5 Wild NBA Trades That Could Actually Work
The 2023 NBA offseason has been wild.
We already knew it would be an all-timer thanks to the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes, but we didn't know all that it would entail.
Like Bradley Beal finally splitting from the Washington Wizards and joining both Kevin Durant and Devin Booker on the Phoenix Suns. Or the Houston Rockets deciding their rebuild has progressed to the point where it's OK to shower Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks with a ton of cash. Or the Golden State Warriors turning long-time foe Chris Paul into a short-term friend. Or the Boston Celtics splitting from Marcus Smart to add and extend Kristaps Porziņģis.
It's been a wild ride, but if the basketball world has taught us anything, it's that things could still get wilder. After all, Damian Lillard's trade request has gone ungranted so far, and he is one of several prominent players who could be on the move sooner than later.
We're firing up the trade machines to broker five fake blockbusters that fans wouldn't see coming—but could actually work if they went down.
Hornets Solidify Center Spot, Timberwolves Add Depth and Draft Assets
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Charlotte Hornets receive: Karl-Anthony Towns
Minnesota Timberwolves receive: Terry Rozier, P.J. Washington (sign-and-trade), 2026 first-round pick (top-three protected) and 2028 first-round pick
In 2020, the Hornets spent the No. 3 pick on LaMelo Ball. They've seen watched him become an All-Star and one of the league's most exciting young players.
They've also gone only 103-133 during his three-season tenure. That's the Association's eighth-worst mark over this stretch.
Charlotte needs a shake-up in the worst kind of way. Buying (relatively) low on Towns would be a fascinating way to make it happen.
He'd immediately plug the Hornets' glaring void at center and team with Ball in what should be one of the NBA's best pick-and-choose tandems. Since Towns can both pop to the perimeter or roll to the rim, he'd give defenses a ton to think about while they're also accounting for Ball, who averaged 23.3 points, 8.4 assists and 4.0 three-pointers this past season.
The Towns-Ball twosome would help establish the Hornets' identity as an uptempo, offense-leaning outfit that should prop up role players with the incredible spacing this tandem would provide. Miles Bridges, Brandon Miller and Nick Smith Jr. could all thrive in the attack lanes Towns and Ball would open up.
Minnesota, meanwhile, would concede what many figured out long ago: The Towns-Rudy Gobert partnership was doomed from the start. It was a wonky fit on paper and no better in practice (minus-7.6 net rating in 119 shared minutes this postseason). Considering the colossal cost of keeping it together, the Wolves should pull the plug as soon as possible.
While they'd lose the best player in this deal, they could still come out ahead. Rozier could provide stability and a succession plan beyond 35-year-old point guard Mike Conley. Washington could provide offensive spacing and better mobility on defense. Finally, the picks would help cover some of the damage done during last summer's ill-fated Gobert trade.
Bulls, Heat Trade High-Scoring Guards
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Miami Heat receive: Zach LaVine and Dalen Terry
Chicago Bulls receive: Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson and Nikola Jović
There's a reason why the Heat are in hot pursuit of Damian Lillard, and no, it isn't simply due to Pat Riley's proclivity for whale-hunting. This bunch badly needs an offensive jolt.
This past season, Miami averaged a paltry 112.3 points per 100 possessions. That ranked 25th overall and dead last among all postseason participants—play-in tournament teams included. Incredible (and unsustainable) shot-making helped fuel their run to the NBA Finals, but it could only mask this weakness for so long. In the championship round, Miami averaged a dismal 96.4 points per contest while shooting 40.7 percent as a team.
Herro, the team's third-leading scorer in the regular season, was injured for all but the first game of Miami's playoff run. However, he played 67 games and logged 2,337 minutes in the regular season, when the Heat were one of the league's least efficient offenses.
Miami needs more offense than a healthy Herro can provide. That's why upgrading to LaVine could be so compelling, particularly if the Heat don't have the assets to land Lillard.
Over the past four seasons, LaVine has been a nightly source of 25.5 points on 47.9/39.0/83.9 shooting and 4.5 assists. The only other players to average 25 points and four assists with a 47/39/80 slash during that stretch are Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
LaVine is an elite offensive player. Sure, he has his defensive drawbacks—as does Lillard—but teaming him with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo could bring out the best of all three. And Miami, which needs another point guard after losing Gabe Vincent in free agency, could work its developmental magic on Terry, a 2022 first-rounder with the defense and activity to be a #HeatCulture fit.
Meanwhile, Chicago could be wary of plateauing as a play-in team and see this trade as a way of raising its ceiling. This trade package is somewhat future-focused, but not in a way that would waste the remaining prime years of DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vučević.
Herro is close to matching LaVine's production already. Robinson would scratch a huge itching for spacing. Jović rarely saw the floor as a rookie, but if he gets a chance, he could be an interesting change-of-pace reserve for his combination of size (6'10"), scoring versatility and playmaking.
Pelicans Win Siakam Sweepstakes, Raptors Rebuild
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New Orleans Pelicans receive: Pascal Siakam
Toronto Raptors receive: Jonas Valančiūnas, Larry Nance Jr., Dyson Daniels, Kira Lewis Jr., 2024 first-round pick and 2026 first-round pick
The Pelicans have a single playoff trip to show for the last five seasons and last won a postseason series in 2018. They might be getting restless and seem to want to hurry things along with their maturation process.
They've been connected to major trade talks seemingly throughout this offseason. They were huge fans of Scoot Henderson. They've inquired about Damian Lillard. They've also been linked to Siakam, who could be up for grabs with only one season remaining on his contract.
Toronto is reportedly "still listening, trying to gauge the market value for" Siakam, per Sportsnet's Michael Grange. If New Orleans wants in on the bidding, it has the picks and prospects needed to get noticed.
While the Pelicans would lose size and depth at center in this deal, they could potentially expand their talent base to a championship level. How many teams have a trio on par with Siakam, Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson? How many have a fourth option with as much firepower as CJ McCollum? How many could afford to roster that quartet and still have significant role players like Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III and Jose Alvarado around them?
Before injuries sank the Pelicans last season, they were ringing in the new year with the West's best net rating and a top-five winning percentage. Enhancing that group with someone like Siakam, a two-time All-NBA honoree, could be the kind of move that puts the Pelicans firmly on a championship path so long as Williamson remains healthy.
As for the Raptors, this would be all about starting over, a process necessitated by the free-agency departure of Fred VanVleet. Valančiūnas and Nance are serviceable placeholders and potential trade chips, but the real prizes are Daniels (the 2022 No. 8 pick) and the incoming first-rounders. Toronto would also help itself if it could find a role for Lewis, a 22-year-old whom the Pelicans took 13th overall in 2020.
Blazers, Hawks Swapping Star Point Guards
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Atlanta Hawks receive: Damian Lillard
Portland Trail Blazers receive: Trae Young, Jalen Johnson, 2024 first-round pick (lottery protected, via SAC), 2029 first-round pick, two first-round pick swaps (2028, 2030)
While Lillard is laser-locked on the Miami Heat, the Blazers are well within their rights to explore alternatives. Maybe the prolific point guard would be less than thrilled about a non-Miami destination initially, but he has 216 million reasons to come around to the idea eventually.
Sending him to one of the Heat's Southeast Division rivals seems cruel, but the Hawks potentially have a foundational talent to spare. Young, a two-time All-Star and one-time All-NBA honoree, could effortlessly fill Lillard's shoes in this offense. Both are pick-and-roll maestros with an array of dribble moves, deep shooting range and the willingness to distribute.
If the Blazers want to build around Young—and Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe (but probably not Anfernee Simons)—they could pounce on this package. They'd still have an undersized backcourt, but Young and Henderson could be a fun offensive fit. Young could be a lights-out spot-up shooter (he shot 37 percent on catch-and-shoot threes this past season), and Henderson could be a dynamic finisher on hit-ahead transition attacks and timely cuts.
Jalen Johnson, the No. 20 pick in 2021, would give Portland a bouncy frontcourt player who offers plenty of activity and intriguing versatility on defense. And while only two draft picks officially change hands—the Blazers want "in the neighborhood of four first-round picks" in a Lillard trade, per Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian—it's possible one or both of those swaps could be utilized.
Meanwhile, Atlanta could sense that Lillard's availability is opportunity's knocking. The Hawks have failed to find any traction since their surprise run to the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals, and this stagnation caused Young's name to surface on the rumor mill a few months ago.
Lillard could arrive as essentially a turbo-charged version of Young, meaning there would be minimal disruption to the system and the chance for this group to hit the ground sprinting.
If Lillard maintains anything close to this past season's production (32.2 points on 64.5 percent true shooting), then he's a tier or two above Young. That bump could be the difference between the Hawks being gridlocked among the East's middle class and becoming full-fledged contenders.
Sixers, Bucks Trade Backcourt Leaders
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Milwaukee Bucks receive: James Harden
Philadelphia 76ers receive: Jrue Holiday and 2024 second-round pick (via POR)
This type of hypothetical swaps is why trade machines were invented. This deal would never go down in real life—direct conference competitors never give each other potential missing pieces—but it's downright fascinating as a mental exercise.
If the Bucks learned anything from their injury-riddled 2022-23 season, it's that their offense might need a little buffing. They wound up a forgettable 15th in offensive efficiency, or 10 spots back of where their title team landed in 2020-21. Maybe a healthy Khris Middleton is all they need to get back on track, but are they sure about that?
Bumping Middleton down to the third option and slotting the Beard in between him and Giannis Antetokounmpo could have folks fearing the deer again. Harden-Antetokounmpo pick-and-rolls could be unstoppable. Middleton-Antetokounmpo pick-and-rolls would be, too, if Harden bought into an off-ball role.
Now, would Milwaukee's fourth-ranked defense slip after swapping out Holiday (an elite, all-purpose stopper) for Harden (an often disinterested defender)? No question. But the Bucks would wager that their offensive growth would outpace their defensive slippage. Since they'd still have Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez to clean up some of Harden's mistakes, it might be a savvy gamble.
As for the Sixers, they'd essentially be placing the opposite bet. In their eyes, they could create an elite, soul-crushing defense built around Holiday, Joel Embiid and P.J. Tucker while still fielding a good-but-maybe-not-great offense with the reigning MVP still leading the charge.
Bring Holiday to Philly, and suddenly the Sixers could have a defensive answer for just about anything opponents throw at them. Holiday and Tucker are two of the more malleable stoppers in this league, and they'd have Embiid, a three-time All-Defensive selection, behind them. Add De'Anthony Melton to the mix, and they'd be even stingier.
The offense would miss Harden's playmaking and perimeter shooting, but it would still have plenty of punch. Embiid has captured the past two scoring titles. Tyrese Maxey just averaged 20 points for the first time and should be on track for even more. Holiday and Tobias Harris have been 20-point scorers in the past. This could easily be a top-10 attack, and if everything broke right, maybe a top-five unit.
Big-picture, this maybe wouldn't change much, since Milwaukee and Philadelphia are both top-shelf contenders already. On a more micro level, though, they quietly have some looming question marks on the heels of disappointing seasons. If this deal addressed their biggest weaknesses, perhaps it could add a few percentage points to their respective championship chances.
Statistics courtesy of Basketball Reference and NBA.com.
Zach Buckley covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter, @ZachBuckleyNBA.
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