Evaluating the NBA Trade Deadline now that the dust has begun to settle.
The NBA Trade Deadline has come and gone. With the final day of possible transactions finished, the landscape has changed around the NBA. Let’s evaluate who took a step forward and took a step back now that the dust has settled.
Miami Heat took a step forward with Victor Oladipo
The Miami Heat were dubbed as a team that desperately needed to make a move at the deadline. They end the day as one of the most improved teams. The Heat was finally able to land Victor Oladipo and only gave up a ham sandwich, well Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk, and a pick swap. Might as well been a ham sandwich.
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The Heat was also able to add Nemanja Bjelica from the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Moe Harkless and Chris Silva. Miami was able to upgrade their roster significantly and didn’t have to give up any of their young prospects that other teams were trying to pry away from Pat Riley.
The Chicago Bulls are all-in on Zach LaVine
The Chicago Bulls made the biggest splash of this year’s trade deadline. They made a surprise move for All-Star center Nikola Vucevic in aim to make the postseason for the first time in 2017. The Bulls really didn’t give up too much as they send out Otto Porter Jr., Wendell Carter Jr., and two first-round picks.
The Bulls were looking to add a solidified veteran to pair with Zach LaVine as the Bulls look to make the playoffs. The Bulls did just that by adding Vucevic who is having a career year averaging 24.5 points,11.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists per game while shooting 40 percent from 3-point range. Chicago also added some rotation players in Troy Brown Jr. and Daniel Theis. The Bulls have a real shot now at possibly bypassing the play-in tournament this season.
Aaron Gordon gets the fresh start he needs
Aaron Gordon finally got his wish and was traded out of Orlando. The Denver Nuggets swapped Gary Harris, RJ Hampton, and a future first-round pick for the 25-year-old forward. Scheme-wise, this may be the perfect fit for Gordon.
Gordon will be able to fully showcase his athleticism while playing off of Nikola Jokic and provide the Nuggets with solid defense at the wing spot. Gordon finally will get his chance to play on a team that will have their eyes on contention. Gordon couldn’t have landed in a much better spot.
The Dallas Mavericks made a smart upgrade with J.J. Redick
The Dallas Mavericks are under-the-radar winners at the trade deadline. The Mavericks acquired J.J. Reddick and Nicolo Meli from the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for James Johnson, Wes Iwundu, and a second-round pick.
The Mavericks add more shooters to help spread the floor for Luka Doncic and bolster a top 1- net-rated offense. This move helps the Mavericks gear up for a run to climb the Western Conference standings.
The Houston Rockets’ look worse and worse
The bad gets even worse for the Houston Rockets. The Rockets finally moved the final piece of the James Harden trade (outside of the picks) as they gift-wrapped and expressed shipped Victor Oladipo to Miami for Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk, and a pick swap.
The Rockets are now left with a roster lacking young talent and a somewhat restored chest of draft assets. Houston is now in full tank mode and really has to finish in the bottom three as their pick could be swapped with the Thunder.
You could question if the Rockets could’ve gotten a nice young player or even have kept Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen to use as pieces moving forward to make the James Harden trade worth it. Now, all that Houston fans can look forward to is the hope that the tiny white ping-pong balls fall in their favor.