NBA trade grades: Who else failed besides the Dallas Mavericks?

The 2025 NBA trade deadline was one of the more action-packed in recent memory, as stars packed their things to join a new team mid-season. Now that the dust has settled, we’ll give each team involved in the most impactful trades a grade for their performances. All trade information is sourced from the NBA’s official website.

The full trade: Spurs receive De’Aaron Fox and Jordan McLaughlin, the Kings receive Zach LaVine, Sidy Cissoko, three first round picks and three second round picks. The Bulls receive Zach Collins, Tre Jones, Kevin Huerter and their 2025 first round pick back from the Spurs.

Pairing Fox with Victor Wembanyama is a match made in heaven. Fox is one of the fastest players with the ball in the league, and demands a ton of attention on the fast break. It’ll be extremely challenging for defenses to focus on Fox’s blazing speed while keeping Wembanyama in check. Brigid Kennedy of Sports Illustrated also noted that the Spurs didn’t part with any of their key young talent in this deal, making it a huge win for the franchise.

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It came out the week before the deadline that Fox was on the block, so the Kings’ hand was forced. It’s tough to tell what Sacramento is thinking here, or ever, when it comes to their personnel moves. LaVine is having one of his better seasons in recent memory, but this package leaves the Kings right back where they started; as a play-in team at best.

Much like the Kings, the Bulls have been stuck in mediocrity for a long time. By trading LaVine, conventional wisdom would indicate that Chicago had the idea of bottoming out for the rest of the season. That’s probably the right idea, but the Bulls didn’t receive any draft capital of note, except for a pick that was originally theirs.

The full trade: Lakers receive Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris, the Mavericks receive Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first round pick.

There’s nothing to pick apart here from a Lakers standpoint. Los Angeles finds themselves with a 25-year-old superstar who will anchor the franchise for the next decade. They didn’t have to part with any significant future assets to do it. As Jovan Buha of The Athletic wrote, the Lakers always find a way to get stars.

It’s hard to remember a general manager who has been crushed more for a singular move than Nico Harrison has for the Mavericks. Even if Dallas is better in the short term with Anthony Davis, the Mavericks failed to secure one blue chip prospect or pick in a deal for a generational superstar. Pardon the Interruption’s Tony Kornheiser believes Harrison’s firing is a matter of when and not if.

The full trade (this was a five-team deal, only listing Miami and Golden State compensation): Warriors receive Jimmy Butler, two second round picks and cash, the Heat receive Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson, Davion Mitchell and a 2025 first round pick from Golden State.

Stephen Curry told ESPN in January that he didn’t want the Warriors to make a desperate trade, but it seems like that’s what they did a few weeks later. Butler may still have some gas left in the tank, but his fit with Curry and Draymond Green feels suspect at best. Even if Butler comes in and plays well, it’s hard to see the Warriors playing late into the spring.

Considering a Butler trade was the worst kept secret in the NBA for a few months, Miami did alright when it came time to pull the trigger. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Erik Spoelstra give Wiggins a second life in South Beach. Additionally, the Warriors pick that Miami now owns is top-10 protected this year, and unprotected next year. The Heat will have to hope for a Warriors implosion.

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The full trade: Raptors receive Brandon Ingram, Pelicans receive Bruce Brown, Kelly Olynyk, a 2026 first round pick (Indiana’s pick via Toronto) and a 2031 second round pick from the Raptors.

It feels like some of the luster has worn off from Masai Ujiri’s masterful moves to bring Toronto a title. He’s made the questionable decisions to build around Immanuel Quickley, R.J. Barrett and Scottie Barnes, and now invites Ingram into the fold. Ingram hasn’t had any material team success in his career, and it’s hard to see how he’ll fit in with Toronto.

Like Miami with Butler, New Orleans was backed into a corner with Ingram, since the league knew he was eventually going to be moved. William Guillory of The Athletic wrote that the Ingram trade signals the beginning of a new phase for the Pelicans, but their roster pieces still don’t make a ton of sense.

The full trade (this was a four-team deal, only listing Milwaukee and Washington’s compensation): Wizards receive Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, and a 2028 first round pick swap, while the Bucks receive Kyle Kuzma, Jericho Sims, and a 2025 second-round pick.

Jeremy Brener of Sports Illustrated writes that Middleton might not stay in Washington for very long. It seemed bizarre that the Wizards would want an aging, banged-up veteran in the first place. As Spotrac lays out, Middleton has a player option next season, which he’s a virtual lock to pick up. He’s a free agent ahead of the 2026-2027 season, though, so the Wizards might have wanted an expiring deal for next year.

Kyle Kuzma is one of the more polarizing players in the league. He took the money in Washington and predictably was miscast as a lead option. However, it’s easy to forget that he won a title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020. Milwaukee is hoping that Kuzma can fit in with a Bucks team looking to recharge their title hopes.

The full trade: Cavaliers receive De’Andre Hunter, the Hawks receive Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, three future second round picks, and two future pick swaps.

Cleveland gave up quite a bit to bring Hunter to the team, but he feels like a perfect fit. He’s a “three and D” wing who will feature prominently for the Cavaliers down the stretch and into the playoffs. Had they been able to acquire him for a cheaper price, their grade would have been an A, but the move is still savvy for Cleveland.

The Hawks get the same grade as Cleveland here, but for different reasons. Atlanta got more picks than they ever thought Hunter would be worth, in all likelihood. The Hawks’ season has spiraled out of control since Jalen Johnson’s injury, and they were wise to acquire this draft capital. Hawks general manager Landry Fields believes his trades of Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanovic to the Los Angeles Clippers help in the present and the future.

The full trade: Hornets receive Jusuf Nurkic and a 2026 first round pick, the Suns receive Cody Martin, Vasilije Micic and a 2026 second round pick.

At first glance, receiving a first round pick from Phoenix as their hopes and dreams plummet is attractive. However, Sports Illustrated’s Matt Alquiza notes that there are a lot of complicated protections on that pick, making it unlikely that it will ever be supremely valuable for Charlotte. Nurkic feels like a buyout candidate or a warm body for another lost season.

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Phoenix has pushed all their chips into the middle of the table in recent years, and it’s gone pretty badly for them. Nurkic had fallen out of favor with the Suns, so the team had to recoup whatever they possibly could for him. The Suns got Micic from Charlotte, but YardBarker and others report that he’s already looking to go back to Europe to play professionally there.