Ahead of the Feb. 6 NBA trade deadline, FOX Sports will be looking at the winners and losers of each deal.
We’re off to a fiery start, with the trade that sent Anthony Davis to Dallas and Luka Dončić to the Lakers on Saturday already being labeled as one of the most surprising trades in sports history.
With players and fans alike glued to their phones to see what splashy deals are going to transpire next, we’re here to help you make sense of it all.
Below are our thoughts on the moves that have gone down.
Feb. 1: Lakers and Mavericks exchange superstars
Lakers receive: Luka Dončić, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris
Mavericks receive: Anthony Davis, Max Christie, first-round pick
Jazz receive: Jalen Hood-Schifino, 2025 second-round pick from Lakers (their pick from the Clippers) and 2025 second-round pick from Mavericks
Lakers: A
By acquiring the 25-year-old Dončić, the Lakers have set themselves up with a franchise superstar for potentially the next decade. Dončić led the league in scoring last season (33.9 points a game) en route to taking the Mavericks to the NBA Finals. It’s highly unusual for a franchise to deal a 25-year-old superstar in the prime of his career, and when the Mavericks approached the Lakers with the willingness to do so, the 17-time NBA champions rightfully jumped at the chance to secure their future.
Make no mistake, losing Davis is a big blow to the Lakers. Davis is one of the most underappreciated superstars in the NBA. He helped the Lakers win a championship alongside James in 2020. He made four All-Star appearances during his five-and-a-half season tenure with the purple and gold. And he has consistently been one of the league’s top defenders, though he glaringly has never won a Defensive Player of the Year award. In the past few years, James has made it clear that Davis is the Lakers’ best player, even if the NBA world refused to anoint him with that title. And this season, Davis has played MVP-caliber basketball at times, helping the Lakers win eight of their last 10 games and climb to fifth place in the Western Conference.
That said, getting Dončić dramatically changes the Lakers’ future, setting them up to be contenders for years to come, long after the 40-year-old LeBron James retires. Dončić is the future of the NBA. And if the Lakers can convince Dončić to sign a supermax extension, expect the team to be competing for its 18th title in the very near future.
Mavericks: C
Acquiring Davis gives the Mavericks a chance to win now. The Mavericks wanted a defensive specialist who is mature and knows what it takes to be a champion. Davis, Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson will be a fearsome Big Three, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they were competing in June.
That said, parting ways with Dončić is a bit of a head scratcher. Sure, there were concerns about his conditioning, and defense has always been a weakness of his. But parting ways with a player of his caliber, at his age, is nothing short of shocking.
The Mavericks wanted to make a move before Dončić was up for a supermax contract extension and, if an agreement wasn’t reached, Dončić potentially had the ability to choose to leave in free agency.
With Davis, the Mavericks have a window to win a championship now. But it’s likely a smaller window than they would’ve had if they were able to hold onto Dončić.
Feb. 1: Clippers free up space in four-player swap
Clippers receive: Drew Eubanks, Patty Mills
Jazz receive: Mo Bamba, P.J. Tucker, 2030 second-round pick, cash considerations
Jan. 15: Suns buy low on Richards
Suns receive: Nick Richards, 2025 second-round pick (via DEN)
Hornets receive: Josh Okogie, three future second-round picks
Dec. 29: Lakers win DFS sweepstakes
Lakers receive: Dorian Finney-Smith, Shake Milton
Nets receive: D’Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis, three future second-round picks
Lakers: B
The Lakers had two holes they wanted to address with this deal: defense and 3-point shooting. Finney-Smith helps fill both of those holes. He’s a 3&D specialist who could help the Lakers improve in two categories they very much need to shore up. Russell had been inconsistent for the Lakers since they reacquired him in 2023, and, though he vowed to be more professional heading into this season, it was clear that he wasn’t happy coming off the bench and playing a lesser role.
Nets: B
Russell is surely happy with this move. After finishing with 23 points and 10 assists against the New York Knicks on Jan. 21, he told reporters, “I’ll never take being able to play free basketball like this for granted again.” A happy DLo could be a good thing for the Nets, though it remains to be seen if they intend to use him for the buyout market. Either way, this move secured the Nets their former All-Star from 2019 and some more draft capital, which is a good thing.
Dec. 16: Warriors add Schröder
Warriors receive: Dennis Schröder, 2025 second-round pick
Nets receive: De’Anthony Melton, Reece Beekman, three future second-round picks
Warriors: B+
Schröder gives the Warriors a chance for their scoring to not plummet when Steph Curry needs a rest, and he has proven himself to be a strong defender. Making this deal even sweeter for Golden State: The team didn’t have to give up much to get him, just parting ways with Melton, who only played six games this season before suffering an ACL injury.
Nets: B-
The Nets clearly made this deal with their future in mind. They want to stockpile draft picks and give themselves the most flexibility with their rebuild.
Dec. 15: Pacers trade for Bryant
Pacers receive: Thomas Bryant
Heat receive: 2031 second-round pick swap
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