NBA Trade Block Big Board: Ranking the Top 10 Players and Assets on the Market
With only four teams still standing in the championship chase, the NBA is quickly barreling toward the 2024 offseason.
It could be a true landscape-shifter.
The trade market is already bustling with activity, or at least with rumblings of what activity could come. There are no shortage of name-brand trade candidates or coveted assets needed to acquire them.
We're putting both under the spotlight here to identify—and rank—the top trade chips on the market.
That on-the-market qualifier is big, because trade chips that aren't up for grabs aren't actually trade chips. For instance, there's no point in listing Victor Wembanyama—who arguably has more trade value than anyone at the moment—when an offer of the sun, moon, stars and a couple of galaxies wouldn't even elicit a response from the San Antonio Spurs. Not a response safe for publishing here, at least.
With that parameter in place, let the ranking commence.
10. Los Angeles Lakers' 2029 1st-Round Pick
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It's tempting to slot this selection even higher given the near-blank-slate future uncertainty of the Lakers' franchise.
LeBron James, who can become an unrestricted free agent this summer, is barely a half-year shy of his 40th birthday. Anthony Davis is 31 years old with a lengthy and detailed injury history behind him.
That's pretty much all the Lakers have when it comes to building blocks. Maybe some would throw Austin Reaves into the mix as well, but he fills more of a support role than a true centerpiece.
What does all of that get the Lakers five years into the future? Perhaps nothing, hence the top-10 placement of this pick. Still, no franchise does better when it comes to rolling out the red carpet for stars, and L.A. will forever have its Hollywood appeal and storied history.
The future looks foggy enough for a long-term rebuilder to highly covet this pick, but the right amount of Lakers Exceptionalism might sink the value of this selection by the time it actually conveys.
9. Anfernee Simons, Portland Trail Blazers
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If this selection could be written in a shaky font, it would be, since it's hard to gauge how much (if at all) the Portland Trail Blazers would entertain offers for Anfernee Simons. His name hasn't been totally absent from the rumor mill, but speculation has been mostly confined to trade-machine enthusiasts since Portland entered its post-Damian Lillard phase.
If the Blazers see Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe filling primary roles in this chapter, though, could they also envision Simons as a fit? That's a hefty amount of ball dominance and not a ton of size or defense between the three. It's at least a conversation worth having (and likely being had) for the Blazers' brass.
Should Simons reach the market, he'd land near the top of the wish list for any shoppers in search of an offensive jolt. He pairs a fiery three-ball with dunk-contest bounce, plus he's wiggly enough to ditch defenders off the dribble. The Blazers were abysmal on offense this season (29th in efficiency), yet Simons still stamped his spot among the Association's elites (94th percentile in offensive plus/minus).
Simons doesn't turn 25 until June, and he isn't owed a colossal amount of money ($53.6 million over the next two seasons), relatively speaking. Trade interest in him should be substantial, even if he's functionally an undersized combo guard who played the worst defense of any player this season, according to at least one metric.
8. No. 3 Pick
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Whether the Houston Rockets' summer goal is furthering Phase 2 or even entering Phase 3, their plan may not involve adding another potential-rich prospect to their massive collection. The pingpong balls were barely done bouncing before ESPN's Zach Lowe brought word that Houston was expected "to investigate the market for that No. 3 pick alone and in combination with other assets."
The question is just how valuable the No. 3 pick is in a draft that no one seems to love. (And that's being kind to this incoming batch of ballers). Still, every draft has talent within it, and this selection would grant some team its choice of almost anyone on the board.
"A handful of teams" have already expressed interest in the pick, per The Athletic's Kelly Iko.
Houston likely wishes that the third overall pick would be higher in these rankings, but it might for the right team. Maybe there's a franchise out there that it feels it has to have Donovan Clingan (the latest No. 3 pick for B/R's Jonathan Wasserman), Reed Sheppard (ESPN's Jonathan Givony) or Nikola Topić (The Ringer's Kevin O'Connor). It only takes one interested front office to drive up the value of the pick.
It feels more likely that teams view these prospects more as wants than needs, though. That means this pick can't go any higher up the rankings.
7. Phoenix Suns' 2029 1st-Round Pick
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The Phoenix Suns don't sound overly concerned about their present or future outlook. That makes one of us.
The 2023-24 iteration of this team never came close to having its whole match—let alone exceed—the sum of its parts. You don't make an all-in push for a veteran core hoping to win 49 games, finish eighth in net rating and get swept out of the opening round, as Phoenix did this year.
This campaign was rough. Things could grow considerably rockier in five years' time. ESPN's Brian Windhorst, who isn't one to peddle in hyperbole, recently wrote, "Never before has a team been this devoid of options to alter its roster going into an offseason."
Phoenix's draft pick collection is almost completely empty. With all due respect to the remaining Bol Bol believers, this roster is also effectively devoid of upside. And means of expanding the talent base are few and far between with the Suns on the wrong side of the second apron.
If future-focused franchises want to short anyone's future, this is the wager to make.
6. Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks
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Trae Young has the richest resume of any player to crack these rankings. He's a three-time All-Star and one-time All-NBA honoree who routinely slots in among the league leaders in both points and assists. Even better, he averaged 28.8 points and 9.5 assists during Atlanta's postseason trek to the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals.
So, why doesn't he land any higher than the No. 6 spot? For a few reasons, actually.
Any team that acquires him has to put him at the epicenter of their offense. The Hawks tried the dual-playmaker thing with him and Dejounte Murray—whom they'd reportedly rather keep (and others would reportedly rather get)—and it never gained an inch of traction. Their two seasons together yielded one playoff trip and one play-in exit. This season, Atlanta lost their shared floor time by a whopping 6.5 points per 100 possessions.
Young's ball-dominance makes him a tricky fit with other high-volume stars, and his dreadful defense almost ensures his team will land near the bottom of the efficiency ranks. The highest the Hawks have finished in defensive efficiency during his six-year tenure was 18th in 2020-21; that was their only top-20 appearance and one of only two finishes outside of the bottom four.
Tack on the massive amount of money he's still owed (three years, $138 million with an early termination option on the final season), and Young isn't as valuable as his gaudy offensive stats and name recognition might otherwise suggest.
5. Jonathan Kuminga, Golden State Warriors
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Count Jonathan Kuminga's 2023-24 campaign as the latest bit of evidence that NBA life moves at ludicrous speed.
In January, Kuminga was fighting for consistent minutes and had reportedly "lost faith" in Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, per The Athletic's Anthony Slater and Shams Charania. By the end of the season, Kuminga was not only getting major minutes, but he was looking like Golden State's best internal candidate to serve as Stephen Curry's co-star.
The Warriors had a front-row view of this elevation and seem keen on seeing where things are headed for the 21-year-old. According to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, the Dubs have made Kuminga "pretty much" untouchable.
So, why even bother putting Kuminga in these rankings? Because pretty much untouchable isn't the same as outright off-limits. And if Golden State is angling to get a star—some massive names in the hoops world have been thrown around as possibiltiies—Kuminga is the ticket to getting a blockbuster deal done.
Despite his progress this season, Kuminga remains more intriguing in theory than in reality. You can see the outline of a go-to scorer who brings length, athleticism and versatility on defense, but only if you squint really hard. He also needs a new contract between now and next offseason, meaning someone is about to pay him more for his potential than his actual production to date.
4. Mikal Bridges, Brooklyn Nets
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Fans and front-office members of the Brooklyn Nets might roll their eyes at the inclusion of Mikal Bridges. That's fair. Word has been pretty consistent out of Brooklyn that the plan is for the two-way swingman to stick around.
We'd counter that eye rolling with flummoxed faces while trying to pinpoint the long-term aim of this team. The Nets have already ceded control of their next four first-round picks, so they don't have the typical incentive to embrace a ground-up rebuild, but how does this 50-loss team get good enough fast enough to capitalize on the remainder of Bridges' prime?
Bridges will turn 28 before next season tips off, so if this isn't as good as he'll ever get, there likely isn't much more room to grow. He is over his head as a primary offensive option—his 43.6 field-goal percentage this season was easily his worst mark since his rookie campaign—but as an easy-fitting complementary piece who dominates on defense, he holds substantial appeal as some team's second- or third-best player.
If Brooklyn made him available, teams would pay a small fortune to get him. The Nets have been offered some interesting assets and rebuffed them so far, so their desire to keep him might be genuine. However, the trade haul he'd deliver is probably more helpful for Brooklyn's long-term future.
3. Brandon Ingram, New Orleans Pelicans
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Most spots on these rankings sparked some serious internal debates. This may have been the fiercest.
Brandon Ingram's appeal is obvious. It has been almost from the moment he arrived as the second overall pick in 2016.
The 6'8" swingman is a velvety smooth shot-creator who can pile up buckets or find them for his teammates. While his defense has perhaps never quite become what his physical attributes say it should be, he's far from hopeless on that end. In fact, he found enough balance this past season to land in the 88th percentile of estimated plus/minus, a tier shared with the likes of Bam Adebayo and Pascal Siakam.
With all of that said, durability has been a big problem for Ingram. He also doesn't take (or make) as many threes as you'd like, and he's set to become an unrestricted free agent in 2025 unless he signs an extension before then. That, plus perhaps some logistical issues with the fit between him and Zion Williamson, is the reason why the New Orleans Pelicans are expected to "aggressively" shop Ingram this summer, per NBA insider Marc Stein.
Ingram's trade market should be robust—he's expected to have more suitors than Trae Young, per Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports—but he isn't the kind of player who will elicit blank-check trade proposals. Ingram is closer to really good than great, and given some of the chatter around the Crescent City, there's a chance that teams will try to low-ball the Pelicans to get him, at least at the start of negotiations.
2. Jalen Green, Houston Rockets
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This is aggressive—and maybe reckless, if you ask all the up-in-arms Houston Rockets fans reading this—but aggression might be warranted with Jalen Green given the sizzling stretch in his recent past and that skyscraping ceiling in his future.
And with apologies to the Space City faithful, his inclusion might be warranted, too.
Green's name surfaced on the rumor mill in March. While that was largely drawn from speculation, the buzz around him at the trade deadline had real legs. Plus, if the Rockets are interested in Donovan Mitchell—as The Athletic's Kelly Iko reported—it's hard to picture a scenario in which they reel in that big of a fish without using Green as trade bait.
If the return is right—read: massive—there figures to be a scenario in which Houston seriously entertains Green trade talks. Offers should be loaded for the 21-year-old who went supernova down the stretch of his third NBA season. Between March and April, he averaged 24 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.1 assists (not to mention a 46.1/37.0/79.4 shooter) while carrying his club to a .696 winning percentage (tied for the third-highest in that stretch).
Is this putting too much stock into a 23-game sample for someone with 225 mostly up-and-down outings under his belt? Perhaps, but long-term trade chips are all about future projections. Folks who believe that Green truly turned a corner late might be wondering how he isn't actually in the No. 1 spot.
1. Darius Garland, Cleveland Cavaliers
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The Cleveland Cavaliers' backcourt isn't big enough for both Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland. That seems to be the working assumption of Garland's representation, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, who reportedly "may ask" for a Garland trade if Mitchell inks an extension with the Cavaliers, per The Athletic's Shams Charania, Joe Vardon and Jason Lloyd.
A Garland trade request would be music to the ears of anyone needing an offensive lift at the lead guard spot. The 24-year-old, whom the Cavaliers originally selected with the No. 5 pick of the 2019 draft, has routinely flashed a high-level blend of long-distance shooting, off-the-dribble scoring and creative table-setting.
Garland, who seemingly sits above Trae Young on most teams' wish lists, is a fully functional modern floor general. The last time he had an offense to himself (2021-22), he earned an All-Star invite with per-game averages of 21.7 points, 8.6 assists and 2.6 three-pointers.
Garland has also shown a willingness to bend his approach to accommodate other stars. He's managed to stay plenty productive while sharing a backcourt with Mitchell (20 points on 45.5/39.2/85.3 shooting with 7.2 assists against 3.0 turnovers over the past two seasons).
Put him on the trade market, and he might have universal appeal among point-guard shoppers, as he's young enough to entice up-and-comers and established enough to convince contenders he is their missing piece. If the Cavaliers give him up, they should ask for—and expect—a substantial return.
Unless otherwise noted, statistics courtesy of Basketball Reference, Dunks & Threes and NBA.com.
Zach Buckley covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on X, @ZachBuckleyNBA.
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