NBA Trades That Would Separate Contenders from Pretenders
We're only a fraction of the way through the 2023-24 NBA season, but we've already seen one axis-tilting move with James Harden joining the LA Clippers. That's proof it's never too early to float some trade ideas.
We'll focus here on elevating teams that may be a notch below the clear title-threat tier. There's room to disagree on where that line is, but we can at least exclude the seemingly elite Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, (healthy) Phoenix Suns and a handful of others. Also out of consideration: bottom-feeders, Play-In chasers and middling clubs of all stripes.
Think of the teams we'll upgrade as being one move away from joining the league's highest echelon. Let's see if we can turn good to great by floating a few trades.
The Sixers Cash in Their Harden-Earned Assets
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The Trade: Philadelphia 76ers receive Zach LaVine from the Chicago Bulls for Marcus Morris Sr., Nicolas Batum, Robert Covington, 2026 first-round pick (top-four-protected; least valuable of HOU, LAC, OKC), 2028 first-round pick (via LAC), 2029 first-round pick
As the Sixers scan the trade horizon for ways to upcycle the assets acquired in the James Harden trade, they won't find many options better than Bulls guard Zach LaVine. That's not to say he's a perfect fit. LaVine would add major on-ball scoring punch as an overqualified third option, and his 41.6 percent hit rate on catch-and-shoot threes last year illustrates the value he'd bring from a spacing perspective alone. That said, a backcourt manned by LaVine and Tyrese Maxey would struggle mightily on defense.
On balance, LaVine would represent a clear upgrade over the three outgoing players in this deal, and he'd come with the added bonus of security. Many of Philly's best trade targets are headed for 2024 free agency (think Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby), and it'd be disastrous to surrender so much capital for a player that might walk for nothing. Philly prizes its upcoming cap space, but not so much that it would willingly trade its picks for a rental.
It's difficult to know whether LaVine is gettable at the moment, but Chicago's players-only meeting after its season-opening loss signals a teardown might be imminent. If the Bulls blow it up, it's entirely possible other teams could come over the top of Philadelphia's best offer for the two-time All-Star.
Either way, we'll have to wait until at least Dec. 30 for any action involving Batum, Morris and Covington. Their salaries cannot be aggregated in a trade until two months after the Sixers acquired them. By then, maybe Philadelphia will have more options.
For now, LaVine is the cleanest fit and best player the Sixers could realistically acquire with their Harden-earned assets.
The Kings Lock Down a Defender
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The Trade: Sacramento Kings receive OG Anunoby from the Toronto Raptors for Keegan Murray, Kevin Huerter, a 2027 first-round pick and a 2029 first-round pick
There might be mass protests outside Golden 1 Center in Sacramento if the Kings part with fan favorite Keegan Murray, but encumbrances on their draft picks makes the second-year forward a critical piece in any attention-getting offer for OG Anunoby. Remember, the Kings sent their 2024 first-rounder (with top-12 protection) to the Atlanta Hawks in the Kevin Huerter deal. The protections on that pick could extend to 2026. The only way Sacramento can free up its 2027 and 2029 selections would be to remove that protection so the first-rounder it owes Atlanta will definitely convey in 2025.
Some percentage of Kings fans (and the front office) probably believe Murray will mature into a more complete and effective player than Anunoby is today. That may be true. But for a Sacramento team that could finish with the best offense in the league for a second straight season, the immediate defensive boost Anunoby brings would be transformative.
Anunoby is a brutishly strong forward with length, lateral quickness and amazing mobility. He can guard all five positions and might be the most intimidating isolation defender in the game. That he's a career 37.5 percent shooter from long range is a bonus. The Kings would immediately improve in their most desperate area of need by adding him.
Offensively, Sacramento is good enough to win a ring right now. The other end of the floor is the issue, where the Kings ranked 25th last season and have a great chance of finishing in that range again in 2023-24. Anunoby is the ideal fix for them, but bringing him aboard would cost the Kings massive draft capital and a prized young player in Murray.
Even more terrifying: Anunoby can opt out and hit free agency this summer, raising the possibility of the Kings giving up a ton for a partial-season rental. The risk-reward tradeoff here is as extreme as it gets.
But then, the moves that put you over the top are often the most frightening.
The Knicks Snag the Reigning MVP
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The Trade: New York Knicks receive Joel Embiid and Marcus Morris Sr.* from the Philadelphia 76ers for RJ Barrett, Mitchell Robinson, Immanuel Quickley, Julius Randle, 2024 first-round pick (via DAL; top-10-protected), 2025 first-round pick (via MIL; top-four-protected), 2025 first-round pick, 2027 first-round pick, 2029 first-round pick
Per Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Knicks' hypothetical offer of Julius Randle, RJ Barrett, Evan Fournier, Mitchell Robinson and two or three future first-round picks for Joel Embiid wasn't enough to get the Sixers' attention.
Obviously, the landscape has shifted since Pompey reported on that possibility, with James Harden no longer in Philadelphia. More broadly, unless and until Embiid gets very vocal about his intention to leave Philadelphia—which seems less likely now than it did a few weeks ago—virtually any trade of the reigning MVP seems far-fetched.
Amid all that implausibility and general uncertainty, we still know one thing for sure: New York has to up its offer if it wants to be taken seriously.
We certainly did that here, upgrading the dead-money Fournier spot in the deal by substituting Immanuel Quickley and flinging first-rounders at the Sixers to see if it catches their eye. Some of those firsts have protections, and the Knicks' own picks immediately lose value if Embiid is on the roster.
But still! Five firsts! That should at least warrant a conversation.
Remember the point here, too. We're cooking up deals to turn pretenders into contenders. Adding an in-prime MVP to a team that reached the second round last postseason certainly ticks that box.
*Morris' $17.1 million salary can't be aggregated in a trade until two months after the Sixers acquired him.
Dallas Gets Defensive
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The Trade: Dallas Mavericks receive Jae'Sean Tate from the Houston Rockets for Dwight Powell, a 2025 second-round pick (via TOR) and a 2028 second-round pick (via MIA)
The Athletic's Kelly Iko reported four teams—including the contending Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets and Boston Celtics—expressed interest in acquiring Tate at last year's deadline. That's solid proof Tate's defensive versatility and team-first approach are sought-after commodities among the league's top teams.
Houston, however, signed Dillon Brooks in free agency and selected Amen Thompson in the draft, adding two more defenders to a wing/forward core that already included noted havoc-wreaker Tari Eason, who hasn't played yet this season due to a stress reaction in his left leg. Throw in Jabari Smith Jr.'s defensive potential (and more consequential role in the Rockets' rebuild), and Tate's minutes may be limited when Houston is healthy.
All the more reason for Dallas to swoop in and snag him on the cheap.
The Mavs are off to a 6-1 start driven by the league's second-best offense. Questions about their quality on the other end, where they rank 18th and lack anyone with Tate's size/skill combo, are the reason they rate as pretenders. Though far from a blockbuster acquisition, Tate fits into a niche that Grant Williams and Maxi Kleber can't quite occupy. Those two are better utilized against power forwards and centers, while Josh Green and Dante Exum don't have the heft to check bigger wings.
Dallas knows where the hole is on its roster. It tried to sign Matisse Thybulle to fill it in free agency, but the Portland Trail Blazers matched their offer sheet. Short of waiting until February to bring back Luka Dončić's favorite stopper in a return-to-sender trade for Dorian Finney-Smith, Tate might be the pick-poor Mavs' best affordable option.
Powell would give Houston center depth and $2.5 million in salary savings this season, with two future seconds attached as sweeteners. The Rockets could hold out for more, or wait until the deadline, but that doesn't change the fact that Tate could quietly be a difference-maker for Dallas.
New Orleans Makes a Godfather Offer
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The Trade: New Orleans Pelicans acquire Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets for Jordan Hawkins, Jonas Valanciunas and four first-round picks
Show me someone who says they're not interested in watching Mikal Bridges play alongside CJ McCollum, Herbert Jones, Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson in an undersized closing lineup, and I'll show you a liar.
That group would need to figure out how to rebound and defend the rim, but the length and pure defensive chaos Bridges and Jones could provide would be something to behold.
The Pelicans control all of their own future first-round picks, and they've got selections incoming from the Los Angeles Lakers (2024 with the option to defer to 2025) and Milwaukee Bucks (2025 and 2027). Toss in swap rights on Milwaukee's 2024 and 2026 firsts, and the Pelicans could offer the Nets a number of draft-pick-heavy return packages.
Once McCollum recovers from his collapsed right lung, Bridges would join him, Williamson and Ingram as a fourth offensive initiator—one who'd come with the bonus of massive off-ball value as a shooter. And if there's a rangier wing defender in the league than Jones, who's off to a tremendously disruptive start on D, it might be Bridges.
Lastly, if this price seems steep for New Orleans, well...it has to be. Brooklyn got offers of four firsts for Bridges last year and didn't bite. Perhaps the inclusion of Jordan Hawkins, a slick shooter picked 14th in this year's draft, could be considered equivalent to a fifth first-rounder. And if it comes down to it, the Pels could toss in a swap to get this over the finish line, totally replenishing Brooklyn's draft capital.
Stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference and Cleaning the Glass. Accurate through Nov. 7. Salary info via Spotrac.
Grant Hughes covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter (@gt_hughes), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, where he appears with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale.
