Hear us out: The 2025 NBA trade deadline is not today. It's Feb. 6.

But what if today was Feb. 6? What should your favorite squad do?

That is the question we will dare to answer here.

Rather than go the traditional buy-sell-or-hold route, this exercise will seek to spotlight more specific courses and aims. Immediate roster needs will be taken into account, but suggestions are invariably shaped by franchise directions, financial realities and available assets.

Since it's still relatively early in the schedule, consider these to be polite-but-firm nudges rather than mandates. The unofficial start to trade season is Dec. 15, when a bunch of recently signed free agents become eligible for deals. Teams still have time to let things marinate and hash out plans.

However, if you're paying attention to store decors and the suggested movies and shows and playlists from the almighty algorithms at pretty much any streaming service, you know that unofficial start is coming soon.

Atlanta Hawks

What they should do: Acquire another ball-handler and/or consider clarifying the longer-term center situation.

Saddling Dyson Daniels and Jalen Johnson with more playmaking responsibility has value in the long run. Immediately, though, the Atlanta Hawks are battling turnover and shot-quality issues whenever Trae Young doesn't have the ball. Their rim-and-three-frequency, in particular, falls off a cliff when he's catching a breather, according to PBP Stats.

Bogdan Bogdanović's return from a right hamstring injury should help matters. But the Hawks could use a more conventional table-setter to boost offensive production without its star—and perhaps someone to help further open up the floor alongside Young.

Figuring out the longer-term big-man rotation looms as a good alternative. Atlanta is faring well overall in the rim-protection department. But its defensive rebounding success remains entirely too reliant on Clint Capela, both he and Larry Nance Jr. are free agents next summer, and Onyeka Okongwu is neither especially big nor playing a ton of minutes relative to center-of-the-future standards.

Boston Celtics

What they should do: Roll over Jaden Springer's salary into a more valuable asset.

Unless you're inexplicably itching for the Boston Celtics to flip Payton "Living on the Surface of the Sun" Pritchard, Jaden Springer's $4 million expiring contract is this team's best expendable salary-matching tool.

Granted, they could look to re-sign him in restricted free agency at a larger clip designed exclusively to deal down the line, but championship windows are precious. Attaching sweeteners to his money now for a better break-in-case-of-emergency option makes more sense.

Boston, as a reminder, cannot aggregate outgoing salaries or take back more money than it receives. Springer will not be the vessel through which it lands a game-changer. But it doesn't need a game-changer. It doesn't even necessarily need anything.

Flashier insurance is a luxury. The Celtics just so happen to have the draft-equity additives to obtain some—preferably in the form of a tertiary wing.

Brooklyn Nets

What they should do: Deal or be prepared to pay Dennis Schröder and Cam Thomas.

The Brooklyn Nets should be listening to offers for everyone on their roster, but the cases of Dennis Schröder and Cam Thomas are more pressing.

Both are scheduled for free agency next summer. And while they are integral to a Nets offense that remains pleasantly plucky, this franchise has longer-term priorities at stake.

Letting Schröder's situation ride into the summer wouldn't be the end of the world. He is unlikely to fetch big-time money over multiple years on the open market. And if he does, Brooklyn can survive if it loses a career role player for nothing.

Rendering a final verdict on Thomas' future is a different story. His restricted free agency will be more expensive.

Outside teams are more reluctant than ever to tender offer sheets, and next summer's salary-cap climate isn't conducive to a reversal. But a 23-year-old clearing 20 points per game on climbing efficiency and not-so-simple usage will cost a pretty penny to retain even without a rival market.

If the Nets aren't prepared to bankroll a much more expensive version of Thomas, they should move him rather than risk his next contract aging into a non-asset.

Charlotte Hornets

What they should do: Add a more durable and bigger center.

Nick Richards' rib injury will not be forever. Mark Williams' availability is a separate matter. After appearing in just 19 games last season—and only 43 as a rookie—he has yet to play this year while rehabbing a left foot injury.

Playing lots of Grant Williams and 39-year-old Taj Gibson at the 5 is not tenable. Moussa Diabaté has delivered a peppering of nice moments, but the 22-year-old is just 6'9" and not someone you look at and think "Our big-man situation is set."

Targeting stopgaps or buy-low dice rolls (Robert Williams III) is perfectly fine for a Charlotte Hornets franchise with both eyes on the bigger picture. It also shouldn't rule out any opportunities that might arise to bag its center of the future.

Because with every missed game, Mark Williams becomes a less viable candidate for that mantle.

Chicago Bulls

What they should do: Fire-sale the hell out of this roster, with virtually no one off-limits.

Any Chicago Bulls fans extolling the team's capacity to hover around the Eastern Conference's (sad-sack) playoff picture are masochists. Demand—and expect—more.

This group has bright spots. Resurgences from Zach LaVine and Nikola Vučević and continued standout play from Coby White are among them. But keeping the bones of this core intact tethers the Bulls to their longtime home on the fast track to nowhere.

Nearly everybody must go. Relative mystery box Matas Buzelis is about as untouchable as it gets for Chicago's roster. And yeah, that includes White.

Sure, he is 24. And he fits basically any iteration of an offense you can drum up. But his trade value will never be higher, and the Bulls will not be good enough by the time he's due for a mega raise during the summer of 2026.

It's long past time for Chicago to hit the detonate button. And with its first-rounder owed to San Antonio under top-10 protection, there are no excuses for staying the current, unspectacular, maddening course.

Cleveland Cavaliers

What they should do: Use Georges Niang's salary and sweeteners to deepen and upgrade the combo forward rotation.

Insisting the league-best Cleveland Cavaliers do absolutely nothing is totally on the table. They are a real threat to win it all as currently constructed.

Still, Max Strus' absence along with the occasional absence from Dean Wade reinforces the fragility of certain secondary units.

Having a healthy Strus slide up to the 4 can be a stretch itself. And Cleveland shouldn't want to be in a position where it's over-relying on Georges Niang or asking Isaac Okoro and Caris LeVert to play up.

Someone like Larry Nance Jr. makes a ton of sense for these Cavs. He can play beside either Jarrett Allen or Evan Mobley in staggered frontcourts, and head coach Kenny Atkinson can try buying time with him next to both bigs in a pinch.

Best of all, Nance should be eminently gettable relative to the assets with which Cleveland is willing to part.

Dallas Mavericks

What they should do: Upgrade the Jaden Hardy/Spencer Dinwiddie minutes, preferably with someone who can slide up to the wing.

Noise galore is baked into the Dallas Mavericks' 2024-25 performance.

Luka Dončić is making an effort to play away from the ball more, but it doesn't look right. Too many dudes are missing threes. Key absences are scattered across their game logs, most notably from Dereck Lively II and P.J. Washington. Head coach Jason Kidd is first-team All-Most-Likely-To-Complain-About-The-Rotation-Without-Doing-Anything-To-Change-It.

Through it all, including falling to 11th in the West, the Mavs have still churned out a top-10 offense and defense. Panic is not the default. They have the depth to let things stand.

Adding a more reliable creator and ball-handler to the secondary rotation is the way to go for now. Quentin Grimes has looked pretty good after receiving an (overdue) bump in minutes, but putting the ball on the deck is not his game.

Kidd will remain tempted to tap into the Dinwiddie and Hardy wells if the roster holds serve. Finding someone who provides more size and on-ball juice than those two and Grimes is a tall order. Especially when said someone may need to eat into Klay Thompson's minutes to make a difference.

However, the Mavs have just enough digestible salaries and assets to go good-not-great-player shopping.

Denver Nuggets

What they should do: Improve the minutes without Nikola Jokić.

Encouraging indicators from the kids, moments of triumph from Russell Westbrook and a more even-keeled version of Michael Porter Jr. are doing little to diminish the Denver Nuggets' dependence on Nikola Jokić. If anything, they are more reliant on him than ever.

Denver is getting blasted by over 35 points per 100 possessions when Jokić sits—the second-largest one-player drop-off in the league. Absences from Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon have not helped the splits, but this is the continuation of a years-long reality.

Look no further than the Nuggets' two recent losses against the decimated New Orleans Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies without him as proof. Few teams are built to thrive without their best player. Denver isn't even constructed to buy him meaningful breathers.

Jokić has cleared 39 minutes of action five times through 10 appearances this season. He eclipsed that threshold seven times across 79 games last year.

Eliminating this total dependence is impossible unless the Nuggets go nuclear—and get lucky. But whether it's buoying bench lineups with more shooting or finding a backup 5 who actually belongs on an NBA roster, they need to do something, anything, to help out their competitive lifeline.

Detroit Pistons

What they should do: Bring in another playmaker who doesn't shrink the floor while keeping an open mind on offers for anyone they're not sure is part of the core.

Let's address the elephant in the room first: Improvement across so many areas, particularly on defense, and playing inside an Eastern Conference that invites aspirations of a play-in (if not playoff) bid should not compel the Detroit Pistons to aggressively prowl the trade market for upgrades.

This team must continue operating on a more gradual timeline. If it receives attractive offers that bag it tantalizing draft equity in exchange for soaking up less-savory money or parting with Malik Beasley, Simone Fontecchio or Isaiah Stewart, it needs to be listening.

Failing that, this is not a sell-no-matter-what situation. Detroit is free to opportunistically buy. And if it does, procuring another secondary creator who can space the floor would go a long way.

No specific archetype needs to be the focus. A combo guard who drills jumpers and can break down set defenses, a game manager who can help cut down on turnovers, a grab-and-go ball-handler who injects the offense with more pace—a litany of player-types can do wonders for an offense lacking consistency and operable structure beyond Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey.

Golden State Warriors

What they should go: Consolidate into a No. 2 or go for a size upgrade upfront without materially knifing into the current player pool.

Obliterating expectations is license for the Golden State Warriors to stand relatively pat. It feels like they still need a certified No. 2 scorer despite spitting out a top-10 half-court offense.

Surviving the regular season is one thing. Playoff-proofing your attack is another.

Then again, the Warriors rattled off their fourth championship of the Stephen Curry era in 2022 without a traditional No. 2 option. Surrounding the 10-time All-Star with bonkers defense, high-IQ depth and various degrees of spacing can work.

This is nevertheless an "OK, Golden State doesn't need to mortgage the farm for someone like Jimmy Butler" revelation. If a reasonable No. 2 scorer who doesn't annihilate their depth and assets ambles onto the chopping block, they should be on high alert. Their interest over the offseason in Paul George and Lauri Markkanen suggests they will be.

Going after another big who doesn't break the asset bank should also be on the to-do list.

Trayce Jackson-Davis and the Kevon Looney Renaissance are getting it done. Draymond Green-in-the-middle arrangements remain killer. And they can pull the Kyle Anderson-at-the-5 lever. But a more dynamic offensive option who fortifies the defensive rebounding and caps Green's lone-big reps would make this team even scarier.

Houston Rockets

What they should do: Acquire a knockdown shooter with at least a puncher's chance of cracking the rotation

Disappointment will abound (outside the fanbase) if the Houston Rockets don't go for the home run consolidation trade.

This is to say: People (outside the fanbase) should prepare for disappointment.

Houston positioned itself to be more active over the summer by extending Alperen Şengün and Jalen Green. Oh, it also owns a top-five net rating and has entered the (preliminary) conversation for home-court advantage in the Western Conference.

Bolstering the immediate product without undermining the grander scheme is a fine line to straddle. The Rockets can do it. They have movable contracts in ample supply and a clear directive: Open up the floor enough to climb outside the bottom 10 in half-court efficiency as well as the bottom five in both three-point frequency and conversion rate.

Unless the trade market yields a gobsmacking surprise option, the Rockets should be circling names such as Cam Johnson, Duncan Robinson, Bogdan Bogdanović, et al. before obsessing over star power.

And if they can carve out more minutes for Jabari Smith Jr. at 5 when Şengün sits in the process, even better.

Indiana Pacers

What they should do: Have an honest conversation about what the season has become, and if you think this team can do more than deliver a maddening gap year, upgrade the wing defense.

Any trade-deadline happenings for the Indiana Pacers must begin with an existential question: Is this team good enough, at its core, for anything the front office does to matter?

Answering in the affirmative requires a belief in Tyrese Haliburton and the offense returning to its high-octane roots. No amount of defensive upgrades the Pacers can reasonably make will matter if they're hovering closer to 15th in points scored per possession than inside the top five.

Indiana also needs to decide where it lands on Myles Turner. He remains indispensable, but his impending free agency warrants a discussion after the Pacers already paid Haliburton and Pascal Siakam.

Only then can the Pacers chart a direction. If they believe beyond a shadow of a doubt they're much better than this, they should be blowing up the phones trying to acquire an actual 3-4 who has the potential to crack the closing lineup.

If that conviction isn't there, well, it's time to consider unstacking the deck in favor of this year's draft-lottery odds.

Los Angeles Clippers

What they should do: Go get another offensive creator even if they believe Kawhi Leonard will be ready to rock when it matters most.

Hovering above .500, with a top-five defense, fresh off a rollicking win over the Golden State Warriors, still down their best player, the Los Angeles Clippers aren't viewed as a legitimate threat in the Western Conference.

That'll change if they can acquire another offensive initiator.

Counting on Kawhi Leonard to be #ThatGuy doesn't fly. Right knee inflammation has sidelined him to start the season, and updates on his timeline for return are sparse. So far, we know he's doing a "little bit" of shooting. Awesome.

His checkered health bill isn't news to the Clippers. They know Peak Kawhi is both dominant and not a sure thing. If they want to emerge from the bottom five-ish of offensive efficiency, the Norman Powell Most Improved Player romp isn't enough. They need a second-best playmaker better than Kris Dunn or Ivica Zubac or Kevin Porter Jr.

Getting someone who fits the bill is within reason. Los Angeles only needs to settle on its degree of aggression. Going the placeholder route is safer, but it has a 2030 first-rounder to peddle if it wishes to set sights even higher.

Los Angeles Lakers

What they should do: Look to upgrade the third-best player slot, otherwise focus on adding functional depth to, well, everywhere. But especially the wings and frontcourt.

Star-hunting is ingrained into the Los Angeles Lakers' DNA. And with LeBron James playing out his age-40 season as more of a complement to Anthony Davis, you can easily argue now isn't the time for the franchise to deviate from its obsession.

But the trade market must first reveal the right kind of star. And then the Lakers need the assets to acquire said star. The latter isn't especially likely when they can only include two outright first-round picks.

Sussing out at-large depth is more plausible. And after beginning the year comfortably over .500, with a top-five offense, it's also a palatable direction. The Lakers may actually be good enough to justify medium-sized moves that cost a single first-round pick rather than pearl-clutching what few assets they have in hopes a massive fish shakes loose and falls into their lap.

Los Angeles can pursue depth almost indiscriminately. We know it's determined to add another big. The rotation is also thin (read: entirely without) two-way wings.

Really, though, the Lakers needn't be choosy unless first-round picks are involved. That is the luxury and/or burden of running just four to five trustworthy players deep.

Memphis Grizzlies

What they should do: Open up the half-court offense.

Pour yet another one out for the Memphis Grizzlies remaining competitive despite a cornucopia of absences and shifting rotations.

Seriously, the fact that they entered Tuesday's tilt against Denver with a top-seven offense and defense is absurd when their injury reports are the length of a Game of Thrones book.

Inconsistent availability makes it hard to draw profound conclusions from the on-court product. There will be those who think the Grizzlies only need to get healthier.

That is a flawed stance. Not only is this team never fully healthy, but the offense also has a longstanding track record of being smoke and mirrors.

Drifting around the top 10 in points scored per possession is great. But Memphis is again relying on transition and second-chance opportunities to get by. It is still in the bottom 10 of half-court efficiency and neither taking nor making enough threes.

Those issues will not be addressed with the current personnel, available or injured. The Grizzlies need to shore up their spacing to open the floor for, well, everyone versus set defenses.

Getting Luke Kennard back was a start. But trusting his body to hold up is quite the leap of faith, and he's not enough on his own. Acquiring someone else of his ilk, preferably who's bigger and capable of logging more minutes, while consolidating some of the rotation will do more for their playoff stock than standing pat and waiting for clean bills of health that may never come.

Miami Heat

What they should do: Trade Jimmy Butler.

Dealing Jimmy Butler will not immediately improve the Miami Heat. They need him. He is still their best shot at having someone who can headline a contender.

That's the problem.

Butler is 35, always banged up and, charitably, off to an uneven start. Miami, meanwhile, is all over the place. The defense seems to be ticking up, but the team too often looks and feels and plays without form.

Dismiss Butler's choppy start, and we still have to ask: Where is this going?

Fandom is about more than rooting for strictly championship contenders. The Heat tilt more toward a franchise billowing in the wind. They're not good enough to have title equity yet not built to go through—or even underwrite—a developmental phase.

Exploring Butler's market should be considered a mandate when he's on the verge of his next deal (2025-26 player option). Miami could instead look to acquire someone better than him, but this presumes it has the assets to pull off a blockbuster and still have a supporting cast left to complement Butler, Bam Adebayo and whoever's inbound.

Milwaukee Bucks

What they should do: Swing for the fences on perimeter defense.

Statistically speaking, the Milwaukee Bucks' defense is outperforming its offense. That is jarring but not exactly tell-tale.

Khris Middleton has yet to play this season, and Milwaukee's half-court machine often looks like it wants for the type of shot creation we know he can provide.

Sitting around the bottom 10 in defense is more alarming. The Bucks have held their own when able to get set but look old, slow and unathletic guarding in transition or trying to contain the ball.

Milwaukee needs to get serious about strengthening its defensive zip from the outside in. Doing so will be a chore.

The Bucks, as of now, cannot aggregate salaries or take back more money than they send out. Pat Connaughton ($9.4 million) and Bobby Portis Jr. ($12.6 million) are their best standalone salary anchors unless they're willing to move Middleton or Brook Lopez. And hell, of these four players, Lopez may be the only one with any solo value.

This presents an interesting dilemma: Will Milwaukee put its 2031 first-rounder up for grabs? And if it does, who's the best player(s) it can acquire without jettisoning a member of the Core Four?

The answer to the latter will determine what the Bucks can do. In terms of what they should do, well, if they're not willing to pull out all the stops to maximize the Giannis Antetokounmpo window, what exactly is the point of...anything?

Minnesota Timberwolves

What they should do: Stock the rotation with a cheap, but potentially necessary, ball-handler.

Providing directions for the Minnesota Timberwolves is headache-inducing.

The returns on the court have not been perfect—far from it. Peruse the top eight of their roster, though, and it looks like the personnel is in place to figure it all out. And it just might be.

But instructing teams to sit idle is no fun. Also: The offense could continue to be lackluster.

Mike Conley is 37. Up-and-down play could be the new normal. Donte DiVincenzo will string together better shooting performances. Can we say the same for Jaden McDaniels? And can the Wolves realistically jack up their free-throw attempts when Anthony Edwards needs to be firing away from deep?

Pursuing another ball-handler who can help trim down the turnovers and has more experience than the seldom-used Rob Dillingham seems the way to go. Rest assured, though, this team's situation will be fluid before the deadline.

New Orleans Pelicans

What they should do: End the Brandon Ingram equivocation, one way or another.

Another invasion of injuries has likely torpedoed the New Orleans Pelicans' playoff chances. And in the face of this gap year, they must have some brutally honest conversations.

Brandon Ingram's future—or lack thereof—must be top of mind. He wants money the Pelicans aren't prepared to give, and even if they change their tune, they have to reconcile his next deal with the rest of their payroll.

New Orleans will enter the summer, as of now, with $157-plus million committed to 10 players. That is around $30 million below the projected luxury-tax line and doesn't include Ingram's next deal, first-round holds and, ya know, perhaps adding a center.

Whether the Pelicans will ever pay the tax is debatable. They're definitely not entering it just to keep an injury-prone and counter-complementary core intact. So, unless they're prepared to let Ingram walk for nothing and incur deserved claims of asset mismanagement, they need to hammer this out yesterday.

If they're going to keep Ingram, then they'll have to move CJ McCollum this season or over the summer. If they're not going to keep Ingram, it's probably time to push the take-what-you-can-get-for-him button.

And if they're inching toward a more nuclear Zion Williamson decision, then, uh, good luck.

New York Knicks

What they should do: Flesh out the rotation with defensive depth.

Turning in a top-five offense with a bottom-10 defense to start the season is probably what most expected to see from this iteration of the New York Knicks. Yours truly thought the latter would be closer to league average or better, but what is life without blogbois sheepishly admitting they were wrong and they're sorry?

Precious Achiuwa and Mitchell Robinson have yet to play, so there is hope for the defense. But the Knicks' core lineup of Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns has a defensive rating in the 8th percentile and is getting nuked in the half-court.

Neither Robinson nor Achiuwa is fixing that—unless, of course, you expect head coach Tom Thibodeau to close with one of them instead of...who? Towns? Hart?

Point-of-attack defense looms larger right now. The Knicks knew the risks of pivoting to Towns at center. But Bridges is not holding up his end of the bargain on a regular basis—so much so New York has probably used Anunoby at the point-of-attack more than it'd prefer.

If Bridges isn't less than elite on the less glamorous end, the Knicks are in trouble. They can alleviate some of the blow by just being deeper.

Does that entail going after more point-of-attack stoppers? A big who is healthy and better suited to play both independently and alongside KAT? Someone else? Do they even have enough juice left to squeeze out of their tradeable assets while toeing the thin margins beneath the second apron?

These questions are uncomfortable. When you gave up so much to challenge the Boston Celtics and are currently falling well short, they're also necessary.

Oklahoma City Thunder

What they should do: Sniff around for another properly sized center but otherwise prioritize someone who can pass, dribble and shoot.

Pushing forward without both Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein should prompt the Oklahoma City Thunder to consider picking up another center. But we shouldn't overstate the need to go down this route.

Oklahoma City's defense ranks in the 88th percentile without a true 5 on the floor—and that's with one of its microball starting fives hemorrhaging points. The need to go hunting for a rotation big is close to nonexistent unless two of Hartenstein, Holmgren and Jaylin Williams end up out for the year.

Expanding the offense's dynamism is the more pressing matter. The Thunder have plenty of passing, dribbling and shooting on the roster—just not enough of it rolled into singular players.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the mother of all offensive engines. But the half-court efficiency has waned, substantially, when Holmgren or Jalen Williams takes on solo reps, and we have seen, on occasion, the crunch-time machine bog down when it can't get SGA the ball.

Left alone, Oklahoma City can win the whole damn thing. If there's a crack in its armor, though, it's the absence of a No. 2 who can run the show for himself and for everyone else.

Orlando Magic

What they should do: Prioritize adding another primary initiator or secondary option who can bend defenses and swish jumpers off the dribble.

Ripping off a recent six-game winning streak while Paolo Banchero remains sidelined with an oblique injury is a big deal for the Orlando Magic. Franz Wagner is figuring out how to generate offense for himself and others, and Anthony Black has continued his second-year ascent amid a heftier workload.

Orlando posting a top-10 offense during this stretch is especially encouraging. It is not enough to count this roster as a finished product.

The Magic have benefited from a cupcake schedule over their winning streak. And more than that, the offense continues to hover near the bottom five in points scored per possession overall.

Comfortably winning the minutes Wagner has now logged without Banchero matters. But that success is not driven by the offense. Wagner, Black and Jalen Suggs allow Orlando to assume a variable eye in trade talks. They do not let the front office entirely off the hook.

If the Magic are not willing to fork over what it takes to bring in a higher-end initiator to pair alongside and independent of Banchero, they need to get a perimeter-oriented scorer who, at bottom, measurably improves their dead-last three-point efficiency.

Philadelphia 76ers

What they should do: Pray Use disposable salary and picks to acquire a taller-than-6'4" shot creator or chaos-inducing wing.

Things are very much not fine for the Philadelphia 76ers.

Injuries are part of their Eastern Conference-worst start. Joel Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey have yet to play a single second together. So, while the former two aren't engendering confidence with their actual contributions, the Sixers still have cover for their putrid performance out of the gate.

All of the noise and absences and drama can make it difficult to identify Philly's should-be priorities. It entered the season in need of a bigger shot-creator type behind or alongside Maxey and a malleable wing defender outside of George and Caleb Martin.

This hasn't really changed—unless you believe in Jared McCain. At 6'3", he is not especially big. Playing him next to Maxey could prove untenable. But he brings the extra layer of outside-in creation the Sixers will not get from Embiid or, apparently, George.

Defaulting to a combo wing who defends his butt off, doesn't submarine spacing and, if possible, pitches in on the glass is probably the smartest move. And assuming Philly still believes in this core, it has every incentive to dangle whatever picks and salary are necessary to make it happen.

Phoenix Suns

What they should do: Add a member of the closing frontcourt.

Diminishing the reliance upon Jusuf Nurkić and Mason Plumlee should be viewed as critical for the Phoenix Suns to hit their ceiling. They should not be in dire straits at full strength during the regular season. Meaningfully leaning on either of them come playoff time is a recipe for an early vacation.

Improving the closing-minutes frontcourt options currently at the Suns' disposal isn't especially difficult. They may have to put their 2031 first-rounder on the table and cannot aggregate salaries, but when you're working off such a baseline, better circumstances are within reach.

It helps that Phoenix doesn't have to think in pure big-man terms. Someone like Isaiah Stewart or (a healthy) Robert Williams III would be an excellent fit for head coach Mike Budenholzer's defensive system. But the Suns have shown a willingness to downsize. That works in their favor here.

This isn't to say adding a player who optimizes the no-big lineups featuring Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal and Devin Booker and then one of Ryan Dunn, Royce O'Neale or Grayson Allen is a mindless endeavor. But it does allow the Suns to expand the scope of their trade-deadline search.

Portland Trail Blazers

What they should do: Decongest the frontcourt rotation while tacking on perimeter shooting.

The Portland Trail Blazers are among the teams best positioned to hold a fire sale—not because they have to, but because they have so much redundant depth that they could benefit from reorienting their makeup.

Sloughing off frontcourt names should be considered a given. Portland is flush with centers and combo forwards who either aren't quite 3s or don't make nearly enough of them.

Donovan Clingan should be going nowhere. Relative to what they gave up for him, Deni Avdija falls under the same umbrella. Toumani Camara's cheapo contract only runs through next season, but he's played his way into this bucket.

That leaves Deandre Ayton, Jerami Grant and Robert Williams III as the names general manager Joe Cronin should be most frequently shopping. Throw Duop Reath in here, as well, if cutting down the number of bigs won't earn him more minutes. And if there's a taker for the injured Matisse Thybulle, then by all means, the Blazers should listen.

Regardless of who they move from the frontcourt, though, they need to insist on more than future draft compensation. Portland's offense ranks in the bottom five of three-point-attempt rate and long-range accuracy. And at its peak, this rotation has maybe three players who grade out as league-average-or-better shooters in volume and efficiency. It's time to change that.

Sacramento Kings

What they should do: Upgrade the backup combo-big and/or combo-forward spots.

Calling for the Sacramento Kings to aim bigger on the trade market is fair game, but a fully healthy rotation should consider De'Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan, Keegan Murray, Keon Ellis and Malik Monk non-negotiables.

You could seek to upgrade with a starting- and closing-lineup addition, but that winnows down the list of acceptable and gettable names.

Zeroing in on the margins is more realistic. And that entails deepening the frontcourt beyond Sabonis and Murray.

Trey Lyles is a hard sell when he's not making any shots. Head coach Mike Brown is not inclined to test out any other bigs unless injuries force his hand. And we have already seen more Doug McDermott than can be considered comfortable.

Beefing up the second-string center options with a one-position big is fine. Ideally, though, the Kings would nab someone in the vein of a Larry Nance Jr., who can straddle multiple defensive lines.

And if not a combo big, players who can sponge up reps at the 3 and 4 and help diminish Murray's defensive workload should top the wish list. Think: Dorian Finney-Smith, Toumani Camara, Cam Johnson, etc.

San Antonio Spurs

What they should do: Keep an eye out for someone(s) to optimize the frontcourt around Victor Wembanyama.

This year's San Antonio Spurs are yet another team that needn't approach the trade deadline with extreme urgency. They have a clear direction and cornerstone, supporting cast members worth developing and the right combination of draft equity and proximity to the play-in race that they don't have to aggressively buy or sell.

Everything from hereon must come back to optimizing Victor Wembanyama. The Spurs haven't yet done that. Embracing the "He's our primary big" looks was a start. But they discovered that last year and have not done enough to open up the floor around him since.

Is this an analog for an awkward conversation about the (injured) Jeremy Sochan? Sort of. Everyone wants Wemby getting to the basket more often, and his rim frequency jumps by roughly five percentage points without Sochan on the floor, per PBP Stats.

But this is less about Sochan himself and more about the roster's makeup around Wemby. San Antonio should strive to surround him with no fewer than three outside threats defenses are inclined to guard.

That is tough to do looking at their current point guard setup and the investment in Stephon Castle (shooting better!). It's not impossible. The Spurs should think along the lines of acquiring someone who is a spacing upgrade over Harrison Barnes or Julian Champagnie and then commit to playing more of Wemby with one of them, the newcomer and Devin Vassell.

Toronto Raptors

What They Should Do: Chase after rim protectors who do not cost a first-round pick.

"Listen to offers on Bruce Brown Jr. and Kelly Olynyk" is the obvious way to go for a Toronto Raptors team more concerned with being the perfect kind of bad. But their availability, right along with that of Chris Boucher, is implied. And it's difficult to focus on the former two when neither has seen the floor this year.

Limited availability from Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to start the season further complicates Toronto's trade-deadline agenda. Can we really discern what it needs most?

It turns out we can.

Jakob Pöltl is quietly balling but not primary-rim-protector material without significantly different personnel alongside him. Toronto ranks 20th in the share of opponent shots coming at the basket and is 25th in field-goal percentage allowed at the hoop.

Simplified even further: When Barrett, Gradey Dick, Ochai Agbaji and Davion Mitchell are all top-five on the team in attempts challenged at the rim, it's time to go shopping for (preferably bigger) alternatives.

Utah Jazz

What they should do: Gauge the Jordan Clarkson and John Collins markets, but prioritize reeling in some more wing options.

Head coach Will Hardy may make me regret not urgently declaring the team ship out all of its veterans.

The Utah Jazz have the worst record in the Western Conference, but there's plenty of season left in the, ahem, tank. And equally important: Utah has Eastern Conference nosedivers it must out-lose.

Previously traumatic winning experiences in mind, the Jazz should be bad enough to secure top-tier lottery odds without making any changes. That frees them up to browse the market for young fliers.

And those fliers better come in the form of real, actual, wings.

Lauri Markkanen assuages this issue to some degree. But slotting him at the 3 when you're not running out dual-big or 4-5 combos destined to stick beyond this season rings ultra-hollow. Especially this side of the Taylor Hendricks injury.

Cody Williams and Johnny Juzang represent the beginning, middle and end of Utah's wing supply. That is not enough. The Jazz aren't learning anything about anyone or themselves when they have Brice Sensabaugh or—gulp—Clarkson as their 3. So...go get more.

Washington Wizards

What they should do: Trade at least one of Malcolm Brogdon, Kyle Kuzma and Jordan Poole.

There is value in having veterans on a rebuilding roster to insulate and optimize younger players. That's why Jonas Valančiūnas is not headlining the Washington Wizards section.

Yes, listen to offers for him. But having Alex Sarr as the only NBA-caliber center on the roster can also do a disservice to him and the team. Moving Valančiūnas does not clear much-needed runway.

Washington's perimeter logistics are an altogether different beast. It has bodies to spare and could stand to increase exploratory roles for Bub Carrington, Bilal Coulibaly and Kyshawn George.

Moving one of Malcolm Brogdon, Kyle Kuzma and Jordan Poole is the optimal way to do that. It does not need to be all, particularly when each theoretical transaction serves different purposes.

Brogdon's expiring contract and injury history is most useful as a salary anchor to take back unwanted money attached to draft assets. Kuzma should net you standalone picks and prospects. Shopping Poole is about getting out from under the final two years of his deal if you don't believe his scorching-hot outside shooting will hold.

The Wizards can choose whichever they prefer. Removing any one of these names from the ledger helps skew the rotation toward longer-term priorities.

Dan Favale covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter (@danfavale), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes.

Unless otherwise cited, stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference, Stathead or Cleaning the Glass. Salary information via Spotrac. Draft-pick obligations via RealGM.