Best players traded before 2025 NBA trade deadline, ranked
02/09/2025 12:41 PM
The NBA trade deadline is always hectic. Over the last few years, teams have regularly made tons of trades, and a bunch of stars have been moved. This year, the drama was even crazier than normal. After all, Luka Doncic was traded for Anthony Davis in a deal that some are calling the biggest trade of all time.
The Doncic-Davis trade stole the show, but it was far from the only mega-deal that went down before 3 p.m. ET on Thursday, Feb. 6. In total, there were 23 trades in the week leading up to the trade deadline and a total of 28 All-Star appearances were dealt during that time. With all of the talent on the move, we decided to rank the 10 best players who were traded in the days leading up to the trade deadline.
1. Luka Doncic
The basketball world was absolutely stunned when Luka Doncic was traded from the Dallas Mavericks to the Los Angeles Lakers. Doncic is only 25 years old, yet he already has a fringe Hall of Fame career. That is because he has been one of the best players in the NBA since he stepped foot in the big leagues after the 2018 NBA Draft.
Doncic has a number of records associated with his name. For example, he was the first player ever to record a 60-point, 20-rebound, 10-assist game. Last year’s scoring champion has already made First-Team All-NBA five times, and although he has been hurt this season, he is still averaging 28.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 7.8 assists per game.
Doncic is already a top 25 point guard in NBA history, and he is well on his way to being one of the best NBA players ever. This trade didn’t make a lot of sense, but it is definitely clear that Luka Doncic was the best player traded before the 2025 NBA trade deadline (considering he was one of the best players traded ever).
2. Anthony Davis
Many consider the Anthony Davis-Luka Doncic trade to be one of the worst trades ever from the Dallas Mavericks’ perspective. That doesn’t mean Davis isn’t an elite player, though. If you ignore the trade and just look at the player, the Mavericks did get a 10-time All-Star and former number-one overall pick.
Davis is one of the best defensive players in the NBA and one of the best rim protectors of all time. He can also certainly get it done on offense, considering he is averaging 25.7 points per game this season. Davis can bang inside or stretch the floor and excel from the perimeter. He has long preferred to play the power forward position and now has a chance to thrive there in Dallas.
Of course, though, the biggest reason fans questioned this trade was because of Davis’ age and injury history. The big man missed a lot of time during his Lakers days, and fans concerns proved valid when the 31-year-old got hurt in his Mavericks debut. Davis is an uber-talented player, but you still have to question why Dallas would have made this trade, even considering how well his fit and defense can complement Kyrie Irving this season.
3. De’Aaron Fox
De’Aaron Fox is a hypercharged point guard who most thrives because of his unmatched speed. The Sacramento King-turned-San Antonio Spur thrives in transition because of this. Fox is also incredibly clutch, as evidenced by his Clutch Player of the Year award from 2023.
Fox hit a would-be game-winner in the final seconds of one of his first games with the Spurs, but the Charlotte Hornets’ Miles Bridges ended up hitting a shot after that. Fox even hit the shot at the buzzer after the Hornets re-took the lead, but it came a fraction of a second too late as the clock had already expired.
Still, there is a lot to like about Fox in his new home. He and Victor Wembanyama should form an iconic duo together for a long time. Chris Paul has shown how important it is for the former first-overall pick to have an elite point guard teammate, but he was just a stop-gap option. Fox is the point guard of the future.
4. Zach LaVine
The Chicago Bulls had been looking to move Zach LaVine for quite some time, but his contract made that hard to do. He was finally dealt to the Sacramento Kings in a bigger deal involving De’Aaron Fox. LaVine is certainly a downgrade from Fox, but he is still having a solid season. Lavine’s combination of shooting (44% from deep) and athleticism is rare.
The shooting guard is averaging 23.7 points per game this season, and he isn’t far removed from a 27.4 point-per-game season. A lot of fans think that the Kings didn’t get enough in return for Fox, but that shouldn’t mean that they should discredit the caliber of player that LaVine is.
5. Jimmy Butler
It was known for a long time that Jimmy Butler was going to be moved. He requested a trade from the Miami Heat, and then he proceeded to get suspended by the team on three separate occasions. Butler wasn’t moved until the day before the trade deadline, though, but he got moved to a program that makes a lot of sense.
Butler was dealt to the Golden State Warriors in a deal that saw Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson, and Dennis Schroder shipped to Miami. Butler is already 35 years old, but he likely has a couple of good years left to try and extend the Warriors championship window with fellow again legend, Stephen Curry.
Butler is a gritty player who thrives on defense and can be a playmaker for his teammates. He always steps up his game in the postseason, as evidenced by his two NBA Finals appearances with the Heat. Butler’s numbers are down this year, but a long-anticipated change of scenario should rejuvenate him.
6. Brandon Ingram
One of the weirdest deals of the 2025 NBA trade deadline was the move that saw Brandon Ingram end up with the Toronto Raptors. Ingram, who is on an expiring contract, does have an All-Star appearance to his name, but few experts expected him to end up in Toronto.
The 6-foot-9 small forward is long and lanky, which allows him to hit mid-range jump shots over the top of defenders. He has averaged over 20 points per game every season since 2018-19. The New Orleans Pelicans were also ready to move off of him because of the frequency in which he is hurt, though. Ingram has only played over 62 games once since his rookie season. He is currently dealing with an ankle sprain, too.
7. Kyle Kuzma
The Washington Wizards were clear trade deadline sellers, and Kyle Kuzma was one of many casualties of that. He is now on a Milwaukee Bucks team looking to contend. In Washington, Kuzma proved he can score at a high-level as the first or second option. He averaged 22.2 points per game just last season.
The power forward has also shown that he can contribute to winning basketball, though, as evidenced by his 2020 championship with the Lakers. He will take somewhat of a backseat alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard.
8. De’Andre Hunter
The Cleveland Cavaliers made a consolidation trade and ended up with a clear upgrade to their rotation. That trade was for De’Andre Hunter, who is having by far the best season of his career despite coming off of the bench for the first time in it. The 3-and-D wing is averaging 19 points per game in his sixth NBA season.
Hunter has always been able to hit the open shot and lock down opposing players, but he has added even more to his game this year. The Cavaliers are a scary team going forward, considering they’ve been the top team in the Eastern Conference all season long.
9. Mark Williams (temporarily)
Mark Williams only half counts for this list. The Lakers desperately needed a center after they traded away Anthony Davis, so they went out and made a deal for Williams. He seemed like a great fit for the team due to his defensive prowess and interior scoring. Unfortunately, the often-hurt big man failed his physical, so the Lakers nullified this trade.
Williams is headed back to the Hornets, while the players traded for him (Cam Reddish and Dalton Knecht) will return to the Lakers. It is a rare but not unheard-of thing in the NBA, but there will certainly be some uncomfortable locker rooms going forward.
10. Andrew Wiggins
Andrew Wiggins was viewed as one of the best prospects in recent memory when he was drafted first overall in 2014. He also has an All-Star starting gig to his name and a championship ring in his collection. Even so, Wiggins never quite lived up to his potential. Rather than becoming a bona fide top-scoring option as expected, Wiggins has become more of a 3-and-D role player.
He is still a solid player, though, and he should be able to fill in for the departed Jimmy Butler well for the Miami Heat. Wiggins is averaging 17.6 points per game this season, which is up from the down season he had with the Golden State Warriors last year.
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