With the February 5 trade deadline looming, contenders aren’t just shopping for “another ball-handler” or “more size.” They’re shopping for oxygen. In a league where defenses are switching more and shrinking the floor on purpose, shooting is the one skill that travels cleanly from January to May, and it’s usually the first thing to get exposed when the game slows down.
The Nuggets (39.5%) and Bucks (39.2%) are setting the pace in three-point accuracy, while the Warriors and Celtics are still the volume kings in makes.
And that’s the pressure point for several contenders: you can defend, you can rebound, you can live at the rim, but if you can’t punish help, teams will load up on your stars and dare your role players to decide the season.
Over the next week, we’re looking at the contenders who should be most aggressive in hunting real shooters, not vibes, not “spacing,” actual proven shot-making.
1. Orlando Magic
Potential Trade Targets: Sam Merrill, Klay Thompson
The Magic’s half-court offense is still built on size, rim pressure, and mismatches, but the math is getting ugly on the perimeter. They’re shooting 33.9% from three, which ranks 29th in the league, and that inefficiency shows up in the shot profile too: 32.8 three-point attempts per game and 11.1 makes per game. When your volume is at least respectable but your conversion rate is bottom-tier, it turns every Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner drive into a crowd scene.
In the standings, the Magic are 23-21 and sitting eighth in the East, which is exactly the type of spot where a deadline shooter swing is justified. You’re not blowing it up, you’re trying to stabilize the playoff runway and make the first-round matchup less of a spacing nightmare.
Sam Merrill is the cleanest “add oxygen” target because he’s a specialist who’s also playing like more than a specialist. He’s averaging 13.8 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 2.3 assists, and he’s drilling 45.5% from three on 7.8 attempts per game. That is real gravity. Contract-wise, he’s at $8.4 million in 2025-26, a number that’s workable in most mid-tier constructions without forcing the Magic to gut their rotation.
The Cavaliers are also 27-20 and fifth in the East, so this isn’t a “Cavaliers must sell” situation, but contenders do sometimes turn one hot-role-player season into a more balanced deadline reshuffle, especially if they’re hunting another playoff-proof piece
Klay Thompson is the bigger-name sledgehammer. He’s at 15.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists with 38.0% from three, and his $16.6 million 2025-26 salary is the kind of matching number that can anchor a multi-player framework.
The Mavericks are 19-27 and 12th in the West, and reporting in December indicated the Mavericks have been open to exploring the trade market for Thompson ahead of the deadline. If the Mavericks are reorienting around the future, the Magic can pitch younger pieces and controlled contracts while buying a shooter defenses still fear, even if the legs are no longer 2016.
2. Toronto Raptors
Potential Trade Targets: Collin Gillespie, Aaron Nesmith
The Raptors have a similar issue, just packaged differently. They’re 26th in three-point percentage at 34.3%, and the volume is light: 30.3 attempts and 10.4 makes per game. That combination caps the offense, because you’re not generating enough threes to punish help, and the threes you do take aren’t falling at a winning rate.
What makes it urgent is the context: the Raptors are 29-19 and third in the East. At that level, “we’ll grow into it” is not a satisfying answer. You’re in a spot where one extra high-accuracy spacer can swing a playoff series by forcing defenses to guard the corners honestly. And the Raptors are reportedly willing to trade big pieces for an upgrade.
Collin Gillespie is a sneaky, practical target because he’s producing like a rotation guard who can actually shoot. He’s at 13.4 points, 4.7 assists, and 4.1 rebounds while hitting 42.5% from three on 6.8 attempts per game.
His 2025-26 salary is just $2.3 million, which matters because it lets the Raptors chase shooting without turning the deadline into a cap gymnastics routine. The Suns are 27-19 and sixth in the West, so this would require them believing they’re upgrading elsewhere, not simply donating a shooter.
Aaron Nesmith is a different bet: more size, more two-way utility, and a cleaner “playoff wing” archetype. He’s averaging 13.3 points and 5.2 rebounds, but he’s at 34.9% from three, so the Raptors would be trading for the idea of a shooter more than a pure sniper.
The contract is mid-tier at $11.0 million in 2025-26, which is both helpful for matching and expensive enough that you’d better be confident the catch-and-shoot efficiency rebounds in a better ecosystem. The Pacers’ record is 11-35 and 14th in the East, which is the kind of season where teams at least listen on veterans with real market value.
3. San Antonio Spurs
Potential Trade Targets: Malik Monk, Kelly Oubre Jr.
The Spurs are winning at a real level, but the one flaw that still feels “deadline-fixable” is the shooting efficiency around Victor Wembanyama. They rank 23rd in team 3-point percentage at 34.8%.
What makes that number pop is the volume. The Spurs are 11th in 3-point attempts per game (37.8) and also 11th in 3-pointers made per game (13.2). So it’s not a timid offense, it’s a “good shots, not enough great shooters” offense, which matters because spacing is the tax you pay to unlock Wembanyama as a roll threat, post scorer, and short-roll passer.
In the standings, the Spurs are 31-15 and sitting second in the West. They’re also putting up 117.4 points per game while allowing 112.4, which is exactly why tightening the shot quality and conversion rate matters, they’re already in the contender mix if the half-court gets cleaner.
That’s where Malik Monk fits. He’s averaging 12.5 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 2.5 assists, while shooting 45.0% from the field and 42.7% from three. Monk’s 2025-26 salary is $18.7 million a real number, but also one that signals “rotation difference-maker,” not just a marginal add. The Kings, meanwhile, are 12-35 and buried near the bottom of the West, the exact kind of record that can force uncomfortable deadline conversations.
Kelly Oubre Jr. is the other lane: more wing-sized, more transition juice, but still a credible spacer. He’s at 14.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game, shooting 49.0% overall and 38.0% from three. His 2025-26 salary is $8.3 million, which is the type of contract that’s actually movable at the deadline without turning the deal into a three-team math problem. The 76ers are 24-20 and sixth in the East, so this one depends less on record and more on whether they’re prioritizing consolidation or staying the course.
4. Los Angeles Lakers
Potential Trade Targets: Vit Krejci, Andrew Wiggins
The Lakers’ shooting profile this season is a weird mix of ambition and inefficiency, and it explains why “add real spacing” keeps showing up on their deadline checklist. They’re hitting just 34.5% from three, which ranks 22nd in the league, yet they’re not shy about letting it fly. They rank 5th in three-point attempts (34.1 per game) and 5th in three-point makes (11.9 per game).
That gap between volume and accuracy is the red flag. When you take that many threes but convert at a bottom-third rate, it usually means some combination of shaky shooters in key minutes, too many “bailout” attempts late in the clock, and not enough easy catch-and-shoot looks that punish help defenders.
For a team sitting 27-17 and 5th in the West, the calculus is pretty simple: even a small upgrade in shot-making can swing a playoff series.
On the low-cost end, Vit Krejci is the kind of target front offices love because the contract does half the work. He’s at 9.3 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game while drilling 42.5% from three, and he’s on a $2.3 million salary in 2025-26. The appeal for the Lakers is obvious: cheap spacing, a quick decision-maker, and enough size to survive defensively in most matchups. The Hawks are 22-25 and 10th in the East, so if they decide to reshuffle, smaller rotation pieces are usually the first place to listen.
The bigger swing is Andrew Wiggins, and there’s at least a real breadcrumb trail here. Jake Fischer has reported the Lakers have been monitoring Wiggins’ situation, and the fit makes too much sense to ignore: a two-way wing who can guard up a position and punish open threes. Wiggins is at 15.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 39.8% from three, and he’s making $28.3 million in 2025-26, so any deal is a real-money, real-assets conversation. The Heat are 25-22 and 7th in the East, which is exactly the kind of “competitive but not settled” spot that can create deadline creativity.
5. Detroit Pistons
Potential Trade Targets: Josh Green, Moses Moody
The Pistons are winning at a contender level, 33-11, first in the East, and they are doing it with defense and physicality more than pristine spacing. The perimeter math is the tell: they’re 18th in team 3-point percentage (35.3%), yet they’re also fourth in both 3-point attempts (32.0 per game) and 3s made (11.3 per game). That combo usually screams “volume without fear,” but in playoff environments, it can also become “volume without punishment,” especially when opponents load up on the primary creators and dare the non-elite shooters to beat them over a seven-game sample.
That’s why this deadline should be about adding one more credible, playoff-proof spacer who can survive defensively. Not a specialist who gets hunted, a real two-way role piece who changes how teams guard the Pistons in the corners and above the break.
Josh Green is a clean archetype swing. He’s only at 4.5 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.0 assists this season, but he’s hitting 40.0% from three, and his value is in the connective tissue, quick decisions, transition sprints, and point-of-attack effort. Financially, he’s at $13.6 million in 2025-26, and the Hornets are 12th in the East, which is exactly the kind of context where veterans get discussed.
Moses Moody is the higher-upside add because he’s already producing rotation offense: 10.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists in 24.5 minutes, with 40.0% from three this season. His 2025-26 salary is $11.5 million, and he’s on a three-year extension framework, which makes him pricey enough to matter but still movable if the Warriors reshuffle around the edges. For the Pistons, Moody is the kind of shooter teams actually stay attached to, and that’s the whole point.
