Only one NBA player is set to carry a formal no-trade clause into the 2026/27 league year: Damian Lillard.
That kind of protection is still a rare thing in the league. To qualify, a player has to have at least eight years of NBA experience, at least four years with his current team, and he has to be signing a free agent contract rather than an extension. Even then, getting the clause is another matter entirely.
Lillard worked one into his deal with the Trail Blazers last summer, and he stands alone on the formal list for 2026/27. LeBron James and Bradley Beal both had no-trade clauses in recent years, but Beal gave his up when he agreed to a buyout with the Suns during the 2025 offseason, and James no longer has one after his contract with the Lakers expired this summer. James would have been eligible for a no-trade clause if he had rejoined the Cavaliers or Heat in free agency, but since he hasn’t played for Philadelphia before, he couldn’t add one to his new contract with the Sixers.
There are, however, a number of players who will still have the power to block a trade through implicit no-trade protection during the 2026/27 season.
A player who re-signs with his previous team on a one-year deal - or on a two-year contract with a second-year option - gets that protection unless he gives it up. The same goes for a player who signs an offer sheet and has it matched by his old team. Two-way contracts don’t count, but standard one-year qualifying offers do.
That leaves this group with veto rights during the league year:
Damian Lillard of the Trail Blazers is the only player with a no-trade clause.
Players whose offer sheets were matched: Moussa Cisse, Mavericks Spencer Jones, Nuggets
Players who re-signed for one year, or two years with a second-year player/team option: Thomas Bryant, Cavaliers
Simone Fontecchio, Heat Javonte Green, Pistons
Al Horford, Warriors Jonathan Isaac, Magic
Kenrich Williams, Thunder
If one of those players agrees to a trade during the 2026/27 league year, he’ll finish the season with Non-Bird rights rather than Early Bird or full Bird rights.
And if a player with this protection approves a move, the veto doesn’t disappear with the trade. It travels with him to his new team, which means he would still have to consent to any later deal that season.
A separate set of players re-signed on one-year contracts, or two-year deals with an option year, but already agreed to give up that right for 2026/27:
Harrison Barnes, Spurs Charles Bassey, Warriors
Jevon Carter, Magic Jordan Clarkson, Knicks
Draymond Green, Warriors Bones Hyland, Timberwolves
Tyus Jones, Nuggets Jock Landale, Hawks
Jordan McLaughlin, Spurs Josh Minott, Nets
Pete Nance, Bucks Day’Ron Sharpe, Nets
Jae’Sean Tate, Rockets
The option to waive trade veto power was added in the 2023 Collective Bargaining Agreement.
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