Like this framework, much of the NBA’s impending trade activity will depend on which players are actually left on the board come draft night, as there’s quite a bit of uncertainty among decision-makers about where prospects will land following the top three selections. All it takes, for example, is Michigan guard Kobe Bufkin and Wembanyama’s Metropolitans 92 teammate Bilal Coulibaly jumping into the top 10 to leave another team’s higher-rated player on the board when the Mavericks’ pick arrives. There are plenty of clubs in addition to the Mavericks, such as the Thunder at No. 12 and the Lakers at No. 17, sources said, that will consider trading down with teams that hold multiple picks near or in the 20s such as Utah (Nos. 16 and 28), Brooklyn (Nos. 21 and 22) and Indiana (Nos. 26 and 29), who are all considering options at trading up, sources said.
