2012 NBA Trade Deadline Aftermath: Winners and Losers Team Edition
*This article will only consider the trades made on deadline day March 15, 2012.*
Winners
Sort of. This is basically a one-year rental and we can expect this insanity all over again next year. Regardless, another year with Howard is better than shipping him to New Jersey for Lopez and draft picks.
They are clearly the top 3 teams in the league, and although they have their flaws, they didn't make a panic deal. Not to mention none of the teams in the next tier below them (Magic, Lakers, Spurs) made a significant splash in the trade deadline pool.
They had probably come to the conclusion that they didn't have the assets to make a deal. Then, Washington came looking for a team to take Nick Young, and while they were at it, they took Brian Cook in return. Somewhere in LA, Neil Olshey is still laughing hysterically.
They came out with the best player in the deal (Nenê), while at the same time ridding themselves of a couple of players that had worn out their stay in D.C (JaVale McGee and Ronny Turiaf). None of the players shipped out were committed to the team beyond this year, but at least they got a quality player in return.
Richard Jefferson was never a good fit and although Stephen Jackson can be problematic, he won a championship with the Spurs before, and he never should have left in the first place. I also find it amusing that he was traded to two of his old teams in consecutive days.
Losers
I guess picking up Camby and Fisher adds some veteran leadership. It seems as though Portland and Houston just exchanged expiring contracts. I can't really figure these moves out.
Howard stayed in Orlando. They couldn't work out a deal to land Beasley. The best point guard they could get was Sessions; and they traded away Fisher for Jordan HIll. The only thing that prevented this from being a complete disaster was the fact they got someone to take Luke Walton off their hands,
Los Angeles Clippers
That's right, they were both winners and losers. While they filled the need for more scoring, they were in greater need of some front court depth.
Portland Trail Blazers
They traded away their two hardest workers (Camby and Wallace), for two of the bigger disappointments in recent years (Flynn and Thabeet), a player many people probably thought was playing overseas (Okur) and an inconsistent role player (Williams); and to top it all off, they fired their coach.
In McGee, they get a player with incredible upside; however, his court sense is light years behind his athletic ability. I keep looking at the roster and thinking, aside from fast breaks and offensive putbacks, how are they going to score in the paint?
They didn't get Howard so they dealt a first-round pick in a deep draft and and big expiring contract in Okur for Gerald Wallace and his $11 million contract. If William's leaves town this summer, this team may not score more than 70 points in a game next year.
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