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NBA: 5 big questions left unanswered after the trade deadline

By Jacob Doole

DALLAS, TX - FEBRUARY 10: Isaiah Thomas #7 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts as the Lakers play the Dallas Mavericks in the second half at American Airlines Center on February 10, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. The Mavericks won 130-123. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
DALLAS, TX - FEBRUARY 10: Isaiah Thomas #7 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts as the Lakers play the Dallas Mavericks in the second half at American Airlines Center on February 10, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. The Mavericks won 130-123. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
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CLEVELAND, OH – JANUARY 2: Referee Steve Anderson #35 listens to Isaiah Thomas #3 of the Cleveland Cavaliers after Thomas was charged with a technical foul during the first half against the Portland Trail Blazers at Quicken Loans Arena on January 2, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH – JANUARY 2: Referee Steve Anderson #35 listens to Isaiah Thomas #3 of the Cleveland Cavaliers after Thomas was charged with a technical foul during the first half against the Portland Trail Blazers at Quicken Loans Arena on January 2, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

What’s next for IT?

Isaiah Thomas has had one of the most baffling season’s in recent memory. Less than a year ago he finished third in the league in scoring, led his team to the conference finals, was a top five NBA MVP candidate and had become a beloved figure league-wide.

Despite his trade to Cleveland in the offseason, and his hip injury that required major surgery, not many could have predicted his swift decline. His 15 games for Cleveland saw him shoot 36.1 per cent from the field and 25.3 per cent from 3, and one look at a Cavs game was enough to see that he wasn’t his old self.

Of all players to play at least 15 minutes per game for at least 15 games, Thomas ranks dead last in Defensive Rating (118.1) and Net Rating (-14.2). His return also coincided with Cleveland’s dramatic drop in form.

And with his play deteriorating, Thomas quickly lost much of his likability as well. He’d only been with the team a few months, and on the court for even less, when he called out Kevin Love in a players-only meeting.

He also took every opportunity possible to criticize his new coach and teammates, and seemed to be pining for his glory days in Boston.

All of this saw Thomas, one of the leading lights of last season, traded as a filler contract. He and Channing Frye are now in Los Angeles, but their expiring deals are really just stopgaps until the Lakers start chasing free agents this summer or next.

Let’s think ahead to this summer, when Thomas will be a free agent. If any NBA team had a chance to sign last season’s third-leading scorer, a tenacious superstar who would outwork everyone else and will his team forward, they would do so at any cost.

If they had a chance to sign one of the most inefficient offensive players of all time, a 5-foot-9 guy who can’t guard anyone and who is a disruptive locker room presence, they wouldn’t even offer him a minimum contract.

Thomas has a chance in LA to rebuild his brand and his game, and to try and earn himself a decent contract for next season and beyond. He almost certainly won’t get the Brinks truck he once hoped for, but at this stage, he might be fighting just to get a roster spot.

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