Blockbuster NBA Trade Ideas: Damian Lillard to Los Angeles Lakers, Trae Young to Heat

The first few weeks of the 2024-25 NBA season have revealed some obvious team needs and possibly created a few new sellers as well.

All eyes should be on the underwhelming Milwaukee Bucks and what the franchise plans to do with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard and others. The Miami Heat and Orlando Magic should still be chasing some offensive help, and the Los Angeles Lakers need to make a call about a certain point guard in the East.

These are the five blockbuster trades teams should already be considering.

Orlando Magic Receive: G CJ McCollum

New Orleans Pelicans Receive: SG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, C Goga Bitadze, 2025 second-round pick

It's probably not time to hit the panic button yet on the Caldwell-Pope signing, although the veteran shooting guard has been awful to start the season for an Orlando team still in need of offensive help.

Caldwell-Pope averaged just 7.1 points and shot 22.4 percent from three in his first 13 games. Playing him alongside Jalen Suggs has been good defensively, but this roster still lacks three-point shooting (30.6 percent, dead last overall) and offensive creation.

A veteran combo guard like McCollum would solve a lot of these issues.

The 33-year-old should be returning shortly from a right adductor strain and was averaging 18.8 points, 4.0 assists, 2.3 steals and 3.3 made threes in his four games to begin the year. A near 40.0 percent shooter from three for his career, McCollum would thrive as both an on- or off-ball threat for a young Magic team in the backcourt next to Suggs.

Adding Caldwell-Pope to a team with Herb Jones and Dejounte Murray carries a ton of defensive potential, and the veteran shooting guard should return to his previous self feasting off open looks when New Orleans gets some of its stars back from injuries.

Bitadze also gives the Pels a short-term answer at center while rookie Yves Missi develops. In six starts for the Magic this season, the 25-year-old is averaging 10.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.7 blocks on 69.0 percent shooting in his 25.5 minutes.

Note: Trade could not be completed until Dec. 15.

Charlotte Hornets Receive: C Deandre Ayton

Portland Trail Blazers Receive: G/F Josh Green, PF Grant Williams, C Nick Richards, 2025 second-round pick (via Philadelphia 76ers)

The Hornets should still have playoff aspirations in a weak Eastern Conference, although injuries to the center position have held this team back thus far.

Both Mark Williams and Nick Richards have missed all or most of the 2024-25 season, forcing 39-year-old Taj Gibson into starting duties. The result has been an offense that's ranked just 26th overall this season (108.0 rating) despite LaMelo Ball averaging nearly 30 points per game.

Ayton, 26, is a double-double machine who's putting up 13.3 points and 10.5 rebounds in 29.3 minutes and has begun to shoot more threes (5-of-13, 38.5 percent in 11 games). He's someone Ball can feed the ball to on the low block and is now a viable floor-spacing option now, too.

The Blazers selected Donovan Clingan to be their center of the future, so moving Ayton opens up the starting job for him now.

Green, Williams and Richards are all 26 or younger and would help add depth to a rebuilding Portland franchise. Picking up another 2025 draft selection assists the process as well.

Miami Heat Receive: PG Trae Young, F/C Larry Nance Jr.

Atlanta Hawks Receive: G Tyler Herro, F/C Kel'el Ware, F Duncan Robinson, 2029 first-round pick (unprotected)*

Miami did nothing of significance this offseason for us to believe that this team can make another run in the East playoffs. A modest 4-6 start to the year has only reaffirmed this belief.

The Heat are still a bad offensive team (18th overall, 111.3 rating) with Jimmy Butler registering his lowest scoring average (16.1 points) in 10 years. Assuming the Milwaukee Bucks wouldn't be interested in trading Damian Lillard to Miami, the franchise should check on the asking price of Young instead.

A core of Young, Butler, Bam Adebayo, Terry Rozier, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Nikola Jović and others would become a true threat in the East once again given Young's scoring and playmaking (11.5 assists per game, second-best in the NBA).

The Hawks franchise looks like it has new life thanks to the play of Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson and No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher. Given that Young only has one guaranteed year remaining on his contract past this season, the two sides may have to have some serious conversations very soon.

Herro, 24, has been fantastic this season, putting up 24.9 points, 5.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists per night while shooting 47.9 percent from three. Adding him to this youth movement, along with Ware, Robinson and a future unprotected pick is a nice return for Young.

*Pick may be pushed back to 2030 if previous outgoing selections have not conveyed.

Milwaukee Bucks Receive: F Jerami Grant

Portland Trail Blazers Receive: F Khris Middleton, 2031 first-round pick

If the Bucks want to salvage their season and add more veteran talent around Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, Grant would be the perfect complimentary piece given his scoring and defensive versatility.

The 30-year-old forward is averaging 17.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 blocks in his 13 games this season. He's made 39.4 percent of his threes the past two-plus years with the Blazers and would be an important third scoring option for a Milwaukee team that's getting over half its scoring (53.4 percent) from just two players.

Offseason surgery on both ankles has kept Middleton off the floor this season. Adding Grant to a core of Antetokounmpo, Lillard, Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis and Gary Trent Jr. would be a breath of fresh air for the franchise.

Portland is no stranger to taking on veterans along with draft picks. They did it with Jrue Holiday and later Malcolm Brogdon before flipping both at later dates. The Blazers should be happy to move Grant for Middleton if it means getting a potentially valuable future first-round pick, especially since Lillard and Lopez are in their mid-30s.

Should Middleton make a full recovery and play well before the trade deadline, Portland could end up acquiring even more draft capital.

Los Angeles Lakers Receive: PG Damian Lillard

Milwaukee Bucks Receive: G Austin Reaves, F Rui Hachimura, PG D'Angelo Russell, 2029 first-round pick (unprotected via Lakers)

Detroit Pistons Receive: F/C Christian Wood, 2025 second-round pick (via Lakers)

Trading Giannis Antetokounmpo should be off the table for the Bucks right now. The franchise may be forced to listen to offers for Lillard, however, whose time in Milwaukee has been a failure so far.

LeBron James has long been a fan of Damian Lillard, prompting this famous quote from 2018:

A Big 3 of James, Lillard and Anthony Davis may be the best in the NBA, especially since the former is still putting up regular triple-doubles as he approaches age 40. Los Angeles would still have Dalton Knecht, Gabe Vincent, Jarred Vanderbilt, Max Christie, Jaxson Hayes, Cam Reddish and others with extra roster spots available to chase buyout candidates.

Depth has been a major issue for Milwaukee, and the Bucks would suddenly be quite deep around their two-time MVP with Reaves, Hachimura and Russell joining Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis, Gary Trent Jr. and others.

Since the Bucks are a second-apron tax team and the Lakers are right up against the second apron themselves, the Pistons are used as a third team to help facilitate the trade by taking on Wood's contract.