Ranking every NBA team's trade assets ahead of NBA trade deadline
Yesterday at 05:38 PM
The NBA trade deadline is one of the most popular days on the NBA calendar these days. That is because, in the modern NBA, trades are made left and right on the last day to make deals. Deadline day trade frequency is at an all-time high, and every year there are tons of deals agreed to, both small and large.
Some NBA teams become trade deadline buyers looking to improve their roster now, while others become trade sellers who want to trade off their veterans for future capital, such as young players and draft assets. Every team around the league has different buying power ahead of the NBA trade deadline, though. Some teams are drained of tradable assets, while other teams have a stockpile of future draft picks and young players at their disposal to trade if they so choose. In this article, we are going to rank each team from first to 30th in terms of how much trade firepower they have.
We will be looking at the quantity and quality of future draft picks, as well as the young talent (25 years old or younger) that could be included in a trade. For the young talent, we only looked at the young players who could realistically be moved. For example, Victor Wembanyama is only 21 years old, but he isn’t going anywhere, so we didn’t take him into account for the San Antonio Spurs ranking.
Additionally, we are going to take into account the star/veteran talent that has been rumored in trade discussions. For example, the Miami Heat don’t have a ton of draft capital or young talent to trade, but they do have the biggest name superstar on the trade block in Jimmy Butler. Butler has already requested a trade out of Miami, and he certainly holds decent trade value for the team, so we will take that into account here.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder
Future first-round picks: 13 (10 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 16
Young trade assets: Isaiah Joe, Lu Dort, Cason Wallace, Ousmane Dieng, Dillon Jones, Ajay Mitchell, Nikola Topic
Veteran players in trade rumors: Aaron Wiggins, Kenrich Williams
The Oklahoma City Thunder successfully executed arguably the best rebuild in NBA history. Now, despite being the one-seed in the Western Conference, they have more future assets than any other team. They still somehow have 13 future first-rounders despite taking multiple players in the first round in recent drafts. They have even more second-rounders than that, too.
The Thunder might ride it out with their core this year and not make a splashy trade move, but they have the trade capital to make a deal for a superstar whenever they so choose. The contracts of young players like Isaiah Joe, Lu Dort, and Aaron Wiggins could be used to match salary, and they all have plenty of trade value in their own right.
The Thunder are still very young, which could make it hard to develop all of their players and to make room for future draft picks. That could make recent high picks like Ousmane Dieng and Dillon Jones trade candidates, too.
2. Houston Rockets
Future first-round picks: 9 (4 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 5
Young trade assets: Cam Whitmore, Tari Eason, Reed Sheppard
Veteran players in trade rumors: Jock Landale, Dillon Brooks
The Houston Rockets might be the most likely team to make a trade this year. They were already linked to Jimmy Butler when the star forward listed his ideal trade destinations, and they have both the young players and draft capital to outbid almost every other team in the NBA.
Plus, with a young roster still largely on rookie contracts, the route to them trading for a star on a big contract is a lot clearer than it is for other teams (like Butler’s other ideal trade destinations: the Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks). The team acquired a bunch of draft picks when they traded James Harden, and they got even more back this offseason when they re-traded with the Brooklyn Nets in a deal where the Nets got their own draft picks back but had to trade a surplus of other teams picks in order to do so.
3. San Antonio Spurs
Future first-round picks: 12 (9 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 17
Young trade assets: Keldon Johnson, Malaki Branham, Blake Wesley, Jeremy Sochan
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
With Victor Wembanyama looking like a future MVP, the San Antonio Spurs are past the point of rebuilding and in the era of adding talent to help their young star. Chris Paul has helped the former first overall pick grow, but the veteran point guard doesn’t have a lot of time left in the NBA.
The Spurs need a long-term point guard, and while it might be more likely that they will wait until the offseason to find one, you can’t rule out the NBA trade deadline as an option, either. The Spurs certainly have the future draft capital to swing a deal if something comes up.
4. New Orleans Pelicans
Future first-round picks: 9 (6 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 3
Young trade assets: Trey Murphey, Jordan Hawkins
Veteran players in trade rumors: Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, Herb Jones
The New Orleans Pelicans could go in a number of directions ahead of the NBA trade deadline. They’ve once again dealt with tons of injuries, which has led to them having a disappointing year so far. The Pelicans might be tired of the continuous injury woes, which could lead them to trading away Brandon Ingram and/or Zion Williamson.
While the injury concerns – as well as Ingram’s impending free agency – will certainly hurt their trade value, these are still two young players with star talent. A team could easily convince themselves to trade a big haul for either one of them considering their potential.
On the other hand, the Pelicans could also realize that Ingram and Williamson’s trade value is at an all-time low right now, which could lead to them holding onto the stars. If they choose to do that, the Pelicans are loaded with future first-round draft picks that they could use to add some talent around their stars and replenish the forces that have been lost to injury (á la Herb Jones).
5. Utah Jazz
Future first-round picks: 11 (7 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 3
Young trade assets: Brice Sensabaugh
Veteran players in trade rumors: Jordan Clarkson, Collin Sexton
The Utah Jazz just made an intriguing trade with the Phoenix Suns. Utah traded three first-round picks for just one of Phoenix’s future picks. It is a pick that won’t convey until 2031. Utah took a quality-over-quantity approach with this trade, though, which is smart, considering they already have a ton of future draft picks. They believe the Suns pick could be lottery bound, whereas the picks they traded away will likely be late first-round picks.
Earlier in the season, Walker Kessler was thought of as a trade candidate, but the Jazz have seemingly committed to keeping the big man around. Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton could be traded, though. Both players can get buckets in bunches, and if a team needs a sixth-man spark plug, the Jazz will likely be the team that they call.
6. Memphis Grizzlies
Future first-round picks: 7 (4 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 5
Young trade assets: GG Jackson, Vince Williams, Jake LaRavia, Santi Aldama
Veteran players in trade rumors: Luke Kennard, Marcus Smart, John Konchar
The Grizzlies have tons of depth, and every single year in the NBA Draft, they seem to replenish it with high-value draft steals. If the Grizzlies need to sacrifice some depth or picks in a trade, fans shouldn’t be worried, because the team has shown an ability to find value wherever they are drafting. The Grizzlies have seven future first-round picks and a number of intriguing young players who could be used as trade bait.
While they aren’t stars, it would be reasonable to see Marcus Smart or Luke Kennard moved in a deal. Smart’s defense and Kennard’s three-point shooting could be valued by certain teams around the league, and their contracts could be used in a bigger deal.
7. Orlando Magic
Future first-round picks: 8 (5 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 12
Young trade assets: Jett Howard, Wendell Carter Jr., Cole Anthony, Anthony Black
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
Despite injuries to Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero, the Orlando Magic have won a lot of games this year. They’ve been a pleasant surprise, largely because of their fantastic defense that has thrived for a few years now. Yet again, though, they are still lacking in the three-point department on offense. With tons of future draft picks at their disposal, you’d have to expect the team to make a move at the 2025 NBA trade deadline.
8. Washington Wizards
Future first-round picks: 8 (4 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 17
Young trade assets: Corey Kispert, Johnny Davis
Veteran players in trade rumors: Jordan Poole, Kyle Kuzma, Jonas Valanciunas, Malcolm Brogdon
The Washington Wizards will be NBA trade deadline sellers, so their eight future first-round picks and 17 future second-rounders likely aren’t going anywhere. They can certainly add to that treasure trove of draft capital, though. Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma might not be megastars, but they are very good players who have heard their names in trade conversations this year.
Jonas Valanciunas and Malcolm Brogdon are two other veterans players who could net something in return, although their trade packages would be smaller.
9. Portland Trail Blazers
Future first-round picks: 7 (2 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 6
Young trade assets: Anfernee Simons
Veteran players in trade rumors: Jerami Grant, Deandre Ayton, Robert Williams
The Portland Trail Blazers have a massive logjam at the center position with Donovan Clingan, Duop Reath, Deandre Ayton, and Robert Williams all needing minutes. The latter two of those big men could certainly be on the move. In fact, Robert Williams has already been rumored to the Rockets. Williams has injury concerns, but he is an elite rim protector when healthy.
The team will take calls on other veterans like Anfernee Simons and Jerami Grant as well. With that said, the Blazers rank as high as they do when it comes to trade assets because of how many intriguing trade candidates they have, not because of their draft stash.
10. Brooklyn Nets
Future first-round picks: 15 (12 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 16
Young trade assets: Cam Thomas, Dariq Whitehead
Veteran players in trade rumors: Ben Simmons, Cam Johnson
The Brooklyn Nets have a surplus of future draft picks, but they likely aren’t done adding them. It seems likely that Brooklyn will hold onto all of their picks and instead trade their best players – namely Cam Johnson – for even more draft capital.
11. Chicago Bulls
Future first-round picks: 7 (3 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 3
Young trade assets: Coby White, Patrick Williams
Veteran players in trade rumors: Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, Torrey Craig, Jevon Carter
The Chicago Bulls have been stuck in purgatory for far too long. They either need to commit to a tank job in which they could trade players like Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, Torrey Craig, and Jevon Carter for draft picks, or they need to again trade for talent that could get them over the hump. The former of those two strategies seems like the smarter gameplan. It was recently reported that Patrick Williams is another player that the Bulls would consider trading.
12. Miami Heat
Future first-round picks: 5 (1 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 3
Young trade assets: none
Veteran players in trade rumors: Jimmy Butler
All trade talk surrounding the Miami Heat involves Jimmy Butler. Although he can be described as the best player on the trade market, it seems like there hasn’t been much of a market for him. His propensity to force his way out of town wherever he plays at, his uncertain contract future, and his age (35) have all diminished his trade value. Even so, with the Heat announcing a second suspension for the legendary small forward, it likely won’t be long until he is traded.
13. Golden State Warriors
Future first-round picks: 7 (3 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 2
Young trade assets: Brandin Podziemski, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody
Veteran players in trade rumors: Andrew Wiggins, Gary Payton II
Year in and year out, former Warriors first-rounders Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody seem to be involved in trade rumors. This is because the Warriors want to maximize their championship window before Stephen Curry retires. Even so, Curry recently revealed that he doesn’t think the Warriors should mortgage their future.
However, after a hot start, it has become clear that the team isn’t a legitimate contender as currently constructed. Golden State might have no choice but to trade their young players for more win-now talent.
14. Detroit Pistons
Future first-round picks: 6 (2 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 11
Young trade assets: Isaiah Stewart
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
The Detroit Pistons tied the record for the worst losing streak ever last season, and they became one of the worst teams in recent memory in the process. The team has completely turned things around, though. They have a great young core, but it is probably too early to trade off any of their young talent.
Moving on from draft picks for veteran players make sense, though, especially if they can help replicate the production that was lost when Jaden Ivey got hurt. It is worth mentioning that Isaiah Stewart seems to find himself in trade rumors every season.
15. Charlotte Hornets
Future first-round picks: 8 (5 tradable)
Future second-roundpicks: 9
Young trade assets: Tre Mann, Josh Green
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
Grant Williams is out for the year with a torn ACL, and Nick Richards was already traded to the Suns. That means that arguably the two players who the Hornets were most likely to deal at the NBA trade deadline are either unlikely to be moved now or have already been traded. Charlotte has been bad for far too long, and they are starting to waste LaMelo Ball’s prime. Perhaps trading some of their draft capital for a veteran would be a step in the right direction.
16. Toronto Raptors
Future first-round picks: 8 (5 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 7
Young trade assets: Ochai Agbaji
Veteran players in trade rumors: Bruce Brown, Jakob Poeltl
The Raptors underwent a firesale last year, and they traded for young players (R.J. Barrett/Immanuel Quickley) rather than tons of draft picks. Considering the team is only 11-32 now, perhaps they are regretting that decision. Toronto has indicated that they are ready to move off of Bruce Brown, but he might be more of a buyout candidate than a trade candidate.
17. Atlanta Hawks
Future first-round picks: 8 (5 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 6
Young trade assets: Kobe Bufkin, Onyeka Okongwu
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
Trae Young has been involved in trade rumors before, but it doesn’t appear that the Atlanta Hawks would trade him as of now. Dyson Daniels has provided the defense alongside Young that the team has needed for years, but Atlanta is still stuck in mediocrity.
18. Philadelphia 76ers
Future first-round picks: 7 (4 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 6
Young trade assets: KJ Martin, Adem Bona
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
The Philadelphia 76ers are in a tough spot right now. They got off to a putrid start because of injuries, and Joel Embiid has continued to struggle to get on the court. At full strength, they can compete, but it is tough to trade away assets to build to the roster when you are unsure if your best player will even be available.
19. Indiana Pacers
Future first-round picks: 6 (2 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 9
Young trade assets: Aaron Nesmith, Andrew Nembhard, Ben Sheppard
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
It took a huge trade for Pascal Siakam for the Indiana Pacers to get over the hump last year. Now, they are looking like they could once again use a little boost via trade.
20. Cleveland Cavaliers
Future first-round picks: 4 (1 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 8
Young trade assets: Emoni Bates
Veteran players in trade rumors: Caris LeVert
The Cleveland Cavaliers are thriving, as evidenced by their undefeated streak to start the season. Their championship window is now, so if the Cavaliers can pull off a trade that they think gives them a clear-cut upgrade, then they should do it. The team’s role players have thrived this season, though, so they might be hesitant to trade away their depth. Cam Johnson is one player they’ve been linked to.
21. Los Angeles Lakers
Future first-round picks: 6 (3 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 2
Young trade assets: Max Christie, Jalen Hood-Schifino
Veteran players in trade rumors: Austin Reaves, Jarred Vanderbilt, Gabe Vincent
Los Angeles Lakers fans will always be pushing for the team to make a trade. Unfortunately, they don’t have a lot to offer right now, especially considering they’ve already dealt D’Angelo Russell. The trade that brought in Dorian Finney-Smith might be their “big” move of the season.
22. Minnesota Timberwolves
Future first-round picks: 4 (1 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 4
Young trade assets: Leonard Miller, Terrance Shannon Jr., Rob Dillingham
Veteran players in trade rumors: Julius Randle
The offseason trade of Karl-Anthony Towns for Julius Randle is looking like a massive flop for the Minnesota Timberwolves. So much so that the team might be forced to get rid of Randle.
23. Dallas Mavericks
Future first-round picks: 5 (2 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 2
Young trade assets: Jaden Hardy, Olivier Maxence-Prosper
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
The Dallas Mavericks “all in” NBA trade deadline was likely last year and not this year. The team made separate deals for Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington that helped turn the team around and resulted in a run to the NBA Finals. Now, getting healthy is a bigger priority than making more trades, and it isn’t like Dallas has much to offer anymore anyways.
24. Sacramento Kings
Future first-round picks: 6 (2 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 1
Young trade assets: Keon Ellis, Keegan Murray
Veteran players in trade rumors: De’Aaron Fox, Kevin Huerter
Before Mike Brown was fired, De’Aaron Fox was involved in some trade rumors, but it seems like the team won’t be moving off of him now that they are on a hot streak. If the team was legitimately interested in moving Fox, Sacramento would rank much higher on this list. The point guard is only 27 years old, and as one of the clutchest players in the NBA, he holds immense trade value. Perhaps the Kings will eventually trade him, but it doesn’t seem like that will happen at this year’s NBA trade deadline.
25. Phoenix Suns
Future first-round picks: 6 (3 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 1
Young trade assets: Ryan Dunn
Veteran players in trade rumors: Bradley Beal, Jusuf Nurkic
The Phoenix Suns have moved Bradley Beal and Jusuf Nurkic to the bench, signalling that they are interested in trading them. Beal’s contract could be used in a Jimmy Butler trade (if Beal were to void his no trade clause), but it would likely take some draft picks just to move his contract.
That is why the Suns made a recent trade with the Jazz. They traded one potentially good first-round pick (2031) for three potentially not-so-good picks. The three picks give Phoenix more fire power in the trade market, though. Considering they are committed to Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, it seems likely that a trade is just around the corner. This is even more true when considering how aggressive Phoenix has been under the ownership of Mat Ishbia.
26. Milwaukee Bucks
Future first-round picks: 4 (1 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 1
Young trade assets: Marjon Beauchamp
Veteran players in trade rumors: Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis
With only four total future draft picks (only two of which can be traded) and a pretty bad young core, the Milwaukee Bucks don’t have much to write home about when it comes to trade assets. They do have some veterans who could be moved, but all of Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton, and Bobby Portis are well past their primes. Lopez could be intriguing for teams because his contract is expiring, but a trade involving him would leave a major hole at the center position for the Bucks.
27. New York Knicks
Future first-round picks: 4 (1 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 8
Young trade assets: Miles McBride, Precious Achiuwa
Veteran players in trade rumors: Jericho Sims, Mitchell Robinson
The New York Knicks have made a ton of trades over the last year, and they’ve depleted their trade assets in the process. The team traded for O.G. Anunoby before last year’s NBA trade deadline, and they made separate moves for Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges in the offseason. The team is likely done trading for now.
28. Los Angeles Clippers
Future first-round picks: 4 (1 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 2
Young trade assets: Bones Hyland, Kobe Brown
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
Although the Los Angeles Clippers have exceeded expectations without Paul George and despite the start-of-season injury Kawhi Leonard was dealing with, you can’t really expect them to continue being a better team than they’ve been in years past. The team has next to no tradable assets to improve their roster, too.
29. Denver Nuggets
Future first-round picks: 4 (none, although they do have a 2031 pick swap)
Future second-round picks: 0
Young trade assets: Zeke Nnaji
Veteran players in trade rumors: Michael Porter Jr., Dario Saric
Michael Porter Jr. is in the same category as De’Aaron Fox with the Kings for us. Although he was briefly mentioned in trade rumors, we just can’t envision his team trading him ahead of the NBA trade deadline, so we aren’t going to put too much weight into his trade value when analyzing the Nuggets’ trade assets.
Denver is a great team, and they want to continue building around Nikola Jokic, but they are in a tough spot when it comes to making moves right now due to the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement. They don’t have any first-round picks to trade outside of a pick swap, and they are completely depleted of second-round picks, too. Zeke Nnaji and Dario Saric have contracts that can be used to match salary in a trade, but those two players have contributed so little in Denver that few teams would want to take them on without being incentivized with draft capital, that of which the Nuggets don’t have.
30. Boston Celtics
Future first-round picks: 6 (3 tradable)
Future second-round picks: 6
Young trade assets: Baylor Scheierman
Veteran players in trade rumors: none
We’ve seen the Boston Celtics fleece teams in trades plenty often in the past, but as of now, they have next to no trading power. They don’t have much of a young core to speak about, and they are limited in the draft capital that they can trade. Because of that, it is unlikely that they will make much noise at the 2025 NBA trade deadline.
The post Ranking every NBA team’s trade assets ahead of NBA trade deadline appeared first on ClutchPoints.
