Recapping the ten trades over two seasons that shaped the 2025 PLL Draft Order

Every year picks change hands. Trades in a PLL draft aren’t exactly new news. But the sheer volume of deals impacting the 2025 draft is. In 2024, there were five trades that impacted the draft order. In 2025, that number doubled. Ten deals that span the last two years have shuffled the draft order. After draft night, almost all of these deals will be completed; we’ll know who all the players involved are. Here’s a rundown of each, in order, and the pieces so far.

1. Whipsnakes trade Connor Kirst and Bryce Young to the Cannons for Matt Rees, Cannons 2024 3rd round pick, and Cannons 2025 3rd round pick. Deal completed November 28, 2023.

Rees retired not long after this deal was done, so really this was a move for draft picks. The 2024 3rd round pick was used on Stephen Zupicich, who got glowing reviews in training camp. However, Colin Squires had one of his best years as a pro and firmly took hold of the LSM job. Following the retirement of Michael Ehrhardt, the competition between Zupicich and Squires ultimately worked out for the Whips. Zupicich hasn’t played much yet, but that could change this summer. The pick that the Whips got from the Cannons in the upcoming draft is 20th overall.

2. Archers trade 32nd pick (eventually used on Cole Kastner) in the 2024 draft for the Redwoods 3rd round pick in 2025. Deal completed May 7, 2024 (draft day)

Archers gave up the last pick in the draft for a pick this year. Then coach/GM Nat St Laurent used the pick to stash Cole Kastner. It was already decided that Kastner would pursue basketball at Stanford for a year, but St Laurent was assured Kastner would be with the team the following summer. Kastner had a first round grade last year, possibly even the best defender available. If he plays to his potential, this will be a Redwoods steal. The pick sent back to the Archers is 18th overall.

3. Redwoods trade Levi Anderson to Whipsnakes for 2025 4th round pick. Deal completed June 12, 2024.

Redwoods traded away draft pick Levi Anderson without ever putting him in the lineup. He became an impact player for the Whipsnakes, and looks like an attackman of the future for them on the left side. The pick that went back to the Woods turned out to be the second to last pick in the upcoming draft, it will be difficult to find comparable value to Anderson there.

4. Waterdogs trade Ryan Conrad to Whipsnakes for 2025 2nd round pick. Deal completed August 6, 2024.

Waterdogs were basically out of it in August, so they made a move for some draft capital. Conrad for a 2nd round pick is a decent return. Conrad helped the Whips to the title game, becoming an instant threat particularly out of inverts. Conrad had a hat trick for the Whips to close the regular season, and had seven points in the postseason including a title game hat trick. The pick that the Waterdogs got back is 15th overall.

5. Whipsnakes trade Jackson Morrill to Archers for 2025 3rd round pick (Archers pick, they still own the Woods pick). Deal completed August 13, 2024.

A bit puzzling when it happened. Morrill could have been signed away as an inactive player from the Whips, but the Archers traded for him anyway. He looked to be a nice depth add. Ultimately, the minutes that were expected to go to Morrill went to Jack VanOverbeke, who played like a roster regular down the stretch. Morrill went to the Redwoods in free agency, VanOverbeke signed with Denver, so the Archers gave up a 3rd round pick for a player they never used, and then lost the player they used instead. The Whips managed to basically get something for nothing. The pick the Archers sent the Whips is 24th overall.

6. Cannons trade Pat Kavanagh to the Outlaws for a 1st round pick in 2025 and a 3rd round pick in 2026. Deal completed November 7, 2024.

One of the more seismic deals in a long time. Pat Kavanagh never felt like a good fit with the Cannons last summer. He’ll have more chances to play his natural position, in parts of the field he’s more comfortable, while forming one of the best young attack groups in the PLL. Ultimately, the jury remains out here. We haven’t seen enough of pro Pat Kavanagh to pass any meaningful judgement or evaluation. The pick that went to Boston was third overall, and ultimately, it was flipped in another deal. More on that in a minute.

7. Whipsnakes trade Zed Williams and 2025 3rd round pick the Waterdogs for Matt Brandau and 2025 3rd round pick. Deal completed December 16, 2024.

One that sort of materialized out of nowhere. Brandau definitely wasn’t fitting in with Philadelpia, playing out of position and clearly not in sync with their offense. The Waterdogs acquired a proven weapon for Brandau, and added a pick swap on top. This trade will be tough to evaluate, because Zed will likely miss most if not all of this summer with an achilles injury. The Whips signed Rob Pannell in free agency, giving them a logjam at attack and potentially forcing Brandau to once again play out of position. The Pick the Whips got back in this deal is 17th overall, the pick the Dogs got is 23rd overall.

8. Redwoods trade Owen Grant to Boston Cannons for 3rd overall pick in 2025 and a 4th round pick in 2026 (additional comp if Owen Grant goes on holdout). Deal completed March 24, 2025.

Here’s some fallout of the Pat Kav deal. The third overall pick was the Outlaws pick, acquired by Boston, and then flipped to California for Owen Grant and another draft pick, possibly another high pick if Grant doesn’t play. Should Grant go on the Holdout List, Boston will also receive California’s highest pick in 2026 that falls outside of the top six picks. Grant has had injury issues, but has the makings of a superstar defender if he can stay on the field. The Redwoods had already stashed Kastner, and had greater needs for offensive help in an offensively shallow draft. The deal gives them two of the first three picks.

9. Outlaws trade Brendan Nichtern to Redwoods for 2025 4th round pick. Deal completed March 28, 2025.

Nichtern was the rookie of the year, but as a West Point grad, had obligations that kept from playing consistently in his years after that. Redwoods GM Spallina has said Nichtern is available and committed to play this summer. If he regains his rookie year form, not easy to do given how much time on the pro field he’s missed, this will be a Redwoods steal. The pick that the Outlaws get in the deal is 26th overall.

10. Redwoods trade Garrett Degnon to Chaos for 2025 4th round pick. Deal completed April 10, 2025.

Another move from Spallina after taking over as GM, they move a player who couldn’t consistently find the field for them for additional draft picks. Spallina already made a number of moves to improve the offense. Adding Nichtern, likely drafting two offensive weapons in the top three, signign Dylan Molloy, Jackson Morrill, and Ryan Aughavin plus young players Vince D’Alto and Aidan Danenza made Degnon look expendable. The Chaos have lefty needs, this is a fit for both sides. The pick that the Redwoods got for Degnon is 29th overall.