Recap Of Deadline Trades
Let’s get you caught up on all of the deadline deals that went down..
- The Sixers traded Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen to the Pacers for Danny Granger and a 2015 second-round selection.
- The Wizards acquired Andre Miller in a three-team deal that will also see the Nuggets receive Jan Vesely and Philly get Eric Maynor plus two second-round picks.
- In the first deadline deal, the Nets acquired Marcus Thornton from the Kings for Jason Terry and Reggie Evans.
- The Sixers and Cavs agreed to a trade that sends Spencer Hawes to Cleveland for Earl Clark, Henry Sims, and two second-round picks.
- The Bobcats acquired Gary Neal and Luke Ridnour from the Bucks in exchange for Ramon Sessions and Jeff Adrien.
- The Warriors acquired Steve Blake from the Lakers in exchange for Kent Bazemore and MarShon Brooks.
- The Nuggets are sending Jordan Hamilton to the Rockets for Aaron Brooks.
- The Clippers traded Antawn Jamison and cash to the Hawks for the draft rights to 2005 second-round pick Cenk Akyol.
- The Clippers sent Byron Mullens and a future second-round pick to the Sixers for a conditional second-rounder.
- The Spurs and Raptors swapped Nando De Colo and Austin Daye.
- The Heat sent cash and Roger Mason Jr. over to the Kings for a second-round pick that they’ll never see. Mason was subsequently waived.
Odds & Ends: Durant, Brooks, Nuggets
With tax season approaching, Thunder star Kevin Durant is looking to get his house in order. Durant is suing his former accountant for $600K over what he says were mistakes on his previous taxes, according to the Associated Press. More from around the Association..
- Aaron Brooks could have blocked the trade sending him from the Rockets to the Nuggets but he had a change of heart late in the game, tweets Mark Berman of FOX 26. “I changed my mind after talking to [Denver exec] Jared Jeffries, the (Nuggets) GM and the coach,” said the guard. Brooks also says that the need for him to play in the final year of his deal motivated him to say yes, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
- Nuggets GM Tim Connelly offered a very rational take of today’s deal to acquire Jan Vesely from the Wizards. “It’s not often you get a chance to get a 30-game look at the sixth pick in the draft from a couple years ago,” said the GM, according to Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post (on Twitter).
- Center Hamed Haddadi inked a deal in Iran after finishing his season in China, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
- Former Nets guard Tyshawn Taylor has signed in Puerto Rico, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Taylor was traded to the Pelicans earlier this year but was promptly cut loose.
- The Pelicans‘ inability to get back into the first-round of the 2014 draft at the deadline was disappointing, writes Jimmy Smith of the Times-Picayune.
Southeast Rumors: Miller, Wizards, Turner, Hawks
With the buyout of Glen Davis, Jameer Nelson is only remaining member of the Magic who played alongside Dwight Howard, tweets Brian K. Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. A quick look at the Southeast Division..
- Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld told reporters in a conference call, including Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders, that he didn’t like the way Eric Maynor ran the point guard position for the club and jumped at the opportunity to get a floor general like Andre Miller. Miller, 37, has averaged 13.6 points, 7.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals over the course of his career, which has spanned 14 and a half seasons in the NBA.
- The Bobcats were heavily linked to Evan Turner, but, ultimately, they weren’t interested, tweets Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer.
- The Hawks may recall guard Jared Cunningham from the D-League to help replenish their thinned ranks, tweets Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The club is set to release Cartier Martin after acquiring Antawn Jamison, who may also be on his way out.
Central Rumors: Turner, Bulls, Pacers, Cavs
NBA executives are praising the Pacers for their acquisition of Evan Turner because it improves their team, reduces payroll, and gives them leverage with Lance Stephenson when he’s a free agent next summer, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. This may prove to be just a short-term rental for the Pacers as they swapped one pending free agent for another, but it’s definitely an upgrade for their club in the here and now. Here’s more out of the Central..
- Despite some rumors to the contrary, the Bulls showed no desire to move Mike Dunleavy because he’s an affordable rotation player who fits next season, writes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. For his part, Tom Thibodeau is satisfied with what was a quiet deadline for the Bulls.
- The Cavs have a vacant roster spot and will fill it through free agency or a D-League signing, but GM David Griffin says that he’ll take his time to identify the club’s biggest need, tweets Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio.
- With the Turner deal, the Pacers have sent a strong message to the Heat that they are ready to take it all this season, writes Sean Deveney of the Sporting News. Turner will allow the Pacers to play small at times, matching up with teams that use quick lineups. More importantly, he brings serious ball-handling skills to the table, which should help round out the Indiana offense nicely.
- While the addition of Turner could be a boost on paper, Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders fears that the Pacers could be making a mistake by messing with their chemistry.
- With the smart (but painful) trade, the Pacers put themselves in great position for the remainder of the year, writes Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.
- If Roger Mason Jr, clears waivers, he could be a candidate for the Bulls when Jarvis Varnado‘s 10-day pact expires, tweets K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.
- In today’s presser, a reporter asked Griffin if he considers Cavs star Kyrie Irving an untouchable. He explained that his philosophy is that no one is untouchable, tweets the Plain Dealer. Meanwhile, Griffin says that he wasn’t close to a deal for Luol Deng, tweets Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio, but he added that if he didn’t listen, he wouldn’t be doing his job.
- Amico gives Griffin a thumbs up for his first trade deadline as Cavs GM.
Spurs, Raptors Swap De Colo, Daye
The Spurs and Raptors have announced their swap of Nando De Colo for Austin Daye. De Colo has been on frequent D-League assignments this year, having ceded playing time at backup point guard to Patty Mills and Cory Joseph. Daye has been even less of a factor for the Raptors, appearing for just 33 minutes total after signing a two-year minimum-salary deal this summer. 
De Colo, a 2009 second-round pick of the Spurs, finally signed with the team on a two-year deal in 2012. The contract gives him slightly more than the minimum, and he’s making $1.463MM this year. He’ll be a restricted free agent at season’s end.
Daye’s pact is partially guaranteed for $250K next season. He was the 15th overall pick the same year the Spurs drafted De Colo, but he never panned out in three and a half seasons with the Pistons, who traded him to the Grizzlies as part of the three-way Rudy Gay trade in January 2013.
Zach Links contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports first tweeted news of the deal.
Clippers Trade Antawn Jamison To Hawks
The Hawks announced that they have acquired Antawn Jamison and cash considerations from the Clippers in exchange for the draft rights to Cenk Akyol. Sending Jamison to Atlanta saves Los Angeles $884,293 toward its tax bill.
The 37-year-old has been averaging 3.8 PPG and 2.5 RPG in a career-low 11.3 minutes per game this season for Los Angeles. For his career, the veteran has averaged 18.5 PPG and 7.5 RPG across 16 NBA campaigns.
We learned earlier this week that the Clippers were dangling Jamison and others for frontcourt help. Jamison signed a one-year, minimum salary deal with the Clippers over the summer and despite his impressive resume, he hasn’t had the kind of impact that Doc Rivers & Co. were hoping for. Meanwhile, Jamison may not be staying it Atlanta for long as the club is said to be considering a buyout for the veteran forward.
Akyol, a 6’7″ forward, was the Hawks’ second-round draft pick in 2005 but has never appeared in the NBA and now plays in the Turkish Basketball League. It’s extremely unlikely that he’ll wind up in the NBA.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com first reported the deal. Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter) added details.
Nuggets, Rockets Swap Hamilton, Brooks
The Nuggets announced that their deal sending Jordan Hamilton to Houston in exchange for Aaron Brooks is now official. It initially appeared Hamilton would be on his way to the Knicks, but it turns out he won’t have to travel quite as far.
Brooks, who had the option of declining the deal, fills Denver’s need for a point guard. Meanwhile, the swap makes it seven straight deadline in which Rockets GM Daryl Morey has swung a deal.
Brooks will likely see more playing time in Denver than he did in Houston, where he was stuck behind Patrick Beverley and Jeremy Lin. The Nuggets have been looking for a backup to Ty Lawson ever Andre Miller and coach Brian Shaw got in a public spat around New Year’s, prompting Denver to send Miller home. Denver agreed to trade Miller to the Wizards in a three-team arrangement today.
The Nuggets’ decision to send Hamilton to Houston instead of the Knicks appears to have stymied New York’s efforts to trade Beno Udrih, whom Denver would have received, since the Knicks had no other suitors left for the veteran point guard, Shams Charania of RealGM tweets. All the interest in Hamilton is somewhat surprising, though the 23-year-old has made 11 starts for a banged-up Denver team this year, averaging career highs in an assortment of categories in his first significant playing time after mostly riding the pine during his first two NBA seasons. The small forward is nonetheless shooting just 39%.
Hamilton and Brooks will both be unrestricted free agents at season’s end. Denver elected to decline its 2014/15 option on Hamilton’s rookie scale contract before the season. Hamilton is making about $1.17MM, while Brooks gets the minimum salary.
Zach Links contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Shams Charania of RealGM.com first tweeted news of the deal.
Los Angeles Notes: Shumpert, Gasol, Lakers
The Knicks and the Clippers went back and forth on a deal involving Iman Shumpert, but ultimately they couldn’t come to an agreement. The final discussion between the two clubs was a deal that would have sent Darren Collison, Willie Green, and Matt Barnes to New York for Shumpert and Raymond Felton, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Meanwhile, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com hears that it was the Clippers and not the Knicks who backed out of the swap (Twitter link). More from L.A…
- Lakers big man Pau Gasol is “pretty confident” there will be desirable offers after the season when he’s a free agent, tweets Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report. Gasol added that he’s not holding any grudges against the Lakers over being in trade rumors, tweets Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times.
- Gasol says that he wanted to stay with the Lakers, so he’s happy to have seen the trade deadline come and go, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
- Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak said that a major factor in the Steve Blake trade was freeing up playing time to evaluate Jordan Farmar and Kendall Marshall, McMenamin tweets.
Wizards Acquire Andre Miller In Three-Team Deal
The Wizards have acquired disgruntled Nuggets guard Andre Miller in a three-team trade involving the Sixers. Washington gets Miller, the Nuggets receive Jan Vesely, and Philly receives Eric Maynor plus two second-round picks. The Sixers will receive the Nuggets’ 2016 second-round pick and the Pelicans’ 2015 second-round selection.
Miller, 37, is earning a $5MM salary and makes $4.625MM next year in the final year of his deal, but that’s only partially guaranteed for $2MM as long as he’s waived before July. Before his clash with Denver coach Brian Shaw, Miller was averaging 5.9 PPG and 3.3 APG in 19 minutes per contest. Heading into this season, Miller boasted career averages of 13.8 PPG and 7.1 APG in 33.4 minutes per game.
Maynor, the former VCU hero, now joins his fifth team in four years. Washington inked the guard to a two-year deal worth the bi-annual exception with a player option for year two over the summer.
Vesely, the No. 6 overall pick in the 2011 draft, has averaged just 3.5 PPG and 3.4 RPG over the course of his NBA career. Washington declined its $4.2MM option on the big man for the 2014/15 season so he’ll be a free agent after the season is through.
The future-minded 76ers now have a whopping nine second round picks in the second round of this year’s draft.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter) first reported that Miller was Washington-bound. Additional details came from CBSSports.com’s Ken Berger and Sam Amick of USA Today (both links go to Twitter).
Bobcats Acquire Gary Neal
The Bobcats announced that they have acquired Gary Neal and Luke Ridnour from the Bucks in exchange for Ramon Sessions and Jeff Adrien. Marc Stein of ESPN.com (via Twitter) first reported the agreement.
“We are excited to add a pair of quality players to our backcourt,” Bobcats president Rod Higgins said. “Gary is an exceptional shooter and Luke is a veteran point guard who can help us off the bench. They both have significant postseason experience so they know how to get where we’re trying to go. We look forward to adding them to our rotation. We also want to thank Ramon and Jeff for their contributions and professionalism and wish them the best of luck.”
Charlotte was attempting to talk Milwaukee into the idea that taking Sessions would make it easier for the Bucks to trade Ridnour, and apparently they agreed, simply deciding to fold Ridnour into this deal.
An earlier report suggested Caron Butler and Ben Gordon could be involved in the deal, but that wasn’t the case. The Suns, Kings, Wolves and Thunder were among the teams in the mix for Neal this week, but Charlotte emerged as the most serious suitor today.
Ridnour, a free agent at season’s end, makes $4.42MM, while Neal earns $3.25MM this season and gets the same pay next year. Sessions is on a $5MM expiring deal while Adrien makes the minimum.
Zach Links contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.