NBA Rumors: Luka Doncic's first Lakers disappointment, 76ers hidden gem, Magic malpractice

The 2025 NBA trade deadline was utterly deranged. A restrictive new CBA did nothing to prevent front offices from orchestrating massive five-team blockbusters or trading their 25-year-old franchise cornerstones for the dumbest possible reasons.

Luka Doncic, De'Aaron Fox, Zach Lavine, Jimmy Butler, Andrew Wiggins, Brandon Ingram — all of 'em changed teams. Kevin Durant almost changed teams. Mark Williams and Dalton Knecht were traded, then un-traded.

It was complete chaos, and it sets the stage for a thrilling second half of the NBA season.

Phone lines are closed for trade purposes, but NBA front offices are already looking toward the offseason, always anticipating potential future outcomes. As trade season ends, buyout season opens. Two-way contracts are running out. The craziness of NBA business never really stops.

It's time to sift throught the latest NBA rumors as we navigate this new NBA landscape.

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NBA Rumors: Magic refuse to call teams about potential trades

The Orlando Magic have lost seven of their last 10, now two games below .500 and precariously perched at eighth place in the East. Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner are bonafide stars, but Orlando ranks dead last in 3-point shooting and the roster is bereft of competent scoring guards to balance out the lineup.

No team needed a win-now move more than Orlando, a team that appeared ready to compete for a top-3 seed early in the campaign. The Magic were in the playoffs last season and took Cleveland seven games deep in the first round. This team might not be a piece away from contention, but they're a piece or two away from leaving the Play-In life behind.

Unfortunately, Jeff Weltman and the front office sat on their hands at the trade deadline. According to ESPN's Brian Windhorst, this is part of a troubling trend for Orlando's management.

There's no excuse for this approach from the Magic front office. You can't straight-up avoid trade calls in the NBA. All the best front offices leave no stones unturned. Even the most ludicrous calls can set the table for a more reasonable move down the line. You have to try. The Magic aren't good enough to stand pat, and this team's future is not bright enough to commit blindly to the present roster.

Hopefully Orlando deploys a new strategy in the offseason.

NBA Rumors: 76ers, Justin Edwards will discuss long-term contract in offseason

The Philadelphia 76ers have officially converted rookie Justin Edwards from a two-way contract to a standard NBA deal, which runs through the end of this season and includes a club option for the 2025-26 campaign. Both sides are "interested in exploring" a long-term deal next summer, per Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Edwards has been an important revelation for the struggling 76ers, emerging as a legitimate rotation piece amid countless injuries elsewhere on the roster.

A former five-star recruit pegged as a potential No. 1 pick before his freshman season at Kentucky, Edwards did not live up to expectations in college. He tumbled down draft boards and ended up going undrafted before signing with Philadelphia.

Sixers president Daryl Morey has done an excellent job of identifying talent on the margins. Edwards is perhaps his crowning achievement on that front. The 21-year-old is averaging 7.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists on .459/.370/.632 splits in 23.8 minutes. He has eight starts in 23 appearances. He's averaging 9.8 points in 30.4 minutes since joining the starting lineup, hitting 41.0 percent of his 3s in that span.

NBA teams are only allowed to sign players to one or two-year contracts off of two-way deals. So, by keeping Edwards on a one-year deal, the Sixers have the flexibility to hammer out a more substantial deal in the offseason, potentially dipping into the mid-level exception. Edwards feels like a real piece of the future in Philly alongside fellow rookie Jared McCain.

NBA Rumors: Luka Doncic hand-picked Mark Williams before Lakers trade fell through

The Los Angeles Lakers shocked the NBA world by trading for Luka Doncic in the week leading up to the trade deadline. Then, Rob Pelinka and the front office took it a step further, trading Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish, and a 2031 first-round pick for Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams.

It was easily the most ambitious move Pelinka has made in years, aside from the Doncic-Anthony Davis swap, which fell in his lap for illogical reasons. The Lakers effectively mortgaged their future to pair Doncic with a 23-year-old, rim-running center who complemented his skill set perfectly. Then it all collapsed after Williams failed his physical and LA rescinded the trade.

According to ESPN's Dave McMenamin, Doncic actually hand-picked Williams in conversations with the Los Angeles front office.

"Rather than Pelinka having results to show after his first extended meeting with Doncic at the team's practice facility Feb. 3, when Doncic handpicked Williams for the GM to attempt to land, a source familiar with the matter said, the first transaction of their partnership defaulted."

It's a tough blow for Doncic and the Lakers, whose current starting center is Jaxson Hayes. An injured Christian Wood and two-way centers, Christian Koloko and Trey Jemison, are the only other bigs on the roster. Doncic can lead a contender under non-ideal circumstances, but this failed trade does set the Lakers back rather substantially in the short term.