The NBA’s trade machine is already going strong.
The Wizards got Jordan Poole. The Celtics got Kristaps Porzingis. The Warriors got Chris Paul. Somehow, the night has only just begun. There’s still a whole draft that needs to play out and plenty of trades to come from that.
With the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement rules encouraging teams to find cheaper contracts, we should see a ton of player and pick movement during Thursday night’s action.
We’re here to track it all. Here are the trade grades for every major trade in the draft. Keep it on lock here as we update the tracker throughout draft night.
The Indiana Pacers pick Bilal Coulibaly with the No. 7 pick and trade him to the Wizards
Washington Wizards receive: Bilal Coulibaly (No. 7 pick)
Indiana Pacers receive: Jarace Walker (No. 8 pick), two second-round picks
Well, folks. We’ve got our first trade of the night. The Indiana Pacers selected Bilal Coulibaly with the No. 7 pick and traded him to the Washington Wizards who selected Jarace Walker with the No. 8 pick.
The Wizards get a forward who is a bit raw but comes in as one of the best defenders in this draft. His offensive game will need to come around — he’s not much of a shot creator and his shot needs work. But if he’s molded right he could become a solid starter very quickly.
The Pacers get Jarace Walker to come in as a defensive, playmaking forward. If Coulibaly is one of the best defenders in the draft, the Walker might actually be the best. He’s got the size at power forward to guard bigs, but he’s also quick enough to guard smaller players. And he’s got some playmaking skill that could make him a threat on offense.
GRADES: B- for the Wizards, A for the Pacers
The Dallas Mavericks trade the No. 10 overall pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City gets: The No. 10 overall pick (Cason Wallace) and Davis Bertans
Dallas gets: The No. 12 overall pick
This is a salary dump trade for the Mavericks. The team gets a traded player exception that they can eventually move another player into and they get to get off Davis Bertans’ massive contract that the team absorbed in the Kristaps Porzingis trade a couple of years ago.
The Thunder get a solid option at point guard. Wallace is going to immediately be an impact point-of-attack defender for Oklahoma City, which is something the team certainly needed last year. He won’t be a starter anytime soon in a crowded and elite backcourt, but he’ll certainly be able to make an impact early.
GRADES: B for Dallas, B for Oklahoma City
Kings trade No. 24 overall pick and Richaun Holmes to Mavericks
Sacramento gets: To move off of Richaun Holmes’ contract
Dallas gets: Richaun Holmes and the No. 24 overall pick (Olivier-Maxense Prosper)
This was yet another salary dump trade. This time, the Sacramento Kings are sending a big contract in Richaun Holmes to the Mavericks along with a draft pick. The Mavericks need size in their frontcourt — their center rotation was inconsistent, at best, last season. They get that in Richaun Holmes along with Prosper, who profiles as a lockdown wing with good size moving forward. This is a great move for the Mavericks.
The Kings didn’t really get much out of this besides moving off of Holmes’ sizeable contract. That could be a win considering they’ll have cap space to make moves in free agency this season. But we’ll have to wait and see what they do.
GRADES: A for the Mavericks, C+ for the Kings
The Celtics trade the No. 25 overall pick to the Pistons for the No. 31 overall pick
Boston gets: The No. 31 overall pick and future second-round picks
Detroit gets: The No. 25 overall pick (Marcus Sasser)
The Pistons didn’t give up much to get Marcus Sasser here — just a solid second-round pick and a few future seconds. Sasser is an older point guard in this draft and a bit smaller, but he has talent. He can shoot the ball off the bounce from deep and has plenty of range. He’ll be a solid fit in Detroit.
The Celtics get the No. 31 overall pick, which is basically a first-round pick without having a fully guaranteed salary attached. It’s a solid move for a team that needs young, cheap talent moving forward as its roster gets expensive.
GRADES: B for the Celtics, B for the Pistons
