Every NBA Team's Best Offseason Trade Chip

It's the same story for players. And if they're going to buy—like, seriously buy—fleshing out packages around the reigning Defensive Player of the Year and his fresh four-year, $77.1 million extension is the place to start.Kyrie Irving (player option) and Ben Simmons are the most fitting selections for the Brooklyn Nets at first glance. But he can be attached to additional money, and the offensive skill set he flashed ensures teams should value him more than a nameless, faceless first-rounder.Incumbent players no longer move the trade-chip needle for the Charlotte Hornets.Miles Bridges is headed for restricted free agency and a near-max payday and hasn't shown enough on defense to solicit the same sign-and-trade interest that figures to define Deandre Ayton's offseason. PJ Washington is plug-and-play on offense and can steal some minutes at the 5, but role-player bigs one year out from restricted free agency aren't fetching pretty premiums.James Bouknight's value peaked at 2021 summer league. It doesn't have any. The 26th pick in this year's draft or a 2025 first-rounder isn't immensely attractive, and the Mavericks don't have a blue-chip prospect to peddle.Finney-Smith's value far exceeds that of any non-Luka player under contract. His complementary offense and one-on-one defense have a case to be the Golden State Warriors' best trade chip—not in spite of his $33.6 million price point next year, but partially because of it. He's 19. Normal Powell could be the answer, but given how little he cost the Clippers, the four years and $74.5 million remaining on his contract don't seem too in demand.Terance Mann is the smarter pick in almost every respect. His two-year extension starts in 2023-24, so he's owed $23.9 million over the next three seasons—average annual value south of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception.This season significantly boosted Mann's stock, as well. Anthony Davis and LeBron James aren't realistic trade chips, and Russell Westbrook's $47.1 million player option is too steep for his expiring contract to be an asset.Kendrick Nunn hasn't played basketball in roughly a year. He's out. He is only 21, so there's that. Teams aren't taking on Westbrook's contract just so they can pay Reaves $1.6 million for a year and then see him enter restricted free agency.Los Angeles' 2027 first-rounder is more beguiling. He was one of just six players this season to splash in 37.5 percent or more of his pull-up triples on at least three attempts per game, and his mid-range touch covers everything from on-a-dime jumpers to feathery floaters.Rival teams have openly targeted Herro on defense, often to Miami's detriment. Russell still doesn't get to the rim a ton, takes too many junky twos and needs to improve his shot selection on the break, but he also just turned in the best passing and defensive seasons of his career. And with the Minnesota Timberwolves bent on elevating their place within a terrifying Western Conference, he's the natural starting point for any blockbuster trade talks.Trading out of the No. 8 pick would typically be a no-no for a team not on the cusp of championship contention.But, like, are we sure the New Orleans Pelicans aren't on the cusp of contention?This year's record doesn't show it, but their progress infers it. You don't trade away a soon-to-be 22-year-old who has outperformed expectations on defense, jacked up his rim pressure midyear and proved to be a capable set three-point shooter with underexplored passing chops if you're rebuilding.The Knicks are not rebuilding. And if that time comes over the offseason, Barrett will be their top trade chip, bar none.This isn't the same as saying "They must move him!" It depends on the star target, and what the opposing team wants in return. But he's a high-level impact player who fits anywhere, on a contract that pays him $2 million and expires after next season, employed by a team in the infancy of a rebuild with scant few roster spots to spare. At a time when contenders are hard-pressed to find solutions in free agency, Williams may be Oklahoma City's ticket to yet another draft pick, additional roster flexibility or both.Process of elimination gets us to Terrence Ross for the Orlando Magic.Shipping out the No. 1 pick isn't in play. His four-year, $50.2 million extension looks like a friggin' steal after last season, in which he showed the full breadth of his scoring and defensive arsenals.Knowing Orlando will draft another big at No. 1 adds to the temptation. The Magic probably aren't getting a first-round pick for his services when he's shooting 31.4 percent from deep over the past two seasons, but he has value to teams with better floor balance in the half court. And as an $11.5 million expiring contract, there's virtually zero risk tied to his microwave scoring.Slotting Tyrese Maxey here would be sacrilegious if the Philadelphia 76ers considered themselves a near-finished product that needn't go star-hunting.They don't.As ESPN's Brian Windhorst said on an episode of the #Greeny show (h/t Philly Voice's Nick Tricome):"Philly has dreams and plans as Daryl Morey does and a key factor here is they have Tobias Harris, who would have value in a possible trade, and they have Tyrese Maxey, who would have value in a possible trade, and you would need a player, potentially near the end of his contract, to come and say 'I would like to go play in Philadelphia.' Is that something that could happen? Maxey's value is even higher this side of the trade deadline given how well his speed, shooting and improving defense fared alongside two other stars.Whether the Sixers should move him is a separate matter. The two years, $76.9 million left on Harris' deal becomes useful salary matching when partnered to Maxey's career trajectory.Deandre Ayton entered the playoffs with a roar, on the heels of a career regular season. His various vanishing acts during the conference semifinals don't entirely rewrite a regular season in which he looked matchup-proof on defense, even when pulled away from the basket, and honed everything inside his offensive armory, including his mid-range touch, hook shots, screening and finishing through contact.Flaws continue to permeate his game, the most glaring of which is inconsistent force. There is likewise something to be said about his dependence on other creators, albeit not quite as much as a year ago.This isn't a matter of "Is Deandre Ayton valuable?" It's an issue of whether the Suns want to pay max or near-max money to their sometimes-third, but-sometimes-fourth, but-also-sometimes-fifth best player when they've already invested heavily in Mikal Bridges, Chris Paul and the extension-eligible Devin Booker.Exploring sign-and-trade options seems like the best course for both parties, though base-year compensation makes such deals tricky. It isn't quite clear what timeline they're on after said deal, but there's an implicit sense of urgency to make a ruckus now after unloading a 22-year-old stud on his rookie scale.Jumping up to No. 4 in the draft lottery should help the Kings accelerate their retooling around Sabonis and De'Aaron Fox. Tethering that selection to some combination of push-shot extraordinaire and resident bargain Richaun Holmes, Davion Mitchell and other picks is probably good enough to crash the conversation for whatever star(s) might become available.Sacramento could also look to trade down, since the No. 4-ranked prospect is Jaden Ivey, a guard whose style overlaps with what Fox does best. Age (22), affordability (one more year on his rookie scale) and the offensive diversification he's shown make the unknown less of an issue and more of a could-be-anything proposition.Welp, this feels icky.OG Anunoby was once touted as the Toronto Raptors' co-heir apparent, someone who would be no worse than the second most important player on the team's next contender. But he's been among the most overworked players on the less glamorous end for years. Another team (or next year's Wizards) will get him more reps as a facilitator and be better off for it, and the two years remaining on his rookie scale only bump up his trade-market stock.