NBA Roundtable: Trades and Predictions

With all the recent trades and shake-ups in the NBA, this was the perfect time for another collaborative effort in an NBA round-table.

These past few weeks of the NBA season have held some of the most exciting and most memorable moments.

The Los Angeles Lakers went from good to scary good, along with the rest of the Western Conference.

Pau Gasol, Shaquille O'Neal, Jason Kidd, and Ben Wallace were the biggest names moved before the trading deadline.

The Eastern Conference also received a slight upgrade when the Cleveland Cavaliers acquired Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, Wally Szczerbiak, and Delonte West.

With plenty of basketball still to be played, there are plenty of questions to start asking.

For one, what team will benefit from their recent acquisitions?  What team needed to make a trade but didn't?

Who will come out of the Eastern Conference and who will come out of the Western Conference?

For those answers, I turned to four of Bleacher Report's most knowledgeable NBA writers—Erick Blasco, Andrew Ungvari, Dave Metrick, and Scott Serles.

Of all the trades made this season, what team will benefit the most?

Michael Whittenberg

There's no question that the Los Angeles Lakers will benefit the most from their trade.

Pau Gasol was the missing piece the Lakers needed, and now that we have seen what Gasol can do with Kobe and company, there is no doubt that the teams out west would rather not face them come playoff time. 

Gasol has played 10 games as a Laker, and is averaging 22 PPG.  The Lakers are the team to beat, and who knows how much scarier they will become once Andrew Bynum and Trevor Ariza return.

Erick Blasco

Of all the trades made this season, the Lakers' and Spurs' deals for Pau Gasol and Kurt Thomas, respectively, will benefit them the most.

Adding Gasol gives the Lakers a fluid big man within the triangle who can score, pass, and cut off of pick-and-rolls.

With the Spurs needing a spark and more production from their center position, Thomas's pick-and-roll game and his intense defense make him a shrewd pick up for the Spurs.  Plus, his defense will prevent Duncan from having to guard an opponent's best big man, freeing him up to be a help defender.

Andrew Ungvari

There's no question; it’s the Lakers because they’re set up for the next five years and gave up the least.

San Antonio made out the second best.

Those two teams along with Phoenix and Cleveland all made smart moves in getting bigger. That’s why I hate the Jason Kidd trade.

The Mavs didn’t need a point guard. They needed a center, which is why it didn't make any sense to give up DeSagana Diop for Kidd.

 
Dave Metrick

The Los Angeles Lakers.  They gave up next to nothing and got a versatile, All-Star caliber seven-footer in return. 

Pau Gasol's arrival is not only helping the team deal with the knee injury to Andrew Bynum—come playoff time, it will give them a talented front line.  

I know the Grizzlies are in full rebuilding mode, but this was as lopsided a deal as you'll ever see in the NBA.

 
Scott Serles

The Dallas Mavericks acquiring Jason Kidd was the best move made this season. Getting a battle-tested point guard the caliber of Jason Kidd should make the Mavericks a force come playoff time.

Will Ben Wallace, Wally Szczerbiak, Joe Smith, and Delonte West be enough to help LeBron and the Cavs win the Eastern Conference again? 

Whittenberg: I think it is too early to tell.  They have only played one game together, and although the newcomers all had good games, it was against the Memphis Grizzlies.

I hate that they had to give up Larry Hughes, because it finally looked like he was finally coming around a few weeks before the trade. 

Hughes started to score more often, including a 40-point effort. Maybe it's because he knew he was on the trading block.

Not only will scoring be missed, his perimeter defense will be missed as well. 

If they consistently perform like they did against Memphis, then I think they will be able to get past Detroit.

 
Blasco: The Cavs trade is awful and leaves them worse off than before. Ben Wallace's defense is shot and he won't contribute anything to the Cavs.

He can't play with Ilgauskus because neither of them are able to defend power forwards. He also can't play with Varejao because no front court in the NBA will be as impotent. His teaming with Joe Smith didn't work too well in Chicago, either.

Plus, where is the Cavs second wing perimeter option on offense? Szcerbiak and West are both good shooters, but now the Cavs perimeter defense is much worse with Hughes gone. The ineptitude of Danny Ferry never ends.

 
Ungvari: Absolutely. The biggest question I have is who is going to guard Ray Allen or Rip Hamilton?

Without Larry Hughes, there’s more pressure on LeBron to play defense. His defense has improved dramatically this year, but I’m not sure he can handle either of those guys.

I think the Cavs made moves that prepare them better to play against the West. They definitely have the frontcourt depth to match up with the Lakers and Spurs.

 
Metrick: Probably not.  I think adding those players is important to the Cavs playoff hopes and to King James' sanity, but those guys aren't going to put Cleveland over the top.  They're now a better team, but not good enough to beat Detroit or Boston.

 
Serles: No. Wallace is not the same player he was with the Pistons. Do you really think Wally is going make teams stop double-teaming LeBron? Trading Larry Huges was a mistake. Cleveland got older and slower.

Which team(s) needed to make a trade but didn’t?

Whittenberg: Everyone says Denver should have made a trade, but Ron Artest was not going to make them NBA Finals contenders.

If any team needed to make a trade before the deadline, it was the Orlando Magic.  They could use a veteran backup point guard, because I'm not sold on Jameer Nelson or Carlos Arroyo.

The fact that Orlando is overpaying Rashard Lewis also made hard to bring in some legit firepower.

I think Mike Miller would have been a perfect fit for this team.

The Magic need a pure shooter since J.J. Redick doesn't seem to be getting any real minutes, and Miller would have been left open at times while their opponents doubled up on Dwight Howard.

 
Blasco: Denver needed to make a minor trade for a point guard but didn't. It wasn't imperative but they could have used someone who could defend, hit outside shots, and not make mistakes. Can they survive a playoff run with Anthony Carter?

 
Ungvari: The Nuggets and the Heat. The Nuggets are going to duke it out with the Rockets and Warriors for the last two playoff spots.

The Rockets are surging and the Warriors are a much better road team than the Nuggets.

If the Nuggets miss the playoffs with that payroll, then it might be time to blow the whole thing up.

 
Metrick: Were there any teams that didn't make a trade in the last month?  Denver technically made a trade (acquiring Taureen Green from Portland) but nothing of any substance. 

Rumors circulated about Ron Artest heading to the Nuggets, which made sense because the Nuggets need defense, but he wasn't going to make them contenders.  Plus—and I'm not sure if everyone is aware of this—Artest is crazy.

 
Serles: Denver Nuggets. They needed to make a move in order to keep pace in the West. They should have tried to get a deal done with Sacramento for Ron Artest.

 
Between Houston, Denver, and Golden State, which team will be left out of this year’s playoffs?

 
Whittenberg: Golden State was my original pick, but hearing the news that Yao Ming will miss the remainder of the season, Houston will probably miss out.

This injury could not have come at a worse time, with Houston currently riding a 12-game winning streak.

They do still have Tracy McGrady, so their chances are not dead yet.  Also, the Denver Nuggets lose some games they should win, so that too can play role in Houston's playoff chances.

The recent acquisitions of Bobby Jackson and Gerald Green can maybe help them out a bit, but this Yao injury really hurts Houston's chances. 

 
Blasco: Add New Orleans to the mix, but I think Houston is the team that will drop out. I wonder if the Rockets will stay healthy until the end of the year and I also wonder if Houston's lack of a third option will haunt them down the stretch.

 
Ungvari: Denver. Both the Nuggets and Rockets have brutal schedules down the stretch.

Seven of the Nuggets final 11 games are against Dallas, Golden State (twice), Phoenix (twice), Utah, and Houston. 

The Rockets play six of their last eleven games against Minnesota, Seattle (twice), the Clippers (twice), and Sacramento.

The two teams play each other in Denver on April 13th. The winner of that game will probably clinch the last spot. They’ve split the first two meetings and have one game each on the other’s home floor.

 
Metrick: The Golden State Warriors.  They give up even more points than Denver.  And I personally think Nellie's one of the most overrated coaches in NBA history. 

Plus, they're the Golden State Warriors.  We can't expect them to make the playoffs two years in a row, can we?

 
Serles: It won’t be Houston; they are hotter than the center of the sun. I hate to say it, but it is probably the Denver Nuggets, they needed to pick up somebody who can bang and didn’t.

This has been one of the best seasons in the NBA in terms of trades.  So, who wins the Eastern Conference and why?  Who wins the Western Conference?

Whittenberg: As of today, the Detroit Pistons are my pick.  They are still the beasts of the east, and have the most playoff experience in the east.

I also like the fact that Flip Saunders is using his young role players off the bench during the regular season so that they will be ready come playoff time.

In the Western Conference, it's hard not to pick the Los Angeles Lakers.  Although Phoenix, Dallas, and Utah are formidable opponents, San Antonio is the only team standing in their way.

Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher both have championship experience, and that's enough  to set an example for the players who are not experienced.

This is only a mere prediction because there is a lot of basketball to be played, but only time will tell. 

 
Blasco: In terms of best records, I think Boston and the Lakers capture the best records.

For which teams meet in the playoffs, it is still way too early to tell.

If the Spurs peak around the end of March, then I'll take San Antonio.

That will mean that their defense is back to a championship level and their offense is as potent as ever. If the Spurs don't find their groove, the Lakers are the safest bet to win the West.

 
Ungvari: I think the Pistons win the East. I think they have better all-around depth than both the Cavs and Celtics.

The Cavs will have difficulty guarding Chauncey Billups and Rip Hamilton and the Pistons will more than likely have home-court. I don’t see the Cavs beating them twice in a row without home-court.

I think Billups will abuse Rajon Rondo (here come the Celtics fans. I can take it). The Celtics swagger will bring the best out in the Pistons. They’ve already got their attention.

I still think the Spurs are the team to beat in the West. The Suns lack the defense to beat them, the Lakers and Hornets lack the experience, the Jazz would need home-court advantage, and the Mavericks lack the size.

Metrick: The Boston Celtics win the east.  They have three All-Stars who are hungry for success.  Kevin Garnett's enthusiasm and intensity will electrify within a sqaure mile of him come April.

And I fully expect to see the Celts sign some other pieces once once teams start cutting some veteran players loose.

The L.A. Lakers take the west.  They looked scary good in Phoenix last week, and that was without Andrew Bynum.

If he is healthy and playing well by April, they'll have the best starting lineup in the NBA.  Period.

Their bench is also playing superbly, and, by the way, they have one of the greatest coaches in the history of the league.

And is there a better game closer than Kobe? No. 

 
Serles: Boston Celtics. Why? Kevin Garnett. New Orleans Hornets. Why? The leadership of Chris Paul.

Michael Whittenberg is a senior writer for BleacherReport.com.  His entire archive can be found here.

Also check out No.1 No. 1's: The Best NBA Point Guards by Decade