Nearly half the teams in the league have been involved in five or more trades in the past calendar year, as the Celtics lead the way with 10 swaps while the Bulls are the only team that failed to swing a deal. The unofficial opening of trades of trade season was Tuesday, when dozens of players became eligible for inclusion in trades, and that December 15th date opened the gates to a whirlwind of activity a year ago. One trade this season preceded the date, as the Grizzlies and Heat hooked up on the Mario Chalmers deal last month, the earliest trade to take place in the month of November since 2008.
Chicago hasn’t made a trade since July 14th, 2014, when the Bulls shed salary in a pair of deals with the Mavericks and Magic, offloading Greg Smith and Anthony Randolph, plus future draft picks and cash, for draft-and-stash players.
All but the Bulls and the Lakers have participated in multiple swaps over the past year. It’s tough to conclude that either activity or inactivity breeds success, since the three teams that made the most trades — the Celtics, Sixers and Suns — have combined for a record of 26-51 while the Lakers and Bulls have gone 18-29 put together. However, four of the five teams that made only two trades have winning records this season, and that group includes the Warriors and Spurs, the teams with the best records in the league so far.
Here’s a look at the number of trades each team has executed since December 15th, 2014:
- Celtics: 10
- Sixers: 8
- Suns: 8
- Hornets: 6
- Pistons: 6
- Thunder: 6
- Timberwolves: 6
- Trail Blazers: 6
- Bucks: 5
- Cavaliers: 5
- Grizzlies: 5
- Knicks: 5
- Nuggets: 5
- Clippers: 4
- Magic: 4
- Hawks: 4
- Heat: 4
- Nets: 4
- Pelicans: 4
- Rockets: 4
- Kings: 3
- Pacers: 3
- Wizards: 3
- Jazz: 2
- Mavericks: 2
- Raptors: 2
- Spurs: 2
- Warriors: 2
- Lakers: 1
- Bulls: 0
Warriors and Spurs near the bottom of the list and they’re the 2 best teams in the league. Shows the value of consistency and familiarity.