NBA Trade Deadline Recap (pt 1 of 2)

Here is the FSB's recap of the moves which went down during the NBA trade deadline. Stay tuned for the second helping of this article to be online Tueseday 3/9!
Boston Celtics-

The Celtics traded Eddie House, J.R. Giddens, and Bill Walker for Nate Robinson. While Eddie House was a very clutch shooter at times, he is a defensive liability and is better off-ball rather than handling the point. The electric and mercurial Nate Robinson is not quite the shooter House is, but he can clearly score and excite a veteran team with his play off the bench. This will also allow Marquis Daniels a clearer role of the bench. The Celtics may end up regretting not trading Ray Allen, but he is the silent leader of the team often offering insight to Rondo, sacrificing numbers, and gently citing some problems. (Yes, we know KG is a vocal leader too). The Celts will need all the depth they can get against the Cavs, Magic and Hawks, and if they can stay healthy they should make a nice playoff run.


Charlotte Bobcats-
Under the leadership of Larry Brown and soon Michael Jordan also, the Bobcats are trying to push for their first playoff run. The team moved Flip Murray, Acie Law, and likely their 1st rounder this year for the underachieving Tyrus Thomas. Thomas, who was swapped draft day for LaMarcus Aldridge, has all-star athletic potential, but has yet to put in together. The Bobcats hope that Brown can tutor Thomas to become an effective forward, as they hope to keep the restricted free agent next year. So far, Thomas has proved them right in the 6 games since the trade increasing his points (13.3 from 8.8), rebounds (7.8 from 6.3), and blocks (3.2 from 1.7), as well as shooting percentages in just 4 minutes more a game.
The team nearly made a trade for T.J. Ford and Brandon Rush in exchange for D.J. Augustin, Gerald Henderson and Nazr Mohammed. While they would have added salary, Ford would have been a great backup and insurance if Raymond Felton leaves after the season, and Rush is more polished than Henderson. It seems that the Bobcats, were more willing to wait on D.J. Augustine’s sophomore slump, than to push for Ford.

Chicago Bulls-
The Bulls had a difficult dilemma going into the trade deadline:
1) stand pat and get eliminated in the 1st round;
2) add a player to become a contender
3) lose a player to clear cap for the summer
Moving John Salmons and Tyrus Thomas for expiring contracts accomplished the last option. The Bulls should be $18 million and $19 million under the cap this summer enough to pay a max free agent like Wade, LeBron or Bosh.
With a core group of Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, and Luol Deng as a supporting cast, the Bulls should have a very persuasive pitch.
The team also salvaged a protected first-round pick from Charlotte for Tyrus Thomas.
In the short term, Chicago added Ronald Murray, Hakim Warrick, Joe Alexander, and Acie Law for young depth. Currently, they are in the playoff hunt. Despite being a worse team on paper. However, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the team regress slightly and perhaps fall out of the playoff picture. Should Chicago sign a major free agent, (Bosh would be the most likely to leave his team), the team could consider trading Hinrich and/or Deng for stronger perimeter shooting to make them an up-and coming team in the East.


Cleveland Cavs-

The Cavs have been the best team in the East, mostly due to the play of LeBron. However, the team needed to take this trade deadline to show to the impeding free agent that the Cavs would be formidable in the years to come. By adding another good second fiddle in Antawn Jamison, they hope to do just that. The Cavs traded big Zydruas Ilgauskus and their 1st round pick for the “stretch 4.” While they were unable to land Amare Stoudemire in trade, Antawn Jamison fits more of what the Cavs schematically would like to do. Jamison, though not as young and talented, spaces the floor better and is much more focused defensively. The Cavs also didn’t have to trade young forward J.J. Hickson, whom the Cavs seem very optimistic of his upside. Big Z is also being bought out and seems likely to return to Cleveland. While this move may help the Cavs in the playoffs, they did add 2yrs/28 mil dollars in payroll for a 33 year old veteran. If by some chance LeBron does leave, Cleveland may be stuck.

Dallas Mavs-
Mark Cuban and the Mavs added payroll and talent by acquiring Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood for Josh Howard and Drew Gooden. The deal seems to revolve around the issues of Brendan Haywood’s ability to match-up with the premiere bigs in the West and Howard’s off court issues. Offensively, Caron Butler and Josh Howard are similar, though Butler is better offensively he is more of a small forward, while Howard is better defensively and a more natural swingman. It seems that the Mavs know that their window is closing, and would rather have Caron’s consistency than Howard’s streakiness and distractions in their attempts to challenge Denver and the Lakers. Haywood has been quietly improving this year and has been a very viable starting center, enabling Dampier to come off the bench. The Mavs also were fortunate that they did not have to trade J.J. Barea or Rodrigue Beabois.


Houston Rockets-
The Rockets were the biggest winners of the NBA Trade deadline this year. Before the deadline, they openly marketed Tracy McGrady, knowing that a team would be desperate to take on his talent and expiring contract. Unable to entice the Knicks or 76ers initially, they began discussions with the Sacramento Kings. After agreeing in principle to a deal, the Knicks frantically joined in surrendering 2009 top 10 pick Jordan Hill, a swap of 2011 picks and a top-5 protected pick in 2012 for the Rocket’s to take Jared Jeffries salary next year. The Rockets still got the shooting guard they wanted in Kevin Martin, and though they gave up effective 6th man Carl Landry, got a bounty of picks and prospects in return. They look better both in the long-term and the short-term. While I really am amazed at what the Rockets were able to get back, I think they probably should have offered Luis Scola and/or Kyle Lowry to the Kings as both scenarios would have likely helped both teams more short-term.

Milwaukee Bucks-

The Bucks made an interesting deal with an in-division rival. These types of trades rarely occur, because you never want to help one of your primary foes. In this case, the Bucks were able to add a solid starter in John Salmons for the athletic Hakim Warrick and the athletic bust Joe Alexander. The Bucks receive a replacement for injured Michael Redd, for the rest of the year, and maybe next, in the rare case Redd opts out for a long-term deal. They also receive the option of swapping picks with the Bulls should the Bulls pick outside of the top 10 this year. Salmons will ease some of the offensive pressure from the emerging combo of Brandon Jennings and Andrew Bogut, and the Bucks are 6-1 since the trade.

Los Angeles Clippers-
The Clippers made a couple interesting moves in the trade deadline. First, they got two nice assets in Steve Blake and Travis Outlaw with accompanying cash. Blake is a solid fringe starter in the NBA, and should be a nice backup for Baron Davis. While Outlaw has the tools to become a star in the league but lacks the consistent necessary focus. The Clippers then dealt point guard Sebastian Telfair and small forward Al Thorton to the Wizards for power forward Drew Gooden. This move seems questionable in that Al Thorton is a nice young complimentary piece to the core of Kaman, Griffin, Gordon, and Davis, against Gooden who is a short-term fill-in for injured rookie Blake Griffin. The Clippers as a result have Rasual Butler and Travis Outlaw at the small forward, both have expiring deals after the season. As a result of the trade deadline, the Clippers were able to clear enough cap space to make a run at an elite free agent this summer, such as LeBron James. They should be an enticing option for free agents with that solid young core, but I doubt that owner Donald Sterling could entice LeBron to play for him. I think the more likely scenario is that they re-sign Travis Outlaw and/or make a run at Rudy Gay, both could be overpaid for a team that wants to make a free agent splash