CBA Notes: this could be completed as is if FVV agrees to opt in. But more likely, would involve removing Paul, FVV and the SRPs, completing the rest of the deal on draft night, and then revisiting Paul/FVV as a S&T in free agency. Numbers work both with and without the Paul/FVV component. Tampering penalties are a risk there, but it's entirely legal for the Suns, Raptors, and FVV to discuss opt-in-and-trade scenarios, halt discussions once FVV opts out or when the teams go ahead with the rest of the trade, and then resume discussions on July 1st.

From Toronto's perspective: this is all about obtaining the #3 pick, and absorbing some bad salary to do so. My assumption is Ball doesn't play again. IMO only makes sense if Scoot is on the board at #3, in which case it gives Toronto a starting 5 of Scoot/GTJ(UFA)/Barnes/Siakam/Poeltl. Shooting is going to be rough in year one, but the ball-movement would be outstanding with the right coach. The bench gets a pretty thin here, but the assumption is a new head coach would use the bench time for player development more than Nurse did, so Paul, Precious, #13, Koloko, #52, Dowtin and maybe Banton get minutes there, plus Thad and another MLE signing. Paul is a good first-year mentor for Scoot. If Toronto can eke another end-of-rotation player out of this deal, even better.

For the Suns: realistically I think they probably keep Ayton now that Vogel's HC, and see what he can get out of them. However, this scenario gives Vogel a lynchpin of that 2020 championship defense in Caruso, plus another versatile two-way guard in FVV. Any combination of Booker, FVV, and Caruso complement each other really well. Nurkic is a downgrade at C, but overall I think this rebuilds a lot of the depth that they lost in the Durant trade and gives them a way to move on from Paul.

For the Trailblazers: I know the popular opinion is that they need to hold out for an all-NBA calibre guy to pair with Lillard. However, I think any Siakam/Brown/Bridges trade likely guts their depth to an extent that it's not worth it. This retools their starting unit with a vastly improved defensive identity. The other big plus here is getting that pick back from Chicago, which allows them far more trade flexibility going forward. If it doesn't come together this year, they can still easily pivot to a younger timeline around Ayton, OG, Sharpe and Little, plus the assets they can get for Lillard. This may be contingent on getting some assurances on OG signed to an extension (around $26m first year is the max allowable under the new CBA... a two year extension at that amount seems good for both sides).

For the Bulls: This gives them a plan for replacing DeRozan's production, whether he leaves next year during free agency, or whether the Bulls trade him before then, and also allows them to get off Ball's contract. Ideally for the Bulls, they find a trade for DeRozan as a second move here. Dosonmu and Simons complement each other's skillsets really nicely, while Zach would move to SF.