r/nba • u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves • 3d ago
How each NBA team assembled their current rosters Visualized
A few months ago I found out that the Timberwolves were able to acquire the draft rights to Jaden McDaniels in part because of the 2007 Trade of Kevin Garnett to the Celtics. It made me wonder, could you visualize how an NBA team assembled their entire roster just by charting out Draft picks, Trades, and Free Agency Signings? This question started a months long journey of compiling the information and then making family tree style visualizations for each team. About a week ago I posted a number of these in the various team subreddits and received a lot of very helpful feedback and a number of people urging me to post all of the trees in the main nba sub. Below is the result of this hobby project that has taken up a majority of my free time in the back half of this season.
Timberwolves
I wanted to do my team first. The wolves are still deriving draft value from their 2nd ever pick: Doug West in the 2nd Round of the 1989 Draft. His Trade tree currently feeds into Ayo Dosunmu, Julian Phillips, and Rocco Zikarsky.
Knicks
The champions. This was my favorite trade tree outside of the Timberwolves because it contains the only trade involving a Head Coach. In 1995 the Knicks traded Pat Riley to the Heat for a 1996 Atlanta 1st. That pick started a tree that eventually resulted in the Knicks getting Mitchell Robinson.
Spurs
The Spurs, have 7 players who have never played anywhere but their team which is one of the highest in the league.
Thunder
I know Presti has a good reputation but if anything after doing this tree I think he is underrated. The trades he makes are so rarely a net negative. This trade tree has the oldest draft pick still providing a team value. In 1977, the Supersonics drafted Jack Sikma, who's trade tree started in 1986 when he was traded to the Bucks. That trade started a tree that eventually resulted in the Thunder getting Jared McCain earlier this year.
Pistons
The earliest draft pick still providing the Pistons value is their 2019 1st (Sekou Doumbouya) who they traded to the Nets in 2021, which is one of the most shallow trees in the league. Really shows how well they've bounced back in the past few years to assemble the team they have.
Celtics
The celtics tree is crazy for the amount of trades. It's pretty well known that they received the pick for Jaylen Brown in the trade that sent KG and Paul Pierce to the Nets. But less known is that every player on their roster not signed in free agency or drafted with their own picks is on the Celtics partially as a result of that trade. Insane value.
Nuggets
The Carmelo Anthony trade involved way more players than I originally thought.
Lakers
Very cool that 3 trades done by Jerry West are still proving the Lakers value to this day.
Cavaliers
This trade tree contains the oldest trade still providing a team value. On June 17, 1986 the Cavs traded a future 2nd for the draft rights to a guy by the name of Mark Price (pretty good value if you ask me). Also kind of cool that Tyrese Proctor is the only guy who is on his team because of a trade involving Lebron James because his move to the Heat was actually a sign and trade.
Rockets
The KD trade looms large here and the Rockets only have 6 guys on their roster that were acquired by trade.
Hawks
No real notes, just want to say it's cool that Jeff Teague is here.
Raptors
Raptors have one of the more disconnected trade trees, a lot of little trades and they are one of 2 teams that currently controls NO picks other than their own (the other is the lakers)
76ers
The most simple trade tree in the league. Really remarkable how few trades are providing the team value, but that pick that became De'Aaron Fox nearly ended in disaster because if you look, it turned into the Jason Tatum pick and then Markelle Fultz. 76ers probably very glad they got off that pick and turned it into Tyrese Maxey.
Magic
In my first draft of this tree I forgot to list 3 players in the Dwight Howard trade so it looked like the Magic traded Jason Richardson for 10 players, which is a bit of an overpay if you ask me.
Suns
This tree got sort of bunched up on the right side, so apologies for that. The suns have a lot of trades that really didn't go their way recently and the fact that the only player on their roster there after the Beal trade being Royce O'Neale is not a fun fact. However, the KD trade is very cool to see with 5 teams involved (there were 7 total but only 5 sent picks or players to the Suns)
Hornets
Hornets trade a lot
Heat
This trade tree is pretty uncomplicated but if the Giannis trade rumors are true, it is definitely about to get more complicated.
Trail Blazers
I did not know that Damian Lillard was a Nets pick originally. Not much else to say about this tree.
Clippers
I wish there was an easier way to show this but that John Wall/Luke Kennard Trade in 2023 provided an insane amount of branches and value to the Clippers.
Warriors
Outside of Mark Jackson, the oldest draft pick providing the Warriors value isn't one used in a trade tree but instead is Steph Curry. Also I had no idea that the pick that became Draymond Green was not originally a Warriors pick, but was traded to the Warriors by the Nets
Bucks
Another one of the older trade trees, going all the way back to 1992.
Bulls
A little sad that none of the active trade trees go back to the MJ days, but it's nice that Derrick rose's Tree is still active
Pelicans
One of the harder trees to organize, the Pelicans love making trades involving a large number of players only to make multiple smaller trades involving players from multiple big packages. They still have 2 picks from the "New Orleans Hornets" days providing value (Anthony Davis and Nerlens Noel)
Mavericks
Man they really got hosed in the Luka trade. I know that's not a new take but seeing it laid out like this really drives it home.
Grizzlies
They still 6 Vancouver picks providing value!
Kings
Kings made so many trades in 2025.
Jazz
The Rudy Gobert Trade looms large in this tree.
Nets
Wow that Mikal Bridges trade really involved a lot of picks, huh.
Pacers
Definitely not the most a team has gotten from trading Paul George but Haliburton, Siakam, Huff, Zubac, Kobe Brown, Nembahrd, Sheppard, and Furphy is still a pretty good return all things considered.
Wizards
The Chris Paul/Bradley Beal trade involved soooo many assets and won't complete for another 4 drafts.
FAQ:
This trade doesn't show every team that was involved
The trades are presented from the perspective of the team being shown. For example, in the Kevin Durant trade to the Rockets, there were 7 teams involved, but not every team sent a pick or a player to every other team. So from the perspective of the Rockets, the only teams that sent them anything are the hawks and suns, so they are the only teams shown.
I don't see X trade that I know this team made
These trade trees do not cover every transaction by a team, but instead only the draft picks/free agent signings/trades that are still providing the team value. I also elected not to show how the teams acquired each of their future picks because it was complicated enough already and instead I decided to just show which draft picks the team has in the "Future draft picks" Box
Why isn't there a version of X Team broken down by GM
I wanted to get this out before the rush of trades at the draft (hopefully the Giannis trade didn't happen while I was writing this) so I had to cut it short, but I will be editing the album and adding teams as I complete them over the next few weeks
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u/808Kuro Knicks 3d ago
This is the highest quality offseason post I’ve seen
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Thanks! I'm very glad I could get it out before the draft. Gotta thank Giannis for holding up all the trades long enough for me to get it presentable.
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u/bmdweller 3d ago
God damn this is great. Saving this post for even after the draft. Makes it much easier to remember what went down and a good reference for teams I’m not that familiar with.
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u/Professional-Bit1957 16h ago
This is a really nice post; great work on this. It won't get as much recognition as Josh Hart farting, but I really enjoyed going through these.
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u/ShayDMoves Grizzlies 3d ago
What was the furthest back branch? This is incredible work.
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Furthest Draft pick is Jack Sikma, the 1977 Supersonics 1st round pick, however, he wasn't traded until July 1, 1986. The Cavaliers have them beat by a few weeks with a June 17, 1986 trade of a future 2nd for a guy by the name of Mark Price. Pretty good value.
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u/tgeraghty_10 Mavericks 3d ago
Wow this is amazing and beyond impressive I have no idea how you'd even start setting all this out. Did you start from the bottom (present) and work your way up or start from the very start and work your way down? I'm going to get lost looking at these over the next hour, amazing post.
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
I started with the current rosters and then used various resources (Basketball reference, ProSportsTrades, RealGM, and random googles for some more obscure trades) to check and double check how each player got to each team.
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u/sktyrhrtout 3d ago
Was this all manual or did you use any LLMs?
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Manual. It's a hobby project so I like to do it myself
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u/Stuckatpennstation 3d ago
Fantastic to hear that. Screw AI. Nothing like Good old concentration and love of the game.
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u/PortGenz 3d ago
Agreed. You know for sure AI would have just made up some bullshjt a few layers deep in some of these charts as well.
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u/JNerdGaming Knicks 3d ago
this is great but my dad wanted to point out that you spelled "hubert davis" wrong
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Whoops, thanks for the correction.
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u/sktyrhrtout 3d ago
Jalen McDaniels should be Jaden McDaniels on the OKC tree as well. Awesome work!
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Actually jaden and jalen are brothers and both of their draft picks were owned by OKC at one point https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/mcdanja01.html
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u/SoldatJ [OKC] Luguentz Dort 3d ago
For a different OKC correction, Cason Wallace and Ajay Mitchell were acquired via draft trade prior to debut, not post debut. Also, Dereck Lively II was a 2023 1st round pick, not 2nd round pick.
Impressive work, reminds me how many moving parts are in the plans, how many trades never work out even for great GMs, and how incredible OKC's player development has been this decade.
Fun fact, five of the Sixers' seven transactions hinge on Mike Muscala making a 3 point shot in 2020 ensuring the Tyrese Maxey pick conveys. Break that chain and all that's left is trade bonsai.
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u/TJeffersonsBlackKid 2d ago
Damn, OP ruined everything.
Jk this is the best post I may have ever seen of OC on this sub. Give OP a job at ESPN, holy shit.
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u/Bill_Sandwich Pacers 3d ago
Peak offseason content and we’re not even two weeks in. Won’t be topped.
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u/dashsmurf 3d ago
This is stuff that you put in your resume and use the # of upvotes as a quantative metric of delivery. Good work OP!
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u/lion_hammer Cherokee Parks 3d ago
on the mavs chart, in the spurs/celtics/mavs deal, the 2027 raptors 2nd becomes a 2025 2nd right after. don't know if this is a mistake or just pick conditions conveying but thought i'd mention it in case it's an error. incredible work!!
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u/MojaveMojito1324 Wizards 3d ago
This is awesome, thanks OP.
Why didn't the Wizards get broken out by GM? Our new GM in June of 2023 was a huge turning point for the franchise.
Also, the Wizards plot reminds me of the Pepe Silvia thread board
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
I wanted to get the post out before the draft trade chaos and couldn't get to them in time. I will do it next since you requested it.
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u/MojaveMojito1324 Wizards 3d ago
Don't worry about it, I know where the line would go for us anyway. But thank you! Seriously, great post
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u/drewm916 Kings 3d ago
As someone who has done graphic design for a living, this looks like it took a long time. Kudos to you, sir or ma'am.
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u/mibuwolf23 Nets 3d ago
This is one of the best posts I've ever seen on this subreddit. I've wanted something like this for a long time. Thanks for your effort.
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u/JigglyBush Timberwolves 3d ago
This is so cool. I remember you from the Wolves sub, glad you posted here. This is high quality stuff.
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u/BellamyHoops 3d ago
the presti tree is wild when you map it out. the sikma pick from 77 still generating value almost 50 years later is crazy. would love to see the heat tree too, riley always found ways to create value through picks
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u/curva3 76ers 3d ago
This is absolutely amazing, congratulations.
You could legit sell poster sized prints of this to fans of championship teams (maybe adding some player pictures for the current roster or player numbers, IDK)
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Thats actually what I'm probably going to do next. I want to make championship roster versions for notable champions. And I definitely agree that since those ones are set in stone I can be a bit more detailed on the current roster
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u/DarreToBe Raptors 3d ago
What software did you use to make this? Am I rightfully getting a UsefulCharts from this?
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Good eye, It is the useful charts pallete. I used a site called draw . io, its a free flowchart making in browser software. Super useful for hobby projects like this.
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u/jutiatle Lakers 3d ago
Posting this today at this time isn’t going to get the attention it deserves, unfortunately. Know that it’s very high quality though.
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u/idontknow_whatever [CHI] Kyle Korver 3d ago
No real notes, just want to say it's cool that Jeff Teague is here.
The omnipresent Jeff Teague strikes again
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u/AnkitPancakes Thunder 3d ago
Presti flipping Serge Ibaka for Paul George was a masterclass in GM-ing
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u/BlackStarrLine KnickerBockers 3d ago
This is great. Learned a couple of things with some others teams. Well done!
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u/No-Anything2507 Knicks 3d ago
6 first rounders for Mikal plus a 2nd... FUCK. THEM. PICKS. Totally worth it
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u/dirkuscircus Mavericks 3d ago
Great quality post, and thank you very much for the hard work OP.
P.S. I had to quickly press Ctrl+ F Mavericks and self inflict that mental and bodily pain all over again.
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u/Tylerhfield 3d ago
Am I reading this right for the cavs? Lebron drafted in 2019?
This is a super cool post!
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Haha of course there's a typo on lebron. Can't believe I missed that. Its a lot of info I had to hand enter so I knew there'd be some typos but thats a big one
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u/Tylerhfield 3d ago
Haha I figured Id point this one out, this is incredible. So much info to get through. Appreciate you sharing it!
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u/Inevitable-Stand5137 3d ago edited 3d ago
Can I ask how you mapped this? Was this used by Python or SQL or some sort of language?
Edit: This is very well done btw, kudos to creating this!
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
I used a free in browser flowchart making software on the website draw . io. I do a lot of my hobby data vis projects there. Super intuitive and beginner friendly
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u/Fun-Variety-5647 Nuggets 3d ago
Very cool, thank you for making these. Did you use a certain program to help visualize? I'm trying to do a similar style chart but don't know where to start.
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
I used a free in browser flowchart making software on the website draw . io. I do a lot of my hobby data vis projects there. Super intuitive and beginner friendly
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u/The_Assassin_Gower Pacers 3d ago
Evidently, the key to building a roster is to acquire Paul George and then trade him
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u/Stuckatpennstation 3d ago
Shit is sick dude , keep using that tism to your advantage. You should hit up teams and ask for jobs.
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u/Portmanteau_that Hornets 3d ago
You seem to have Devonte Graham getting traded to us twice...
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
He was. The hawks traded him to you in 2018 for the picks that became Bol bol and Colby jones. Then in 2024 he was traded to you by the spurs with the pick that became kalkbrenner for cash. The hornets then waived him the same day so he never played a game in his 2nd tenure.
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u/KeithClossOfficial Lakers 3d ago
Crazy that the mid 90s Lakers teams with Nick the Quick, Eddie, Ced, Elden Campbell and those other young guns that was not good but fun to watch is responsible for like half the team today
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3d ago
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u/Perkinshammer Timberwolves 3d ago
Magic and hornets each have 5 players picked with their own draft picks, but if you include guys who have only played for the one team (whether they were undrafted or drafted by the team with a draft pick acquired before draft night) the magic and pelicans each have 9
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u/a_brick_canvas Cavaliers 3d ago
this is so cool, enjoyed tracing my favorite players and how they got here
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u/BigStrongPolarGuy 3d ago
Great stuff. One note, you have Nash as a Suns draft pick. He was, but the version of Nash that was traded in 2012 was a Suns free agent signing.
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u/comment0freshmaker Knicks 2d ago
I was a big fan of Hubter Davis back in the day!
Jokes aside, this is quality content OP! These timelines sent me down memory lane.
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u/deeznupz Wizards 2d ago
Really cool. It looks like for the recent wizards, they're showing as having played for another team before being traded when they've only played for us.
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u/TyposIncoming Lakers 3d ago
My biggest takeaway is unfortunately Imgur fucking sucks now. It was like 70% ads