Early Season Standings Offer Clues to the Value of 2026 Traded First-Round Picks
SLUG: early-season-standings-value-2026-traded-picks
Hoops Rumors writer Luke Adams reported at 11:43 a.m. CST on November 23, 2025, that the first month of the 2025-26 NBA season is beginning to shed light on how a slew of 2026 traded first-round draft picks might ultimately shake out.
According to Adams, a maze of swap rights and pick protections continues to obscure exactly which clubs will end up controlling specific selections. Even so, early win-loss records are providing a preliminary sense of where teams could finish in the standings, helping analysts gauge which picks are tracking toward the top of the first round and which are likely to slide.
The article notes that much could still change before the May 2026 draft lottery, but current trends allow for a closer examination of which traded picks already appear to be rising in value and which may remain protected or convey later in the round.
Adams’ in-depth breakdown of every 2026 first-rounder that has changed hands—along with updated projections—appears in a subscriber-exclusive column available through the site’s Trade Rumors Front Office membership.
Source: Hoops Rumors
