Pistons have the flexibility to deal for him now.
With up to $64 million in cap space at its disposal, Detroit could easily absorb Green’s $24.1 million salary without needing to send anything but picks back to the tax-hit Golden State Warriors. This hypothetical assumes the Pistons are still in search of veterans to fast-track a dragging rebuild and that the Dubs have had enough of Green’s disruptive behavior to get off his contract in a money-saving move.
The Pistons would still have an issue with floor spacing in their two-big lineups, but Green has been finding ways to overcome that problem for years. It’s also worth noting he shot a career-best 39.5 percent from deep last season. If that hit rate is remotely sustainable, Detroit could get away with a Green-Jalen Duren frontcourt on offense.
It also doesn’t hurt that Green, a Saginaw product who attended Michigan State, would be more welcomed in Detroit than any other landing spot.
The Warriors seem most likely to keep their core together and try to compete for at least the two-year duration of Stephen Curry’s contract. But if Detroit wants to add some serious competitive intensity (and risk the blow-ups that could come in a losing environment), it should keep an eye on Green.
-Hughes
Golden State Warriors: Lauri Markkanen10 of 30
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Don’t fall into the trap of thinking Lauri Markkanen isn’t ambitious enough. He seems more likely to renegotiate and extend his contract than get rerouted.
The Golden State Warriors should have enough assets for the Utah Jazz to consider the alternative.
A package built around some combination of Jonathan Kuminga, Brandin Podziemski, Moses Moody, multiple first-round picks and salary-matching fodder has the bones of a real offer. Will the Warriors be open to putting an ultra-aggressive bid for Markkanen, or anyone else, on the table? That’s a better question.
Few singular acquisitions can propel the Dubs back to dynastic heights. Markkanen isn’t one of them. But he’s a more palatable option than older stars—such as Kevin Durant or Paul George—who increase Golden State’s immediate title chances at the gargantuan expense of the future.
Markkanen just turned 27 in May. He most likely won’t be the face of a post-Stephen Curry Warriors squad. But he is young and talented enough to be a core member of it.
In the meantime, pairing Markkanen with Curry and Draymond juices the Warriors’ offense and relevance. He just wrapped his second season averaging north of 23 points per game while knocking down more than 55 percent of his twos and 39 percent of his threes. Across league history, just five other players have spit out more than one of these campaigns: Curry (four), Kevin Durant (five), Kawhi Leonard (three), Karl-Anthony Towns (three) and LeBron James (two).
Golden State will still need to futz and fiddle on the margins, grapple with Klay Thompson’s free agency and decide whether it’s willing to remain a taxpayer. But if the Dubs are hell-bent on making the most of Curry’s megastar window, Markkanen’s prospective fit, both now and later, should appeal to them.
–Favale
Houston Rockets: LaMelo Ball11 of 30
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LaMelo Ball is either a complete bonkers or totally gettable trade option depending on who’s sermonizing about the topic. I lean toward the former, which means he’s perfect for this exercise!
This idea that the Charlotte Hornets should consider moving LaMelo and build around Brandon Miller is perhaps debatable. To me, though, it’s mostly weird. LaMelo and Miller are not on polar opposite timelines or functional redundant. If anything, they stand to optimize one another.
Worrying about LaMelo’s long-term contentment as Charlotte leans into a rebuild is fair. But again, it’s not like he’s on a warring timeline. He doesn’t turn 23 until August and is under contract, with no player options, through 2028-29.
Using LaMelo’s murky health bill as the impetus for the Hornets to shop him is probably the most sensible angle. His ankle injuries are adding up, and he’s appeared in just 58 games combined over the past two seasons.
That will scare off teams. It shouldn’t faze the Houston Rockets. They need someone who is more of a floor general than Fred VanVleet to weaponize the offense fully, and LaMelo has the off-ball stroke required to play off FVV, Amen Thompson and Alperen Şengün.
Settling on the framework of a package is fascinating stuff. The Hornets are positioned to prioritize future picks. Houston has plenty of those to dangle. (Shout-out, Brooklyn.)
Salary matching gets a little funky. The Rockets need to send out about $28 million to make the math work. Including two of Steven Adams, Jeff Green (non-guaranteed), Jock Landale (non-guaranteed) and Jae’Sean Tate (tea option) gets them past the halfway mark. Treating the No. 3 pick as actual salary later in the summer ($10.1 million) comes close to taking care of the rest. (It gets all the way there if Adams’ contract is involved.)
And yet, Charlotte will push for more than No. 3, future picks and afterthought salary. Would Houston include any one of Thompson, Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Cam Whitmore or Tari Eason to sweeten the pot? Smith and Thompson are probably no-gos. I’d draw a line on Eason to preserve the defense. Everybody else should be on the table if it means adding LaMelo to a core of Şengün, Thompson, Eason, Smith, FVV and Dillon Brooks.
—Favale
Indiana Pacers: Jaden McDaniels12 of 30
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Everyone expects the Minnesota Timberwolves to address their spiking salary issues by trading Karl-Anthony Towns at some point before the end of the 2024-25 league year. To be clear, they don’t have to trim payroll at all. If Wolves ownership (whomever that winds up being) wants to pay a bunch of tax and deal with the repercussions of the second apron, Minnesota could simply keep the whole gang together and spend what it costs to do so.
A middle path exists between the drastic trade of a costly star and the status quo. It involves moving wing defensive ace Jaden McDaniels.
If the rangy, 6’9” role player is ever on the block, the Indiana Pacers should be all over him.
With Tyrese Haliburton leading the charge, Pascal Siakam serving as a second star who can punish mismatches and a system that skews toward offense in the extreme, Indy has the scoring side of things handled. The trouble is on the other end, where a general lack of wing size contributes to a defense that doesn’t disrupt off the ball and lacks a true shutdown option on it.
McDaniels has four years and $108 million left on the contract he signed in October, and he had an objectively disappointing season on the offensive end. But there aren’t many better defensive forwards in the league. Together with Aaron Nesmith and a full season of Siakam, McDaniels could elevate the Pacers defense to the middle of the pack—maybe even cracking the top 10 if everything breaks right.
Combined with a rocket-fueled attack, that should be enough to get Indiana into the true contender class.
-Hughes
Los Angeles Clippers: Alex Caruso13 of 30
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Does a 2030 or 2031 first and P.J. Tucker’s expiring contract (he has a 2024-25 player option) get the Los Angeles Clippers into the Alex Caruso discussion?
*Shrugs in legitimate “I honestly don’t know” fashion.*
That pick is to die for in a vacuum. Chicago Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas also knows he probably won’t be the one making it.
It still never hurts to try. And the Clippers need the hellacious defense Caruso provides—his relentless ball pressure, his screen navigation, his ability to guard up, the whole nine.
LA ranked 24th in points allowed per possession after the All-Star break and fared poorly in transition basically all year. Relying on Kawhi Leonard and Paul George (assuming he’s back) will only get tougher as they continue to age. Caruso brings a tenacity capable of alleviating that curve and improving the entire team—all without needing a prescribed number of touches at the offensive end.
—Favale
Los Angeles Lakers: Donovan Mitchell14 of 30
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“Donovan Mitchell will inevitably ask out of Cleveland!” truthers may not see this as ambitious enough. But in reality, it’s inching toward too ambitious.
Sources told The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Joe Vardon and Jason Lloyd that Mitchell is open to signing an extension with the Cavaliers this summer. That extensive playoff postmortem also said Mitchell didn’t mesh with head coach J.B. Bickerstaff.
Well, Bickerstaff is now gone. The timing can’t be purely a coincidence. Bickerstaff may not have done enough to make him indispensable, but he certainly didn’t fail in a way that rendered his exit necessary—unless, of course, Cleveland knows it’s the difference between locking down Mitchell and being forced to gauge his trade value.
Still, the Los Angeles Lakers might as well hope the 27-year-old does not put pen to paper on a four-year, $208.5 million extension. That opens the door for them (and others).
Three-star models are less tenable this side of the second-apron tax, but the Lakers are a special case study. LeBron James is going into his age-40 season. They won’t be tasked with floating a trio of superstar salaries for much longer.
Other teams can (and will) dangle stronger packages for Mitchell. But he will have a hefty say in where he goes one year out from free agency. And for their part, the Lakers are armed with real stuff to offer—mainly some combination of three firsts, two swaps, five seconds, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura.
—Favale
Memphis Grizzlies: Jarrett Allen15 of 30
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League sources told NBA insider Marc Stein that Jarrett Allen is generating a ton of interest from teams outside Cleveland. This makes sense.
Not only do the Cavs look more balanced playing four-out lineups, but people with the team were apparently frustrated Allen didn’t do “more to try and play” through a rib injury during the playoffs. Nobody with the organization, of course, tied their name to said qualms. Frankly, if Cleveland doesn’t move Allen on its own accord, he should be demanding for out after such an unnecessary assassination attempt on his character.
Regardless of the circumstances, the Memphis Grizzlies should get involved.
Rolling with Jaren Jackson Jr. as the lone big in core lineups is fine. But the depth chart needs some extra size up front. Jackson has the offensive and defensive malleability to make it work alongside Allen. He has proven as much through partnerships with Steven Adams and Jonas Valančiūnas.
Allen profiles as an even comfier frontline bro. As a more stymying rim protector, he alleviates Jackson’s defensive workload in a way we haven’t totally seen before. And while he doesn’t have a ton of range on offense, he’s graduated from screen-and-dive specialist to someone who can make quick passes on rolls, down the occasional hook shot and churn out buckets and dimes after taking a couple of dribbles in space.
Memphis has the assets to enter what seems like an inevitable sweepstakes. The challenge lies in the type of packages it can offer.
Cleveland will be more interested in players than draft equity at this stage of its competitive window. The Grizzlies may need to rope in a third team or hope the Cavs are smitten with offers built around Luke Kennard (team option), Brandon Clarke or Marcus Smart and draft equity.
Another potential side quest: Memphis’ proximity to the tax. Will it be willing to dive in head first if it means getting Allen? And if not, can the front office map out scenarios in which the Grizzlies add Allen’s team-friendly $20 million salary while skirting the tax? (The latter scenario is not ideal, but it’s possible.)
—Favale
Miami Heat: Donovan Mitchell16 of 30
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The Miami Heat do not rebuild. They retool. And that relentless drive to stay competitive is part of the reason there’s almost no target too ambitious for their taste.
Donovan Mitchell can enter free agency after the 2024-25 season, which makes trading assets for him a risky proposition. Patient franchises might prefer to wait until they can just sign him outright, but the Heat tend to favor an aggressive approach.
Miami could put together a trade package that would at least be competitive. Considering Mitchell might only be a one-year rental for other teams, Miami might beat the market entirely by offering up the three first-rounders it’s allowed to trade (2024, 2029 and 2031) along with Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Nikola Jović.
Considering Miami’s status as an in-demand landing spot, Mitchell could put pressure on Cleveland to accept a Heat offer that doesn’t include every available asset. That strategy didn’t work for Damian Lillard, but Mitchell has the added leverage of threatening to leave for nothing in a year.
Whether Miami intends to re-up with Jimmy Butler on an extension or not, Mitchell addresses its most pressing needs for offensive creation and high-volume three-point shooting. Multiple playoff teams will target Mitchell if he doesn’t sign a four-year, $208 million extension with the Cavs, but the Heat will have more to offer—both in trade assets and the opportunity to contend in a warm-weather spot—than most.
-Hughes
Milwaukee Bucks: Ayo Dosunmu17 of 30
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The Milwaukee Bucks can’t aggregate salaries, can’t take back more money than they send out and owe swap rights on the only first-round picks they haven’t traded outright. Other than those minor hindrances, Milwaukee is primed for action!
Assuming aggressive fan-engager and free agent Patrick Beverley won’t be back in Milwaukee next season, the Bucks and their underperforming defense will need another point-of-attack ballhawk. Ayo Dosunmu is much more than that after a career year in which he averaged 12.2 points and 3.2 assists while hitting 40.3 percent of his triples, but we’re trying to be ambitious.
For the Bucks to have any chance at a player as young, effective and cheap (two years left at just $14 million) as Dosunmu, they’ll have to surrender a rotation piece like Bobby Portis or Pat Connaughton, plus the 2024 second-rounder they have coming from the Portland Trail Blazers. It might even take carve-outs to the swap rights on their 2024, 2026 and 2030 picks—the first two of which they owe to New Orleans and the last to Portland.
Given Milwaukee’s constraints, Dosunmu is a wildly ambitious player to target. Jevon Carter, Dosunmu’s teammate on the Bulls, and a former Buck, would be a much more realistic option. We’re not here for the easy gets, though. So Dosunmu it is.
-Hughes
Minnesota Timberwolves: Isaiah Joe18 of 30
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Trading out of the second apron would count as malpractice by the Minnesota Timberwolves after making the Western Conference Finals.
Is there a scenario in which moving Mike Conley, Rudy Gobert, Jaden McDaniels, Naz Reid or Karl-Anthony Towns is done in service of upgrading the roster? If said deal brings back an elite floor general, then maybe. But this exercise isn’t meant to exist too far outside the realm of feasibility. Minnesota’s top-six players are off limits.
This makes the mission here much harder. The Timberwolves’ seventh-most expensive player next season (as of now) is Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who will earn a not-so-whopping $4.3 million. Anyone from the pool of possibilities must earn exactly as much or less.
Isaiah Joe falls into the latter bucket, which could make it so Minnesota doesn’t have to give up NAW for him. Joe has a team option for $2.2 million. That price point is eminently workable for the Timberwolves, whose package can consist of cheapo money and draft picks.
Adding Joe’s volcanic shooting would be a boon for the offense. Especially given the degree of difficulty on many of his makes. He has also shown that he’ll attack in open space and, despite not being particularly buff, work his behind off on the defensive end.
Now’s about the time we must move into the “Good luck getting him out of Oklahoma City” portion of the discussion.
The Thunder may just decline Joe’s team option and hammer out a raise one year early to avoid some overlap with forthcoming paydays for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and, possibly, Josh Giddey. But if Oklahoma City gives into the urge of acquiring a bigger, more expensive name, it could exercise Joe’s team option and look to capitalize on his market value ahead of what should be a fairly sizable payday.
If this sounds like an ultra-specific scenario at the mercy of caveats galore, well, that’s because it is. Welcome to the world of ambitious trade targets, folks.
—Favale
New Orleans Pelicans: Trae Young19 of 30
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Executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin sounds like someone who’s ready to shake up the New Orleans Pelicans following their Zion Williamson-less first-round sweep at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder. He does not necessarily sound like someone who thinks his team needs a floor general, let alone one as expensive and divisive as Trae Young.
Respectfully, I disagree.
Point Zion is a revelation. But the Pelicans need an organizer who can sustain the show in the (likely) event that he misses extensive time or isn’t available for postseason games. Young is #ThatDude. And he would assuredly nudge up New Orleans’ overall three-point volume.
Whether he’s the cleanest fit beside Zion is debatable. He still needs more experience playing off the ball. But the Pelicans could and should spam Zion-Trae pick-and-rolls.
Various other elements of Young’s fit slide into place if New Orleans can keep Trey Murphy, Herb Jones and CJ McCollum as part of any deal. Jones and Murphy have the tools to help insulate Young on defense, and retaining McCollum and Murphy preserve the spacing around Trae-Zion actions. (Zion’s career-best defense from this year looms large here as well.)
Can the Pelicans exit the Young sweepstakes with Zion, Herb, Trey and CJ still on the roster? That’s what makes this ambitious. New Orleans has the pick equity to make it happen and can match salaries with Brandon Ingram as the centerpiece.
Does something like Ingram, Dyson Daniels and multiple first-rounders appeal to the Atlanta Hawks? That’s a separate matter. Ingram’s next deal is on the horizon, and the Hawks won’t be too keen on taking steps back when San Antonio controls its draft pick in 2025, 2026 (swap) and 2027.
Given the state of affairs in Atlanta, though, anything feels on the table. Its trajectory could change after landing the No. 1 pick. Whatever the Hawks’ long-term motives, both Young and Dejounte Murray will begin the offseason at the heart of the rumor mill. If and when Trae hits the chopping block, the Pelicans should keep an open mind.
—Favale
New York Knicks: Paul George20 of 30
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Wherever the line is between ambitious and hare-brained, we’re on it with this one.
Paul George is an odd choice as a trade target because he can decline his player option to hit free agency, which would allow him to sign with any team that can afford him. The problem there: Few teams fall into that category. The Philadelphia 76ers and Orlando Magic will have immense spending power, and the Oklahoma City Thunder could make salary-trimming moves to clear something close to max-level room. But that ends the list of cash-rich potential contenders who could sign PG13 to a market-rate contract.
That leaves the much more complicated but viable opt-in-and-trade or sign-and-trade scenarios in which George can steer himself to a preferred destination if the LA Clippers cooperate.
George could fetch the Clips some combination of Julius Randle, Miles McBride and/or Mitchell Robinson, plus multiple future first-rounders. If that package seems underwhelming, it’s because the Clippers won’t be in a strong negotiating position. George can leave for nothing in free agency if he wants.
Still a top-end wing defender and facilitator at his position, George would bring much-needed length and versatility to New York’s rotation while also giving Jalen Brunson a running mate capable of captaining the offense once in a while. There’d be risk here with George heading into his age-34 season, but the Knicks need the talent and star-power upgrades he’d provide.
-Hughes
Oklahoma City Thunder: Deni Avdija21 of 30
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Everyone who’s trying to send the Oklahoma City Thunder on a chase for a traditional big man isn’t going to like this. “More rebounds!” Or something.
Rebounding proved to be an issue in the Thunder’s second-round loss to Dallas. Also an issue: three-point shooting. (Also also: The Mavs are really good.) A more dynamic offensive option who didn’t compromise the floor spacing or defense would have done just as much—if not more.
Floor balance is a biggy here. The Thunder want to play five-out. Plugging in a traditional 5—say, Daniel Gafford—would clog up the lane for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams drives. That trade-off isn’t worth any screening and roll gravity you get from a non-star center.
Even with this criteria, many will want Oklahoma City to make a glitzier splash. Lauri Markkanen, anyone?!? That’s perfectly fine—and would be ideal. But the Thunder must also juggle another ambition: affording everyone.
SGA can now sign a four-year, $294.3 million extension during the 2025 offseason. J-Dub and Chet Holmgren will sign rookie-scale max extensions that same summer. Josh Giddey, for what it’s worth, is extension-eligible this offseason. And Isaiah Joe (team option) could get more expensive as soon as 2024-25.
Someone like Markkanen will cost the Thunder max or near-max money to retain beyond next season. Realistically speaking, the organization won’t be paying everyone. So Oklahoma City needs someone who both cracks the top five or six of their rotation and won’t break the financial bank.
Hello, Deni Avdija.
He will be starting a four-year, $55 million extension in 2024-25 that looks like a friggin’ steal, won’t turn 24 until January and is working off a career season. Receiving more touches led to a flourishing, at times sneakily physical drive-and-dish game and spiffier handles and footwork and finishing. His three-point volume will always leave you wanting more, but he just downed them at a 37.4 percent clip and negates some of the long-range hesitance with less aversion to contact and sharper movement away from the ball.
Spackle in his defensive physicality and malleability, and Avdija is someone who could easily crack Oklahoma City’s closing lineup. And while the Washington Wizards shouldn’t actively be hoping to move him, the Thunder have the first-round-asset armory to create their own trade market.
—Favale
Orlando Magic: Jalen Green22 of 30
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Jalen Green’s scorching late-season run may have taken him off the trade block entirely. With the 22-year-old guard racking up 27.7 points and 6.3 assists on 61.3 percent true shooting, the Houston Rockets went 13-2 in March, nearly climbing high enough in the standings to secure a Play-In berth.
We’ve seen hot months from Green in the past, but never with so much team success attached. One could imagine the Rockets rebuffing all offers for him, even with extension eligibility looming and plenty of other young players coming due for raises over the next couple of summers.
Still, the Orlando Magic could be highly motivated buyers. Elite defensively and already boasting cornerstone forwards in Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, this team needs a fire-starter on offense. With defensive ace Jalen Suggs as a running mate, Green could cover the weakest backcourt matchup and share facilitating duties with his fellow combo guard.
Orlando will be linked to virtually every scorer available, but Green makes more sense than most of them. Zach LaVine’s injury history is frightening, he’s older than the Magic’s core players and he’ll be prohibitively costly, with $138 coming to him over the next three years. Trae Young, minus the injury history, has some similar red flags.
Green is just the right age and has just the right skill set to fill in the gaps Orlando exhibited while turning in an admittedly impressive 2023-24 campaign. Of course, that’s why landing him will require a major outlay of picks and valuable contracts—if Houston even answers the phone.
-Hughes
Philadelphia 76ers: Jimmy Butler23 of 30
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The Philadelphia 76ers are short on contracts to use in trades, as Joel Embiid, Paul Reed and Ricky Council IV are the only players on the books for next season. The latter two don’t even have fully guaranteed salaries.
That’s only an issue if Philly’s trade partners want more than draft capital in a hypothetical deal. Among the teams that might prefer flexibility and flippable assets in exchange for a star: the Miami Heat, whose team president, Pat Riley, sounded lukewarm on an extension for Jimmy Butler.
The Sixers could take Butler into their cap space, send the Heat three first-round picks—2024, 2026 (least favorable among OKC, HOU and LAC) and 2028 (via LAC)—hand Tyrese Maxey a max extension and head into next season with three stars around which to build a contending roster.
Miami could field offers that feature actual live bodies in addition to picks, but Butler’s age, 34, and extension eligibility make him a somewhat risky acquisition. Three firsts, even if one of them projects to be late in the first round, should appeal to a Heat team that could later flip those picks for Butler’s star replacement.
Butler’s low-volume three-point shooting might not make him the ideal running mate for Embiid and Maxey, but the Sixers could certainly benefit from his postseason experience and ability to carry shorthanded teams for long stretches. That all assumes the five-time All-NBA wing holds up physically as he advances deeper into his 30s.
-Hughes
Phoenix Suns: Robert Williams III24 of 30
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Trade targets for the Phoenix Suns can be only so ambitious. They’ll be well into second-apron territory unless they take a hatchet to their payroll, significantly knee-capping their transactional flexibility.
The list of restrictions is extensive. The two most important for our purposes: Phoenix cannot aggregate salaries in a trade or take back more money than its sending out.
Fortunately for the Suns (or terrifyingly, depending on how you look at it), team governor Mat Ishbia sounds prepared to unload the No. 22 selection as well as their 2031 first-rounder. That meaningfully glitzes up their best offers.
But they still run into the issue of matching salaries. Nassir Little doesn’t make nearly enough ($6.8 million) to go hunting for a member of the closing lineup. The recently extended Grayson Allen does ($15.6 million), but his outside shooting remains critical to opening up the floor for Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal.
Assuming all three stars are off the table, this leaves Jusuf Nurkić. His salary is large enough to make a consequential move, but most teams won’t willingly foot the two years and $37.5 million left on his contract.
This includes the Portland Trail Blazers, who just jettisoned Nurkić last summer. The Suns will need to suss out facilitating parties to bag Robert Williams III. And despite his checkered health bill, he’s worth the trouble.
Head coach Mike Budenholzer likes having bigs who can wall off the paint as part of his base defense. RW3 isn’t the biggest 5, but when healthy, he provides real pop, excellent mobility and rim protection about which the Suns can only dream right now. His finishing and passing out of dives to the hoop are useful, too.
Does Phoenix have the assets necessary to compensate both the Blazers for RW3 and another team to take on Nurkić? And if so, are they willing to spend them on someone who fills a need and makes them materially better but has also totaled just 41 appearances over the past two seasons?
–Favale
Portland Trail Blazers: Peyton Watson25 of 30
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Peyton Watson’s bounce-house hops, downhill horsepower, maniacal motor and disruptive length jibe nicely, if perfectly, with a Portland Trail Blazers franchise in the infancy of a rebuild and light on developmental intrigue at the wing spots. Going on 22, with two seasons left on his rookie scale, he is an ideal fit for their timeline and cap sheet as well.
Is he also an attainable trade target? Debatable…at best.
Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth is smitten with Watson. And unless Denver’s team governors mandate otherwise, the organization probably won’t use a semifinals letdown to undo its investment in developing cost-controlled kids who can, if all goes according to plan, indefinitely extend the Nikola Jokić championship window.
On the flip side: What if not only flaming out before the conference finals, but being foiled by the executive who assembled much of your championship roster (Tim Connelly) drives the Nuggets to extremes? Or what if they lose Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (player option) in free agency? Or what if they’re just looking to get more on-ball utility out of the Michael Porter Jr. salary slot?
Could a package built around MPJ and Watson convince the Blazers to reunite Jerami Grant with the team he left in 2020 free agency? I’m pouncing at that framework, personally, if I’m general manager Joe Cronin.
Once more, with feeling: This is not a likely scenario—particularly because it also assumes Denver will avoid the second apron and have the ability to aggregate salaries in a trade. But if the Nuggets hint at a willingness to use MPJ’s salary as the vessel through which they acquire more on-ball optionality (and perhaps attempt to replace KCP), Grant is a natural endgame for them.
And trying to poach one of their premier youngsters—Watson or even Christian Braun—is a sensible pipe dream for Portland.
—Favale
Sacramento Kings: Mikal Bridges26 of 30
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Missing the 2024 postseason is not an unforgivable whiff by the Sacramento Kings. Injuries to Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk undermined them down the stretch, and, you know, the Western Conference is brutal.
Sacramento still enters the offseason in a weird spot. Its offense slipped relative to 2022-23, and though the defense improved, it wasn’t nearly enough to offset the offensive slide. Even with the emergence of Keegan Murray as a bigger-time defender and more expansive scorer and the unearthing of Keon Ellis, the Kings need to target names who elevate their play at both ends of the floor—particularly during the Domantas Sabonis-without-De’Aaron Fox minutes, and especially if Monks prices himself out of town during free agency.
Netting Mikal Bridges would be ideal. That goes for both parties. Sacramento gets a savvy off-ball mover who adds secondary creation and can check stars at the other end. Bridges gets to settle into a better-fitting third-option role that allows him to expend more energy on defense.
Compiling a reasonable offer for the 27-year-old is within the Kings’ power. They have No. 13, three additional firsts (2027, 2029, 2031) and up to three swaps (2026, 2028, 2030) that they can attach to outgoing salary.
Granted, the Brooklyn Nets’ willingness to move Bridges looms as a mega obstacle. They don’t control their own first-rounder again until 2028. If they’re going to deal Bridges, they’ll likely want actual young players in return. Sacramento can’t satisfy that criteria without including Keegan Murray.
Any Bridges-to-the-Kings permutation rests on Brooklyn embracing a full-tilt teardown, draft obligations be damned, or bringing in a facilitating party (or two) that’ll send the Nets tantalizing prospects in exchange for first-round equity (and maybe Kevin Huerter) from Sacramento.
—Favale
San Antonio Spurs: Darius Garland27 of 30
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Darius Garland loomed as a far more ambitious target prior to Cleveland getting bounced in the second round. Since then, The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Joe Vardon and Jason Lloyd have reported the 24-year-old will consider asking for a trade if, as the organization expects, Donovan Mitchell signs an extension.
The San Antonio Spurs should be first in line before Garland’s potential change-of-scenery request ever comes.
Calls to immediately pair Victor Wembanyama with a high-level floor general are only growing louder after his Rookie of the Year campaign. He polished his offense as the season soldiered on, even busting out a pull-up three-point shot, and dominated enough at the other end to become the first ever newbie to earn First Team All-Defense honors.
These pleas for aggression, for urgency, may invariably ring hollow. The Spurs aren’t known for nuclear timeline accelerations. Then again, Wemby may give them little choice—not because he’ll agitate for moves, but because he’s that freaking great.
San Antonio outpaced opponents by over five points per 100 possessions when its resident extraterrestrial shared the court with Tre Jones. Imagine what happens if you sub in Garland for Jones.
Sure, the former’s finishing at the rim remains spotty and he’s coming off a down year. But Garland is shifty in the lane and has proven, for the most part, to be an elite shot-maker from beyond the arc.
Pairing him with Wemby is next-level perfect. Garland won’t be nudged off the ball as often as he is beside Mitchell, and while he’s on the smaller end, at 6’1″, the Spurs’ 7’4″ alien can cover up for anyone on defense.
Prying Garland out of Cleveland won’t come cheap even if he’s pushing for an exit. And any prospective package is complicated by the Cavaliers presumably angling for players over picks. Devin Vassell should remain untouchable in these talks. But Garland fits the Wemby timeline well enough for San Antonio to peddle Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan and first-rounders, and to rally together third-party helpers if the situation demands it.
—Favale
Toronto Raptors: Andrew Wiggins28 of 30
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The trade we cooked up to send Draymond Green to the Detroit Pistons was a tougher sell on the Golden State side. Though ownership has explicitly stated getting out of the tax is a priority, there are ways to do it that don’t involve dealing true core pieces like Green.
Andrew Wiggins, for example, is someone the Dubs could ship out without triggering the same kind of “it’s all over” vibes.
Here, the Raptors utilize what could be as much as $28 million in cap space to take on Wiggins, a 29-year-old two-way wing whose value is as low as it’s been in at least four years. Even a diminished version of Wiggins would help Toronto, offering quality defense across four positions, generally reliable three-point shooting and the ability to get looks off against good defenders when plays break down.
Last year’s 13.2 points and 35.8 percent three-point shooting were career and four-year lows, respectively. If we assume Wiggins has even a moderate bounce-back, he’ll contribute like a no-questions-asked starter. And if he hits his peak level playing in his home country, well…I guess that means the Raptors get someone who was legitimately the second-best player on the winning team in the 2022 Finals.
That’s a decent get for cap space and, say, a loosely protected second-rounder.
-Hughes
Utah Jazz: Jaden McDaniels 29 of 30
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Overly ambitious? Oh yeah.
That’s the luxury of theorizing targets for the Utah Jazz. Much like the Oklahoma City Thunder, they have the assets to forge their own trade options. It helps, too, that team CEO Danny Ainge just said the organization is ready to go big-game hunting.
Jaden McDaniels actualizes that description—a non-star who will come at a serious cost but shouldn’t drain all of the Jazz’s trade chips, and who outfits the roster with an actual wing.
His five-year, $131 million extension that kicks in next season is steep, but it should never represent more than 16ish percent of the salary cap. Utah shouldn’t fear his offensive drop-off this season, either. He has detonated on multiple occasions during the playoffs and remains an All-Defense-convo staple.
Nothing out there suggests McDaniels will be readily gettable. The conference-finalist Timberwolves should no longer be looking to cut costs. And if they do, shame on them Karl-Anthony Towns remains the most likely collateral damage.
This is where I kindly-but-emphatically reiterate that Utah can bid itself into sweepstakes that don’t exist. Beyond that, the emergence of Nickeil Alexander-Walker as a fringe All-Defensive candidate himself affords Minnesota’s cost-cutting scenarios some optionality. KAT’s offensive dynamism is arguably more important to the makeup of the roster, and the Timberwolves have Anthony Edwards, in addition to NAW, to rely on for perimeter defense
The Jazz can make things interesting with a buffet of different proposals. They have the impending cap space to sponge up McDaniels’ 2024-25 salary in full—unless they renegotiate-and-extend Lauri Markkanen—while restocking Minny’s draft cupboard (potentially with its own picks). And if the Timberwolves are less concerned about extreme savings and hotter for an infusion of offense, something like Collin Sexton (and picks) gets the job done, too.
—Favale
Washington Wizards: Every Possible 2025 First-Round Pick30 of 30
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We have to go outside the box for the Washington Wizards, whose rebuild is off to a good start in its first year without the burden of Bradley Beal’s contract but whose current roster still doesn’t have a generational superstar.
Apologies to Bilal Coulibaly’s ardent constituency. He’s beyond intriguing but is still best viewed as a mystery-box prospect.
There’s nothing riskier than judging a player who hasn’t seen a second of basketball action beyond the high-school level. But it’s hard to avoid seeing a cornerstone in projected 2025 No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg.
The Wizards have their own 2025 first-round pick unless it lands outside the top 10 and goes to the New York Knicks, a highly unlikely outcome considering few teams have better odds at finishing with the league’s worst record. Beyond that, Washington has no incoming firsts for 2025. The goal, then, must be to accumulate as many first-rounders that will actually convey as possible.
Kyle Kuzma, Tyus Jones (if re-signed) and Deni Avdija could all bring back first-rounders from teams that need immediate help. And if the Wizards really want to get serious, they could trade some of their own future first-rounders (perhaps with protections) to acquire more slots in 2025’s top 30.
This is about Washington accumulating as many raffle tickets as possible. We just saw the Atlanta Hawks make a shocking leap to No. 1 when they *should* have been picking 10th. All the more reason to go pick hunting.
The Wizards’ own 2025 pick is obviously their best shot at Flagg, but considering their standing in the league and the sea change landing the top selection would bring, they should be swinging deals left and right so they get multiple cracks at securing No. 1.
-Hughes
