NBA Teams That Have Been Most Active at the Trade Deadline Since 2000

Few events rile up the basketball world as much as the ever-popular NBA trade deadline.

The highly anticipated midseason landmark is loaded with fun questions. Will a superstar be dealt? Will a championship contender—or even a playoff hopeful—acquire a missing piece? Will a tanking team offload some expiring contracts or completely sell?

Any number of factors can result in NBA teams orchestrating trades at the deadline, which generally falls in February.

Looking at NBA-provided data, since 2000, nine franchises have executed at least 16 trades in the final moments before the market halts. The data is limited to the NBA's parameters.

Cleveland Cavaliers

When the franchise had a championship window with LeBron James, the Cavs' deadline activity soared. The George Hill and Rodney Hood trades in 2018 were a sign of this. Among other notable deals were the acquisition of Ben Wallace, Delonte West and Wally Szczerbiak in 2008 and Baron Davis in 2011.

Denver Nuggets

The blockbuster involving Carmelo Anthony isn't included because it occurred two days before the 2011 deadline. Denver has a long history of involvement, though. Back in 2002, the Nuggets shipped Nick Van Exel, Raef LaFrentz, Avery Johnson and Tariq Abdul-Wahad to the Dallas Mavericks for Juwan Howard, Tim Hardaway, Donnell Harvey and a first-round pick, which Denver used on Nenê.

Oklahoma City Thunder/Seattle SuperSonics

Similar to Cleveland, the Thunder tried to bolster their rosters for star players, these being Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Key additions were Kendrick Perkins in 2011 and Kyle Singler and D.J. Augustin in 2015. The biggest deal happened when the franchise was in Seattle. At the 2003 deadline, the Sonics sent Gary Payton and Desmond Mason to the Milwaukee Bucks for the three-point marksman, Ray Allen.

Toronto Raptors

No deadline in the last two decades is more memorable for Toronto than 2019, which helped the Raptors win an NBA title. They picked up Memphis Grizzlies legend Marc Gasol, who started all 24 postseason games as a vital complement to Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard.

Most recently, the Boston Celtics added Derrick White in a sizable 2022 trade with the San Antonio Spurs. Really, it was simply the latest in a reasonably long line of notable deals.

Boston added Nate Robinson in 2010, Jordan Crawford in 2013, Isaiah Thomas in 2015, Evan Fournier in 2021. Plus, the Celtics—who helped facilitate the three-way Rasheed Wallace trade shipping him to the Detroit Pistons in 2004—sent Perkins to Oklahoma City in 2011.

But no trade compares to a 2005 agreement with Cleveland.

That trade resulted in the best sequence of moves for Boston, which moved Jiri Welsch to the Cavaliers for a 2007 first-round pick. The selection later brought 4x All-Star guard Rajon Rondo to Boston as part of a 2006 draft-day accord with the Phoenix Suns, helping the team become 2008 NBA champions.

If the Atlanta Hawks are involved in a trade in recent seasons, one of two outcomes is most likely: It was a one-for-one swap or it involved a draft pick, particularly of the second-round variety.

That wasn't necessarily the case in the 2000s. In 2001, Atlanta moved Dikembe Mutombo and Roshown McLeod to the Philadelphia 76ers for Theo Ratliff, Toni Kukoc, Nazr Mohammed and Pepe Sanchez. After the Wallace deal in 2004, the Hawks returned Antoine Walker to the Celtics in 2005 and used the acquired first-rounder to eventually land Joe Johnson from Phoenix.

Since then, Atlanta has been pretty tame.

Out of 15 trades post-2005, the marquee names have featured Anthony Johnson in 2007, Kirk Hinrich in 2016, Dewayne Dedmon in 2020 and Lou Williams in 2021. So, you know, not exactly blockbusters.

Within the Sacramento Kings' 19 trades at the deadline since 2000, six have included three-plus franchises.

The lesson is simple: When the Kings are involved, they do it big.

As if that's not interesting enough, Sacramento is also the lone participant in both four-way trades. While the Kings facilitated a 2006 trade involving Earl Watson and Ruben Patterson, they commanded headlines with the 2022 deal moving Marvin Bagley III to Detroit.

Given that Sacramento hasn't reached the postseason since 2006, the team popping up as a seller is no surprise.

Kevin Martin and Thomas Robinson went to the Houston Rockets in 2010 and 2013, respectively, and George Hill headed to Cleveland in 2018.

"The Process" is the only correct spot to begin.

From the 2013-14 campaign through 2015-16, Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie embraced a teardown of epic proportions. During the deadlines of those seasons, Hinkie maneuvered eight deadline trades that included 10 draft picks coming back to Philadelphia.

In hindsight, we know "The Process" didn't play out as hoped for Hinkie and the 76ers. But it epitomized an era.

The biggest splash, however, is clearly the deal for James Harden and Paul Millsap. Philly sent a package headlined by a disgruntled Ben Simmons to the Brooklyn Nets in a 2022 blockbuster put together by Daryl Morey, who will be mentioned prominently very soon.

Otherwise, the 2001 trade for Dikembe Mutombo helped the Allen Iverson-led Sixers earn a trip to the NBA Finals.

Welcome to the mind of Daryl Morey.

From mid-2007 to late 2020, he served as the Rockets' general manager. Perhaps the only person in basketball who loved trading more than Hinkie, Morey incessantly chased an elusive championship.

Houston picked up Kyle Lowry in 2009, Kevin Martin in 2010, Goran Dragic in 2011, Pablo Prigioni and KJ McDaniels in 2015, Lou Williams in 2017 and Iman Shumpert in 2019. Some are clearly splashier than others, but that selection of trades—no, it's not a comprehensive list—is a reminder of just how active the Rockets were at the deadline.

Following the Morey era, which included 21 of the organization's 26 trades, Houston also sent Victor Oladipo to the Miami Heat as part of the roster teardown in 2021.