After the Finals are over, NBA fans are in for a wild offseason. Trade rumors are already buzzing about huge star players like Chris Paul, Karl-Anthony Towns, Damian Lillard, the No. 3 pick and basically every member of the Toronto Raptors. In free agency, we have stars like Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Draymond Green and Khris Middleton potentially singing new deals or getting rolled into sign-and-trades.
With so many star players seemingly up for grabs, we could see some league-altering trades. Here are a few of our favorite possibilities.
Wild trades we want to see this NBA offseason: 3. New York Knicks trade for a star
The Knicks could use an All-NBA big man that they could pair will Jalen Brunson, who proved he is a star in this league after his play in the playoffs. Still, the Knicks need someone to pair him up with and Julius Randle doesn't seem like the answer.
New York certainly has the assets to get a deal done. They have R.J Barrett, who despite the fact he struggled this season is one of the best young players in the league. While the picks that they have acquired aren't worth a lot due to protections, they have a lot of tradable picks going forward.
One name to look at would be Karl Anthony Towns. The Timberwolves are in a deep bind after trading tons of picks for Rudy Gobert. Anthony Edwards is a future All-NBA player and the new foundation of the franchise. In order to not screw up their future with Edwards, they need to have a clean asset war chest. The Knicks should at least inquire to see if the Timberwolves are fielding offers on KAT.
Wild trades we want to see this NBA offseason: 2. A Damian Lillard trade
After years of middling play for the Trail Blazers, it is time for them to trade Damian Lillard. Yes, the Blazers do have the third overall pick to improve this team but unless they trade for veteran All-NBA player this team will not get much better. Pascal Siakam would be a player to watch for but the salary is a bit hard to match without giving up Anfernnee Simons.
Lillard says he wants to stay in Portland and wants them to trade for veterans to help chase a title. But it's hard to see any reasonable deals that actually get them there. As unlikely as it might be, trading Lillard is probably better for their future.
Teams where it would be wild to see him get traded to would include the Miami Heat, New York Knicks among other teams in the NBA.
Although the Heat would be committing a lot of future luxury tax money (with a CBA that is geared to hurt teams with high salary caps via the tax), this would put the Heat on another level.
The New York Knicks are missing another star to pair with Brunson and Lillard would be interesting, even if the fit is rough. The lack of defense on a team that has a back-court with Lillard and Brunson would be terrible. Also, the Knicks would most likely be losing one of their top defenders in R.J. Barrett in any deal.
One other potential option would be the L.A Clippers. With Lillard wanting to stay out on the west coast, the Clippers would be perfect. They do not have a crazy amount of picks left but as every year goes by they start to have more tradable picks. They have a lot of good expiring contracts this season that could be used as salary filler in any trade.
Wild trades we want to see this NBA offseason: 1. Raptors finally move on from some of their core
The Toronto Raptors have had rumors about their core for the last couple of months. The Raptors did move their first-round pick for Jakob Poeltl (it is a lightly protected pick though), which suggests that they will at least try and compete going forward rather than try and fully rebuild.
Pascal Siakam would be a wild player that could be traded this off-season, along with OG Anunoby. Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr. are both expected to be free agents and could be rolled into sign-and-trade ideas.
At the trade deadline, the Raptors were able to get offers that included multiple first-round picks for Anunoby. Although he has only one more year on his deal instead of one and a half, one of the best 3-and-D wings is still worth it.
If they are able to send out all four of those guys, they could fetch a hefty return of both picks and young players and potentially help some new contenders prep for a title run.
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