The NBA’s landscape today has put a premium on what a player can bring to championship hopes, as seen with the recent trade of Trae Young to the Washington Wizards. The Atlanta Hawks have seen the emergence of Jalen Johnson and the steady presence of Kristaps Porzingis and Onyeka Okongwu. This led to the Hawks parting ways with the star who led them to the Eastern conference finals five years ago.
There seems to be little patience among teams, more specifically the rebuilding teams, to hold on to their aging or young-but-stagnant stars. This is why the NBA trade market this season has seen a litany of rumors swirling from former Finals MVPs and once-projected to be franchise cornerstones. So begs the question: Who’s next after Trae Young?
Anthony Davis
Davis has been one of the central players in NBA trade rumors even after he was traded by the Los Angeles Lakers to the Dallas Mavericks for Luka Doncic. It seemed that the Mavericks were going on a peculiar and frankly mindless approach to the win-now mentality by getting Davis, who proved to be more injury-prone than Doncic.
With the Doncic trade mastermind, Nico Harrison, gone and the Mavericks shifting to their franchise star Cooper Flagg, all signs point to Davis departing for more title-capable teams that can carry his salary and the injury problems.
“Nice pass, right?” pic.twitter.com/vATkNo9X8j
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) January 8, 2026
Jonathan Kuminga
When the Golden State Warriors re-signed Jonathan Kuminga this offseason, it wasn’t because they suddenly wanted him to be in their plans in the future (although head coach Steve Kerr did try early in the season), it was to finally shut the door on a long stalemate and hopefully get something in return for the young prospect.
It’s now January and the Warriors are struggling to find momentum. Kuminga’s future in Oakland is more than likely over. It will only be a matter of which package the Warriors will choose. The reason why the Warriors have waited this long to trade Kuminga is simply that they want to get the best deal possible. A failed trade to get Lauri Markannen last season proves that the market for the young forward can net the Warriors important pieces to become legitimate title contenders this season.
Ivica Zubac
The Los Angeles Clippers are having a rough go of things. A failed farewell tour to franchise legend Chris Paul and a season-ending injury to Bradley Beal have hampered the potential of a talented but aging Clippers team. Stars Kawhi Leonard and James Harden have been brought up in trade rumors in the beginning, but now that they’ve put on stellar performances that ignited a better run of form, it seems that longtime big man Ivica Zubac becomes the most logical players to be traded to hopefully get the team to the postseason.
Zubac has only played in four games of the Clippers’ last 10games, where they have been on fire with a 7-3 record. The emergence of rookie Yanic Niederhauser, who is more versatile and athletic, and Brook Lopez, who isn’t as steady as Zubac in the paint but is a far more lethal shooter, have made Zubac a primary trade piece that can hopefully garner more pieces that will help reverse their 13-23 record this season.
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