NBA Swing: Six NBA Trade Candidates to Watch This Season

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With most teams playing around eight games, the NBA is already 10% through its 2026-27 season. There have been several surprises so far, ranging from young teams starting better than expected, rookies making a huge splash for their teams, and shocking disappointments. As teams start to move deeper into the season, several names are making the case to be trade candidates as trade season is right around the corner. For the following six players, they have either requested a trade from their current team, no longer fit their team’s direction, and in some cases, could be a casualty of their team’s start to the season.

Kyrie Irving

After missing the entire 2025-26 season recovering from a torn ACL in early 2025, Kyrie Irving is playing regular season basketball once again. At the time of this writing, Irving has played six games with the Dallas Mavericks, averaging 22.7 PPG, 4.0 RPG and 4.8 APG on shooting splits of 53.7% from the field (a career-high) and 39% from three. While Irving has reportedly drawn interest from several teams, including the Miami Heat and Detroit Pistons, the Mavericks have shut down trading the veteran guard as of early November.

While Irving has been good in Dallas, he was on the Mavericks when they were built for Luka Doncic. Turning 35 in March, Irving does not fit the current timeline of the Mavs, with the team focused on 19-year-old Cooper Flagg. He has shown he can still provide early in the season, but it would be to the benefit of both Irving and the Mavs if he’s traded. Following this season, Irving has a $42 million player option for the 2027-28 season. With the team still several years from contention, it’s unlikely Irving would re-sign when he can still provide for a championship contender.

Norman Powell

When the Bulls signed guard Norman Powell away from the Miami Heat this past summer, it was clear that he was signed for the Bulls to trade for assets. In eight games so far this season, the one-time All-Star is averaging 19.3 PPG, 2.5 RPG, and 1.6 APG. Powell is the second-leading scorer on the team behind rookie Caleb Wilson. The Bulls have been off to a bad start this season, currently sitting with a 1-6 record.

Powell’s contract is a two-year, $44 million deal, with a team option for the 2027-28 season. Powell cannot be traded until December 15th, but the Bulls are reportedly open to trades for the veteran guard. Powell should be seen as an ideal trade candidate as he’s only making $22 million a year for All-Star-level play and technically has an expiring deal with the team option on his contract. For a championship contender, they would not have to give up much for Powell, and for the Bulls, they have a player who can bring back promising assets as they’re still very early in their current rebuild.

Domantas Sabonis

Since the “Beam Team” season a few years ago, the Sacramento Kings have struggled to reach similar heights. A key member of that team, Domantas Sabonis has seen better days since then, and a new home could potentially bring him back to the All-Star level he was at in years prior. In eight games so far this season, Sabonis has averaged 15.1 PPG, 14.9 RPG, and 6.1APG on a career-high 71% from the field. Sabonis’ scoring has gone down three seasons in a row, but this season is his lowest-scoring season since the 2018-19 season.

There have been rumors of Sabonis wanting out of Sacramento and the Kings being open to trading him, especially with the rumblings that Sabonis has not meshed well with rookie guard Darius Acuff Jr as he is a ball-dominant guard. The biggest obstacle to trading Sabonis will be his contract. Sabonis is in the second-to-last year of a four-year, $186 million contract. He is owed $45.4 million this season and $48.6 million next season. The Kings are not going to add any draft capital to move on from Sabonis, and with his defensive lapses being a strong criticism, it may take up until the February trade deadline to find a deal for Sabonis.

Anthony Davis

After playing only 20 games last season, Anthony Davis has looked good in the eight games he’s played so far this season. The big man is averaging 23.04PPG and 9.3 RPG. The biggest concern is, and always will be,e the high risk of injuries with Davis. Since he left the New Orleans Pelicans at the end of the 2018-19 season, Davis has played more than 60 games in a season twice, and less than 50 games three times.

In the second-to-last year of his three-year, $175 million deal, Davis is owed $58 million this season and has a $62 million player option for next season. Davis and the Washington Wizards were talking about a contract extension over the summer, but those talks stopped before the end of the season. Both the money and injuries will be the biggest concerns for any team interested in trading for Davis. He can still be a top 20-30 player when healthy, but Davis being healthy is rare at this point in his career.

Monday night hoops coming 🔜

#ForTheDistrict | @CapitalOne https://t.co/NWKyXTDcPK

— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) November 2, 2026

Zach LaVine

Another Sacramento Kings player, Zach LaVine has had a solid start to his 2026-27 season. In eight games so far, LaVine has averaged 23.1 PPG, 3.1 RPG, and 2.6 APG on shooting splits of 50% from the field and 37% from three. LaVine has been in rumors before, but his criticisms have played a role in him being where he is now. While he’s been seen as an underrated sharpshooter, he’s also been described as a bad defender and as having a bad contract.

LaVine is in the last year of his five-year, $215 million contract and is making $48 million this year, before becoming a free agent this summer. With an expiring deal, several teams wanting to get off long-term money could see LaVine as a quick way to get off that money. Joining a new team could also be beneficial to LaVine, allowing him to rebuild his stock across the league before becoming a free agent this summer.

Bam Adebayo

In Miami, the Heat have had a shocking start to their season, currently sitting at 3-5 and near the bottom of the East. Giannis Antetokounmpo has looked good so far in his first few games with the Heat, averaging 28.2 PPG and 12.5 RPG, but Bam has looked like a different player compared to last season. So far this season, Adebayo has averaged 18.6 PPG and 8.3 RPG, both down from last season. With the Heat struggling to start the season, there are concerns for the team’s future.

With their very limited assets due to the Giannis trade, would the Heat be willing to move on from Adebayo to get more assets around Giannis? Bam is the longest-tenured player for Miami, having been drafted by the team in 2017, and was a part of two teams that made the Finals this decade. Bam is set to make $49 million this season, $53 million next season, and $57 million for the 2028-29 season. While it’s highly unlikely Miami would trade Bam, a horrible stretch continuing into February could convince the Heat to hit the panic button.