The NBA trade deadline is officially two weeks away. It should be a juicy deadline this year, but do not expect any moves until a day or two before the deadline. Teams are nervous about making trades and want to do all of their homework before they pull the trigger. Here are five moves that make sense for both sides.
Five Possible Trades at the NBA Trade Deadline
Milwaukee Makes a Win Now Move
*MIL Gets- Derrick Favors, Rodney Hood
*UTAH gets- Matthew Dellavedova, Thon Maker, D.J. Wilson, 2nd round pick (from Dal)
Milwaukee has underperformed this season and is currently the eight seed in the east. That is why Jason Kidd was fired. Jabari Parker coming back will help, but the Bucks need more defense and rebounding. This trade solves their weaknesses. Favors gives them a good rebounder and rim protector. On offense, he is a great roll man and can hit midrange jumpers. Hood is a versatile swingman who gives the Bucks more shooting. He can start or come off the bench.
This is a win now move for the Bucks, and it comes with some risk. Both Hood and Favors are free agents this summer, and the Bucks would need to be confident they could re-sign both in the off-season. With giving up their second rounder, they would not have a pick in this years draft.
They would also give up on young guys like Maker and Wilson. However, the east is open and adding Favors and Hood plus Jabari to their current team makes the Bucks lethal. For the Jazz, this makes sense because they are not going to re-sign Favors or Hood anyway. Maker and Wilson give them two intriguing young prospects and an extra pick does not hurt. Dellavedova is a steady back up point guard who fits the Jazz. Utah is likely missing the playoffs, so they need to start building around Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert.
Wizards Get Aggressive
*WAS gets- Evan Fournier, Nikola Vucevic
*ORL gets- Marcin Gortat, Marcus Morris, Tomas Satoransky, 2019 first round pick
Besides Cleveland, Washington leads the league in drama. They need to shake things up. Like the Bucks, this is a win now move. Fournier gives the Wizards a versatile wing who can do a bit of everything on offense. Vucevic, once he gets back from injury, would be a deadly pick and roll partner for John Wall.
The price is not too bad either. Gortat wants to retire as a member of the Magic, and this just expedites the process. Morris is underachieving this season and gets a fresh start with the Magic. Satorasnky is a young player the Magic would love to have. The 2019 first rounder sweetens the deal for the Magic. Washington could have a starting lineup of Wall, Beal, Fournier, Porter Jr and Vucevic. The bench would be thin with Mike Scott, Ian Mahinmi and Kelly Oubre Jr, but it is worth it.
Orlando once again has to rebuild.
Cleveland Makes Small Trade for Defense
*CLE gets- Dewayne Dedmon, Kent Bazemore
*ATL gets- Tristan Thompson, Cedi Osman, Cle First round pick
Cleveland was rumored to get George Hill from Sacramento for Iman Shumpert and Channing Frye, but apparently that deal might not happen now. Cleveland needs to realize LeBron James is probably leaving and they need to make useful short and long-term moves, which is tough to do.
This means giving up small stuff, not the Brooklyn pick. This trade helps them get some defense, which they desperately need. Dedmon is an elite rim protector, and he can even hit threes now. He is one of the more underrated players in the league. Bazemore is average, and his contract is not great, but he is an upgrade over J.R. Smith. For Atlanta, this trade means going full tank mode, which they should be doing anyway.
They get another first-round pick, which would give them potentially FOUR in this year’s draft. Plus they get an intriguing young player in Osman and Thompson is a serviceable big, who can back up John Collins in the future. No, this trade does not help the Cavs beat the Warriors, but it helps them get out of the east. They can still make more moves.
Denver Gets some Depth
*DEN gets- Spencer Dinwiddie, Joe Harris
*BKN gets- Juan Hernangomez, Malik Beasley, 2nd round pick(from Sac)
Denver has been alright this season. They have struggled with injuries, and their bench is an issue. This helps their bench dramatically. Dinwiddie is one of the surprises players of the season and would be a great backup to Jamal Murray. He could even play with him. Harris has also improved and would give the Nuggets some much needed shooting. Both are free agents this off-season and Brooklyn may not keep them, so it is better to trade them now.
In return, they get a second-round pick from the Kings, which will be a good pick and two intriguing young prospects in Beasley and Hernagomez. Then they can start to build around D’Angelo Russell and Jarrett Allen. The extra pick is huge for them as they do not have their first-round pick.
If Denver adds these two plus the return of Paul Millsap, they will be a dangerous team in the playoffs.
Charlotte and San Antonio Make a Blockbuster Trade
*CHA gets- Kawhi Leonard, Dejounte Murray
*SA gets- Kemba Walker, MKG, Johnny O’Bryant III, 2019 first round pick
I had to do one blockbuster deal. Apparently, Leonard is upset in San Antonio and Charlotte may have no choice but to trade Walker. In this trade, Charlotte gets a franchise player in return and a promising young point guard in Murray.
The Spurs get their star point guard of the future, a solid small forward in Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who I bet will learn to shoot under Greg Popovich, plus a nice young rotation big in O’Bryant.
Couple of things here: Leonard may not play again this season, so Charlotte can tank, get a good pick and then give their 2019 first rounder to the Spurs. San Antonio would have a nice duo of Walker and LaMarcus Aldridge and then chase LeBron James in free agency.
This one is doubtful to happen, but would not blow my mind. Realistically both will be with their teams at the deadline, but things could get interesting in the off-season.
Main Photo
CHARLOTTE, USA – MARCH 20: Kemba Walker (L) of Charlotte Hornets in action during the NBA match between Charlotte Hornets vs Atlanta Hawks at the Spectrum arena in Charlotte, United States on March 20, 2017. (Photo by Peter Zay/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
