The 2025 NBA trade deadline has passed, and it was arguably the craziest deadline period in NBA history. That’s because the league saw multiple star-studded blockbuster deals and several other moves that will alter not just this season’s title race, but also the landscape of the league for years to come.
The chaos began late Saturday night when news broke the Lakers were acquiring Luka Doncic in a deal that sent Anthony Davis to the Mavericks. The trade was so jaw-dropping that players and fans alike initially thought it was a hoax. Later, De’Aaron Fox was moved to the Spurs from the Kings on Sunday night as Zach LaVine ended up in Sacramento.
Then on Tuesday night, the Warriors got Jimmy Butler in third blockbuster trade of this deadline. Khris Middleton, Brandon Ingram, Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Kuzma, Mark Williams and De’Andre Hunter were also been moved in the last four days.
So much for a slow deadline, right? Despite the CBA-induced restrictions hamstringing parts of the league, creative front offices gave us a handful of huge in-season deals.
Let’s take a look at some of the winners and losers from the 2025 NBA trade deadline.
Winner: Lakers exceptionalism
There’s really no other way to explain it — the Lakers are blessed by the basketball gods. Not only did they land Luka Doncic in what could go down as the most-lopsided trade in NBA history, but they also picked up the exact type of big man they were looking for in Mark Williams. And what shrewd tactics did general manager Rob Pelinka employ to get these two on the roster?
He … picked up the phone.
That’s right, Dallas and Charlotte executives reportedly approached him about the trades, showing that sometimes these things really come down to, as our Brad Botkin called it, dumb luck.
Any and all questions about the Lakers’ post-LeBron James outlook were answered in one fell swoop, and now the franchise is set up to compete for titles for the next decade (assuming the Lakers can re-sign Luka). Wilt, Kareem, Magic, Shaq and Kobe, Pau Gasol, LeBron, now Luka … Lakers gonna Laker.
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Loser: Nico Harrison
After last year’s trade deadline, Mavs GM Nico Harrison was being praised as a hero. He brought P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford on board — moves that would eventually help get the franchise to the NBA Finals — draft pick Dereck Lively II was looking like a stroke of genius, and the gamble to trade for Kyrie Irving was paying off massively.
Fast forward one year, and his name has now become a punchline in NBA circles.
Harrison has been mercilessly mocked by pretty much anyone who even remotely follows the league for dealing one of the best basketball players in the world — who happens to be 25 years old — for an aging, oft-injured star and one measly draft pick. Mavs fans even brought a coffin and set up a mock vigil for Luka Doncic outside American Airlines Center following the trade.
“It was the last vestige of, like, a calmer world,” one Mavericks fan told our James Herbert. “Like, Luka got us through the pandemic. We had the Western Conference finals run with him and he was, like, the nice thing in that time, just as Dirk [Nowitzki] got us through those 20 years before it. I think it’s just such a massive betrayal.”
The Mavericks players weren’t exactly on board with the move, either.
“You just don’t imagine you’re going to get ready to go to sleep and then you find out news like that,” Kyrie Irving said after Dallas’ loss to the 76ers on Tuesday. “It’s still a grieving process right now. I miss my hermano.”
Look, if the Mavs win a title or two in the next couple of years, all might be forgiven. But anything short of that and Harrison will continue to be persona non grata for as long as he’s in Dallas.
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Winner: Warriors’ window
Those who had given up on the Warriors being title contenders received a jolt of hope on Wednesday, when the Jimmy Butler saga ended with the five-time All-NBA forward in Golden State. While still not championship favorites by any stretch, it’s fair to say that the Warriors once again have a fighting chance to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy.
Stephen Curry finally has a second offensive option that opponents actually have to worry about, while Draymond Green gets a gritty defender with, as he called it, “winning f—ing pedigree” to help them try to get back to the promised land.
Winner: C.I.A.-level secrecy
In this age, when every rumor, every detail, every utterance is reported in some way, shape or form, one of the biggest trades in NBA history was somehow kept under wraps. Not only was the Luka Doncic trade withheld from the social media-sphere, but it was also done without the players involved even knowing.
Doncic, Anthony Davis, LeBron James and Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd all said they had no clue that the trade was happening until after it went down, and Dallas GM Nico Harrison said he had still not spoken to Doncic when he addressed the media on Sunday, though he did text him and a leave a message.
“Trades don’t happen at the smallest level without stuff getting out,” Harrison said. “Rob [Pelinka] and I were able to have really intense conversations over the course of three or four weeks that started out as a coffee that was more, ‘Hey, would you ever? I don’t know, would I?’ And then it built upon that. We kept it between us. We had to. We had to keep it tight.”
Three or four weeks of conversations about trading Luka freaking Doncic and not a single word got out?!?! We can debate whether it’s fair to keep players in the dark about things like this, but you have to appreciate the clandestine nature of these negotiations. Absolutely remarkable, and something we may not see again for a long, long time.
Loser: Martins
If your last name is Martin, it’s time to start packing. Three of the four active Martins in the NBA were traded before Thursday’s deadline, leaving Nets guard Tyrese Martin as the last man standing on his original team. Caleb Martin went from the 76ers to the Mavericks, his twin brother Caleb Martin went from the Hornets to the Suns, and high-flyer KJ Martin went from the Sixers to the Jazz.
These guys all seem to be in good spots for their careers, so they’re probably not too upset, but it was a bit odd to see so many Martins on the move over the past couple of days.
Winner: Victor Wembanyama’s shoulders
This season, the Spurs are 5-17 when Victor Wembanyama scores fewer than 25 points. That’s largely because San Antonio has lacked a consistent second scoring option, leaving little margin for error when the 7-foot-3 phenom has an off night. Quite a lot of pressure for a kid who just turned 21 last month.
Enter De’Aaron Martez Fox, who’s averaged 25 points and six assists over his last five NBA seasons, and whom the Spurs acquired while only having to surrender a pile of rubble some not-so-great draft capital and players who weren’t part of the future. All Fox did was put up 24 points and 13 assists in his debut as the Spurs beat the Hawks on Wednesday, and he displayed early chemistry with Wembanyama.
Still just 27 years old, Fox seems like an ideal partner to help take some of the weight off of Wembanyama’s shoulders in San Antonio.
Loser: Middleton’s sanity
Just a few years ago, Khris Middleton was helping the Milwaukee Bucks win an NBA title. Now he’s packing his bags to join one of the worst teams in NBA history. Middleton would look weird in any jersey besides Milwaukee’s, but he looks especially strange as a Washington Wizard.
Middleton is coming off double ankle surgery this offseason and was averaging 12 points, four assists and four rebounds in limited minutes on highly efficient 51/41/85 shooting splits as he helped Milwaukee fight for Eastern Conference playoff positioning. In Washington, he’ll join a squad that’s actively trying to lose games in order to improve their draft stock. Now that’s a tough beat.
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