Rank The Trade Value: LaMelo Ball, Zion Williamson, Kevin Durant, Domantas Sabonis, Lauri Markkanen

[MotownMadness]

Ball
Sabonis
Durant
Zion
Lauri

[Dat2U]

1. LaMelo Ball - just needs a new situation for the league to realize he's a superstar.
2. Zion Williamson - potential star but health will always be a concern
3. Domantas Sabonis - offensive hub but a defensively he needs the right situation.
4. Kevin Durant - still a very good player but age prevents him from being ranked higher
5. Lauri Markkanen - good player but Ainge likely wants too much for him.

[brackdan70]

Sabonis
Far and away the best player and best contract on the list

Lauri…upside and fair contract
Durant…how many productive years left?


Zion game changer but always injured
Ball empty stats and always injured.

[Godaddycurse]

Sabonis
Lauri
Durant
Ball
Zion

[babyjax13]

Sabonis - all star with no real concerns
Ball - huge upside, injury concerns as well as questions about whether he'll play winning ball
Lauri - borderline all star with no real concerns
Durant - superstar on the decline
Zion - huge upside, consistently injured and shows no sign of work ethic and discipline he would need to stay healthy given his play style and size.

My list exactly.

Also, Lauri had two really good years and was shut down last season by a tanking team (we sat him 18 of his last 22 games and our local radio reporters were saying the Jazz probably wouldn't be so conservative if they were playing for something), not sure why he's only getting credit for the MIP year though I would understand being hesitanr about the games missed.

[Daddy 801]

Kind of depends on what the team needs are. But I’ll give my general in a vacuum take.

Sabonis
Durant
Ball
Lauri
Zion

As a Jazz fan my order would be totally different.

Zion
Ball
Sabonis
Durant

Leaving out Lauri since the Jazz already have him. For the Jazz taking Zion on and his injury risks are worth it just because he has a contract you can dump if he doesn’t perform. And we could literally give him a whole year to play half of the games and rehab. Wouldn’t give up a ton to get Zion though due to the risk factor. Ball would be second only because we need a PG for the future. But I don’t really like his efficiency so again I wouldn’t give up too much to get him. Sabonis would be first on the list but we have Kessler so we would have to be making a move to get rid of Kessler unless those two could coexist. Durant makes no sense on a young rebuilding team.

[SlimShady83]

SAbonis ... Never gets any love on here
KD ... still has a lot of value
T. Young ... op forgot about Young so adding him in have a feeling he'll be traded?
Ball ... for the right team.
Lauri ... I don't think he'll be getting traded.
Zion ... I think It will be hard to trade him unless someone wants to risk It.

[Mrakar]

Tier 1: Ball, Sabonis
Tier 2: Durant
Tier 3: Markkanen
Tier 4: Zion

I agree with this list completley, would switch Durant and Markkanen, if tier 4 is highest value and tier 1 lowest.

I see a lot of people putting Sabonis as highest value and i really dont understand it. He can lead a team to lower play-in seed if he is the best player and thats about it.

Zion has ofc highest ceiling and lowest floor but still is young and potentially can be #1 option on championship team. Only other guy on the list that can do it is Durant and he is 36 years old.

Just to put it in perspective:
If pelicans offered zion for Sabonis 1 for 1, Kings would jump on it.
If Pelicans offered Zion for Markkanen 1 for 1, Utah would jump on it.
If Pelicans offered Zion for Durant, Suns would jump on it(bcs they have to trade him).
If Pelicans offered Zion for Ball there would be no deal since Hornets have their own high upside high risk player in Ball and in that case teams always keep their player.

[SA37]

1. Durant - the only legit superstar available, and seemingly still has 2-3 more prime-ish years. His age means the number of interested teams will be limited, but Miami, Houston, Memphis, New York, and San Antonio would all have interest.

2. Zion - has star potential and an incentive-laden contract.

3. Sabonis - all-star level player who would be a good pairing with any team with a good pg

4. LaMelo Ball - I think he has a similar 'tweener' valuation like Trae Young

5. Markkanen - also someone who I think has 'tweener' value

[evilution]

Lauri
Durant
LaMelo
Sabonis
Zion

I have a tough time with Zion vs Sabonis. Talent is all Zion, but health tips the scales the other way.

I see everyone else has Sabonis at the top. That's hard to justify considering the difficulty level of winning with the guy.

That's a strange argument considering Sabonis at least constantly takes his team to play-ins/playoffs unlike everyone else on that list except Durant.
I think Sabonis can be a great second best player on a contender with a properly built team (one that doesn't have all-shit-defense and Keegan starting lineup like Kings do right now). Can't see Lauri as second best, and can't imagine building a team around LaMelo or Zion when they can't be trusted to be available for more than half a season, and especially playoffs. All this considering, Sabonis is competing for top value among these 5 with Durant due to age, injury concern and contract.

[babyjax13]

Tier 1: Ball, Sabonis
Tier 2: Durant
Tier 3: Markkanen
Tier 4: Zion

I agree with this list completley, would switch Durant and Markkanen, if tier 4 is highest value and tier 1 lowest.

I see a lot of people putting Sabonis as highest value and i really dont understand it. He can lead a team to lower play-in seed if he is the best player and thats about it.

Zion has ofc highest ceiling and lowest floor but still is young and potentially can be #1 option on championship team. Only other guy on the list that can do it is Durant and he is 36 years old.

Just to put it in perspective:
If pelicans offered zion for Sabonis 1 for 1, Kings would jump on it.
If Pelicans offered Zion for Markkanen 1 for 1, Utah would jump on it.
If Pelicans offered Zion for Durant, Suns would jump on it(bcs they have to trade him).
If Pelicans offered Zion for Ball there would be no deal since Hornets have their own high upside high risk player in Ball and in that case teams always keep their player.

No, we absolutely wouldn't, nor would any of those other teams.

[jredsaz]

The problem with lists like this is that different teams swill value these players differently both from need and competitive perspectives. Specific contenders who are close to a title next season probably have Durant at the top. Teams just outside that might have Durant behind Sabonis, Lauri, and/or Zion. Playin level teams looking to make a jump might have Ball and Zion at the top of their priority list.

[the_process]

Lauri
Durant
LaMelo
Sabonis
Zion

I have a tough time with Zion vs Sabonis. Talent is all Zion, but health tips the scales the other way.

I see everyone else has Sabonis at the top. That's hard to justify considering the difficulty level of winning with the guy.

That's a strange argument considering Sabonis at least constantly takes his team to play-ins/playoffs unlike everyone else on that list except Durant.
I think Sabonis can be a great second best player on a contender with a properly built team (one that doesn't have all-shit-defense and Keegan starting lineup like Kings do right now). Can't see Lauri as second best, and can't imagine building a team around LaMelo or Zion when they can't be trusted to be available for more than half a season, and especially playoffs. All this considering, Sabonis is competing for top value among these 5 with Durant due to age, injury concern and contract.

Everyone values things differently.

Sabonis had a near perfect front court mate in Myles Turner and Indiana did nothing. In Sacramento Sabonis is playing like Jokic-lite and they're a play-in team.

Being a non-defensive center and trying to win a championship is almost impossible unless your name is Nikola Jokic. I place very little value on his type of player.

Lauri is a first and foremost a shooter. On volume. I'm not concerned what is happening in Utah this year because they haven't been trying since the preseason. The whole goal of their year was to finish with the worst record in the league. Durant is better but demands more shots and Lauri is younger.

[ReggiesKnicks]

1. Zion Williamson

Highest Ceiling, high current on-court impact, unique and scalable skill-set, beneficial contract regardless of outcome

2. Kevin Durant
3. Domantas Sabonis

Interchangeable players in terms of value, as I can see clear and concise arguments for each. Sabonis can assist in anchoring high-powered offenses but has clear defensive and team-building limitations when scaling to team building on higher-level teams with championship aspirations.

Kevin Durant can still be a clear-cut #2 scoring option on a title team and is fit-proof in that he can slot into all 30 teams in the NBA without loss of a majority of his impact. This means there will be 10+ teams who can look at Durant and say "If we add him, we are clear title contenders", and that aspect adds value to his trade value.

4. LaMelo Ball
5. Lauri Markkanen

Take your pick.

[Mrakar]

Tier 1: Ball, Sabonis
Tier 2: Durant
Tier 3: Markkanen
Tier 4: Zion

I agree with this list completley, would switch Durant and Markkanen, if tier 4 is highest value and tier 1 lowest.

I see a lot of people putting Sabonis as highest value and i really dont understand it. He can lead a team to lower play-in seed if he is the best player and thats about it.

Zion has ofc highest ceiling and lowest floor but still is young and potentially can be #1 option on championship team. Only other guy on the list that can do it is Durant and he is 36 years old.

Just to put it in perspective:
If pelicans offered zion for Sabonis 1 for 1, Kings would jump on it.
If Pelicans offered Zion for Markkanen 1 for 1, Utah would jump on it.
If Pelicans offered Zion for Durant, Suns would jump on it(bcs they have to trade him).
If Pelicans offered Zion for Ball there would be no deal since Hornets have their own high upside high risk player in Ball and in that case teams always keep their player.

No, we absolutely wouldn't, nor would any of those other teams.

maybe u personaly wouldnt, but Ainge would.

[babyjax13]

I agree with this list completley, would switch Durant and Markkanen, if tier 4 is highest value and tier 1 lowest.

I see a lot of people putting Sabonis as highest value and i really dont understand it. He can lead a team to lower play-in seed if he is the best player and thats about it.

Zion has ofc highest ceiling and lowest floor but still is young and potentially can be #1 option on championship team. Only other guy on the list that can do it is Durant and he is 36 years old.

Just to put it in perspective:
If pelicans offered zion for Sabonis 1 for 1, Kings would jump on it.
If Pelicans offered Zion for Markkanen 1 for 1, Utah would jump on it.
If Pelicans offered Zion for Durant, Suns would jump on it(bcs they have to trade him).
If Pelicans offered Zion for Ball there would be no deal since Hornets have their own high upside high risk player in Ball and in that case teams always keep their player.

No, we absolutely wouldn't, nor would any of those other teams.

maybe u personaly wouldnt, but Ainge would.

If New Orleans includes a pick in the 3-7 range with Zion, sure, otherwise, no... I don't see any reasonable scenario under which Ainge would make such a terrible decision.

[MoreyWins]

1. LaMelo Ball - One of two players that should be superstar level in five years. His injury concerns are less worrisome than Zion.
2. Zion Williamson - The other player that should be a superstar for the foreseeable future.

3. Domantas Sabonis - Locked in for the prime of his career.
4. Kevin Durant - He's turning 37 in September and will be expiring next season. You trade for him knowing you're extending a 38 year old player.
5. Lauri Markkanen - He's the highest paid player on this list and least productive. He's locked in for the prime of his career, but hasn't left a trail of winning behind him.

[nomansland]

Ball- superstar potential, young
Sabonis- good guy to build around, high character
Markhanen- A level talent, young, mishandled by teams so far
Durant- great player, old, injury prone, unlikely to stay for more than a couple of years
Williamson- never plays, you'd be crazy to trade much for him

[NYG]

The way I would try looking at it...

If the Suns were trading KD straight up for one of these guys, what order would they prefer and would they owe anything additional?

By that thinking, I have it as

Sabonis
KD
Ball
Zion
Lauri

I think in a 3-team deal

Contender gets:
KD

Suns get:
Ball, Zion or Lauri

Hornets/Pelicans/Jazz get:
Contender's assets

The contender would prefer KD to Ball, Zion or Lauri, but would probably keep Sabonis over KD

[Astaluego]

Honest question, what's the argument in favor of Lauri over players like (for example) MPJ (better stats in practically everything) or even Lavine?