With NBA free agency having officially kicked off, front offices are scrambling to strengthen their roster. Meanwhile, there are also intense trade talks taking place, with several notable names across the league being shopped. Which five players are we hearing the most buzz about as potential trade candidates in the coming weeks?
5 NBA Players Who Could Get Dealt This Summer
Giannis Antetokounmpo, F, Milwaukee Bucks
Though the sense around the league is that Giannis Antetokounmpo may stay with the Milwaukee Bucks rather than asking for a trade, how the next few weeks go may determine his decision.
Antetokounmpo’s All-Star point guard and running mate, Damian Lillard, is expected to miss most or all of next season with a torn Achilles, so the Bucks’ chances of contending are slim. But if they’re able to reel in a big-name addition — albeit with limited cap space and trade assets — perhaps the two-time MVP will decide to stick around.
Milwaukee has already re-signed backup power forward Bobby Portis to a three-year, $44 million deal. While a nice bench piece, retaining Portis won’t move the needle. Starting center Brook Lopez left to join the Los Angeles Clippers, which Antetokounmpo won’t be happy about.
If free agent shooting guard Gary Trent Jr also walks after averaging double-figure scoring and knocking down 41.6% of his triples, Milwaukee will have a hard time replacing these key contributors’ production.
Without Lillard, the cupboard was already nearing bare during the Bucks’ first-round series loss to the Indiana Pacers in five games. If even more pieces leave, Antetokounmpo could see the writing on the wall of an impending rebuild and decide to ask out.
Lauri Markkanen, F, Utah Jazz
Clearly in the middle of a rebuild, stretch big Lauri Markkanen has far outperformed what the Utah Jazz thought they were getting when he was sent to the team in the Donovan Mitchell trade in 2022. In 2023, his first season with the Jazz, he was named an All-Star and claimed the Most Improved Player award.
Two years later, Utah is still amidst what’s turning into a longer rebuild than anticipated due to the recent draft picks failing to meet their potential. At 28 years old, Markkanen is coming off a 19-point, 5.9-rebound per game season. Is he on board with several more seasons of losing and hoping for lottery luck? And from the team’s perspective, would the Jazz recoup enough assets to their liking to deal Markkanen without him asking?
Both are very real possibilities.
Last summer, he signed a four-year, $195 million contract with Utah, locking him in until the 2028-29 season (so it’s not like he’s a rental with limited trade value). As soon as the deal was signed, there was speculation that he may be a trade piece. A year later, and he’s still a member of the Jazz.
There’s a belief around the league that the Jazz are open to listening to trade offers for Lauri Markkanen, per @BillSimmons
(h/t @esidery ) pic.twitter.com/YdhGZGpoxv
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 9, 2025
As a very mobile stretch 4 who has the ability to play the 5 (since he’s a seven-footer), Markkanen could fit on nearly any team in the league and could be a target for a contender who’s looking to add him as their final piece if he comes available.
Bradley Beal, G, Phoenix Suns
Though Bradley Beal has a no-trade clause in his contract, it was public knowledge that the Phoenix Suns shopped him at the trade deadline, but to no avail. His arrival to the Suns in 2023 was greeted with hope, as the core of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker was set to add another dynamic scorer. But the trio never quite gelled together and with Durant traded to the Houston Rockets, Beal’s future is as in question as ever.
In return for Durant, the Suns acquired 23-year-old shooting guard Jalen Green, who plays the same position as both Booker and Beal. While Booker will not be traded, as has routinely been made clear, Beal is the one who could be on the chopping block.
The issue is that pesky no-trade clause, meaning Beal has complete autonomy over whether (and where) he’s traded. Not only would the Suns have to receive agreement from the other team, but Beal would have to explicitly allow the deal to go through.
Now, the Miami Heat were among Beal’s wish list when he was being shopped by the Washington Wizards, who had to adhere to the no-trade clause as well. They could presumably make a deal happen, but the other issue is Beal’s monster five-year, $251 million contract. It’s widely considered the worst contract in the league.
If the Suns remain dead-set on trading Beal and are willing to make it uncomfortable enough that he feels his only option is to leave, the situation would immediately become one of the most intriguing in the NBA.
DeMar DeRozan, G, Sacramento Kings
Set to enter his age-36 season in 2025-26, DeMar DeRozan’s name has surfaced in the rumor mill as the Sacramento Kings weigh their trade options. Sacramento traded All-Star point guard De’Aaron Fox prior to last year’s deadline, blowing up the team and ushering in a new era (and acquiring former All-Star guard Zach LaVine).
Sacramento went just 12-15 after the All-Star break and lost in the play-in tournament. Still without a viable point guard and with the roster in disarray in terms of fit, DeRozan could be the first of the former All-Stars (DeRozan, LaVine, and center Domantas Sabonis) to get dealt.
Still able to provide terrific one-on-one and clutch scoring, DeRozan averaged 22.2 points and 4.4 assists per game last season while knocking down a career-high 1.1 three-pointers per game.
For a contending team, he’d ideally slot in as an overqualified sixth man. At the end of the day, it’ll all depend on whether Sacramento can find the right offer for DeRozan or if he is willing to request a trade (if he wants to play for a contender at this stage of his career).
Walker Kessler, C, Utah Jazz
As the Jazz’s starting center for a majority of the past three seasons, Walker Kessler has established himself as a premier rim-running and shot-blocking big man. And while Utah is, as mentioned, in the middle of a rebuild and could use the soon-to-be 24-year-old in the future, his name has been floated as a hot commodity on the trade block.
This past season, he averaged a double-double of 11.1 points and 12.2 rebounds while protecting the rim to the tune of 2.4 blocks per game. All of that came without a reliable pick-and-roll partner who could toss him lobs and feed him for easy finishes.
Especially considering there are several center-needy playoff teams (hello, Los Angeles Lakers), there stands a chance that an offer could simply be too much for the Jazz’s decision-makers to pass up.
