The NBA trade deadline is in the rearview mirrorboth for the trades we did see — James Harden to Cleveland, Anthony Davis to the discount-shopping Wizards — and for the ones we didn’t, it’s crazy. Giannis Antetokounmpo remains in Milwaukee. Ja Morant is still a member of the Grizzlies.
Let’s break down the winners and losers from a roller-coaster week in the NBA.
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Winner: James Harden
A month ago, no one could have seen a James Harden trade coming, but life moves fast in the NBA. Harden is now in Cleveland, Darius Garland is with the Clippers in Los Angeles, and there are some good draft picks, which directly affects the competition in the East.
Among them, James Harden is the biggest winner. The Beard wants two things: 1) Join a team where he can run deep and potentially compete for a championship ring; 2) Find a team willing to pay him a future salary. He gets those things… we think.
Harden joins a Cleveland team that stumbled out of the gate this season — in large part due to Garland’s toe injury — but has begun to find its footing in the East. Cleveland, which had the NBA’s No. 1 offense a season ago, has fallen to ninth, but Harden should once again become the Cavaliers’ elite offense. Part of the reason is that the Cavaliers have been stung by their poor performance without Donovan Mitchell on the floor, while Harden has always been an elite creator on the court. There are concerns about how Harden’s isolation-heavy play — he’s hitting a higher isolation percentage than any primary ballhandler in the league this season — will mesh with the faster pace and ball movement of Mitchell and the Cavaliers, but coach Kenny Atkinson said he’s not worried and that great players know how to make it work.
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“The biggest thing that stands out is his IQ, his feel for the game,” Atkinson said of Harden. “We’re a firm believer that IQ can translate into playoff success. “
It’s an all-out move for the Cavaliers — which they need to do. While everyone is talking about how Giannis Antetokounmpo will hit free agency in 2027 and the pressure it will put on Milwaukee, Cleveland is in the exact same situation as Mitchell. For the Clippers, they realize that the days of Kawhi Leonard and James Harden are over and it’s better to start the transition sooner rather than later.
Winner: New York Knicks
New York is a winner in both categories heading into this trade deadline.
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One is that Giannis Antetokounmpo was not traded. The Knicks don’t have the draft picks or young players to make a trade before the deadline, but they have more draft picks and more flexibility in the summer. Getting Antetokounmpo to Madison Square Garden would still require him to put his thumb on the scale and demand it, but at least the Knicks are still in contention.
They also won, as they signed guard Jose Alvarado — a New York native who played high school basketball for Christ the King back home in Queens. Alvarado is a guy who changes games with his energy off the bench — and could be as impactful to the Knicks as T.J. McConnell was to the Pacers in the Finals a year ago. His defense and scoring have such an impact.
Winner: Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks don’t want to trade Giannis Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo, for his part, wants to stay in Milwaukee and win there.
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“What I want deep down in my heart is I want to be a member of the Milwaukee Bucks for the rest of my career and win here,” Antetokounmpo said in a recent interview.
If he isn’t traded before the deadline, only good things will happen in Milwaukee. First, the Bucks should have a tradable lottery pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. (Yes, Antetokounmpo said after the deadline that he wanted to make the playoffs with this team, but he’s still out and this team is still terrible.) The Bucks will have up to three first-round picks to trade, plus moveable salary like Kyle Kuzma — will that be enough to bring in another star player or two to convince Antetokounmpo to stay? Here’s what’s happened in the past: The Bucks traded for Jrue Holiday in one trade and Damian Lillard in another — and Antetokounmpo signed an extension both times and stayed in Milwaukee. The Bucks will try to go this route.
If that fails and Milwaukee must trade Antetokounmpo, then a summer offer — one that would give suitors like the Knicks, Lakers and Heat more draft picks and more flexibility — would be better than the one they deemed insufficient at the deadline.
Losers: Nico Harrison, Luka Doncic trade
It feels like being a doctor on a dead horse, but we’re going to do it anyway. Because it’s just so bad. When the Luka Doncic trade happened, we thought it was a loserBut this trade deadline cemented its legacy as one of the worst trades in NBA history.
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For the record, the Mavericks ended up trading one of the top five players in the world in his prime for Max Christie, three first-round picks (all three were in their 20s at best), three second-round picks and roughly $50 million in cap space. That’s it.
That’s not a reflection on the current front office in Dallas, which did what they had to do to clean up the mess of Nico Harrison in this salary dump trade, get the team out of the luxury tax, and clean up the books to regroup around Cooper Flagg. However, now that Anthony Davis has been traded, we can’t just let it go.
Winner: Nikola Vucevic
Nikola Vucevic is a rock-solid pro with a 15-year career, a two-time All-Star center who can score in the paint or knock down 3-pointers. But in these 15 years, he only made the playoffs 4 times, never made it past the first round, and played only 16 games in total.
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That’s why it’s great to see him traded to Boston, where he’ll not only get meaningful playing time, but meaningful playoff time. Whether Jayson Tatum returns or not, this Celtics team — capable of scoring behind Jaylen Brown’s stellar season and a barrage of 3-pointers — is a threat to beat any team. Vucevic may find himself playing in the biggest game of his life. He’s a free agent after this season and could return to Boston next year if he’s willing to sign for the right price.
He deserves it. I can’t wait to see it.
Loser: Sacramento Kings
What exactly is Sacramento’s plan?
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Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan — three veterans the Kings have talked about trading for more than a year — remain on the roster. While the Kings did find a deal for Keon Ellis, the player they needed to trade — even if it was just for a pay cut — is still on the roster. Make it meaningful.
Winner: Indiana Pacers
Indiana traded Ivica Zubac from the Clippers, giving them the perfect rebound next season as Tyrese Haliburton gets healthy again after tearing his Achilles tendon. While the price is a couple of decent first-round picks, these are the trades you make when you’re a Finals team trying to improve.
Zubac is more of an old-school big man than Myles Turner (who played in the Finals and later became a free agent), but he creates some of the best draft picks in the league, excels against the run or screens, and is a better defender (a big man who knows how to use that size to clog up the lane). Zubac is averaging 14.4 points and 11 rebounds this season, numbers that are down slightly from last season, but a key factor is that other teams are more focused on slowing him down (especially until Kawhi Leonard gets healthy).
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Indiana is better off with this trade.
(About those picks: One is the Pacers’ 2026 first-round pick, but it’s protected at 1-4 and 10-30 — meaning if it were 5-9, the Clippers would have it now. Indiana has struggled this season. Their record is the best in the NBA At No. 3, the Pacers hope to keep it that way. If the Pacers can add a top-four pick to the roster, they’ll be even more dangerous next season.
Winner: Utah Jazz
That’s how you accelerate on your rebuild timeline.
Utah has developed a strong young core: Keyonte George at point guard; Walker Kessler is a coveted big man (they have to re-sign him); and Ace Bailey, last year’s No. 5 pick, has put in the work and is finding his rhythm (the game has definitely slowed down for him, and he’s had some big nights). They also have Lauri Markkanen.
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Now you add Jaren Jackson Jr. and another high draft pick next June to that group, and Utah is a team on the rise. There are still some questions to be ironed out regarding health, but Will Hardy is a very good coach and he will have some very talented players next year. (Next year, Utah is trying to keep its first eight protected picks from this season — if it’s ninth or higher, it goes to Oklahoma City — so don’t expect Jackson to play as much this year.)
