Trade Ideas to Boost 5 NBA Playoff Hopefuls' Offenses

Last time we met, plenty of time and space was burned spotlighting 2025 NBA playoff hopefuls that may end up struggling on the offensive end.

These concerns were presented without any ideas on how to provide said squads with an infusion of what they need most.

That changes now.

For anyone new to this exercise, the featured teams are not shaping up to be the worst offenses, period.

That (dis)honor almost always lies with squads not actively trying to win.

Instead, this is our attempt to meaningfully raise the offensive ceilings of franchises up against higher (or even actual) stakes during the 2024-25 seasons.

As was the case when we cobbled together trades in the name of defensive improvement , these deals will not, for the most part, remedy every underlying concern.

All of these hypothetical proposals, though, will leave each team better equipped to punch at or above their weight on the more glamorous end of the floor.

The Trade Golden State Warriors Receive: Zach LaVine Chicago Bulls Receive: Kevon Looney, Gary Payton II, Andrew Wiggins, Atlanta's 2026 second-round pick, Atlanta's 2028 second-round pick Another from-scratch shot-maker who stretches defenses well beyond the arc but doesn't need to dominate the ball is pretty much the ideal target for the Warriors.

LaVine just about fits that bill.

His defense remains shaky, and he's more of a reactive passer than bona fide creator, but there's no denying his scoring utility.

Last year saw his catch-and-shoot efficiency from downtown take a nosedive.

The sample size is small enough to shrug it off.

He ranked in the 87th percentile or better on spot-up efficiency over the previous four seasons, per BBall Index .

He has also placed outside the 83rd percentile just once in pull-up three-point shot-making efficiency during that same span.

Certain suitors will be scared off by his contract.

That potentially includes the Warriors.

LaVine is owed around $138 million over the next three years.

This package is almost a dollar-for-dollar match, so the 2024-25 payroll isn't a concern.

But his price point is something they'll have to reconcile going forward as they prepare to pay Jonathan Kuminga and, potentially, Moses Moody.

My professional advice: You have Stephen Curry.

Make the trade now, boost your immediate standing in the Western Conference and figure out the financial logistics later.

Whether LaVine's value has fallen far enough for Chicago to accept seconds and longer-term cap relief is debatable.

Or maybe not.

LaVine would probably be on another team if there were a market for his services and contract.

Wiggins is far from a perfect player, but the Bulls aren't exactly drowning in wings, and his deal runs the same length as LaVine's while costing nearly $20 million less per year.

Chicago can push to expand the deal and nab Moses Moody.

Golden State should push right back.

Moody is integral to soaking up wing minutes without Wiggins, and again, which other team is offering more for LaVine? The Trade Los Angeles Clippers Receive: Jordan Clarkson Utah Jazz Receive: P.J.

Tucker, Amir Coffey, 2030 second-round pick*, 2031 second-round pick The Clippers feel like they need a whole bunch of stuff on offense: shooting, ball-handling, creation, table-setting, the whole nine.

James Harden and a healthy Kawhi Leonard are more-than-capable primaries.

Los Angeles is currently set up to lean on some combination of Kris Dunn, Bones Hyland, Kevin Porter Jr.

and Terance Mann for secondary support.

That's potentially fine.

It may also not be enough.

Especially if we're penciling in Kawhi for 15 or more absences.

Clarkson offers more certainty than any of the Clippers' other non-stars.

He has made strides as a live-dribble passer over the last couple of seasons, and while his three-point efficiency has mostly lagged in Utah, he will be better served on a team with which he won't so often register as the center of attention.

His time with the Jazz has also seen him deepen his inside-the-arc arsenal.

Punting on a couple of seconds and Coffey to get Clarkson is a more-than-reasonable price.

His salary is right around mid-level-exception territory for the next two years, and he's semi-insurance against Harden leaving next summer (player option) or regressing past the point of heliocentric capacity.

Utah can try holding out for a better offer but might not do better than an expiring contract and seconds.

Clarkson is unlikely to net a first-rounder on his own.

Coffey isn't your typical throw-in, either.

He never needs the ball on offense, and the Clippers have used him (in spurts) to guard the 1 through 4.

And though getting off the final year of Clarkson's contract (2025-26) isn't a necessity, Tucker's expiring deal does afford the Jazz some additional flexibilityeither as a midseason trade chip or straight cap savings over the summer.

*Note: Utah already has the right to swap seconds with Los Angeles in 2030.

This gives the Jazz both picks outright.

The Trade Memphis Grizzlies Receive: De'Andre Hunter Atlanta Hawks Receive: Brandon Clarke, John Konchar, 2027 second-round pick (its own), 2031 second-round pick Properly sized wings who can stretch the floor in the half-court remain the Grizzlies' biggest need, It's a void as old as timeand a more urgent hole this side of GG Jackson II's right foot injury.

Hunter has always been a better player in concept than reality.

His defense is versatile but not particularly impactful for someone standing 6'7" with a 7'2" wingspan .

He effectively spaces the floor but can end any given season on first-team All-Tried-Doing-Too-Much-With-The-Ball.

His rebounding presence verges on nonexistent, and health is still a relative concern; he has missed fewer than 15 games just once in five years.

Still, the 26-year-old is often painted as a liability.

He's not.

If he wasn't owed about $70 million over the next three seasons, he would be portrayed in sought-after three-and-D termsparticularly after taking steps toward cleaning up his shot diet last year.

Memphis may balk at Hunter's annual cost.

His fit is inarguable.

The Grizzlies have the offensive pecking order to further streamline his usage, and he becomes a defensive asset in a rotation that has Jaren Jackson Jr., Vince Williams Jr.

and Marcus Smart to handle the heaviest lifting.

Atlanta may be an offseason away from thinking about divesting off Hunter.

But moving him does create more of a runway for Zaccaharie Risacher and Dyson Daniels.

Though Clarke and Konchar aren't on bargain deals, they both combine to make less than Hunter; and the former can be useful long term, if healthy, with both Clint Capela and Larry Nance Jr.

set to come off the books next summer.

Either player will also be easier to jettison in a vacuum if the team is looking to cut costs in advance of Jalen Johnson's inevitable payday ahead of 2025-26.

The Hawks should absolutely push for a protected first-rounder.

Depending on said protections, the Grizzlies shouldn't necessarily balk.

Hunter has the chance to be more of a difference-maker for them than most other teams.

The Trade San Antonio Spurs Receive: Grant Williams Charlotte Hornets Receive: Zach Collins, 2025 first-round pick (its own) Yours truly is tempted to propose something more smack-you-in-the-face nuclear for the Spurs.

But, well, I know better.

They telegraphed this past offseason that they're not ready to caps-lock STRIKE.

Perhaps that changes closer to February's trade deadline.

Victor Wembanyama, and by extension the team, might just be that good.

For now, I'm left to try improving the floor balance around Wemby and Chris Paul/Tre Jones without noticeably depleting asset stores.

Picking up Williams does exactly that.

He is a career 37.7 percent shooter from deep who connected on over 60 percent of his twos last season after getting traded from Dallas to Charlotte.

That efficiency comes on ultra-complementary usage and scales to lineups with other bigs.

San Antonio may worry about the state of its second-string big-man rotation going from Collins to Williams.

The latter can sponge-up center reps, but he's 6'6" and not a standout rebounder or rim protector.

The Spurs should go ahead and make this deal anyway.

Collins' contract is currently under water (two years, $34.8 million), they have Sandro Mamukelashvili to plop in the middle, and reserve bigs aren't that hard to come by.

Forking over control of the Hornets' first-round pick feels like a lot.

It's not.

Charlotte's selection is under lottery protection.

San Antonio receives no benefit if the Hornets remain bad.

Charlotte may pass on absorbing Collins' deal for this exact reason, but gaining full-on control of its own first-rounder has inherent value.

At worst, this spares the Hornets from giving the Spurs two second-rounders when the pick doesn't convey.

And if they're still not about it, San Antonio can sweeten the pot with additional seconds or consider dangling Blake Wesley or Malaki Branham.

The Trade Orlando Magic Receive: Coby White Chicago Bulls Receive: Cole Anthony, Jett Howard, Denver's 2025 first-round pick (top-five protection), 2026 first-round pick (top-10 protection) White is almost exactly the player Orlando needs: a ball-handler comfortable generating his own shots who draws out defenses as a spot-up weapon.

In an ideal world, he would also be an A-minus-or-better playmaker.

White's more like a B-level-or-slightly-lower table-setter.

That's good enough.

The Magic have Paolo Banchero and enough secondary passers (Jalen Suggs, Anthony Black, Franz Wagner) for White to make a large enough difference.

His shot-making is the main attraction anyway.

The 36.1 percent clip he posted last season on catch-and-fire threes represents the low end of his ability, and he drilled over 40 percent of his pull-up triples.

Bake in more variable on-ball speeds and directions, and White has the tools to materially level up Orlando's entire offense.

Giving up two first-round picks and a recent lottery selection amounts to a lot, but White is worth it.

He's under team control at a cut rate through 2025-26 ($24.9 million).

And more critically, his arrival doesn't just inflate the Magic's friskiness.

It potentially forges another legitimate title contender.

Chicago's end of this deal is dicier, but it's getting rock-solid value for a player who's not making enough to extend off his current contract.

The Bulls also likely won't be good enough by 2026 to justify shelling out megabucks for White and Josh Giddey.

If they are smitten with Anthony Black or Tristan da Silva, they can try adjusting the framework.

But two protected firsts and a young player feels like a good baseline.

Dan Favale covers the NBA for Bleacher Report.

Follow him on Twitter ( @danfavale ), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes .

Unless otherwise cited, stats courtesy of NBA.com , Basketball Reference , Stathead or Cleaning the Glass .

Salary information via Spotrac .

Draft-pick obligations via RealGM ..

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