Kendrick Perkins and 10 Players with Chances To Thrive with New Teams
For those of you who were following, this years NBA trade deadline was one of the most exciting one we've had in years. A lot of big names were on the move as well as role players who can catapult their teams to the next level.
Other teams misfortunes turned into gold for other teams as GMs tried to shed salary in hopes to rebuild. Continue reading to find out which players will thrive in their new cities.
Carmelo Anthony
1 of 10
I'll start with the most obvious of all...Carmelo Anthony. Anthony got his wish two days before the trade deadline when Denver finally dealt him to New York for a package that include four Knicks starters.
Moving to New York isn't going to change much for Carmelo Anthony. He's a top talent in the league and his scoring ability is only matched by Kevin Durant. He's going to continue to get his right elbow isolation plays and will continue to punish his defenders with either his smooth mid range jumper or his ability to drive to the basket with speed and power.
The only difference between Denver and New York is going to be Amar'e Stoudemire. With STAT and Melo on the floor at the same time it's going to be difficult for defenses to double either player. Melo is going to have more space on the court than he did in Denver and he will surely take advantage of that.
Carmelo is averaging 25.3 points per game this year and in his five games with New York he has scored 27, 27, 29, 25 and 22. If that's any indication of something, it's that Melo hasn't lost a step in New York and with better chemistry with the new guys, his scoring could go up from where it was in Denver.
Gerald Wallace
2 of 10
The Blazers cashed in on the struggling Bobcats' desire to rebuild. They traded Joel Przybilla and his expiring contract along with a few picks to get Gerald Wallace.
Throughout his career in Charlotte, fans questioned whether or not Wallace was a true franchise player. In my opinion, he is not. The fact is, in Portland he will not need to be the number one option. The fans of "Rip City" are going to appreciate Wallace for his tenacity on defense as well as his willingness to hit the glass.
Wallace was averaging 15.4 points per game and 8.1 rebounds per game. In Portland, I expect his scoring to go down to around 12 or 13 points per game while his rebounds remain at around eight. The Blazers didn't make this trade for Wallace's scoring ability, and they will be grateful by the time the playoffs come around when they get Wallace's determination and fire night in and night out.
Marcus Thornton
3 of 10
The Marcus Thornton for Carl Landry trade went virtually unnoticed with all of the action at the trade deadline, but this was a huge trade for Sacramento. Landry is a good player, but the Kings needed a talented young guard and they already had a large number of bigs.
Thornton is going to bring Sacramento a shooting guard who can play solid defense and be a threat to score 20+ every single night. His quick first step allows him to get to the basket to either finish or draw fouls and he has a nice stroke that is only going to improve as he continues to practice.
So far in Sacramento, Thornton is averaging 21 points per game. The future is bright for the Kings, and the addition of Marcus to play next to Tyreke Evans is a major reason for that.
Aaron Brooks
4 of 10
The Dragic for Brooks trade was one that caught me completely off guard. I was under the impression that Dragic was being groomed to succeed Nash and despite his struggles this season I thought they were going to stick with him. The thing is, I can't knock them for making this trade.
Brooks is a speeding fast point guard with the ability to knock down three's at will. Brooks isn't known for being a passer, but that's exactly why I think Phoenix is going to be a great home for him. Steve Nash is going to be able to mentor Aaron Brooks and for a guy who isn't much of a passer, who can possibly be better to learn from?
Brooks is seeing less playing time than he did in Houston, but I certainly think that Phoenix is a great place for him to play in the future.
Jeff Green
5 of 10
The Boston Celtics made a very questionable move on deadline day when they traded Kendrick Perkins for Jeff Green. It's not an insult to Green as much as it was confusion about why the Celtics would trade their starting center.
My feeling is that when the Celtics get the O'Neals (O'Nealii?) back, the fans in bean town will appreciate what Jeff Green does. He's a sure starter in the NBA and they are going to have him backing up Paul Pierce. The Celtics needed to start thinking about post big-three life and they did so when they acquired Green, who is only 24 years old.
Green is averaging 14.7 points per game this season to go along with 5.3 rebounds per game. He was playing out of position at the four spot and now that he can play the three again, he should be even better than he was in OKC.
It's going to be the job of the veterans to make Green feel welcome in Boston because it's clear that he's been nervous in his first few games. News broke that Garnett, Pierce and Allen were upset that they lost Perkins and I'm sure he heard about it somehow. The locker room is going to have to make him comfortable because come playoff time, they're going to need his versatility.
Danilo Gallinari
6 of 10
While many Knicks fans were happy about the acquisition of Carmelo Anthony, some like myself, were sulking about having to lose Danilo Gallinari. The 22 year old has all the tools in the world to become the next superstar in Denver.
With Carmelo Anthony gone, the Nuggets are looking for a new number one option and that guy is going to be Gallo. At 6'11'' Gallo can shoot over any defender who attempts to guard him and his agility for a guy his size will allow him to blow by his defenders. Gallinari has a high basketball IQ and that helps him get to the free throw line at will as well as play solid defense despite his slow lateral movement.
Denver is 4-1 since the Carmelo Anthony trade and the future seems bright...but not even close to as bright as it will be when Gallinari enters his prime.
Deron Williams
7 of 10
Another trade that came as a huge surprise to NBA fans was Deron Williams to New Jersey. This was one of the first times in years that a franchise player was traded without a single rumor coming out in the days prior.
The Nets roster may seem depleted, but Prokhorov has proven that he knows what he's doing with the team. He made the Knicks overpay for Carmelo Anthony and then came in and snatched Deron Williams for a relatively cheap price.
Deron is an incredible point guard with great scoring and passing ability. Soon he'll find that with a pick and roll partner in Brook Lopez and solid role players like Kris Humphries, Sasha Vujacic and Anthony Morrow that the Nets may not be as far away from contending as he once thought.
Shane Battier
8 of 10
When the Grizzlies got the news that Rudy Gay was going to be sidelined for a month they knew they needed to make a play for a small forward. They got their man and did so while only giving up a first round pick and Hasheem Thabust.
Battier is a veteran presence who is still a very capable player in this league. He's a lockdown defender and he's a very good three point shooter. Battier is averaging 8.4 points per game and 4.7 rebounds per game this season and is going to be the perfect filler for Gay while he is out. He doesn't need the ball too much on offense and that is going to allow Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol to get more touches.
The Grizzlies should be in the playoffs at the end of the year and when Gay comes back Battier will be a great player to have coming off the bench.
Anthony Randolph
9 of 10
The definition of potential is on the move again. This time he's going from the Mike D'Antoni doghouse to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Randolph didn't get a chance to play all year by Coach D'Antoni for reasons that are very debatable. If you ask me it was because he couldn't shoot three pointers and that every time he was thrown on the floor D'Antoni would keep him on way too short of a leash. He never had a chance to find a rhythm with the Knicks, but with a losing team like the TWolves he will have a chance to grow as a player.
Randolph is a tall and lanky combo forward who reminds me of a poor mans combination of Lamar Odom and Marcus Camby. Although he is 6'11'' he has the ability to dribble the ball up the floor and finish around the rim and on the defensive end he has good rebounding and shot blocking instincts.
If Kurt Rambis can be the first coach to get through to the kid, the Timberwolves may have found their dream complement to Kevin Love.
Kendrick Perkins
10 of 10
Boston's questionable trade was Oklahoma City's dream trade. This trade reminds me of the Pau Gasol trade in that a playoff team instantly became a championship contender with just one move.
The Thunder have had scoring ability at their guard positions for the last two years now and the one thing they lacked was the size to compete with teams like the Lakers. They literally could not have gotten a better player for their system. When healthy, Kendrick Perkins was a huge factor in Boston winning the NBA championship three years ago and they actually hadn't lost a series vs. the Lakers with Kendrick playing.
Perkins is injury-prone, but when healthy he is as good of a defensive player as you can have at the center position. Now that Green is gone, the Thunder will be able to play Serge Ibaka in their starting lineup at his natural position of power forward. The team that had a questionably small starting lineup now has Ibaka and Perkins in their starting lineup with newly acquired Nazr Mohammed as a backup. The Thunder are ready to make some noise and could be in the NBA Finals as early as this year.
