NBA Trade: Pros and Cons of the Corey Maggette Move

The Warriors have traded Forward Corey Maggette to the Milwaukee Bucks.  Maggette gave the Warriors a spark off the bench in the 2009-10 season.  He was one of the best 6th men in the NBA as he averaged 19 points.  Here are some of the good and bad sides of the trade. 

The Pros

Quantity Over Quality:  This trade brought in 2 new players to the Warriors.  The Warriors acquired veterans Charlie Bell and Dan Gadzuric.  Neither of these players will provide much help, looking at their stats neither of them are impressive.  But for a team with the injury concerns of the Warriors, it helps to get a 2-for-1 trade.

Money Better Spent:  The Warriors are saving about $15 million with this trade.  Corey Maggette signed a lucrative 5 year, $50 million contract when he signed with the Warriors after helping the Clippers reach the playoffs.   That's right!  The Clippers in the playoffs!  Corey never played up to his contract.  He was given this contract simply so the Warriors could get revenge on the Clippers for signing away Baron Davis,  no offense intended towards Maggette.

Re-Build:  The Warriors have a group of young players who could become very good with more playing time and less injury.  Maggette's trade will allow Brandon Wright and Anthony Randolph to get the playing time at forward.  Those two kids are much more promising than Maggette.  Maggette has reached his prime while the sky is the limit for Anthony Randolph.

The Cons

Fallen Veteran:  The Warriors are very young and now lack a talented veteran to lead the team.  Monta Ellis is still in his young 20's and Stephen Curry is entering his 2nd season.  With the $15 million in savings, maybe the Warriors will acquire a free agent or strike a trade for a leader for this team. 

Bench Power:  The Warriors may have paid Maggette to be the richest 6th man in the NBA, but he earned it.  The Warriors need to find a threat to come off the bench so Randolph and Wright can get decent breaks in games. 

Ready Or Not, Here You Go:  Without Maggette, the Warriors will start Anthony Randolph and Brandon Wright at forward says GM Larry Riley.  Both players are coming off injury plagued seasons and they no longer have a veteran to mentor them at forward.  Time will tell if these two are ready to start a full season.