Mavs get: Paul George, #5 1st 2026 (From LAC, via Pacers)
Give up: #9 1st 2026, PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford, Caleb Martin
Dallas is in an interesting spot right now. Outside of Coop and Kai they have tons of cap space, the 9th pick, and tons of great role players. The main thing I think Dallas should look for in this draft is a guard next to Coop who can be mentored by Kyrie and also be a win now player since they don't have their own pick til 2031. Moving up and taking Wagler or Acuff (Ideally Wagler) gives them a guard who has great potential for a long term running mate once Kyrie is done. PJ is a guy I think the Mavs move this offseason, as I just don't see the fit next to Coop. Coop is naturally a PF and PJ doesn't play SF the best. Gaff is a great reliable center but with Dlive coming back and emergences of Marvin Bagley (free agent) and Moussa Cisse, I could see Dallas going a different route. They're also able to offload Caleb Martin's contract in this. Paul George is still a good 3rd option even with his age going up, and Coop just needs shooters around him. Wagler/Kai/PG to surround Coop will be great for opening up the floor and unlocking everything he needs to be a superstar in year two.
Lineup: Wagler/Acuff, Nembhard
Kyrie, Christie, Klay, AJ
PG, Naji
Coop
Dlive, Bagley, Moussa, Powell,
Other picks besides #5: #30, #48
76ers get: PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford, Derrick Jones Jr., 2027 Indiana 1st (From Zubac trade)
Give up: Paul George, 2028 LAC 1st and 2029 LAC right to swap (picks from Harden trade)
The 76ers have the greatest leverage here with the Clippers picks. The Clips have been making great moves and they might not be as bad in 2028 as we thought they would be. They use those picks from the Harden trade to get a HAUL and move off of PG's contact while focusing on depth, something they seriously lack. When they 76ers orginally signed PG, they went all in on having a big 3 and using PG as a 3rd option. With drafting Edgecombe, those 3rd option keys have basically already been given to VJ. While PG had a pretty good bounce back year minus the suspension, he just turned 36 and his contract is huge. Depth and size is seriously what Philly needs right now, and acquiring DJJ, PJ, and Gaff (Mavs frontcourt during the finals run lol) while creating some cap space to resign Oubre and QG, they are 10x well more balanced. DJJ takes PG's spot at SF, PJ is an AMAZING fit in Philly and they don't have to rely on Oubre or PJ playing PF, and Gaff is an extremely reliable backup for Embiid. Since they have that leverage on LA they also get that Indiana 2027 1st as well from the Zubac trade.
Maxey
Edgecombe, Grimes
DJJ, Oubre
PJ, Barlow
Embiid, Gaff
Picks: #22
Clippers get: Caleb Martin, #9 1st 2026, own 2028 1st and 2029 1st swap back
Give up: #5 2026 1st, Derrick Jones Jr.
If the Clips want to solely focus on their future, this trade is truely something they should consider. While they could draft at 5 and go from there, I don't know how much they'd really want a guard since they already have Darius Garland. While you could just have 2 guards or move off of Garland, getting their picks back would be the best move for their future. Pick 9 still could have some great talent, with Burries being the guy I could see them pairing next to Garland. They would lose that 2027 1st to Indiana as the other pick from the Zubac trade, which who knows what that pick is next year but I assume Indiana goes back to the postseason. Also swaping DJJ for Caleb Martin is just helping Philly and Dallas, but ultimately getting those 28 and 29 picks is the biggest thing here. I guess while we're on it I'll make a revised Zubac trade with this format: Clips get Bennedict Mathurin, Isaiah Jackson, Caleb Martin #9 1st 2026, own 2028 1st and 2029 swap back, give up Ivica Zubac and Derrick Jones Jr. Massive save of LA's dim future, minus whatever goes on with aspiration scandle.
Garland, Dunn
Burries, Beal, Bogdan, Cam,
Mathurin, Caleb
Kawhi Lopez, Jackson, Yanic
Other picks besides #9: #36, #52