10 NBA trades we want to see this season

Between the Anthony Davis trade request and the unexpected Kristaps Porzingis deal last week, the NBA trade deadline has already delivered on the hype and drama that fans have come to expect in recent years. With Woj-Bombs and Shams-Bombs launching every few hours, there’s a sense that the dominoes have only begun to fall. How things will actually play out by Thursday’s rapidly approaching deadline is anyone’s guess, but here are 10 potential trades that would make this NBA season a whole lot more interesting.

Before we start, here are some notes about the 10 fake trades:

• Each trade has to work on the NBA Trade Machine and be somewhat plausible. 
• Each trade should be viewed in a vacuum. 
• And entertaining trades > realistic trades. In other words, E’Twaun Moore is going to get traded for a second-round pick by Thursday, but nobody wants to read about that. Let’s talk about the possibility of needle-movers like Mike Conley, Jrue Holiday and Jimmy Butler getting traded.

Without further ado, here are 10 trades we want to see this deadline:

1. Pelicans trade Anthony Davis, Kenrich Williams and Trevon Bluiett to Lakers for Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Ivica Zubac, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and their unprotected 2019, 2022 and 2024 first-round picks

According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Lakers’ underwhelming first offer to the Pelicans included various combinations of two of their five young prospects (Ingram, Ball, Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart and Zubac), Rajon Rondo, Lance Stephenson and a 2019 first-round pick). Not sure I believe that report: Why would the Lakers low-ball the Pelicans with an offer when they know it’s going to get leaked to Woj and possibly mess with important rotation players’ mindsets?

Regardless of whether the report is true, the Pelicans probably aren’t going to consider an offer unless it has at least three of the Lakers’ young assets and multiple draft picks like in the trade above. Here, the Pelicans get L.A.’s two best prospects in Ingram (who is killing it lately) and Ball (who had shown signs of turning the corner before his injury), plus three unprotected first-round picks, including one in the 2022 draft, which should be the “double-draft” (where high schoolers will be eligible again). LeBron James will be 39 and possibly retired by 2024, so that unprotected pick could have enormous value as well. Kuzma and Hart aren’t in this version of the deal, but one could be swapped out for one of the other assets if the Pelicans so desire.

2. Three-way trade: Raptors acquire Anthony Davis; Pelicans acquire Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Iman Shumpert and the Raptors’ unprotected 2020 first-round pick and lottery-protected 2022 and 2024 first-round picks; Kings acquire Serge Ibaka

The Raptors are already going all in on this season with Kawhi Leonard, so why not take it a step further and try to get Anthony Davis too? With the emergence of Siakam, Toronto can send two intriguing assets along with three first-round picks to the Pelicans. Is the Raptors’ offer better than the aforementioned Lakers offer? It depends on whether New Orleans prefers Siakam or Ingram. If they prefer Siakam, then this is a solid return for Davis, as Siakam is the Raptors’ version of Draymond Green, and Anunoby has the potential to be a high-level, two-way wing.

Why would Toronto mortgage its future with those picks though? Because if Davis informs the team after this season that he will not re-sign, it can trade him again and recoup some assets of similar value. The Kings’ involvement in this trade helps to make the numbers work and gives them a good small-ball center in Ibaka for their playoff push.

3. Three-way trade: 76ers acquire Jrue Holiday and Elfrid Payton; Rockets acquire Jimmy Butler; Pelicans acquire Markelle Fultz, Brandon Knight, Marquese Chriss and the Rockets’ unprotected 2019 and 2021 first-round picks and the Rockets’ lottery-protected 2023 first-round pick

A three-way blockbuster deal that turns the Sixers and Rockets into legitimate title contenders and helps the Pelicans reset? Sign me up. Starting with Philly, Butler is struggling to fit alongside Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons on offense because he’s more of a ball-dominant player than most wings. On defense, he’s being tasked with slowing down the other team’s best guard when he’s better equipped to shut down wings. The 76ers’ road to the finals will almost certainly include matchups against elite point guards like Kyrie Irving, Kyle Lowry and Steph Curry. Wouldn’t Jrue Holiday be a perfect fit as Philly’s third star? He prefers to play off the ball on offense, and on defense he might be the best guard defender in the NBA. Good luck scoring on the Sixers with Holiday, Simmons and Embiid on the court.

The Rockets allegedly already offered four first-round picks to the T-Wolves for Butler earlier this season. Thus, trading three first-round picks and dumping Knight's and Chriss’ expiring contracts shouldn’t be an issue for Houston. Butler is actually having a decent season shooting the ball on catch and shoot three-pointers this year (42.4-percent) and prefers an isolation and pick and roll-heavy offense, so the fit with the Rockets could be better than people realize.

Finally, the Pelicans get a low-risk, high-reward player in Fultz and an extra first-round draft pick for three of the next five seasons. Getting a young player with endless potential (when his mind/shoulder are right) along with three additional bites at the apple is a pretty solid return for Holiday.

4. Blazers trade C.J. McCollum to Magic for Aaron Gordon, Jonathon Simmons and a 2019 second-round pick

Jonathan Tjarks from The Ringer wrote an interesting article a couple of weeks ago titled, “C.J. McCollum for Aaron Gordon: Who Says No?” He smartly argued that the trade would address both teams’ greatest needs while simultaneously putting both players in a role that would allow them to become the best versions of themselves. It’s a solid fake trade, but I’m thinking the Blazers value McCollum more than the Magic value Gordon. Thus, let’s send the Blazers another battle-tested wing (Simmons) and one of Orlando’s two second-round picks this summer to balance things out. Portland gets a young, athletic wing for a deep playoff push, and Orlando gets a star guard to help bring the best out of its young big men. Everybody wins!

5. Grizzlies trade Mike Conley to Jazz for Ricky Rubio, Derrick Favors, Grayson Allen and an unprotected 2019 first-round pick 

Since it looks like Conley is never going to get a spot on the All-Star team, let’s at least get him on a contender again. As much as the Jazz like Rubio’s defense and playmaking, an ideal point guard next to Donovan Mitchell would be able to score and space the floor better. Conley is averaging over 20 points per game this season and is a career 37.5 percent three-point shooter, whereas Rubio is averaging around 13 a game and is only a career 32.5 percent shooter. The Jazz wouldn’t mind acquiring Conley’s max contract either because it’s unlikely they’d be able to sign a free agent of his caliber in the coming years anyway. By trading Conley, the Grizzlies clear cap space (both Rubio and Favors can come off the books this summer), acquire an intriguing prospect in Allen and get a first-round pick who will likely fall in the early 20s this summer.

6. Grizzlies trade Marc Gasol and Chandler Parsons to Hornets for Nic Batum, Bismack Biyombo, Malik Monk and Frank Kaminsky

This trade might look like a pointless bad contract swap on paper, but allow me to explain. Here, Memphis sends out its two worst contracts (Parsons is on the books for two seasons and Gasol has a player option this summer) for two worse contracts (Batum is on the books for three seasons and Biyombo is on for two), but it gets Monk and Kaminsky, two solid young assets, for its troubles. Charlotte obviously loses two solid assets but acquires a big man in Gasol, who can help Kemba Walker lead the Hornets to the playoffs this season. If Gasol picks up his player option this summer, the Hornets probably make the playoffs again next season, which is something they seem intent on doing. If he turns it down, the Hornets get some much-needed cap relief.

7. Magic trade Nikola Vucevic to Lakers for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and a lottery-protected 2019 first-round pick

If the Lakers miss out on Anthony Davis, they may look into trading for the Magic’s All-Star center. Vucevic is having a career year, averaging 21 points, 12 rebounds and four assists per game, and he would fit perfectly with LeBron James on offense because of his ability to score off pick and rolls as well as pick and pops. (He’s shooting 38 percent from three.) Acquiring Vucevic, who is an unrestricted free agent this summer, for anything more than KCP and a first-round pick, however, would be a short-sighted move for L.A. The Lakers need to make sure they make the playoffs this season, and Vucevic should be cheap enough to not mortgage their future but good enough to ensure that they make the playoffs.

8. Celtics trade Terry Rozier to T-Wolves for Dario Saric

This trade hasn’t been rumored anywhere, but it would make sense for both teams. Rozier is a restricted free agent this summer, and the Celtics probably don’t have enough cap space to match the big offer he’ll likely receive after excelling as a starter in Kyrie Irving’s stead last season. Thus, the best move for Boston would probably be to roll him into a new asset like Saric. Saric, who is without a major role on the T-Wolves, is the type of savvy forward who would excel under Brad Stevens. Think of how well Kelly Olynyk played in Boston — Saric is much more athletic and talented than Olynyk. The T-Wolves get a couple of months to see if Rozier can be the point guard of their future before he hits restricted free agency. With the team’s core already set with Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins signed to max extensions, Rozier would give Minnesota the type of long-term, two-way jolt that Jeff Teague never was.

9. Clippers trade Lou Williams to Bucks for Thon Maker, Pat Connaughton, Christian Wood, their next first-round pick and a lottery-protected 2023 first-round pick

In the short term, this deal is an absolute victory for the Bucks because they’d be getting one of the best sixth man in the NBA on a fair contract. The Bucks’ starting lineup scores about 75 percent of the team's points. While the subs are still playing well, Milwaukee is going to need a consistent bench threat in the playoffs. Williams would be perfect in that role. As a bonus, he’s also one of the best closers in the league — something that Giannis Antetokounmpo occasionally struggles to be because of his below-average jump shot. In the long-term, this trade gives the Clippers a couple of potential rotation players who don’t screw up their cap space this summer and, more importantly, two future first-round picks. This would be a very Celtics-ian move by L.A. because assuming the Clippers add two max free agents this summer, these future first-round picks will vest in time for them to extend their window of contention.    

10.  Pelicans trade Nikola Mirotic and Ian Clark to the Thunder for Terrance Ferguson, Patrick Patterson, Alex Abrines and a lottery-protected 2023 first-round pick

With Paul George playing at an MVP level this season, the Thunder need to make a move to acquire some shooting and go all in on this season. The Pelicans are shopping essentially all of their players in the wake of Anthony Davis’ trade demand, and OKC would be smart to inquire about their sharp-shooting forward. Mirotic, who is averaging 17 points and eight rebounds per game on 45/37/84 shooting splits, would be ideal for the Thunder, who rank in the bottom half of the league in three-point attempts, makes and percentage. In return for getting Mirotic, the Thunder would likely have to part ways with a young rotation player like Terrance Ferguson and a future first-round pick. Ultimately, this could be a cheap price if Mirotic helps them make a deep playoff run. As for the Pelicans, they’d be happy to acquire two solid assets in exchange for any player on an expiring contract at this point.