The 3 Teams with the Most Potential to Make a Trade in the Coming Days

The trade deadline always generates excitement in the NBA, but the one in 2026 promises to be especially chaotic. Thursday, February 5th at 3 p.m. ET will mark the decisive moment when teams must define themselves: compete in the short term or bet on the future. Currently, practically all franchises are involved in some way, either through major moves or minor adjustments, making the day one of the most anticipated by fans and analysts.

In theory, logic dictates that established and competitive organizations seek to strengthen themselves with immediate talent, while weaker ones try to turn their players into draft picks or young pieces. However, this season the line between buyers and sellers is more blurred than ever. Injuries have profoundly altered the landscape and have forced many teams to reconsider their direction, forecasting weeks leading up to the trade deadline filled with rumors and drastic decisions.

Next, we highlight the 3 teams most likely to make a trade in the coming days.

Sacramento Kings

The Sacramento Kings project has not yielded the expected results. The combination of Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and DeMar DeRozan has not worked as originally envisioned. This experiment had already shown signs of failure when LaVine and DeRozan shared a team in the Chicago Bulls, and now the situation repeats itself. To worsen the scenario, Sabonis is absent due to a meniscus tear, further complicating the team's competitive outlook.

Dallas Mavericks

In Dallas, the impact of trading Luka Doncic remains devastating. What was once seen as a negative move before the previous deadline now looks even worse over time. The arrival of Anthony Davis has also not been the solution the team hoped for. His constant physical issues have once again put him at the center of trade rumors, and the franchise seems to accept that the experiment has not worked.

Although parting ways with the Davis project so soon would not be ideal, all signs point to the Mavericks possibly opting for a complete reset, with the first draft pick, Cooper Flagg, as the centerpiece of the new direction. There has even been speculation about a hypothetical mega-trade involving five teams, mentioned by Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints, which would include names like Davis, LaVine, Trae Young, Sabonis, and other key players, potentially altering the league's balance entirely.

New Orleans Pelicans

Under normal circumstances, New Orleans Pelicans would be the classic example of a selling team. They are at the bottom of the Western Conference but possess attractive players and reasonable contracts that would surely pique the interest of several contending franchises. However, their situation is not so straightforward, as tanking does not bring them much benefit.

The reason is clear: the 2026 first-round pick belongs to Atlanta Hawks, so falling further down brings no direct reward. Nevertheless, the Pelicans need moves that enable them to better prepare for the future, even if it means trading talent for draft capital and accepting more short-term losses. In that context, the organization might even reach the point of considering a trade involving Zion Williamson. At one point, he was one of the most promising prospects in recent league history, but injuries have halted his rise, and the franchise may eventually be forced to acknowledge reality and absorb losses.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Los 3 equipos con más posibilidades de hacer un traspaso en los próximos días