Could NBA stars, including Ben Simmons, Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal, be traded in the days before, or immediately after, the July 29th NBA draft? Which first-round picks could be on the table?
Some NBA teams are looking to locate one final player who could push them into prime contention. Some are looking to get younger with an eye toward long-term relevancy. And others still have financial considerations that necessitate alterations to the roster.
With that in mind, our NBA experts provided six trades that would work, including multiple All-Stars and upcoming first-round selections changing uniforms.
Simmons out, Love in for Sixers
Cleveland Cavaliers receive: Ben Simmons
Philadelphia 76ers receive: Collin Sexton, Kevin Love, top-10 protected 2022 first rounder
Jonathan Givony: Simmons' trade value hit rock bottom after a dismal playoff campaign in which he was a complete nonfactor late in games due to his passivity and historic struggles at the free throw line. Moving to Cleveland would give him a fresh start outside of the spotlight where he could hopefully rediscover his offensive game and use his versatility as a passer and defender to put the Cavs back in the playoffs after a three-year drought. This trade would open some possibilities in the draft for Cleveland, allowing the Cavs to more seriously explore the candidacy of Jalen Suggs, who could be an interesting fit alongside promising 21-year old Darius Garland. Jalen Green would also be an intriguing option for the Cavs, if Houston decides to pass on him at No. 2.
Philadelphia would balance and modernize its roster with Sexton, a 22-year-old, 24-point per game scorer who has shot 39% from beyond the arc in his NBA career and has improved considerably in each of his three seasons thus far. The Sixers would also add Love, a former NBA champion who would bring the type of floor spacing, dynamic passing and experience they sorely lacked in the frontcourt while playing behind and occasionally alongside Joel Embiid. While injury prone, Love has just two years remaining on his contract and should be able to rebuild his standing in NBA circles with a productive showing at the Olympics, where he'll likely be asked to play a role as one of only two traditional big men on the roster alongside Bam Adebayo.
Young to aide the Nets' title efforts
Chicago Bulls receive: Spencer Dinwiddie (sign-and-trade deal)
Brooklyn Nets receive: Thaddeus Young and 2026 second from OKC (protected 31-55)
Oklahoma City Thunder receive: DeAndre Jordan and 2021 Brooklyn first (No. 27)
Bobby Marks: The Nets enter the offseason with limited options on how to improve their roster beyond their own free agents. Signing and trading Dinwiddie (starting salary of $18 million) would help balance their roster. With the trade for James Harden, Dinwiddie is an expensive insurance policy off the Nets' bench. If Brooklyn signed him outright, its luxury tax bill increases from $40 million to $114 million, and the high cost is before factoring in restricted free agent Bruce Brown and using the $5.9 million tax midlevel exception.
The addition of Young gives Brooklyn much-needed depth at power forward and center, given that Jeff Green and Blake Griffin are both unrestricted free agents this offseason. Moving off of the Jordan contract (two years, $20 million) would offset the $14.9 million owed to Young. The Nets would also create a $9.9 million trade exception.
Point guard is a position of need for Chicago and because the Bulls do not have cap space, they will need to orchestrate a sign-and-trade deal to acquire Dinwiddie. The addition of Brooklyn's selection now has Oklahoma CIty with four first-round picks on July 29. The Thunder will acquire Jordan with the $10.1 million trade exception created in the trade of Danilo Gallinari to Atlanta last year.
Note: Because of salary-cap rules, this trade cannot be completed until Aug. 6.
Gilgeous-Alexander goes home to Toronto
Oklahoma City Thunder receive: No. 4 pick, Aron Baynes
Toronto Raptors receive: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Kevin Pelton: After a disappointing outcome in the draft lottery, could Oklahoma City decide to pivot toward a slower rebuild? As exciting a player as Gilgeous-Alexander is, he won't quite fit the timeline of whatever stars the Thunder add in the lottery over the next few years. By trading him for the Raptors' pick, Oklahoma City would sacrifice the certainty of Gilgeous-Alexander's future in exchange for more cap flexibility and the potential of a draft prospect they like.
From the Raptors' standpoint, Gilgeous-Alexander would be a terrific fit as a replacement for Kyle Lowry in the backcourt next to Fred VanVleet. At 23 in July, Gilgeous-Alexander matches up with the timeline of a team with VanVleet and Pascal Siakam (both 27) and OG Anunoby (24) as young building blocks. And it certainly wouldn't hurt to bring home a Toronto native as the Raptors prepare to return to Canada.
To make this trade legal before August, Toronto would need to guarantee $3.08 million of Baynes' non-guaranteed 2021-22 salary. That would surely be preferable for the Raptors than either waiting a month after signing the No. 4 pick to utilize his matching salary, and the Thunder might not easily get to the salary floor.
Beal, Wiseman, Wiggins change addresses
Golden State Warriors receive: Bradley Beal, Avery Bradley
Houston Rockets receive: James Wiseman, No. 7 pick in 2021, No. 14 pick in 2021
Washington Wizards receive: No. 2 pick in 2021, Andrew Wiggins
Mike Schmitz: For the Warriors, landing one of the league's most prolific scorers in Beal to pair with 33-year-old Stephen Curry and 31-year-olds Klay Thompson and Draymond Green would be a dream scenario. Golden State would have over $140 million committed to that quartet next season, but Beal is the ideal star to catapult this Warriors group back into NBA Finals contention. While Wiseman did show impressive flashes during the early stages of his rookie season, at just 20 years old, he and whomever the Warriors would select at Nos. 7 and 14 are likely on a different timeline than the current Golden State core.
With Beal technically able to walk in free agency after the 2021-22 season, it's imperative that the Wizards add either young players with star potential or a high draft pick who could turn into a franchise cornerstone. The Wizards would get exactly that with the No. 2 overall pick, giving them the option to choose from Jalen Green, Evan Mobley or Jalen Suggs, assuming Cade Cunningham is indeed the first overall selection. Green would make a lot of sense for the Wizards, as he holds real star potential, regularly earning comparisons to some combination of Zach LaVine and Beal. The Wizards also hold the 15th overall pick, which could yield a starter-caliber player in what's considered a very deep draft.
For the Rockets, giving up the chance to draft Green, Mobley or Suggs would be tough to do, especially when you consider the fact that Houston traditionally hasn't coveted centers like Wiseman. Still, Wiseman showed enough promise as a rim-runner, lob-catcher and floor-spacer to carve out a long, successful career as a franchise center, and could fit in two-big lineups with stretch big Christian Wood in the interim. With Houston far from win-now mode, the change of scenery would give Wiseman a chance to develop at his own pace. Landing the seventh and 14th overall picks from Golden State would also give Houston four picks in the top 25, giving the Rockets quite a bit of flexibility and ammo. The Rockets could still land a point guard of the future such as Davion Mitchell at No. 7 and a potential starter with upside at 14.
Pelicans find new core for Zion
New Orleans Pelicans receive: Myles Turner, Larry Nance Jr., Sexton, Love
Indiana Pacers receive: Steven Adams, No. 10 pick
Cleveland Cavaliers receive: Brandon Ingram, Eric Bledsoe
Tim Bontemps: With the Pelicans feeling pressure to take significant steps forward in Zion Williamson's third season, this would be a huge swing by them to remake the roster. But it would also better balance New Orleans, and help to optimize the environment for Williamson to do his thing.
That would begin with moving on from Adams, whose fit didn't go the way executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin hoped after trading a first-round pick to get him from Oklahoma City -- and giving him an extension on top of it -- last summer. Turner, on the other hand, would provide the kind of floor spacing next to Williamson that would give him ample room in the paint to dominate, and would provide a level of rim protection that would be helpful, too.
The cost of the 10th pick would be painful -- but would be mitigated, in part, by the other part of this deal. The Pelicans would get Nance, a versatile forward who would allow them to either play big or small in the frontcourt, depending on if he's at small or power forward; Sexton, whom they could plug into the sixth man role he seems perfectly suited for; and Love, who would give them another stretch option, and who could give New Orleans another offensive option off the bench. Moving on from Bledsoe is also a win for the Pelicans, who would still have some money to spend to further improve the team.
The fit of Ingram and Williamson is awkward -- both are defensive negatives and are best suited to play power forward. Ingram would be a very good fit with the Cavaliers, though, where he could slide in next to Jarrett Allen in Cleveland's frontcourt, and would still allow general manager Koby Altman the flexibility to go whichever way he wants with the third selection in the draft. And getting the 10th pick to go with the 13th selection would give the Pacers an infusion of high-end young talent as Rick Carlisle takes over as head coach.
Russ teams with Embiid, Simmons joins Beal
Philadelphia 76ers receive: Russell Westbrook, No. 15 pick
Washington Wizards receive: Simmons, George Hill
Andre' Snellings: This is a "win right now" move for the 76ers, pairing MVP runner-up Joel Embiid with former MVP Westbrook to form one of the most aggressive combos in the NBA. The very fire and will to win that has made them adversaries would make them a devastating combo as teammates, both at the stage of their careers where winning a championship is the one accomplishment they have yet to achieve on the court. Westbrook shares many of Simmons' on-court positives as a strong floor general and rebounder from the backcourt who can physically overwhelm opponents, but the pressure he can apply as a scorer who attacks the paint on every possession would make life much easier for Embiid, Tobias Harris, Seth Curry and the rest of the 76ers' offense.
For the Wizards, Simmons is a better fit next to Beal than Westbrook. Beal is one of the most lethal scorers in the NBA, with a burgeoning ability to create for himself and teammates off the dribble to supplement his excellent shooting, but there was some redundancy with the ball-dominant Westbrook that led to diminishing returns. Simmons, on the other hand, could be the primary floor general tasked with putting Beal and the rest of the Wizards in great positions to score for most of the game -- and would willingly cede control to Beal in key moments. In those scenarios, Simmons could move to more of a big-man finisher and rebounder around the rim. And of course, on the other end, Simmons brings a Defensive Player of the Year-caliber presence and physical mismatch that would give the Wizards an entirely new dimension. Plus, the soon-to-be 25-year-old Simmons should be peaking on a similar time-scale as the recently-turned-28 Beal over the next handful of years.
Note: $1.2M of Hill's contract is currently guaranteed, with the rest scheduled to become guaranteed on Aug. 3. Because of salary-cap rules, Hill's contract would either have to be fully guaranteed at the time of the deal or the deal could not become official until Aug. 3.