The NBA trade deadline was Feb. 5, at 3 p.m. ET, meaning that other than signing free agents on the waiver market, every team has their final roster. The deadline is an organization's last chance to add to their roster, or build assets for the future. Everyone has decisions to make, whether they made the correct decision or not is the question.
Jazz acquire Jaren Jackson Jr. from Grizzlies in multi-player deal
Memphis Grizzlies get: Walter Clayton Jr; Kyle Anderson; Taylor Hendricks; Georges Niang; three future first-round picks
Utah Jazz get: Jaren Jackson Jr; John Conchar; Jock Landale; Vince Williams Jr
Grade for Grizzlies: A
Grade for Jazz: C+
What this means for Grizzlies: Memphis is now able to initiate a rebuild around rookie Cedric Coward and other young pieces. The assumption is that Ja Morant will be moved this offseason, as he was not traded before the deadline. Overall the idea to move on from this current regime and rebuild for the future was a very good idea. Also, collecting three future first round picks is always a good idea.
What this means for Jazz: The Jazz have decided that by adding Jaren Jackon Jr to their roster they will be able to compete starting next year. The core of Lauri Markannen, Keyonte George, Isiah Collier, Walker Kessler, Jaren Jackson Jr and Ace Bailey is intriguing. Although, it doesn’t seem like a roster that is going to contend with Oklahoma City or Denver. While Jaren Jackson Jr is a good NBA player, and one of the best defensive forwards in the league, he doesn’t move the needle enough to win a title.
Harden to Cavs, Garland to Clippers in blockbuster trade
Cleveland Cavaliers get: James Harden
LA Clippers get: Darius Garland and 2026 second-round pick
Grade for Cavaliers: B-
Grade for Clippers: B+
What this means for Cavaliers: Cleveland has been trying to replace Garland due to him being unreliable to play, especially in a playoff setting. This trade gives them a player in Harden who is more trustworthy to be healthy than Garland was. However, this is not the full story, as Harden has been a player plagued by playoff woes. Most recently in game seven against the Denver Nuggets, Harden put up only a measly seven points on 2-of-8 shooting. The other question is how will a ball centric player like Harden fit in with Cleveland's star Donovan Mitchell. If Harden can figure out how to mesh and be a good number two option, then this trade could be reevaluated come April, but for now it's a B-.
What this means for the Clippers: LA’s roster coming into this trade deadline was a roster built to compete now, that was failing to do so. Due to this they made the decision to make a youth movement trade. Garland is 26 years old, 10 years younger than Harden at 36, and gives them a roster more built for the future than what they had previously. Garland is also an interesting fit next to newly acquired guard Mathurin. If Garland can figure out the issues going on with his foot, and find a way to stay on the court this trade will be significantly better than it is on paper right now. Questions will also arise this offseason about superstar Kawhi Leanord’s future with this organization.
Anthony Davis to the Wizards in massive deal
Dallas Mavericks get: Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, Malaki Branham, Marvin Bagley III, 2026 first-round pick, 2030 first-round pick, 2026 second-round pick, 2027 second-round pick and 2029 second-round pick
Washington Wizards get: Anthony Davis, Jaden Hardy, D’angelo Russell, Dante Exum
Grade for Mavericks: C+
Grade for Wizards: B
What this means for the Mavericks: The Mavericks get rid of the player who reminds their fans everyday that they traded Luka Doncic. They gain younger assets that allow them to continue the youth movement with rookie phenom Cooper Flagg. The picks they got have protections to them that could likely make it so that they will not be able to use those picks and none of the players they received are young stars in the making. The reason this trade is graded so poorly isn’t because of it being the return for Anthony Davis, but rather because it is the return for Luka Doncic.
What this means for the Wizards: Washington now adds Anthony Davis to lead this team with All-Star guard Trae Young. There are a lot of young exciting players on the Washington roster such as Alex Sarr, Tre Johnson, Bub Carrington and Bilal Coulibaly. Wizards fans have been starved of competitive basketball for years and will be pleased to see a competitive roster next season, as they are not in position to compete this year. The fanbase will just be happy to compete for a postseason appearance. That’s why this trade makes sense overall. The downside to this is that Anthony Davis is on the backend of his prime and doesn’t fit the Wizards timeline. In addition, he’s been injury prone his entire career.
Celtics add Vucevic, Bulls get Simons
Boston Celtics get: Nikola Vučević and a second-round pick
Chicago Bulls get: Anfernee Simons and a second-round pick
Grade for Celtics: B-
Grade for Bulls: B+
What this means for the Celtics: Boston gets a big man who can stretch the court. He will be a plug and play big man for the second-seeded Celtics. He is reliable on the boards and consistently healthy. His contract is six million dollars less than Simons, helping the Celtics get under the tax threshold. The Celtics are trying to compete for a title this year, especially with the potential return of superstar forward Jayson Tatum, and Vučević gives them a better chance to do so.
What this means for the Bulls: Chicago was busy this deadline, trading for virtually any guard they could get their hands on. Simons doesn’t seem to be in the long-term future of the Bulls, but it does start the train towards bottoming out. The Bulls, who have been riding mediocrity since the Derrick Rose days, are finally content with bottoming out their roster and looking for younger players to build around Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis. The problem with the Vučević trade comes with the fact that they didn’t perform this trade two to three years ago when his asking price would’ve been in higher demand.
Porzingis to Warriors for Kuminga and Hield
Golden State Warriors get: Kristaps Porzingis
Atlanta Hawks get: Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield
Grade for Warriors: C-
Grade for Hawks: A-
What this means for the Warriors: Golden State gets a big man with title winning experience, who if healthy can help the Warriors try to stay relevant in Steph Curry’s final years. However, Porzingis hasn’t been reliably on the court this season as he has only played in 17 games. The Warriors are trying their best to use what they have to find Curry some help, but Porzingis probably won’t be enough to save the Warriors. They owe it to Curry to be competitive, but they have not put a roster together to do so.
What this means for the Hawks: The Hawks continue to build for the future and add an interesting player in Jonathan Kuminga to do so. Kuminga has a lot of untapped potential and the Hawks will now attempt to tap into it. They have an exciting young core group of players led by Jalen Johnson and Dyson Daniels. The Hawks have now abandoned both Porzingis and Trae Young in search of a more bright future in the next five years. It is a very smart move with very low risk by the Hawks as they can just move on from Kuminga if the experiment fails.
Indiana gets Zubac for Mathurin
Indiana Pacers get: Ivica Zubac and Kobe Brown
LA Clippers get: Ben Mathurin, Isaiah Jackson, 2026 first-round pick (top 4 protection), 2029 first-round pick and a second-round pick
Grade for Pacers: B
Grade for Clippers: A+
What it means for the Pacers: The Pacers get a much needed player at the center position in Ivica Zubac. Zubac averaged 16.8 points and 12.6 rebounds per game a season ago for the Clippers. He’s taken a slight dip this year, but he remains one of the best big men in the game. He will right away be a great interior threat for Indiana, as well as a great defender. Tyrese Halliburton will quite enjoy him as a pick and roll big man when Halliburton comes back from injury next season. The Pacers gave up a lot to get him, but that is what you have to do to get premier NBA talent. The Pacers saw their opportunity to strike and they did. The risk of this trade lies with the 2026 first-round pick. The Pacers are currently projected to get the third overall pick in this year's draft lottery, but if they slip to picks five through nine, then they will be handing that pick over to the Clippers. The Pacers have a great opportunity to pick in the top four this season, but that fate will be largely at the hands of some ping pong balls in May.
What this means for the Clippers: The Clippers got a lot younger in this trade and the previous trade with the Cavaliers. Acquiring both Darius Garland and Ben Mathurin is huge for the future of the Clippers. Them being able to potentially have pick five through nine is huge for the potential youth movement in LA. The Clippers have recognized that their championship window has been shut down, and they have struck at the deadline. Expect to see a lot of Kawhi Leanord buzz this offseason as he now doesn't fit the timeline of this organization. The Clippers are a franchise still in agony from when they traded reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and several draft picks to the defending champions the Oklahoma City Thunder for Paul George. They now seem to be accepting that mistake and working towards a new day. This trade gives them some young talent, and some assets to do just that.
The trade deadline has come and gone, and with it has gone these teams' final chance to show their fanbase how they feel about this season. Whether you are a buyer or a seller it is telling the fanbase what you are feeling about this season. The league was shaken up with several big-name players joining new teams this deadline, and it is exciting to see how these trades will play out in the future.
