June 25, 2026, 5:22 p.m. ET
We are finally back with another installment of our Trade Rumors Rankings series, in which we rank the players who have appeared most often in NBA trade rumors of late, an exercise that is usually pretty effective in predicting who might be next to be moved in the chaotic NBA trade market.
Had we put this together just this morning, new Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball would have landed at No. 4, which shows how well this list calls the names about to change teams.
Below, check out the five other players who have come up the most in recent trade talk.
5. Kyrie Irving (Dallas)
Just like our Trade Rumors Ranking series is effective at predicting which players are about to be traded, it is also good at letting us know which players are likely staying put, as we believe to be the case with Dallas Mavericks floor general, Kyrie Irving.
We say that because a lot of the latest reporting on the Irving trade front tells us Dallas plans to build around him. Here’s what the New York Times had to say on the matter recently:
The Mavericks are expected to go into next season with Flagg and Kyrie Irving as cornerstones. They control the Nos. 9, 30 and 48 selections in this week’s NBA Draft. They have discussed a variety of trade-back scenarios, including one, according to league sources, that would net Dallas the No. 16 pick that Memphis currently controls.
Veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein backed that up even more emphatically, recently reporting that Irving is not available for trade right now:
Marc Stein: “The Pistons have expressed interest in Kyrie Irving. Dallas is telling teams Kyrie Irving is not available. The Pistons have expressed interest in Trey Murphy, but so have a zillion other teams, and New Orleans’ threshold for trading Trey Murphy away is really, really high. So the Pistons have looked at other targets. Tyler Herro, if he ends up going to Milwaukee in a Giannis trade, we reported that Thursday night, we revealed that, that the Pistons have interest in Tyler Herro, but they are also looking at guys like Cobby White and Isaiah Joe because they are presumably easier to acquire than Kyrie Irving or Trey Murphy. Kyrie Irving isn’t even available right now.”
Even so, that’s now two teams that have been mentioned as being interested in Irving lately, the aforementioned Detroit Pistons, as well as the Minnesota Timberwolves, according to the New York Times, at least prior to the team making the splashy Ball pickup.
For what it’s worth, count ESPN reporter Marc J. Spears as another reporter saying Irving is staying put this summer:
Marc J. Spears on Kyrie Irving: I do think he’ll be back on the roster. I know their owner is really, really high on seeing him and Cooper Flagg play together. And then Masai Ujiri had said in his introductory press conference that he wanted to see that as well.
So, yeah, don’t expect an Irving trade this offseason.
For the latest Kyrie Irving trade rumors and contract information, click here.
4. Kawhi Leonard (LA Clippers)
Irving staying put in Dallas might be disappointing for fans of offseason fireworks, but don’t worry, because plenty of big-name players remain on the block, with the potential to be moved.
One such player is two-time NBA champion Kawhi Leonard, who is rumored to be potentially on the move this summer if he and his current team, the Los Angeles Clippers, can’t come to terms on a contract extension. This reporting comes courtesy of Chris Haynes:
“If an extension is not worked out…I expect the Clippers look to move Kawhi. I don’t expect that he will stay and play on an expiring deal” Chris Haynes speaks on the future of Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers.
Clippers front office leader Lawrence Frank sort of hinted similarly, as he told the media that the Clippers aren’t championship contenders as it stands:
Joey Linn: Lawrence Frank has made it clear several times tonight the Clippers are not championship contenders right now. “When we get back to being a contender, we feel [Wagler] is gonna be the player with the most impact out of the group… We understand we’re not a contender. We’re competitive.” On the conversations with Kawhi Leonard regarding this, he says there’s always ongoing communication between the two sides, but didn’t say much more than that.
ESPN reporter Shams Charania said that teams are monitoring the Leonard situation in Los Angeles…
Shams Charania: “You definitely have to look at a couple players in New Orleans, Trey Murphy, Herb Jones. Those are two players that have gotten a ton of interest in the marketplace. A lot of people are keeping an eye and monitoring the Kawhi Leonard situation with the Clippers. He’s got one year left on his deal. We don’t know how that’s going to play out with the Clippers. There’s no urgency there, they’ve been through this with Kawhi before where they’re entering the last year of his deal.”
…while his co-worker, Tim MacMahon, said that Leonard may have to take a pay cut to remain with the Clippers long-term:
Tim MacMahon: My understanding is, if there’s going to be an extension between Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers, there’s going to have to be legitimate negotiations. He’s going to have to take a pay cut, I believe, to extend with the Clippers.
Two other reports out of ESPN mentioned three teams as ones to watch in a potential Leonard sweepstakes: the Detroit Pistons, the San Antonio Spurs and the Toronto Raptors. Considering the Spurs’ persistent late-game failures in the 2026 Finals, maybe picking up an end-of-game savant like Leonard could be the final piece of the puzzle.
For what it’s worth, Jake Fischer further chimed in today, saying that Leonard would be open to signing extensions with San Antonio and Toronto, but not with Detroit or the Miami Heat, which sort of narrows the focus on where the two-time Finals MVP could be headed if a trade does happen.
Either way, the Leonard situation is one to monitor in Los Angeles.
For the latest Kawhi Leonard trade rumors and contract information, click here.
3. Ja Morant (Memphis)
The story with one-time star point guard Ja Morant remains the same: Memphis Grizzlies would love to move him, but teams want Memphis to attach assets to take on Morant’s salary. Here’s what Brian Windhorst had to say on the topic recently:
Ja Morant is “flagrantly available” in trade talks, but his 2-year contract is making teams hesitant to take on the risk, per @WindhorstESPN “I just can’t see him playing for the Grizzlies again.”
Morant now has two years left on his deal, worth a hefty $87.1 million, a figure that will surely make teams think long and hard about whether or not they want to take a shot on the enigmatic floor general. Morant is coming off a season that saw him average just 19.5 points, the third-lowest total of his career, and appear in just 20 games before injuries cut his campaign short.
Our own Michael Scotto recently reported that the Sacramento Kings are unlikely to pursue Morant, while Marc Stein’s Substack reported that the New Orleans Pelicans likewise won’t pursue the Weber State product. The Athletic ruled out another potential Morant landing spot, Minnesota, for Morant, which is even more obvious now that the team has acquired the youngest Ball brother.
So, while Memphis would likely love to get off of Morant’s salary, it doesn’t look like anyone will be willing. to
For the latest Ja Morant trade rumors and contract information, click here.
2. Trey Murphy (New Orleans)
It’s hard to fault him considering the Pelicans’ recent records, but it appears Trey Murphy wouldn’t be opposed to a trade out of New Orleans. In 2025-26, Murphy averaged 21.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.5 steals on 37.9 percent shooting from three. What’s more, the 26-year-old has three years left on his deal, with a reasonable annual average salary on his contract of $29 million.
That’s all to say, he will be a coveted trade asset this summer if he does request a trade out of New Orleans.
According to NBA reporter Sam Amick, various teams, including the Clippers, Celtics, Nets, Hawks and Warriors, have. an interest in Murphy:
“There is definitely a bunch of Trey Murphy noise,” Amick told Dickinson and Krueger. “It seems pretty clear that he has also signaled a desire to play elsewhere. The market is going to be pretty robust. On the Warriors’ side, my understanding was they did not see themselves as being in the mix. [The] Brooklyn [Nets] and the [Los Angeles] Clippers were mentioned as teams that were out front in that race, but I think the list is very long. I think that Detroit comes to mind. [With] Boston, actually, Trey is seen as a potential plan B for them if they miss out on Giannis, which they obviously did. So, Trey is going to have a lot of suitors, and I think that could be a draft-night deal. There was even a scenario floating around with Trey going to the [Atlanta] Hawks in a deal that would include the [No. 8 overall] pick, which would be a risk because that would be the Pelicans on the backend trying to recoup their own pick by giving up pretty good assets to get it. I’m sure social media would be kind to that trade, potentially. So, that’s the Trey Murphy landscape.”
Our own Scotto also mentioned the Pistons as a potential Murphy landing spot.
There were also strong rumors connecting the Warriors and their No. 11 pick to Murphy, though that obviously never came to fruition, as Golden State kept the pick and took Michigan swingman Yaxel Lendeborg. For what it’s worth, Spears reported Murphy is currently in France laughing at the scuttle:
Marc Spears: “The Pelicans are trying to trade Trey Murphy. I texted him the other day. He was kind of laughing about all these rumors. He’s in France right now. But I do think the right, I think the thing is this: it probably will depend on who’s sitting there at 11 when that pick comes up. And there’s probably a certain amount of players that Joe Dumars and Troy Weaver have on their list that could be attractive to their franchise. If the Warriors can get Trey Murphy, I’m all for trading that pick for Trey Murphy.”
Meanwhile, Fischer added that New Orleans is seeking out multiple first-round picks in exchange for Murphy, so whoever does go after the sharpshooter will be paying a steep price to get him.
For the latest Trey Murphy trade rumors and contract information, click here.
1. Jaylen Brown (Boston)
The hottest name on the trade market now that Giannis Antetokounmpo has finally been traded belongs to Jaylen Brown, whom the Celtics shopped to Milwaukee to land Antetokounmpo.
After Boston failed to make that blockbuster Brown-for-Antetokounmpo swap, the team has kind of hit a point of no return in which it now has to trade Brown, or risk him getting to training camp disgruntled, which wouldn’t be pleasant for anyone involved. As such, the Celtics are now listening to offers on the 2024 Finals MVP:
Shams Charania: “I am told the hard conversations between these two sides have started. This has been a long relationship between Jaylen Brown and the Celtics. It has been mostly fruitful when you think about the success that these two sides have had. But I am told here, as we are hours away from the NBA draft, the Boston Celtics have started to listen, engage and discuss trades around Jaylen Brown. Sources tell me the Celtics are speaking to teams right now about Jaylen Brown. In 2022, the Celtics offered Jaylen Brown for Kevin Durant. Last summer, the Celtics did listen to trade offers for Jaylen Brown as they were trying to figure out how to shed salary under the aprons.”
Charania did caution, however, that this doesn’t mean Brown will 100 percent get traded this summer.
Still, this is a fascinating development, as Brown just had a career year, carrying the Celtics to the East’s No. 2 seed in 2025-26, with Jayson Tatum missing most of the year and Boston expected to hit a one-year reset. Brown played so well last season that he stopped that from happening. And he gets rewarded by once again being shopped by Boston.
Celtics exec Brad Stevens spoke highly of Brown recently, though he didn’t fully say that the team won’t trade him this offseason:
Justin Turpin: “Jaylen Brown is a big part of us. I’m never going to predict the future, but every indication, everything that I think about over the past few years has been building around those guys. So obviously, you never know. “But at the same time, the one thing I want to make very clear is how valued he’s always been. He’s been amazing…. And whether that run ends 10 years from now when he retires, or before, there’s a lot to celebrate. We have a great relationship, an open relationship where we talk about everything. But I don’t want to predict the future.”
It appears Boston is interested in frontcourt help, which could come at the cost of Brown. According to NBA scribe Chris Mannix, Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley is a potential target for the Celtics:
Teams are looking to see if Jaylen Brown is truly available and what the asking price for him is going to be. But the Celtics, I believe, are listening to those calls and are thinking up their own trade matches of their own. I spent some time this afternoon talking to different teams about what might the Celtics be interested in. And the name in the team that came back to me a lot was Evan Mobley in the Cleveland Cavaliers. Evan Mobley, young, big, just entering the prime of his career, former defensive player of the year, just starting a new max contract of his own. Mobley is one of those guys that could fit the archetype of the type of player that the Celtics are looking for.
Windhorst, meanwhile, believes Boston will play elsewhere in 2026-27, which his former co-worker at ESPN, Zach Lowe, agrees with:
CelticsBlog: Zach Lowe on his podcast: “It feels like the the toothpaste is too far out of the tube with Jaylen Brown.” “If you ask me right now… I don’t think Jaylen Brown starts the season with the Boston Celtics next year. That could end up being wrong. I’m not saying that definitively, I’m saying if you made me bet, yes or no, is Jaylen Brown a Celtic next year, I’m betting no”
Minnesota, apparently, discussed a Brown swap with Boston before deciding on Ball, too, so there shouldn’t be a shortage of suitors for the two-way swingman coming off a 28.7-point-per-game season. It’ll be fascinating to see how this saga turns out -will it get contentious? Will a trade demand be made? After all, who could fault Brown for eventually applying pressure and directly asking out? He just had a career year, one that saw him downright carry the Celtics on his back, and was rewarded by getting dangled for a potential Antetokounmpo swap, a rival in the East.
We have a feeling this story is just getting started.
For the latest Jaylen Brown trade rumors and contract information, click here.