This NBA offseason was hectic. It featured all-time greats like LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo switching teams, the Kawhi Leonard situation, and much more. Some teams completely retooled their rosters, while others will look very similar to last season.
At first glance, most of these moves look practical. But a few certainly won’t age well. So which bold changes were the best of the best this summer? We answer that with our look at the top 10 moves from the 2026 NBA offseason.
Philadelphia 76ers Signing LeBron James
10May 11, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) during the second half in game four of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
James needs no introduction and is undoubtedly a top-three player of all time. Heading into the offseason, Philadelphia wasn’t viewed as a team to necessarily be a threat this upcoming season, but they quickly changed that narrative.
Apart from adding Dean Wade and Anfernee Simons, they also traded for Jaylen Brown. Acquiring Brown was on nobody’s checklist, and they also got rid of the Paul George contract in the process. Filling out their roster with two all-stars was the perfect way to end their offseason, and getting James to take the minimum was the cherry on top.
We’ve seen James take a backseat in recent years scoring-wise, but he remains effective. James will essentially be a third or fourth option depending on the night, but his playmaking is what will take this team to the next level. He fills in perfectly at the starting four and gives the 76ers a glimmer of hope ever since the process started over a decade ago.
Cleveland Cavaliers Trading For Peyton Watson
10Mar 25, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Peyton Watson (8) reacts after a play in the fourth quarter against the Dallas Mavericks at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
The Cleveland Cavaliers now have one of the most well-rounded starting lineups in the NBA with the addition of Peyton Watson. While he was brought in to be their primary perimeter defender, last season he had an offensive breakthrough. He averaged 14.6 points per game on 41% from three and 49% from the field.Â
Watson provides some much-needed relief for James Harden and Donovan Mitchell on defense. The Cavaliers needed someone to replace Wade, and they took advantage of the Denver Nuggets’ financial issues.
Watson is the perfect long-term small forward for Cleveland, after they had been searching for one ever since James left. For Cleveland to acquire Watson to fill out their starting unit was a massively underrated move.
Miami Heat Trading For Giannis Antetokounmpo
10Jul 16, 2026; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (7) speaks to reporters during his introductory press conference at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
The Miami Heat seemed to have lost the Giannis Antetokounmpo battle as it unfolded. Then suddenly, they made their move and acquired him for a massive haul. Despite giving up so much, it looks like it was worth it.
Antetokounmpo is arguably a top-25 player of all time. The Heat needed a superstar like him. Putting Antetokounmpo alongside Bam Adebayo in the frontcourt will make this team’s defense top-tier.
Miami has done a great job filling out their roster to fit the play style of Antetokounmpo, adding shooters like Klay Thompson and Tim Hardaway Jr. Whether Miami makes a run in the playoffs or not, trading for Antetokounmpo was one of the best moves of the offseason.
Boston Celtics Signing Mitchell Robinson
10Jun 10, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) jumps to catch a pass and dunk the ball against San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) during game four of the 2026 NBA Finals in the fourth quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Last season, the Boston Celtics’ center position was a big question mark. They developed Neemias Queta into one of the league’s breakout candidates, but struggled to find quality backup minutes.
This offseason, they addressed that problem and signed Mitchell Robinson to a three-year, $47 million contract. Whether Robinson starts or comes off the bench, his impact will be the same. The most underrated part of this move for Boston was that they poached him from the New York Knicks, strengthening their roster and weakening New York’s.
Robinson is exactly what Boston needed. A physical big man to chase down rebounds, set hard screens, and just cause overall chaos. Boston’s center rotation isn’t necessarily a scoring threat now, but fits right into how their playstyle has been these past few years.
Minnesota Timberwolves Trading For LaMelo Ball
10Apr 14, 2026; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) moves the ball during the second half during the play-in rounds between the Charlotte Hornets and the Miami Heat of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves proved that they can compete in the Western Conference; it’s just a matter of getting over the final hump. Last season they defeated the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs, but fell to the San Antonio Spurs in the second round.
Their issue was that they needed a true point guard, someone who could take the playmaking load off Edwards. They pulled the trigger on a trade for LaMelo Ball, one of the best passers in the league. Pairing Ball with the rest of the Timberwolves will be dangerous for the rest of the West.
Ball thrives in pick-and-roll, and who better to have as a partner than Rudy Gobert. Ball should open Gobert’s game up, and might even open Edwards’ up as well. For the past two years, Edwards has been subjected to on-ball creation, but now he can spend a majority of his time off the ball.
Utah Jazz Trading Walker Kessler
10Oct 27, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) rebounds against Phoenix Suns guard Collin Gillespie (12) and center Mark Williams (15) during overtime at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Walker Kessler is a good player, but his asking price was getting too high. The Utah Jazz are at the end of their rebuild and have bought into players like Keyonte George and Jaren Jackson Jr. That made Kessler expendable, and he was asking for quite a high price.
Sometimes the best decision is moving on from a player, and that’s what Utah did. They acquired four first-round picks from the Los Angeles Lakers, which lets them add more young pieces to their already young core or make another splash in a trade.
Utah’s frontcourt is fine without Kessler. The decision to let your 25-year-old center walk isn’t an easy one. However, it was the right thing to do given Utah’s situation, and the fact that they will owe a lot of money in the future to some of their more important young players like Ace Bailey and Darryn Peterson.
San Antonio Spurs Signing Tobias Harris
10May 17, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tobias Harris (12) dribbles against Cleveland Cavaliers center Evan Mobley (4) in the second half during game seven of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
The San Antonio Spurs reached the NBA Finals last season with a young core. This year, they enter with that same young core, just with a year of experience. One of their few weaknesses was pairing Victor Wembanyama with a scorer at the power forward position.
San Antonio addressed that and signed veteran forward Tobias Harris. Harris has been criticized for many years, mainly due to his contract, but the Spurs got him on a great two-year $30 million deal. Harris proved last season that he was still a reliable scorer and can step up when needed.
He stands at 6-foot-8 and thrives in both isolation and off the ball. Harris averaged 13.3 points a game last year for the Detroit Pistons, but stepped up in the playoffs as a true second option. San Antonio won’t need that level of scoring from him, which will make his life even easier. This was a move that has almost no downside and will come in handy come playoff time.
Toronto Raptors Trading For Kawhi Leonard
10Apr 15, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) leaves the court after being defeated by the Golden State Warriors during the play-in rounds of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Despite all the drama around Leonard’s name, that doesn’t take away from the fact that he is an elite player. Before Leonard rejoined the team, Toronto was competitive, and they took action and traded for Leonard, the man who brought the franchise its lone ring, in hopes of changing that.
Pairing Leonard with Scottie Barnes will make for an elite wing duo. Toronto lacked a go-to scorer, and Leonard has been that all his career. Brandon Ingram was a great player for the Raptors, but Leonard is an upgraded version.
The Eastern Conference is up in the air, and several teams could come out on top. Toronto joined the fun and acquired Leonard for a reasonable price, making the Raptors a team to fear when the playoffs come around.
Philadelphia 76ers Trading For Jaylen Brown
10Aug 6, 2026; Camden, NJ, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Jaylen Brown poses for a photo during his introductory press conference at the Francis J. Myers Recreation Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
The Boston Celtics made the biggest decision they have made in a long time and traded Brown. Not only did they trade him, but they traded him to a divisional rival, the 76ers. Brown was a staple of the Celtics roster for the last decade, but Philadelphia acquired him for George.
Adding Brown alongside Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid is the perfect fit. A two-way wing who takes the scoring pressure off the other superstars wasn’t on the 76ers bingo card after the end of last season.
Brown is not only an exceptional player, but they got him for great value. Giving up Paul George’s contract and two first-round picks seems like a massive underpay for a perennial All-NBA first-team player. Brown will be exactly what the 76ers need to be a real team, and acquiring him puts the 76ers on this list twice.
Indiana Pacers Signing Kelly Oubre Jr.
10May 8, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Kelly Oubre Jr. (9) dunks the ball against the New York Knicks during the third quarter of game three of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
The Indiana Pacers enter the season as an under-the-radar franchise as a whole. With a returning Tyrese Haliburton and Ivica Zubac, this team is already set up for success out east. They used their remaining cap space to sign Kelly Oubre Jr. to a two-year, $16.5 million contract.
Oubre is a great wing to have on a contending team. Oubre is great at getting to the rim because he embraces physicality. He can knock down three-pointers consistently, but most important is his point-of-attack defense. He stands at 6-foot-8, 205 pounds, with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, making him a lengthier defender. Pairing him alongside Aaron Nesmith defensively will give Indiana two great defenders that can guard one-through-four.
Whether he starts or comes off the bench, Oubre will surely have a positive impact on this team. Stealing him from the Philadelphia 76ers, who made many moves of their own, was great for another Eastern Conference team.