In one of the wildest transactions in the history of the National Basketball Association, there were six teams involved in a trade on Wednesday according to nba.com. The teams involved were the Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, Milwaukee Bucks and Washington Wizards. The primary players involved in the transaction were small forward Khris Middleton of Charleston, South Carolina, point guard D’Angelo Russell of Louisville, Kentucky, center Isaiah Stewart of Rochester, New York, power forward Santi Aldama of Las Palmas, Spain, and power forward John Collins of Layton, Utah.
The Wizards received Middleton from the Mavericks and a second round pick in 2033. The Grizzlies received shooting guard AJ Johnson of Fresno, California from the Mavericks, Russell from the Wizards, Stewart from the Pistons, two second round picks in 2029 (one from the Mavericks and the other from the Wizards), a first round pick in 2030 (from the Mavericks), and a second round pick in 2033 (from the Wizards). There is also a second round pick swap between the Grizzlies and Wizards in 2030. The Mavericks receive Aldama and small forward Tarik Biberovic of Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina from the Grizzlies, and point guard Marcus Sasser of Dallas, Texas from the Pistons. The Bucks receive shooting guard Caris LeVert of Columbus, Ohio and two second round picks from the Pistons. The Pistons receive Collins from the Clippers, shooting guard Gary Harris of Fishers, Indiana and small forward Taurean Prince of San Marcos, Texas from the Bucks, a second round pick in 2029, and two draft picks from the Grizzlies (in 2031 and 2032). The Clippers receive a second round pick from the Pistons in 2028.
Middleton is returning to the Wizards after playing there from 2025 to 2026. He also played one season with the Pistons (2012-13), a dozen seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks (2013 to 2025), and part of last season with the Mavericks. Middleton was a three-time NBA All-Star (2019, 2020, and 2022), and won the NBA Finals with the Bucks in 2021. During the 2021 NBA Playoffs, he led the NBA with 60 three-point shots made. In 2025-26 with the Wizards and Mavericks, Middleton averaged 10.2 points per game, 3.7 rebounds per game and 2.8 assists per game. He had a field goal percentage of .420, three point percentage of .360, and free throw percentage of .875.
Russell is joining his sixth NBA franchise after five seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers (2015 to 2017, and 2023 to 2024), three seasons with the Brooklyn Nets (2017 to 2019, and one season from 2024 to 2025), one season with the Golden State Warriors (2019 to 2020), four seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves (2020 to 2024), and one season with the Dallas Mavericks (2025 to 2026). Russell was a NBA All-Star with the Nets in 2018-19. With the Mavericks this past season, Russell averaged 10.2 points per game, four assists per game, 2.3 rebounds per game, a field goal percentage of .405, three point percentage of .295 and free throw percentage of .717.
Aldama played the last five seasons with the Grizzlies. In 2025-26, he averaged 14 points per game, 6.7 rebounds per game, and 2.9 assists per game. He had a field goal percentage of .479, three point percentage of .350 and a free throw percentage of .667. Aldama only played 43 games last season because of a knee injury. Due to his strong statistics in half the season and the fact he is entering his prime, it is fair to say the Mavericks won the trade.
Collins is joining his fourth NBA team after six seasons with the Atlanta Hawks (2017 to 2023), two seasons with the Utah Jazz (2023 to 2025), and one season with the Los Angeles Clippers (2025 to 2026). In 2025-26, Collins averaged 13.6 points per game, 5.3 rebounds per game and one assist per game. He had a field goal percentage of .552, three point percentage of .406, and free throw percentage of .766.
