Which NBA teams make the most deals at the deadline?

If history has taught the NBA world anything, it’s this 2026 NBA Trade Deadline it’s sure to be crazy and filled with tons of moves, big and small. Superstars change every season. The Oklahoma City Thunder have proven through the trade market the importance of building for the future, and some teams just stink when it comes to moving and dealing. One thing is certain, however, and that is that nearly every team gets involved in a trade every year.

Trade deadline rumors are already picking up, like Giannis Antetokounmpo has just officially requested a trade from the Milwaukee Bucks. This year’s deadline will be at 3:00 PM ET on February 5th, and every team is already involved in rumors. However, which teams make the most trades? Here they are trades each team made during the trade deadline in the last decade. Only trades on the day of the deadline will be included, not trades settled in the days leading up to the deadline.

Three trade deadlines (1 team)

Minnesota Timberwolves

While aggressive trade deadline approaches are common in the modern NBA, the Minnesota Timberwolves haven’t jumped on the bandwagon. The team has made just three trade-deadline contracts over the last decade, three fewer than even the next rarest of trades.

However, this does not mean that the Timberwolves are not included in the trade; they just do their business during the off-season or well before the trade deadline when they’re not pressed for time. For example, Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns are two of the biggest names traded recently. Minnesota dealt Gobert a few weeks after the 2022 NBA draft and they shared Towns away Shortly before the start of the 2024-25 season.

When it comes to deadlines, the Timberwolves signed Mike Conley to a 2023 deal that helped them make back-to-back appearances in the Western Conference Finals. Their other two ultimate trades came in 2020.

Six trade deadlines (4 teams)

New Orleans Pelicans, Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks

Teams with exactly six trade deadline deals over the last decade aren’t necessarily as anti-trade as a first glance might allude. Instead, they just like to get the job done before the clock strikes midnight (or around 3:00 PM ET in terms of the trade deadline). For example, the Chicago Bulls haven’t done business on deadline day since 2021. They did make some big midseason trades, though. Last year Zach LaVine trade is one example, but that deal was made a few days before the deadline.

The New York Knicks are another team that is willing to make trades, but one that has no desire to do so at the last second. In recent years, the team has used the trade market to add OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns. The former player was traded in December, and the other two were offseason additions. The Indiana Pacers are in the same boat as they landed Pascal Siakam. These teams, along with the Timberwolves, prove that everyone in the NBA is active in the trade market at some point.

Seven trade deadlines (6 teams)

Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, Brooklyn Nets

Over the last decade, the Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets and Golden State Warriors have won at least one championship. The Warriors even had a dynasty, led by Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson. What each of these teams has in common is that they’ve made seven trades within the last 10 years, so maybe seven is the magic number.

While the San Antonio Spurs and Brooklyn Nets haven’t won a championship in the last 10 years, their futures are bright. The Spurs have an exciting young core led by Victor Vembanyama, and the Nets are loaded with recent first-round draft picks.

Eight trade deadlines (5 teams)

Charlotte Hornets, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Milwaukee Bucks

The most notable team to complete eight trades in the last decade is the Dallas Mavericks. While theirs trading of Luka Dončić technically happened ahead of schedule, it was certainly one of the biggest trades in NBA history, regardless of when it took place. The move was shocking at the time, and hindsight shows it was a mistake by Dallas to trade their young star for some draft capital and an aging, injury-prone player like Anthony Davis.

Don’t be surprised if the Milwaukee Bucks try to upgrade Dallas’ big move. Giannis Antetokounmpo has officially requested a trade. The Bucks won’t rush a deal, so a trade may not come until the last second on deadline day. The Charlotte Hornets have also had some notable trades at the deadline recently. Last year, the team traded Mark Williams for Dalton Knecht. That move then became the sixth revoked trade in NBA history after Williams failed his physical and returned to Charlotte fully aware that his team no longer wanted him.

Nine trade deadlines (3 teams)

Portland Trail Blazers, Miami Heat, Orlando Magic

Although the Miami Heat made two deals at the trade deadline last year, they haven’t previously been busy on deadline day since 2021. The team often finds hidden gems in the form of unheralded and underrated players. They were last year traded Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline after asking to leave town.

The Orlando Magic also made one of the bigger selling moves in recent memory. Back in 2021, they traded Aaron Gordon to the Nuggets. Gordon became a key part of a perennial contender and helped the Nuggets hoist the 2023 Larry O’Brien Trophy.

10 trade deadlines (3 teams)

Boston Celtics, Memphis Grizzlies, Phoenix Suns

The Boston Celtics, Memphis Grizzlies and Phoenix Suns make, on average, one trade per year on deadline day. When Danny Ainge was the general manager of the Celtics, the team was known for dumping his teammates in trades. Ainge is now with the Utah Jazz, and Brad Stevens continued the trend. In 2022, he was able to turn former draft pick Romeo Langford and a few other assets into Derrick White, a player who went from rookie to borderline All-Star during his time in Boston.

Grizzlies are great at making moves on the sidelines. They always tend to find contributors late in the draft, and have done well in finding roles on the trade market. The team could flip the script this year, as Ja Morant may be the one the most likely star to be traded this year.

The Suns made one of the biggest deals of the trade deadline in 2023 when they sent Mychal Bridges, Cam Johnson and four first-round picks for Kevin Durant. Durant has since been traded again, but it was big news at the time because the four-time scoring champion is one of the best players in NBA history.

12 trade deadlines (3 teams)

Los Angeles Clippers, Sacramento Kings, Washington Wizards

The Washington Wizards have already made the biggest trade of the season so far. They arranged for Tree Young and now they have an offensive engine to drive them forward. They’ve been pretty busy at the trade deadline in the past, too. The Los Angeles Clippers and Sacramento Kings also recently made 12 trades at the deadline.

The Kings are well known for making poor draft decisions, but their track record at the trade deadline has also been far from perfect. Sacramento has regularly been one of the worst teams in the NBA lately.

14 trade deadlines (1 team)

Detroit Pistons

The only team to make 14 trades within the last 10 years is the Detroit Pistons. All this vacillating and dealing led to the team leaving the the longest losing streak in NBA history just two years ago to the top team in the Eastern Conference. During the rebuilding years, they would trade veterans for capital. Draft capital has developed to form the core of what is now a championship contender, and now the team is likely to be one of the greatest Buyers for the 2026 NBA trade deadline.

15 trade deadlines (4 teams)

Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors

Trading at the deadline is all the rage these days, but the Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers and Toronto Raptors took things to a whole different level. Each team has made 15 trades at the deadline in the last decade. The 76ers have been super busy the last few years. They have made seven trades in the last three seasons.

The Rockets were busy before that with eight trades from 2016 to 2019. The correlation is obvious, which is that Daryl Morey went from general manager in Houston to Philly. Known for acquiring James Harden on multiple occasions, Morey may be the luckiest member of the NBA’s front office.

The Raptors’ trade numbers are boosted by the busy deadline in 2025. They made four deals on February 6 of last year. The biggest the move was for Brandon Ingram. The Hawks were similarly busy last year. In separate trades, they cut costs by trading Cody Zeller, Bogdan Bogdanovic and De’Andre Hunter.