The Craziest Time In The NBA Season Has Started And There's A Lot To Catch Up On
If you haven’t noticed the seal has officially been broken on the NBA’s Trade Deadline season, and with 8 days to go, a lot of shit around the league has already happened that should make for a very interesting week. We’ve seen deals, we’ve seen more rumors, we’ve seen important injuries that may change the landscape of an entire conference, and frankly I can’t get enough. For a league where we all know who will most likely be playing in the Finals, I have allowed myself to get sucked back in. Don’t fight it, these are glorious times.
Here’s a breakdown of everything that’s gone down:
POR trades Mason Plumlee, 2018 2nd round pick + cash to Denver for Jursuf Nurkic, 2017 1st rd pick (MEM)
The trade that opened the floodgates! While this may not appear to be that big of a trade, it actually means a lot for each franchise, and for the market price for big men this trade deadline season. Both teams are fighting for the right to lose to the Warriors in four games, with the Nugs holding the 8th spot and Portland just two games behind.
For Denver, this trade helps them because they probably got the better individual player. Already with a stud big man in Jokic, a high energy big man in Faried, Plumlee is going to fit right in and give the Nuggets something that few teams have. Multiple bigs that are among the best in the league in passing. They go from a big stiff who turns it over every other time he touches the ball, to a high energy guy that does the exact opposite. Everyone knew the Nuggets had to move a big at the deadline, and while it wasn’t cheap to do, the move definitely makes them better.
For Portland, you saw the first casualty of their big offseason spending all their money. Plumlee’s deal is up after next season, and when you factor in that Nurkic makes slightly less money and comes with one more year under contract, this was clearly a cost controlled move. The real kicker though is that first round pick. The Blazers now have THREE first round picks in what experts are saying is a loaded draft. That’s the type of capital that would give Belichick a hard on.
ORL trades Serge Ibaka to TOR for Terrance Ross and a late 2017 1st rd pick
Ah, the trade that sparked a million Celtics hot takes. If the POR/DEN trade didn’t make it clear, this trade confirms it. People want in this 2017 Draft no matter where it is. Unlike that previous deal, this trade could not be more different for both franchises.
For Toronto, they had to do something. Had to. Since Sullinger came back their season has collapsed, and TOR had always been tied to Ibaka, remember they tried to trade for him before last year’s draft as well. This trade obviously makes them better, because even though Ibaka appears to be on the decline, I think he’ll be better in TOR than what we saw in ORL. I don’t think you can stress how much better it is that they can go to him instead of Sully. They are a team that already has a legit low post presence, so Ibaka gives them a little bit better spacing that will most definitely help players like DeRozen and Lowry get to the rim. The only problem here is since he’s a rental, TOR will almost have to max him out this summer. I don’t know if he truly makes a difference in terms of putting TOR over the hump, but we’ll see.
For the Magic, brutal time to be a fellow Worcester native. No other way to spin it, Rob Hennigan is fuckin up and he’s fuckin up good. Anytime you can go from Oladipo, four years of Sabonis, and picks and end up with Terrance Ross and a late pick, you have to do it. I get that he probably knew Ibaka was probably leaving this summer, but that’s what makes that Oladipo trade so weird. Do they even need Terrance Ross? Maybe, but the Magic talked about blowing it up, so I think they’ll take whatever they can get.
Lebron trades Chris Anderson to CHA for a protected 2nd round pick + cash
GM Lebron is up to something. This trade may seem like no big deal, Birdman is out for the year anyway, but what it did was open up a roster spot. We heard player Lebron call out GM Lebron and demand he bring in help, so this was an important first step. Add in the fact that Kevin Love is now out for 6 weeks, you can almost guarantee GM Lebron is going to bring someone in. What do they need? They’ll probably steal whatever big man Ainge has spent the last few weeks talking to, because Lebron gets what he wants, the dick.
RUMORS
The real winner of NBA Trade Deadline week is all the rumors that either resurface for the billionth time, or some juicy new ones. For example, we’re now hearing that CHI would be open to moving Jimmy Butler…………but it would take a Godfather offer. Same goes for Paul George. Hey guess what Pax and Larry Bird, I do not believe you. I did like how the Pacers are trying to make this believable by saying almost everyone on the roster is actually available, because they should be dying to get rid of Myles Turner. Don’t fall for this.
Today we’re blessed to spend the day talking about what the right price is for Andre Drummond, another premiere talent apparently up for sale. You could also get Reggie Jackson if you love ball hogging hero ball playing PGs that ruin your offensive system and make you want to blow your brains out. Apparently Denver is open to trading Mudiay, because they are loaded with PG depth said nobody ever.
Through all the bullshit, there are some rumors that I think have actual substance. The Lakers trading Lou Williams for example is one of them. They need to keep losing to ensure they don’t lose their pick to PHI in this year’s draft, and Washington desperately needs bench scoring. This swap is so predictable I am shocked it hasn’t happened yet.
It wouldn’t be right if there wasn’t a Celtics rumor, and yesterday was no different. OH MY GOD JAHLIL OKAFOR WAS SPOTTED AT LOGAN!!! HE’S GONNA BE A CELTIC. Please excuse my extreme eye roll. A Sixers/Celtics trade rumor is about as stale as a Celtics/Bulls trade rumor. Danny Ainge doesn’t want Okafor and the Sixers don’t want Terry Rozier. Why do we keep doing this?
Perhaps the deadliest rumor that I don’t really see enough people talking about, is the Spurs being in on Stanley Johnson. He is the classic type of player who showed promise his rookie year, hasn’t really played this year, finds his way to Pop and suddenly becomes a terrifying NBA bench player. He’s got good size, and is a plus defender, this almost makes too much sense and I am angry that the Spurs are going to do this and have it work out beautifully for them.
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That’s it so far, but you can bet your ass things are about to get a whole hell of a lot wackier in the next 8 days. NBA Trade Deadline week, so hot right now, NBA Trade Deadline week.