It hasn’t even been 24 hours since the NBA world was changed forever by the Luka Doncic trade, and another blockbuster just went down. The Doncic deal was such a seismic bomb that this one feels very tame in comparison, but it too is a total league-changer. Here is the full trade:
San Antonio Spurs receive: De’Aaron Fox, Jordan McLaughlin
Sacramento Kings receive: Zach LaVine, Sidy Cissoko, three first round picks
Chicago Bulls receive: Zach Collins, Tre Jones, Kevin Huerter, one first round pick
Here my immediate thoughts on the trade for each team involved.
Spurs
Victor Wembanyama is already a borderline top ten player in just his second year in the NBA, and he’s ready to compete. So far this season, the rest of the Spurs roster hasn’t been able to help him do that, but that’s about to change. De’Aaron Fox is an All-NBA caliber player in his own right who will immediately take the franchise to another level.
Throughout his time in Sacramento, Fox proved he’s the type of guy you want leading your team. He’s low maintenance and low drama. He cares about winning more than anything. And, of course, he’s insanely good at basketball. Since his first All-Star year in 2023, Fox has only gotten better and better as he gets closer to his prime. He’s an unstoppable force inside the arc and his growth as a shooter and defender have made him even more impactful. The Texas native will elevate all of the young Spurs by being a leader on and off the court as well as by giving them the opportunity to play in more competitive games. He’ll help Wemby specifically by taking on significant decision-making pressure, allowing the young superstar to focus on being a game-breaking scorer.
This trade immediately propels the Spurs into legit playoff contention, especially because they were able to hold onto all of their key rotation pieces. De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, and Victor Wembanyama is an incredibly versatile and talented lineup that will be able to make noise in the West both in the short and the long term (Fox is just 27 years old). Overall, this trade is nothing but a win for San Antonio and it’s the perfect kickstart to the Wemby era.
Kings
When homegrown star De’Aaron Fox requested a trade, the Kings were presented with two choices. They could have entered a full-on rebuild by trading not just Fox, but also other core pieces, for a combination of picks and prospects. Instead, they chose a package that would allow them to remain competitive. All-Star Zach LaVine will be joining a Sacramento team that is still searching to replicate the magic of their 2022-23 campaign.
The trio of LaVine, Domantas Sabonis, and DeMar DeRozan is super fun on paper. DeRozan and LaVine went to the playoffs together in 2022 with the Bulls, and the roster surrounding them in Sactown is better than what they had in Chicago. LaVine and Sabonis should form an extremely dynamic and dangerous two-man game built around handoffs and cuts. Factor in Malik Monk, Keegan Murray, and Keon Ellis and it’s clear this team will be able to win games even without Fox. The question is, though, will it be enough to be worth foregoing a rebuild? The answer is likely no, but only time will tell. The Kings will have the opportunity to totally blow things up in the offseason if they don’t like their new look.
Considering they got three first rounders in addition to LaVine, and that Fox wanted to be traded, calling this trade a loss for Sacramento would be far from fair. The only true downside here is that Keegan Murray will remain stuck in a limited off-ball role even though he has the potential to be a low-level star.
Bulls
This trade is an example of why teams shouldn’t sit on their assets for too long. Zach LaVine is a phenomenal basketball player, one that many teams would kill to have. He’s been on the trade market for years, but Chicago continued to put off trading him. Their consequence for doing so is that all they got in return for their star is one pick and some salary filler. It’s hard to imagine them not getting a more lucrative package had they traded him a long time ago.
That said, though, the first round pick they received is their own for 2025, rather than Sacramento’s or San Antonio’s. That means they can safely tank for the rest of this year knowing they’re guaranteed to have their own pick in the end. That’s a massive win, especially considering the 2025 draft class is supposed to be a good one. It’s an overwhelmingly positive thing that Chicago is starting their rebuild; they just should have done so earlier.
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