No-trade clauses are rare in the NBA, and they’re becoming even rarer. With LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony both changing teams this offseason, two of the last players with explicit no-trade clauses in their contracts will no longer have that no-trade protection — to be eligible to negotiate a no-trade clause, a player must have at least eight years of NBA experience and four years with his current team, so neither James nor Anthony qualifies anymore.
While no NBA players have an explicit no-trade clause in their contracts for the time being, there are still several players who will have the ability to veto trades in 2018/19.
A player who re-signs with his previous team on a one-year contract – or a two-year deal with an option year – is given no-trade protection, and so is a player who signs an offer sheet and has that offer matched by his previous team. Players who accept qualifying offers after their rookie contracts expire can also block trades.
Taking into account that list of criteria, here are the players who must give their consent if their teams want to trade them during the 2018/19 league year:
No-trade clauses
- None
Players whose offer sheets were matched
- Zach LaVine (Bulls)
- Note: Even with his consent, LaVine cannot be traded to the Kings during the 2018/19 league year.
- Tyrone Wallace (Clippers)
- Note: Even with his consent, Wallace cannot be traded to the Pelicans during the 2018/19 league year.
Players accepting qualifying offers
- Rodney Hood (Cavaliers): Accepted trade
Players re-signing for one year (or two years including an option)
- Ryan Arcidiacono (Bulls)
- Aron Baynes (Celtics)
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (Lakers)
- Ian Clark (Pelicans)
- Kevin Durant (Warriors)
- Wayne Ellington (Heat): Accepted trade
- Raymond Felton (Thunder)
- Rudy Gay (Spurs)
- Gerald Green (Rockets)
- Udonis Haslem (Heat)
- Amir Johnson (Sixers)
- Luke Kornet (Knicks)
- Kevon Looney (Warriors)
- Salah Mejri (Mavericks)
- Dirk Nowitzki (Mavericks)
- J.J. Redick (Sixers)
- Derrick Rose (Timberwolves)
- Dwyane Wade (Heat)
If any of the players who re-signed for one year approves a trade during the 2018/19 league year, he’ll have Non-Bird rights at season’s end instead of Early Bird or full Bird rights. Any player who consents to a trade will retain his veto ability on his new team, and would have to approve a subsequent deal as well.