NBA Trade Deadline: Magic, Blazers, Warriors, Spurs and the 10 Biggest Losers 

The 2012 NBA trade deadline is behind us, and it certainly provided fans with memorable, last-minute trades that will undoubtedly shape the outcome of the 2011-12 NBA season.

While there were a lot of big-time trades that went down that will impact the balance of power in the NBA, all the trades that took place didn't exactly play out in every team's favor.

The reality of this year's trade deadline is that there were a number of teams that ended the day worse off than when they started. 

Here is a link for all the trades that went down before the March 15 NBA trade deadline.

Which teams were the real losers of the trade deadline?  Let's start with a team that didn't make a move—the Orlando Magic.

Orlando Magic

According to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, the Magic were reportedly interested in Warriors guard Monta Ellis, but failed to reel him in. It would have been a solid addition for a team that lacks elite ability aside from Dwight Howard.

In addition to not getting Ellis, the Magic failed to improve at any position on their underwhelming bench, which is a reason for concern heading into the home stretch of the 2011-12 NBA season.

The final reason why the Magic find themselves on this list is because they failed to make any progress with the Dwight Howard saga. While Howard is in Orlando for at least another year, the power in still in his hands. That's bad news for the Magic, who could find themselves in this same position next year.

Portland Trail Blazers

As reported by Marc Stein of ESPN and Ken Berger of CBS Sports, while the Blazers didn't necessarily give up all that much to get a bunch of players in return, the players they got aren't all that special.

Mehmet Okur has been injured throughout the span of both this season and last, and while Jonny Flynn is an exciting talent, he's not the answer for Portland at the point. That's what they needed to get before the trade deadline.

Losing Gerald Wallace will definitely impact the Blazers' offensive production, and the guys Portland is getting in return aren't necessarily upgrades at any of the positions.

While it wasn't a result of a trade, the Blazers also fired their head coach. It's not a good time to be a Portland Trail Blazers fan.

Minnesota Timberwolves

As reported by Dave McMenamin of ESPN, there were numerous rumors regarding the Timberwolves' attempts to move Michael Beasley. Minnesota ultimately failed to do so, and that's a big-time mistake for Minnesota.

What the Timberwolves really needed to do was to find a temporary replacement for injured point guard Ricky Rubio, and they failed to do that.

Minnesota undoubtedly needed to move Beasley in hopes of reeling in a point guard in return. They should have done that with the Lakers, as they were interested in Beasley.

With the Timberwolves holding onto Beasley after the trade deadline, they failed to get better as a team, and that earns them a spot on this list, hands down.

San Antonio Spurs

As reported by the Associated Press (per ESPN), San Antonio acquired Stephen Jackson in exchange for Richard Jefferson. The Spurs were surely looking to find production off the bench for the injury-prone Manu Ginobili, and I'm not sure that's what they got.

San Antonio got an aging guard who constantly puts up questionable shots and shoots the ball at a low percentage. In reality, I think the Spurs are worse off now than they were before this trade.

Giving up a first-round pick in addition to Jefferson for an arrogant player who just wants to shoot the ball is a boneheaded move in my book.

Memphis Grizzlies

As reported by the Associated Press (per ESPN), the Grizzlies lost Sam Young. He's not an extremely productive player coming off the bench, but they should have gotten more for him than they did.

Instead of getting something in return for Young that the Grizzlies could have used right now, they got a player who's said in an interview with HoopsHype that he will be ready to play in the NBA in two years.

With a statement like that, you've got to be concerned with the player that Sanchez, at some point, is going to become.

Denver Nuggets

I'm not exactly sure why the Nuggets thought that they needed to get rid of a player who was averaging 13.4 points and 7.4 rebounds a game, but hey—that's why I'm not the Nuggets GM.

As reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo, the Nuggets got an athletic center in JaVale McGee, who has a ridiculous amount of upside. However, they gave away the center of their frontcourt offense, which is something that is going to come back to haunt them down the stretch this season.

If JaVale McGee figures out how to play like a mature player, this trade will be good news for Denver. That's a highly unlikely possibility for the Nuggets, as McGee's never even heard the word "maturity" before.

Cleveland Cavaliers

As reported by Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the Cleveland Cavaliers got exactly what they wanted out of point guard Ramon Sessions by the time the trade deadline passed today.

They got a first-round pick, and even another player in small forward Luke Walton.

While Walton isn't exactly the kind of player who will make a difference for Cleveland, he's at least a player with playoff experience who can help the younger Cavaliers mature.

The only reason why the Cavs find themselves on this list is because losing Sessions' production without getting immediate help in return is going to hurt Cleveland throughout the rest of this year.

Golden State Warriors

The Warriors' initial move that sent Monta Ellis to the Milwaukee Bucks doesn't look so bad now that they've been able to move Stephen Jackson to the Spurs for a first-round pick and Richard Jefferson, but it doesn't save them from being on this list. 

Losing Monta Ellis will hurt the Warriors for the time being, and while the pieces they got in return are nice moving forward for the future of the franchise, they won't help them out this year. 

While the Warriors might be alright in the long-term, as long as Andrew Bogut can manage to stay healthy, it's clear that this trade is a major risk for them, and it's one that most likely won't pay off. That's why they find themselves on this list.

Indiana Pacers

Anthony Carter, with his 12 years of experience, isn't necessarily the long-term answer that the Pacers need coming off their bench, which is an issue for the Pacers, even this season, as the Pacers look to get stronger for a deep playoff run. 

The real steal for the Pacers in this trade is Leandro Barbosa (reported by AP, as per Sports Illustrated), but while he's an athletic small forward, he doesn't really fit that well into the Pacers bench rotation, and that's why Indiana finds themselves on this list. 

Atlanta Hawks

While the Josh Smith trade rumors were dispelled, as reported by ESPN, it's still a shame that the Hawks didn't make any moves before the trade deadline.

The Hawks have an overpaid and underperforming shooting guard in Joe Johnson that would have been a good player to move by the deadline, but they failed to do so.

Without Al Horford in the starting lineup, the Hawks needed to add some talent at the center position, but they didn't, which is why the find themselves on the list of teams that wound up being the losers of the NBA trade deadline.

Are all the teams on this list the losers of the trade deadline?  Let your thoughts be known in the comment section below. 

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