NBA Power Rankings: Teams Impacted by Trade Deadline Deals
For many teams, the outlook of the rest of the NBA season is going to be shaped by their trade deadline moves.
There were a whopping 10 deals made on March 15, and plenty of contenders added a piece for a title run. Even more terrible franchises somewhat brightened their future.
Let’s take a look at the power rankings for this week with an eye on how the deadline deals shaped the list.
No. 30 to 26: There Is Always Next Season
1 of 6No. 30 – Charlotte Bobcats
The Bobcats are terrible, but at least they are going to have a good chance at the No. 1 overall pick in a loaded draft class.
No. 29 – Washington Wizards
Washington swapped Nick Young and JaVale McGee for Nene, Brian Cook and a draft pick, which isn’t bad considering how awful McGee could be at times.
Nene won’t save their season, but he’ll be a solid guy to build around.
No. 28 – New Orleans Hornets
NOLA refused to move Kaman, which makes no sense considering he’ll probably pack up and head out in the offseason.
No. 27 – New Jersey Nets
The Nets are insane for trading a lottery pick in the 2012 draft for Gerald Wallace.
He’s not going to improve this team's fortune, and it’s likely that Deron Williams and Wallace are gone this summer.
No. 26 – Toronto Raptors
Bargnani is back, but the team still has a lot of work to do. They have to hope they can score a true star soon.
No. 25 to 21: Going Nowhere Fast
2 of 6No. 25 – Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavs made the conscious decision to dump Ramon Sessions in order to grab pieces for the future.
Smart, considering they are just 16-26 on the season.
No. 24 – Sacramento Kings
The Kings have some promise now that they are getting contributions from lesser-known players. If only their lottery picks could step up.
No. 23 – Golden State Warriors
Golden State is completely changing their culture by adding Andrew Bogut and jettisoning Monta Ellis.
They could be a force in 2012-13.
No. 22 – Detroit Pistons
Rodney Stuckey and Greg Monroe are two elite pieces to build around for the future in the Motor City.
No. 21 – Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee added some more firepower to their backcourt with Ellis, and got rid of a malcontent in Stephen Jackson.
It just cost them former No. 1 overall pick Andrew Bogut and future cap room.
No. 20 to 16: Pretenders
3 of 6No. 20 – Portland Trail Blazers
Portland went absolutely nuts at the deadline. They shipped Gerald Wallace to the Nets for a top first-rounder and Shawne Williams, acquired Johnny Flynn and Hasheem Thabeet from the Rockets for Marcus Camby and fired coach Nate McMillian.
Does this make their team better in the short run?
Perhaps, as they desperately needed a breath of fresh air.
They are still lottery-bound, but have a bright future if they hit on their picks.
No. 19 – Minnesota Timberwolves
It’s unfortunate the T-Wolves lost Ricky Rubio for the season. They’ll have to wait until 2013 to make a playoff run.
No. 18 – New York Knicks
The Knicks look much better in the Mike Woodson era, compared to the Mike D’Antoni reign.
No. 17 – Boston Celtics
Boston continues to show their age and failed to make a move when they critically needed to at the deadline.
No. 16 – Houston Rockets
Houston made some maneuvers to help them in the future and ditched some dead weight mid-season.
Marcus Camby may help their playoff push.
No. 15 to 11: We Can't Win It All, but No One Wants to Play Us
4 of 6No. 15 – Utah Jazz
The Jazz youth movement is in full swing, and players like Alec Burks and Enes Kanter have this team on the cusp of the postseason.
No. 14 – Phoenix Suns
Steve Nash is single-handedly willing this team to success in 2012, and it looks like they could be a dangerous team to play come May.
No. 13 – Indiana Pacers
Indiana started hot, but has cooled off significantly since the All-Star break. They have too much talent not to get back on track.
No. 12 – Philadelphia 76ers
Evan Turner has finally started living up to his No. 2 selection, and the Sixers are looking like locks to win the Atlantic.
No. 11 – Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta is doing just fine with Al Horford, thanks to the productive—but unhappy—Josh Smith.
If they can make a solid playoff push, they could have their starting center back in time to do some real damage.
No. 10 to 6: Contenders
5 of 6No. 10 – Dallas Mavericks
The defending champs are dealing with injuries and road woes but that still hasn’t stopped them from winning 26 games so far.
No. 9 – Memphis Grizzlies
Zach Randolph is finally back and the scariest part is that his team was doing just fine without him.
They gave away Sam Young for nothing, but it shouldn’t have any impact.
No. 8 – Denver Nuggets
Denver is going to get even better now that Wilson Chandler has re-signed. They are a balanced team with a number of scorers that play completely unselfish basketball.
No. 7 – Los Angeles Clippers
The Clips have had some struggles in recent games, but Nick Young should help their bench, and the team clearly just needs to get back on track.
They will be just fine come playoff time.
No. 6 – Orlando Magic
Dwight Howard should be the one relieved he elected to stay with the Magic. They are one of the best teams in the East and forcing a trade to a terrible team like New Jersey would have been insane.
No. 5 to No. 1: The Favorites
6 of 6No. 5 – Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers made a bold move to stay competitive by making a play for Ramon Sessions.
Besides SF and the puzzling disappearance of Metta World Peace’s skills, PG was their biggest question mark and now they have an answer.
No. 4 – San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs just added a legitimate impact player in Stephen Jackson to make what should be the final push in the Tim Duncan era.
S-Jax has proven to be a winner in San Antonio before and is hoping to repeat that magic.
No. 3 – Oklahoma City Thunder
OKC has been less than impressive since the All-Star break, but this young team will find their legs sooner than later.
They are deep, athletic and still hungry from a disappointing Western Conference Finals loss in 2011.
No. 2 – Miami Heat
Miami cannot claim the No. 1 spot if they can’t beat the No. 1 team without their No. 1 player…
No. 1 – Chicago Bulls
Chicago is simply the best team in the league and anything less than a Finals appearance in 2012 will be a letdown.
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