From Jaylen Brown to Jarrett Allen: 5 Sneaky NBA Trades Nobody’s Talking About!

The thing to know about NBA trade season is that it’s not really a season. It’s a year-round exercise that eventually pulls just about every player in the league into one speculative deal or another.

The goal here is to avoid the exchanges everyone’s already fixated on. So you won’t find any trades involving Kevin Durant or Giannis Antetokounmpo. Instead, we’re shooting for big names who haven’t dominated the news cycle but who still might realistically change teams this summer.

If we can send those players to surprising destinations, all the better.

These are the NBA trades nobody’s talking about…yet.

Jonathan Kuminga Heads for Chicago

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The Trade: Chicago Bulls acquire Jonathan Kuminga via sign-and-trade from the Golden State Warriors for Coby White

Restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga’s days with the Warriors appear numbered, as he and the Warriors are “expected to explore sign-and-trade scenarios,” per Anthony Slater and Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic.

Kuminga is a hyper-athletic forward who has flashed dominant foul-drawing potential and two-way impact en route to four-year averages of 12.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists on 50.7 percent shooting in his Golden State career. He also didn’t click with the Warriors’ read-and-react system, often falling out of the rotation for weeks at a time.

If the Bulls take a chance on Kuminga, who’s still just 22, the Warriors should ask for Coby White. His expiring $12.8 million salary in 2025-26 isn’t large enough to make an extension realistic in Chicago, and his scoring and shot-creation would address Golden State’s most critical weakness.

Base year compensation makes any Kuminga deal tricky.

Let’s say Kuminga’s new starting salary is $25 million. That’ll be the incoming figure for Chicago, but it only counts as $12.5 million in outgoing salary for Golden State. That $25 million figure is right in the range where a Warriors-Bulls deal involving White could work. Any higher or lower, and the parties would have to add money via additional players to hit the sweet spot.

Considering White has played at fringe All-Star levels the past two years, the Warriors might need to include a pick. Then again, Kuminga’s upside might result in draft capital heading the other way, depending on his salary figure. We’ll just leave this as a straight-up swap for now.

Jrue Holiday Joins AD and Cooper Flagg in Dallas

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The Trade: Dallas Mavericks acquire Jrue Holiday from the Boston Celtics for PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford, Olivier Maxence-Prosper and a 2029 first-round pick (protected 1-14; via LAL)

It’s hard to know how the Boston Celtics will approach a 2025-26 season without Jayson Tatum, who’ll likely miss the year while recovering from his ruptured Achilles. Even if they’d gone on to repeat as champs, the Celtics would have had to think hard about reducing their expenses. As is, they project to owe as much as $500 million in payroll and luxury tax penalties next year.

This deal allows Boston to stay competitive by adding two rotation pieces in Washington and Gafford, the latter of which could replace free agent Al Horford. Though it only saves the team a small amount in 2025-26, we should assume Boston will also pursue cost-cutting moves involving Kristaps Porzingis and possibly even Jaylen Brown.

The real savings would come in 2026-27, when Washington, Gafford and Maxence-Prosper all come off the books.

Dallas would add a veteran guard to take the injured Kyrie Irving’s spot in the starting lineup—one who’d fit the team’s defense-first and win-now principles. A closing group that includes Anthony Davis, Cooper Flagg, Holiday and wing Max Christie would be overwhelming on defense.

The Mavs take on real risk with Holiday, who slipped on both ends in his age-34 season. But this team seems committed to chasing success during Davis’ prime, which may only last another year or two anyway. Might as well load up on vets, chase wins now and trust Flagg to be the bridge to the next generation.

Jaylen Brown Juices Orlando’s Offense

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The Trade: Orlando Magic acquire Jaylen Brown from the Boston Celtics for Jonathan Isaac, Anthony Black, Moritz Wagner, a 2028 first-round pick (top-1-protected) and a 2030 first-round pick (top-6-protected)

Here, the Magic capitalize on the Celtics’ dire financial straits by plucking Brown and his remaining $236 million, sending back younger players (and the flexibility that comes with them) along with a pair of lightly protected future firsts.

When it comes to Orlando, most searches for offensive help focus on point guards and spot-up shooters. Those types of players would certainly help improve an offense that needs snipers and playmakers, but Brown is a legitimate star—one who’s already proved he can perform at a championship level.

If the Magic aim too low in their pursuit of offense, they’ll risk acquiring someone who may help in the regular season but who can’t swing playoff contests.

Brown, Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero could do some real damage, especially if Orlando finds a floor-spacing center to round out that unit.

This is mostly about saving cash for Boston, but Black is a promising guard prospect, while Isaac is among the league’s best defenders. His remaining four years and $59 million is only guaranteed for a total of $23 million. Wagner could replace free agent Al Horford and comes off the books after his 2025-26 team option.

Cleveland Shakes Up the Core

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The Trade: Cleveland Cavaliers acquire Cam Johnson from the Brooklyn Nets for Jarrett Allen, Jaylon Tyson and a 2031 first-round pick (top-14-protected)

Another postseason disappointment, this one coming in the wake of a 64-win regular season, could spur the Cavaliers to reorient the roster around Evan Mobley as the full-time center. That’d mean moving on from Allen, replacing him with a capable frontcourt shooter and scorer in Johnson.

On a pure talent basis, Allen and Johnson are pretty comparable. The former, two years younger, owns career averages of 12.8 points and 9.2 rebounds. The latter is a career 39.2 percent shooter from deep and just finished up a season marked by a personal-best 18.8 points per game.

The Cavs’ inclusion of Tyson and a protected future first is based on the assumption that they’re the ones initiating talks because they’re the more desperate party. Brooklyn held onto Johnson through last year’s deadline and would presumably need real enticement beyond Allen (whom it would likely flip in another deal) to agree to a Johnson move.

Cleveland gets a floor-stretching combo forward to play next to Mobley in five-out sets, while the Nets get a starting center in his prime who could bring in even more assets in a subsequent deal—all with a recent first-rounder in Tyson and another future pick attached as sweeteners.

Milwaukee and Phoenix Swap Problematic Deals

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The Trade: Milwaukee Bucks acquire Bradley Beal from the Phoenix Suns for Damian Lillard

A third team may need to be roped in because the Suns can’t technically take on Lillard in a one-for-one swap. He makes about a half-million dollars more than Beal, and Phoenix isn’t allowed to take in more salary than it sends out. Nor can it aggregate players in a trade to make up the difference.

If the Bucks and Suns send second-rounders to the Nets, they can step in and facilitate a deal with their ample cap space.

The idea here is simple, but it hinges on Giannis Antetokounmpo staying in Milwaukee.

Lillard’s ruptured Achilles means he’s not going to help next season. Beal, despite enduring slippage in Phoenix, is going to be the more valuable contributor in 2025-26 by default. If he likes the idea of settling in as the clear No. 2 option to a superstar instead of trying to find his way as a No. 3 in Phoenix, he could waive his no-trade clause and allow a deal to proceed.

Phoenix is taking on dead money for next year while banking on Lillard returning to form (and outproducing Beal) in 2026-27 and beyond. It’s not a ridiculous bet. Even a diminished Lillard would fill Phoenix’s need for a true point guard better than Beal ever did.

This is definitely a case of two teams exchanging unwanted/damaged goods, and the Suns might hesitate most due to Lillard’s injury. But as part of broader reset that focuses on the 2026-27 season, acquiring Dame makes some sense. Plus, the Suns have to be sick of Beal’s no-trade clause hanging over all their potential moves.