Another major NBA trade coming soon? LaMelo Ball wants to go to Dallas

The season continues in the National Basketball Association and after 18+ games there are many different topics to discuss. The group stage of the NBA Cup has also passed, so you just have to wait until December 10-11, when the quarterfinals of the Intraseason tournament will be held, and a few days later there will be semifinals and the final. After the decisive match of the NBA Cup, an equally important event will take place, namely the opening of the transfer market. True, that doesn’t sound very true; first, restrictions on the exchange of players with different types of contracts are lifted, then teams are allowed to release basketball players, and then a deadline will be set in February.

Many teams are starting to plan reinforcement options right now. It is already clear who will not stick to the formation, and the competitors are being cautious: The competitors do not sleep, and we must stay awake, too. There isn’t much to discuss right now, but there is a potential trade that could change things for teams. It’s worth considering because folks on Bleacher Report and Dallas fan pages are almost certain the deal is nearly done.

Disgruntled superstars: A new trend in the modern NBA

The past few seasons have produced a lot of dissatisfied players who openly criticize their teams, their general managers, and generally don’t want to give it their all. On the one hand, this scares team owners, because it is a great pleasure to be deprived of a motivated basketball player when such crazy amounts of money are paid for salaries. So the 2025/26 season was not devoid of such cases. Dissatisfied with their positions: Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson, half of the Sacramento Kings, nearly all of the Philadelphia 76ers and the Milwaukee Bucks.

Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson and LaMelo Ball also want to change the situation, but these players are already openly expressing their dissatisfaction and demanding trades. Dallas Mavericks CEO Nico Harrison has been fired, so nothing is official yet, and even now the Mavs will be careful not to make mistakes. For those who don’t know, Harrison traded Luka Doncic for Anthony Davis and surprised just about everyone who watches basketball. Fortune traded the first draft pick to the Mavericks, so they need reinforcements for Cooper Flagg to develop into a bona fide star. The club is lucky: LaMelo Ball, who does not want to live with the Charlotte Hornets, is not against joining them. The Hornets were in the midst of a constant rebuild and had again shown no improvement whatsoever, so Ball requested a trade.

The defenseman denied the information, and the results for the Hornets and Mavericks are almost identical; Another yellow light? Journalists from Bleacher Report and several unnamed sources confirmed that negotiations are ongoing and not very active, but the Los Angeles Lakers have joined Dallas and Charlotte. A very solid trade is expected, especially if Anthony Davis is added to it – the salaries will have to be evened out quite seriously, since Ozerniki have almost no draft picks and Charlotte has no assets.

Triple swap is real: The roster change will be solid!

Whatever the problems of all potential participants in a possible three-way trade, the exchange is still very real. The only person dissatisfied might be Anthony Davis, who the Lakers and Charlotte have to give away half their teams, not counting stars. 54 million in salary is too much, so additional participants in the agreement are needed, otherwise the headquarters should remain in Dallas. Will this suit her? Let’s see what exchange options journalists position (usually their versions correspond to reality by 70%, with rare exceptions):

1. Dallas is sending Klay Thompson and Daniel Gafford to the Lakers, LaMelo Ball is going to the Mavericks, and Charlotte is getting Rui Hachimura, Maxi Kleber, Gabe Vincent and a few draft picks, all from the Lakers. Everything else is about the same in terms of salaries, they could still add draft picks or money.

2. Another option: Dallas takes Ball and Hachimura, sends Anthony Davis to Charlotte, and the Lakers move on Miles Bridges, Collin Sexton, Brandon Miller and draft picks. It seems too unconventional and almost unrealistic, and Charlotte doesn’t want to include Miller in a trade.

3. Dallas might try to get rid of Kyrie Irving, too, but absolutely everything is on their plate: 36.6 million salary, a constantly nagging knee, and he’s already injured. Looking to trade role players for a star? It’s worth remembering that Nico Harrison is no longer there, and perhaps it makes sense that no one but the best would want to take Thompson for Martin, Christie and Knecht. Similarly, the Lakers won’t trade Anthony Davis for half price, but the center will pay extra money out of his own pocket if necessary. “Charlotte” is among these teams in the role of closing the gap, because they are unlikely to make it to the play-offs, which is a minus for their existence.

The options for each of the potential exchanges are not very interesting yet. Only the first one seems pretty equal and probably suits almost everyone. Dallas will have a good point guard who can create many chances for Davis and Flagg, and the Lakers will be able to strengthen their three-point shooting and front line because Gafford is a versatile and hard-working player and Thompson needs mental support to play at his best again. The Charlotte Hornets will expand their roster with smart, hard-working workers who can improve: Hachimura will complement Bridges, Kleber and Vincent will improve the back line, and if the Hornets can trade Hayes or Vanderbilt instead of Maxey, they will be a winner.

The second option is doubtful because in order to conduct such a trade, you need to rent a hotel for a week, the general managers come together and count, bargain, argue. As a result, all three teams will change players and it is impossible to say who will play faster and better. Oh yes, and in the face of the fact that the Hornets will give up all the leaders and take only Davis, who does not want to continue his career there, the team will be left with nothing. In essence, this is good for perestroika, but not as barbaric. Of course, if they don’t give Kyrie a gift, then it would be better to change the team names, that’s all.

Advantages and disadvantages for each command

Additionally, it is worth discussing the advantages and disadvantages for each participant in a potential trade. Since the first option was chosen and seemed the most convenient, it should be taken as a basis when discussing the pros and cons. Let it be so, because additional draft rights, money and other bonuses have been discussed by general managers with many changes for a very long time. And so the advantages and disadvantages for teams:

1. If LaMelo Ball were healthy, the Dallas Mavericks would be 100% in the black. The point guard knows how to make assists and creates many beautiful moments on offense that D’Angelo Russell cannot. He was only brought in to provide assists but for some reason Russell’s performance continues to decline. Alley-oops to Davis, Lively and Washington will also make the Mavericks stronger.

2. The Lakers would be better off at both ends of the floor with Klay Thompson and Daniel Gafford. Center isn’t happy yet, but he’ll be a good fit to replace Ayton. Thompson’s arrival is also strengthening, but in which position we will use him is another question. In great form, Reeves’ progress was unstoppable.

3. Charlotte Hornets will expand its roster with high-quality young players. True, the general manager will have to think about how to get rid of extra players and send them conditionally to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Bagley or Middleton, and maybe even trade conditionally DeRozan from the Kings.

The first dissatisfied people in general received predictions about their future from the inside. Obviously there will be more rumors in the future and I want interesting trades in the future.