NBA Trades: Is Gerald Wallace to Portland Trail Blazers Steal of the Deadline?

Gerald Wallace was traded by the Charlotte Bobcats today to the Portland Trail Blazers for two future first-round draft picks, center Joel Przybilla, and forward Dante Cunningham.

This is a deal that was so on-again, off-again that it seemed like a drama-happy high school couple.

In the end, Portland ended up offering enough to the Bobcats for the deal to go through, and the last remaining original Bobcat is no longer in Charlotte.

Charlotte used this opportunity to cut payroll and look to the future; they received two draft picks and Dante Cunningham, who could come into his own.

What Portland got in return, however, could take them deep into the playoffs.

The Blazers gave up a center who is has played in only 31 games this season, and has ruptured the same tendon in his right knee twice. He was averaging 1.8 points, half a block, and four rebounds this season.

They also gave up Cunningham, whose 43 percent shooting average is low for a forward/center, and who is only grabbing three boards a game.

Losing two picks is hard, but if a trade is to put your team near the top of the league, picks have got to go.

In return, the Trail Blazers got a guy who can come out on any given night and score 20 points, grab ten boards, and play stellar defense.

He is not a player who demands the ball, as he took only 943 shots last year (shot-happy Andray Blatche took 999), and has consistently improved as a free-throw shooter.

In Charlotte, Wallace was expected to be the number one option for most of his tenure, but he just isn't a number one type of guy.

In Portland, however, where they are able to field a healthy team, Wallace will have Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Wesley Matthews to defer to as scoring options. Andre Miller is the go-to guy for most of the ball-handling duties. And Wallace will have help defensively, as Portland allows the seventh fewest points in the league at 95.6 per game.

Wallace has had an injury-prone career, though, and on the Bad Luck Blazers, injury-prone can become disaster-prone.

Fortunately, the Blazers didn't have to radically alter their team to get him. He will most likely bump Nicholas Batum down to their sixth man, a spot at which the team will probably benefit most from him, as Batum can burn second units quite consistently.

They didn't have to trade away three-fifths of their starting lineup, as the Knicks did to get Carmelo Anthony.

They didn't have to give up an all-star, as the Nets did to get Deron Williams.

They didn't give up a top-ten pick, as the Clippers did to get Mo Williams away from the Cavaliers.

Portland didn't have to give up anything that could potentially hurt them in the next few years, and like all of the above trades, they still received an all-star and a potential 20-10 guy.

The Blazers definitely got the steal of the deadline here.

If (big if!) they can stay healthy next year, this team could seriously contend for the Western Conference crown.