2025 NBA trade deadline: Five big deals that would shake the league
The 2025 NBA trade deadline is just over three weeks away and there’s still plenty to see what might happen before Feb. 6 arrives.
There haven’t been too many completed deals yet — due in part to the difficulty of making big trades under the collective bargaining agreement — but that could change in the coming weeks.
With the help of the ESPN Trade Machine, our NBA Insiders propose deals that would shake up the league and the postseason picture — including new homes for Kevin Durant and Jimmy Butler, and a possible pairing of Zach LaVine and Stephen Curry.
Jump to a trade offer:
Jimmy joins the Kings
Rockets land Durant
Bulls, Jazz, Timberwolves all benefit
LaVine gives Warriors a boost
Magic’s high stakes offer
Butler joins Kings to end feud with Heat
Sacramento Kings get: forward Jimmy Butler, guard Alec Burks
Miami Heat get: forward DeMar DeRozan, guard Tim Hardaway Jr., 2028 first-round pick (top-four protected, via SAC)
Detroit Pistons get: guard Kevin Huerter, forward Trey Lyles, 2029 first-round pick swap option (via SAC)
Should Sacramento consider trading for the disgruntled Butler after getting back to .500 under interim coach Doug Christie? I think it’s worth considering to raise the Kings’ playoff upside.
Since 2013, Butler has been one of the top 10 NBA players in terms of outperforming regular-season performance in the playoffs. Over that same span, nobody has underperformed more in the playoffs than DeRozan, who has produced 5.0 fewer wins — based on my wins above replacement player (WARP) rating — than we’d expect based on those regular seasons.
From Miami’s perspective, DeRozan would be an ideal Butler replacement because of his combination of production and contract. At $23.4 million this season, DeRozan is making nearly $30 million less than Butler. The Heat could get within striking distance of avoiding the luxury tax by making this trade and still have the ability to use their exceptions this summer when Hardaway’s contract comes off the books.
A third team is required to avoid sticking Miami with Heurter’s contract. In this deal, Detroit uses its cap space to facilitate the Heat saving money and Sacramento staying out of the luxury tax, and nets a pick swap in 2029 — when the Pistons’ core should be in its prime, while Butler will likely have retired — in exchange for taking back Huerter.
If Huerter can revert to his career 38% 3-point shooting, he’d fit well as part of Detroit’s emphasis on floor spacing. If not, the Pistons will get his contract off the books in 2026 along with forward Tobias Harris, maintaining their flexibility to build around Cade Cunningham. — Kevin Pelton
Suns’ big three era ends — with KD leaving
Houston Rockets get: forward Kevin Durant, center Bol Bol, guard Monte Morris, guard Damion Lee
Phoenix Suns get: forward Dillon Brooks, forward Cam Whitmore, forward Jae’Sean Tate, forward Jeff Green, center Jock Landale, two first-round picks (2025, 2027; both return to Phoenix)
We are not going to hold these words against Rockets general manager Rafael Stone.
“Of course, my job is to be open to everything, so I’m not going to not do my job,” Stone told Sirius XM radio in December. “[But] we like this team. We definitely do not intend to change anything and I would be shocked if something changes this season.”
But what would happen if Suns owner Mat Ishbia looks at the standings in early February and does an about-face with the roster? Instead of holding on to Durant with the belief this roster can contend for a championship, the Suns could realize that the best move is to retool the roster without the former MVP.
In the unlikely scenario that Durant were made available, Houston checks the boxes of expiring contracts, young players and draft picks to offer an appealing trade package.
To steal a page from the Brooklyn Nets, Phoenix would receive back its own 2025 and 2027 first-round picks. Those two picks were initially traded to Brooklyn when Durant joined Phoenix two years ago, and then again traded to Houston this past summer. The 2025 pick would be projected to land in the lottery.
The Rockets would certainly draw a line in the sand for which former first-round picks are available. Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun signed rookie extensions in October and have a poison pill restriction in their contract. Trading either is close to impossible. That would leave Amen Thompson, Tari Eason, Reed Sheppard and Whitmore as trade candidates. The Suns should ask for Thompson or Eason, but that would be a nonstarter for Houston.
Whitmore would be the odd man out. He recently expressed his displeasure with his role in Houston.
The trade would give the Rockets a starting five of Fred VanVleet, Green, Thompson, Durant and Sengun. Current starter Jabari Smith Jr. and Eason would anchor the bench.
Besides Whitmore and returned draft capital, Brooks would give Phoenix an NBA All-Defense wing under contract for the next three seasons.
The Suns are over the second apron and not allowed to aggregate contracts. But veteran minimum contracts included in a trade do not violate the aggregation rule. — Bobby Marks
Ball, Randle, White lead three-team swap
Minnesota Timberwolves get: guard Coby White (via CHI), forward John Collins (via UTAH)
Chicago Bulls get: forward Julius Randle (via MIN), guard Jordan Clarkson (via UTAH)
Utah Jazz get: forward Jaden McDaniels (via MIN), guard Lonzo Ball (via CHI), guard Chris Duarte (via CHI)
We’ll set aside that Chicago would need to go into the luxury tax, something the team has not done since 2015. But on the court, this trade would fill positions of need for all three teams.
The Randle experiment has not worked in Minnesota, and two basketball reasons indicate why. Randle and Anthony Edwards both like to operate on-ball as primary offensive options off the dribble, but neither are strong enough ball handlers to consistently create team offense against set defenses. This leads to a lack of offensive synergy with these two as the primary options, and more of a your-turn-my-turn feel to the Timberwolves’ offense.
In short: The Timberwolves need their big-man scorer to be more finisher than initiator, and need a lead guard capable of consistently creating team offense while letting Edwards operate more as a scorer. Thus, this trade.
Collins is not as complete an offensive player as Randle at the power forward slot, but he is more of a pure finisher who would fit better in the Timberwolves’ offense. He’s a high-percentage finisher both inside (55.6% on 2-pointers) and outside (43.8% on 3s) who is excellent in the pick-and-roll/pop game. He also has the athleticism to crash the boards and make some defensive plays in the paint.
White, meanwhile, would give the Timberwolves the young, scoring lead guard they have been missing. White is capable of playing full-time point guard or playing off another lead guard like Mike Conley, and is an excellent volume 3-point shooter off both the dribble and the spot up.
White can also run the team with a steady hand when called upon in late-game and half-court situations. This was the biggest hole for the Timberwolves, even during their conference finals run last season. The loss of McDaniels’ 3-and-D skill set would hurt, but the addition of White in the starting lineup would allow Edwards to move from pure shooting guard to swing, for which he has the size and athleticism to play at high level at both ends of the court.
White is somewhat redundant on the Bulls, with LaVine, Josh Giddey, Ayo Dosunmu and Ball (if he weren’t traded in this scenario) replicating many of White’s skills.
The Bulls lack a true starting caliber power forward. They play Patrick Williams, but at 6-foot-7, 215 pounds he is really more of a small forward or a tweener than a power forward. At 6-9, 250, Randle would allow Chicago to run its offense through the frontcourt and would let Williams and LaVine slide down from the starting frontcourt to the swing spots, their more natural positions. They would also move on from Ball in this deal, with Giddey as a younger, healthier option with a similar skill set and Clarkson joining the team as a veteran sixth man.
The Jazz are a young team deep in the rebuilding process. Collins is a natural 4 who can play some undersized 5, but the Jazz already have franchise player Lauri Markkanen and young defensive anchor Walker Kessler as their building blocks at those positions. They also have young talent in the backcourt, with Keyonte George and Collin Sexton both capable of scoring. What Utah lacks is a young, starting caliber small forward capable of opposing wings. McDaniels would fit to a tee, and both Ball and Duarte are expiring contracts that could potentially be moved or terminated. — André Snellings
LaVine helps Curry, Warriors get back on track
Golden State Warriors get: guard Zach LaVine
Chicago Bulls get: forward Andrew Wiggins, guard Gary Payton II, center Kevon Looney, Golden State’s 2026 first-round pick
It has been an odd couple of seasons for LaVine and the Bulls, who have both seemingly been the subject of trade rumors for years. The swingman’s value has been all over the map, ranging from extremely low last season — so much so that Chicago would have had to attach assets to unload him and his $40 million-plus salary — to now being a net positive again as the 29-year-old is playing arguably the best ball of his career, with six straight games of at least 30 points.
It’s not merely volume scoring, either. Both his effective field goal rate and true shooting percentage rank second in the league among players taking 15 shots per game — trailing only Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns and ranking ahead of MVP favorites Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
LaVine has thrived when he has called his own number this season, shooting 49.5% and notching 116 points per 100 possessions on iso plays, which put him in the league’s 91st percentile. That is music to any suitor’s ears, particularly a team such as Golden State that wants more reliable production beyond future Hall of Famer Stephen Curry.
Perhaps most appealing for a club such as the Warriors, though, is the fact that LaVine has shown the ability to effectively play off the ball as an elite catch-and-shoot option and a cutter. Both traits are key to coach Steve Kerr‘s offense.
If there’s any hesitation here to make a deal, it’s probably rooted in two things: the Warriors — under .500 for the first time this season — being unsure of parting ways with an upcoming first-round pick, given they might need to reload with Curry at age 36. Are they close enough to contending for such a deal to be worth it? And do they want to part with so much institutional knowledge? Wiggins, Payton and Looney were members of the 2022 championship team.
For the Bulls, LaVine’s play could lead them to wonder if they can extract more than a single first-round pick — perhaps a second-round pick or two — in a deal. Any additional assets would be incredibly useful for a rebuilding club that failed to land any picks after trading Alex Caruso and seeing DeMar DeRozan leave via free agency in the offseason. — Chris Herring
Magic make a high-stakes move for Cam Johnson
Orlando Magic get: forward Cameron Johnson, guard Keon Johnson
Brooklyn Nets get: guard Cole Anthony, guard Gary Harris, Orlando’s 2026 first-round pick (top-12 protected), 2027 first-round pick swap (top-10 protected); 2028 second-round pick (more favorable of LAL or WAS)
There is a significant risk and reward if Orlando were to acquire Cameron Johnson.
The risk would be the Magic’s financial burden in both the 2025-26 and 2026-27 season. After committing $550 million in contracts last offseason (Franz Wagner, Jalen Suggs, Jonathan Isaac, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Wendell Carter Jr., Goga Bitadze, Moritz Wagner, and Harris) and a projected $250 million this summer to Paolo Banchero, Orlando is projected to be in the luxury tax for the first time since 2010-11.
By potentially adding the $20.5 million owed to Johnson next season and then $22.5 million in 2026-27, Orlando would not only be a tax team but also over the first apron. Johnson has $4.5 million in additional unlikely bonuses that would count against the apron.
The reward comes with Orlando improving a roster that ranks last in three-point shooting. Johnson is averaging career highs in points (19.3), field goal percentage (49.1%) and 3-point percentage (43.2%). He ranks in the 91st percentile among all forwards in 3-point shooting, per Cleaning the Glass.
As for Brooklyn, the trade would create future financial flexibility and add to its 31 draft picks in the next seven years. The Nets could also increase the $60 million in projected cap space this offseason by $7.5 million more if they decline Harris’ team option. Anthony is under contract the next two seasons but has a $13.1 million team option in 2026-27. — Marks
Source: espn.com