NBA Trade Deadline 2023: Winners & Losers After NBA Trade Deadline

Today was without question one of the wildest trade deadlines in sports history (the buyout market will also be a duel to the death), and the NBA landscape is radically different as a result. In what can be categorized as an utterly merciless arms race, nearly every contender made a move to bolster their respective roster. 

There were plenty of teams that improved through smaller moves and deserve applause (Jalen McDaniels to Philadelphia, Mike Muscala to Boston, Josh Richardson to New Orleans, Thomas Bryant to Denver, etc.), but let’s focus on the deadline’s biggest winners and losers. One thing to note: the Mavericks were not considered. Kyrie Irving is too much of an unknown at this point to really judge the trade. His basketball fit is great and belongs in the winner category, but his off the court potential issues could make it a massive failure. To me, Dallas gets an incomplete and re-evaluation during the off-season. 

NBA Trade Deadline Biggest Winners

Which teams improved their championship equity and emerged from the deadline victorious?

Phoenix Suns 

Traded:

• Mikal Bridges 
• Cam Johnson
• Jae Crowder
• Dario Saric 
• Four Unprotected 1st Round Picks 
• One 1st Round Swap
• One 2nd Round Pick

Acquired:

• Kevin Durant 
• TJ Warren
• Darius Bazley

Kevin Durant is a Sun…wow. Phoenix traded an absolute haul for Durant, but it was worth every penny. The 13-time All-Star is as lethal as ever with averages of 29.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 5.3 APG, and 2.3 “stocks” on a sparkling 55/37/93 shooting split. He will work wonders for Booker, who was seeing double teams during last year’s playoffs. Defenses definitely cannot do the same with Durant on the court, especially because Paul understands how to move the ball to the open man. The Suns now have a core four of Durant, Booker, Paul, and Ayton with 3&D wing Torrey Craig as the fifth starter. That’s a championship lineup. 

Phoenix doesn’t have much depth though; they are relying on Payne, Shamet, Lee, Warren, Bazley, and Biyombo in a conference riddled with deep benches. If the Suns can utilize the buyout market to snatch up depth (Reggie Jackson? Serge Ibaka? Dewayne Dedmon?), then they are the new championship favorite. Either way, Phoenix is the biggest winner of the deadline because Kevin Durant is that good. 

Los Angeles Lakers 

Traded:

• Russell Westbrook
• Thomas Bryant
• Patrick Beverley
• Juan Toscano-Anderson
• Damian Jones
• One Top Four Protected 1st Round Pick

Acquired:

• D’Angelo Russell
• Malik Beasley
• Jarred Vanderbilt 
• Mo Bamba 
• Davon Reed
• Two 2nd Round Picks

They turned that…into that? The Lakers vastly improved their roster without sacrificing an unprotected first rounder. D’Angelo Russell’s ability to space the court (39.1 3PT%), play on or off-ball, and pass is exactly what Los Angeles needs from their point guard. He is a superb fit next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Beasley brings excellent three-point shooting as well, and Vanderbilt and Bamba also have decent three-point shots. Vanderbilt’s positional and defensive versatility are key for a Lakers squad that needed both attributes. Los Angeles received a size boost with Vanderbilt and Bamba too, which is essential because Davis prefers power forward. 

Overall, the Lakers completely overhauled their roster and appear far more dangerous than before. Their pieces surrounding LeBron and Davis actually make sense, and they managed to hold onto one of their coveted future first rounders. It was a big deadline for Los Angeles, and that’s not even including their excellent move to acquire Rui Hachimura in late January. 

Los Angeles Clippers

Traded:

• Luke Kennard
• Reggie Jackson
• John Wall

Acquired:

• Eric Gordon
• Bones Hyland
• Mason Plumlee
• One 2nd Round Pick 

The Clippers absolutely cleaned up at the deadline. Losing Kennard’s shooting stings, but Eric Gordon provides nearly the same spacing with more off the dribble scoring and playoff experience. Hyland is wildly inconsistent; however, the young guard can create his own shot and become scorching hot in an instant. Finally, Mason Plumlee fixes their backup center issues. He’s a talented passer and screener who likely reduces the frequency of offensive rough patches. 

For a Clippers team that ranks 23rd in Offensive Rating, they massively improved the offense at the deadline. Los Angeles still needs a playmaking point guard, but I would be shocked if Russell Westbrook spurned their offer to join the roster. Former teammate Paul George is heavily recruiting, Westbrook wouldn’t have to move, and he could seek revenge against the Lakers in their own arena. Los Angeles is already a winner at the deadline, but Westbrook would be the cherry on top. 

Golden State Warriors 

Traded:

• James Wiseman

Acquired: 

• Gary Payton II

The sunk cost fallacy is “the phenomenon whereby a person is reluctant to abandon a strategy or course of action because they have invested heavily in it, even when it is clear that abandonment would be more beneficial.” Good for the Warriors for recognizing their disastrous draft mistake, admitting defeat, and moving on. Golden State turned the five second round picks they received for Wiseman into Gary Payton II, who was a key cog of their championship team last season. 

Payton’s hounding perimeter defense is sorely needed as defense has eluded Golden State. On the other end, his outside shooting, timely cuts, and familiarity with the offense bodes well. Golden State’s bench has been their downfall this season, and Payton is a solid candidate to turn that around. Plus, the Warriors will save around $37,000,000 in luxury tax across this and next season. 

The Warriors will save roughly $7M in luxury tax this year on today’s trades — and $30 million in 2023-2024. https://t.co/VmxEAWCPNh

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 9, 2023

New York Knicks 

Traded:

• Cam Reddish
• Ryan Arcidiacono
• Svi Mykhailiuk
• One Lottery Protected 1st Round Pick

Acquired: 

• Josh Hart 

The Knicks traded players who are out of the rotation for a rock-solid starting forward. Hart brings size, defense, rebounding, connective playmaking, and cutting to the lineup. Whether it’s on the bench or the starting lineup, the Knicks added an effective role player that can provide value in a playoff setting. He’s a former Villanova teammate with Jalen Brunson too, so the chemistry should be instant. And while New York relinquished a 2023 lottery protected 1st rounder, Hart is worth the gamble. 

In addition, the Knicks are a big winner because of the move they didn’t make. They were in serious trade talks with the Bulls about Zach LaVine, which would have been disastrous. He’s owed an approximate average of $44M per season over the next four seasons, which would have posed fearsome salary cap problems. While he’s objectively a good player, LaVine isn’t worth that amount of money, especially since the move wouldn’t have vaulted the Knicks into the top tier anyways. 

Trade Deadline Biggest Losers 

Which teams failed at the deadline in terms of bad deals or bad direction?

Brooklyn Nets 

Traded:

• Kevin Durant
• Kyrie Irving
• TJ Warren
• Markieff Morris
• Kessler Edwards 
• Cash Considerations  

Acquired: 

• Mikal Bridges 
• Spencer Dinwiddie
• Dorian Finney-Smith
• Cam Johnson
• Draft rights to David Michineau
• Five Unprotected 1st Round Picks 
• One 1st Round Swap 
• Four 2nd Round Picks

Their acquired section is actually filled with valuable assets, but trading two All-Star starters in a matter of days has to be classified as a big loss. Brooklyn went from the 2nd seed on January 7th to a solid non-contending team at the deadline that doesn’t control their own picks. The Nets cannot completely clean house and fully rebuild because Houston owns their first round through the 2027 Draft via unprotected picks or swaps. Yikes! 

Brooklyn’s actions after the Durant trade were mighty confusing. They could have kept a lineup of Cam Thomas, Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Ben Simmons, Nix Claxton and still accumulated a bunch of 1st and 2nd rounders by trading Finney-Smith, Dinwiddie, O’Neale, and Curry. Instead, the Nets only move was re-routing Crowder for a pair of second rounders. What a missed opportunity! Teams were willing to pay an immense amount of capital, and Brooklyn squandered their chance. Hopefully they achieve redemption during the off-season and find a direction. 

Toronto Raptors 

Traded:

• Khem Birch
• One Top Six Protected 1st Round Pick
• Two 2nd Round Picks 

Acquired: 

• Jakob Poeltl 

Don’t get me wrong, I actually like the trade in a vacuum. Poeltl is exactly the kind of center they need, and the price wasn’t ridiculous. This ranking is about what they didn’t do: trade two of VanVleet, Anunoby, or Trent Jr. The market was driving Anunoby’s price to astronomical levels, and the other two would have fetched a nice return. Even if the Raptors wanted to contend (which is sensible), how are they going to pay everyone? 

VanVleet, Trent Jr, and Poeltl all need new deals this summer, and the Raptors must extend Siakam and Anunoby next summer. All of those contracts could total in the $140-170M per year range, which is over the projected salary cap without even factoring in Scottie Barnes’ eventual monster extension. 

That luxury tax bill will likely be too much to stomach, so Toronto may lose one or multiple of the above for nothing. Now was the time to trade Anunoby and VanVleet for a mammoth amount of first rounders and build around a Trent Jr, Barnes, Siakam, Poeltl core. 

Toronto’s talks on forward O.G. Anunoby are rolling into the final hours of the trade deadline. The landing of Kevin Durant with the Suns could escalate Anunoby’s value among Western Conference teams pursuing an elite forward to defend Durant.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 9, 2023

Miami Heat

Traded:

• Dewayne Dedmon
• One 2nd Round Pick

Acquired: 

• Cash Considerations  

In a trade deadline where picks and players were flying faster than a jet, the Miami Heat decided to do nothing. In fact, they actually became slightly worse while nearly every other contender made at least one move to improve. Miami was looking to upgrade their power forward position and trade Kyle Lowry, but Pat Riley apparently couldn’t find a deal. If the Heat don’t acquire Westbrook on the buyout market, then the gap between them and the top contenders is insurmountable. Miami simply doesn’t have the roster to seriously compete for a championship like they did last year. 

They had 1st rounders and intriguing pieces in Caleb Martin and Nikola Jovic to send, so it’s disappointing that the Heat failed to make a deal. The clock is ticking with Jimmy Butler at 33-years-old too. Overall, it was a disastrous deadline that saw their championship chances significantly shrink. 

Portland Trail Blazers 

Traded:

• Josh Hart
• Gary Payton II

Acquired: 

• Cam Reddish
• Matisse Thybulle
• Kevin Knox
• Ryan Arcidiacono
• One Lottery Protected 1st Round Pick
• Four 2nd Round Picks 

Portland’s direction is extremely confusing; they are at a fork in the road but want to stubbornly walk straight with one leg on each path. They refuse to trade Lillard and desire to contend, yet they heavily downgraded in exchange for draft compensation. The Blazers currently sit at 10th in the West with the Thunder and Lakers right behind them. They will likely miss the play-in, and turn in another mediocre season. Jerami Grant could leave this summer in free agency too, which would be cataclysmic. 

Lillard’s loyalty is inspiring, but Portland must honestly assess their roster and go in the direction that best suits the franchise. Trading Lillard, Grant, and Nurkic would have netted an absolutely gigantic package of picks and young players. The Blazers could have kicked off a rebuild with Simons, Sharpe, Little, Reddish, Thybulle, and an unspeakable amount of 1st rounders. Lillard is 32-years-old, so his trade value won’t last forever. 

Until Portland realizes that route is far superior to the current direction, they will be stuck in mediocrity fighting for first round exits. The Western Conference is too talented and too deep for the current iteration of their roster. Lillard and the Blazers gave it a valiant attempt, but it didn’t work out. It’s time to move on.