NBA trade deadline 2026: Biggest winners and losers, featuring the Bucks, Cavs and Warriors

It would’ve been unfair to expect the 2026 NBA trade deadline to match its predecessor in sheer tonnage of stunnage; “Luka Dončić got traded out of nowhere in the middle of the night” is a pretty tough act to follow, after all. But despite pundits and observers continuing to wonder aloud about whether the ongoing ripple effects of the 2023 collective bargaining agreement, and the myriad challenges facing high-spending teams trying to navigate the strictures of the first and second aprons, the days leading up to Thursday afternoon’s deadline featured a flurry of movement, with the lion’s share of the league finding a way to get active in ways either big or small.

It turns out that, in an environment in which 20 teams participate in the postseason, NBA decision-makers found plenty of ways to hustle and flow within the CBA’s confines. It turns out there were still plenty of front offices committed to trying to add talent for the stretch run. And, of course, it turns out there were plenty of others eager to balance their ledgers and bolster their draft-pick war chests in the hope that tomorrow they’ll find better things.

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[Check out the NBA trade tracker for full details on every move]

The result was a breathtaking sprint through the approach to Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET buzzer. And as the pencils-down buzzer drew nearer, the rumors rolled in and the deals got done, I sat here, like Frank T.J. Mackey, quietly judging them.

What follows are my first-draft-of-history impressions of which teams scored and which ones stumbled in this season’s grand NBA roster reshuffling. There will likely be more winners than losers because, between you and me, the world’s tough enough right now, man. Might as well find a scrap or two of joy where you can, you feel me?

We begin with the biggest move of the week — the one that wasn’t made.

(Mallory Bielecki/Yahoo Sports Illustration)

Winner: Milwaukee Bucks

At the risk of oversimplifying things: The only reasons to trade Giannis Antetokounmpo were if the two-time MVP absolutely, positively demanded in no uncertain terms that he be dealt by Thursday afternoon,…

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Author : Dan Devine

Publish date : 2026-02-05 20:53:00

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