The NBA trade deadline passed without any huge deals to speak of, but there were some significant moves made worth mentioning.
In case you missed Thursday’s deals and how they affect the landscape of this season, here are the biggest takeaways from one of the busiest weeks in the NBA.
Thunder got Russell Westbrook some help
The Oklahoma City Thunder filled a need for a perimeter shooter and scorer by acquiring Doug McDermott from the Chicago Bulls Thursday. They also acquired Taj Gibson. Apart from being a good interior defender and rebounder, Gibson is also an upgrade at power forward over rookie Domantas Sabonis.
Both acquisitions are aimed at helping the Thunder move up from the No. 7 seed in the West and easing some of the scoring burden for Westbrook.
Nerlens Noel gets the chance to be a front-line starter in Dallas
After toiling away behind Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor in Philadelphia, Noel gets the chance to be a front-line starter in Dallas following a trade to the Mavericks Thursday. The 6-foot-11 big man started a combined 133 games over his first two seasons, but has come off the bench in all but seven games this season.
Noel is a good rim-protector and rebounder, the latter of which enticed Dallas, as the Mavericks rank dead last in rebounding this season.
Raptors get a defensive stopper for the playoffs
The Toronto Raptors got their man Thursday, acquiring P.J. Tucker from the Phoenix Suns. The 31-year-old can play both forward spots, and is a premier defender; just what the Raptors need in a playoff series against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Toronto also acquired Serge Ibaka this month, a top-flight defender in the post and sweet-stroking big man. The acquisition of both players should be enough to get the Raptors to the Conference Finals if not the Finals.
Celtics stood pat at trade deadline
The Boston Celtics standing pat at the trade deadline can be looked at one of two ways. On the one hand, by not trading for a superstar like Jimmy Butler or Paul George, the Celtics retained their assets, and GM Danny Ainge is applauded for being patient and strong-willed. On the other hand, by not utilizing their assets in a blockbuster trade, the Celtics missed out on a chance to greatly improve the roster ahead of the playoffs, and Ainge is criticized for it.
The Celtics could’ve used another scorer and rebounding big man, but Ainge simply didn’t get a deal to his liking. It’s possible Boston revisits trade talks with Chicago and Indiana ahead of this summer’s draft, but the focus is on this season and the players the Celtics have right now.
Wizards get a bench scorer, but fail to add a backup point guard
The Washington Wizards didn’t get everything on their shopping list at the trade deadline. They got the bench scorer they needed in a trade with Brooklyn for Bojan Bogdanovic. The Croatian guard-forward is averaging a career-high 14.2 points per game, and is shooting 35.7 percent from 3-point range.
But Washington failed to add a backup point guard, and that doesn’t bode well for starter John Wall, who had surgery on both knees in the offseason. Trey Burke is the only other point guard on the depth chart, and has been ineffective so far this season, averaging just five points and less than two assists in 12.6 minutes per game.
Wall is averaging 36.6 minutes per game this season, the most since his rookie season in 2010-11. The last thing the Wizards want to do is run Wall into the ground. His minutes down the stretch will be something to keep an eye on.
Jimmy Butler, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony stay put
All three superstars are staying put with their respective teams, at least for now. Butler and George generated a lot of interest from teams as the trade deadline got closer. Meanwhile, trade talks about Anthony cooled off, which isn’t a surprise considering he’ll be 33 in May, and has a no-trade clause in his contract.
As for Butler and George, this won’t be the last time their names get mentioned in trade talks. Give it until the summer before trade talks pick up again.
Timberwolves balked at Ricky Rubio-Derrick Rose trade
This will be remembered as the trade that should have happened but didn’t. Minnesota and New York had every intention of swapping point guards but negotiations stalled before the 3 p.m. ET deadline.
According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the Knicks were prepared to trade Rose for Rubio straight up, but the Timberwolves balked.
That’s a shame because this trade would have been good for both sides. Rose would have been reunited with Tom Thibodeau in Minnesota, a person familiar with the former MVP’s style of play. As for Rubio, he would have gotten a fresh start in New York, and it’s no secret the Knicks could use his passing. Oh, what could have been.
Rockets add more firepower to offense by acquiring Lou Williams
As if the Houston Rockets didn’t have enough 3-point shooters, they decided to add another with the acquisition of Williams, formerly the Los Angeles Lakers’ leading scorer. Williams is averaging 18.6 points off the bench this season, and is shooting 38.5 percent from behind the arc. He also ranks 16th in made 3-pointers with 129.
After acquiring Williams, the Rockets now have five of the top 20 players in 3-pointers made this season. If it wasn’t already obvious, Houston isn’t concerned with playing defense. The Rockets’ gameplan this season is simply to score more points than the other team.
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