The 2024 NBA trade deadline arrives on Feb. 8 (3 p.m. ET), but already we’ve seen some big names switching teams this season. Before the New Year, James Harden was dealt to the LA Clippers and OG Anunoby to the Knicks. Since the calendar flipped, we’ve watched Pascal Siakam and Terry Rozier find new homes.
Here are the biggest trades that have happened so far with grades and analysis from FOX Sports’ NBA writers.
Note: This story will update through the deadline.
The deal: Heat receives Terry Rozier; Hornets receive Kyle Lowry and a lottery-protected 2027 first-round pick
Heat: A-
Hornets: B
The 24-19 Heat were already a bit of a sleeping giant in the East, and this deal just makes them stronger. Rozier was having an excellent season in Charlotte, averaging 23.2 points per game and shooting a solid 35.8% from long range on high volume (7.7 attempts per game). He’s younger (29) than the 37-year-old Lowry, and healthier, and gives the Heat more juice and depth in the backcourt, which should help lift Miami’s 20th-ranked offense. When healthy, Miami can now choose three players from among the Duncan Robinson, Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Rozier quartet to close games alongside Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. That’s a strong rotation, one that no opponent is going to want to face. And to get this upgrade by just parting with a single pick that will likely fall in the mid-to-late first round is a nice piece of business.
We could make this an incomplete grade for Charlotte, pending what happens with Lowry, but in the meantime, we’ll go with a B. ESPN is reporting that the Hornets don’t plan on buying Lowry out but instead would like to flip him to a playoff team in another deal. There will be suitors. The Sixers could use some backcourt depth, and Lowry is a Philly native and played for Nick Nurse in Toronto. The Knicks also need a backup point guard and Lowry being a member of the Villanova family means he’s got plenty of connections there. And of course, we can assume the Lakers, still on the hunt for more offensive juice, will be in the mix.
All of which is to say that if the Hornets can turn Lowry into some more assets, then this grade will bump up. But until then it’s fair to wonder if they moved too early. There are a bunch of contending teams who could use someone with Rozier’s skill set — by turning him into a single mid-to-late first-round pick, they seemed to have settled. Again, the assumption here is that they made this move this far before the deadline so that they could give themselves time to make a Lowry trade. But if they fail there and are forced to buy out Lowry, then it will be fair to question this.
The deal: Pacers receive Pascal Siakam and a future second-round pick; Raptors receive Bruce Brown, Jordan Nwora, Kira Lewis, two 2024 first-round picks (via Indiana), conditional 2026 first-round pick (via Indiana); Pelicans receive cash considerations
Pacers: B+
Raptors: B+
If you’re the sort of fan/analyst who views everything through a “championship-or-bust” mindset, then you’d consider this a bad deal for Indy. Siakam is a good player but not a star, and this trade will force the Pacers to give him a max — or at least near-max deal — this offseason when the now 29-year-old Siakam becomes a free agent. It will be a deal that, likely, will not age well. That said, NBA teams aren’t built in “championship-or-bust” vacuums. The Pacers have one superstar in Tyrese Haliburton — this deal gives him an All-Star-level teammate, something they did not have. And I don’t mind the picks they gave up, either. It will likely amount to two mid-to-late first round picks from this upcoming draft, plus another first in 2026. With Siakam, the Pacers should now be a shoo-in for the playoffs. Given the market they’re in — Indy is not exactly a major free agent destination — I like the move.
The Raptors, meanwhile, did well considering that Siakam is just six months away from free agency. I’m deducting points, however, because the Raptors should have traded Siakam LAST season. Everyone knew back then that it was unlikely they re-sign him in the summer of 2024, and yet the Raptors still decided to sit on their hands. At that point, Siakam had a year-and-half left on his deal, meaning more teams would have been interested, which could have led to a bidding war. Patience, sometimes, is not the answer. This was one of those cases.
Other completed deals
- Feb. 7: Celtics receive Xavier Tillman Sr.; Grizzlies receive 2027 second-round picks via Hawks and a 2030 second-round pick via Mavericks (ESPN)
- Feb. 7: Pistons receive Simone Fontecchio; Jazz receive Kevin Knox II, 2024 second-round pick via Wizards and draft rights to Gabriele Prodica (ESPN)
- Feb. 1: Grizzlies receive Victor Oladipo and three second-round picks; Rockets receive Steven Adams (ESPN)
- Jan. 14: Pistons receive Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala; Wizards receive Marvin Bagley III, Isaiah Livers, 2025 second-round pick, 2026 second-round pick
- Dec. 30: Knicks receive OG Anunoby, Malachi Flynn and Precious Achiuwa; Raptors receive RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and 2024 second-round pick (via Detroit) – READ ANALYSIS
- Nov. 1: Clippers receive James Harden, P.J. Tucker and Filip Petrusev; 76ers get Nicolas Batum, Robert Covington, Marcus Morris, K.J. Martin, protected 2024 first-round pick (via Raptors), 2024 second-round pick (via Pacers or Raptors), 2024 second-round pick (via Jazz or Cavs), protected 2026 first-round pick (via Thunder), unprotected 2028 first-round pick (via Clippers), protected 2029 first-round pick swap (via Clippers), 2029 second-round pick (via Clippers) and cash considerations; Thunder receive pick swap (via Clippers) and cash considerations – READ ANALYSIS
Yaron Weitzman is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. He is the author of “Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports.” Follow him on Twitter @YaronWeitzman.
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