Five Key Stories: 2/3/18 – 2/10/18

If case you missed any of this past week’s biggest headlines from around the NBA (e.g. trade deadline), we’ve got you covered with our Week in Review. Below are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last seven days.

dwyane wade verticalThe Cavaliers traded away half of their rotation – including former MVP-candidate Isaiah Thomas – in what became a wild day in Cleveland on Thursday. All told, the Cavaliers traded away six players (Thomas, Channing Frye, Jae Crowder, Derrick Rose, Iman Shumpert, and Dwyane Wade), their 2018 first-round pick (lightly protected – LAL), and a second-round pick in 2020 (SAC) in exchange for four players (George Hill, Rodney Hood, Jordan Clarkson, and Larry Nance Jr.) and a heavily protected second-round pick in 2024 (MIA). Frye and Thomas head to the Lakers, Crowder and Rose to the Jazz, while Shumpert is now on the Kings and Wade returns to the Heat. Meanwhile, Joe Johnson was sent from Utah to Sacramento.

Speaking of Johnson, he was bought out by the Kings this afternoon and will sign with the Rockets once he clears waivers on Monday. Johnson, 36, was rumored to be favoring the Celtics or the Warriors after he hit free agency, but has evidently decided to sign with Houston instead. In addition, the Rockets are expected to sign 11-year veteran Brandan Wright after he completes a buyout with the Grizzlies. In order to make room on the roster for the new additions, Houston will waive Bobby Brown, who the team had just signed yesterday, and will need to cut one more player.

In another deadline-day deal, three former lottery selections changed teams in a three-way deal between the Knicks, Mavericks, and Nuggets. The trade will send Emmanuel Mudiay to the Knicks, Devin Harris to the Nuggets, and Doug McDermott to the Mavericks. Additionally, Denver acquired a second-round pick from New York and Dallas acquired a second-round pick from Denver – both in this year’s draft.

In non-trade related news, Clippers break-out star Lou Williams has signed a three-year contract extension with a partial guarantee in the third year. Williams will make $8MM annually, with the third-year guarantee paying $1.5MM for a total of $17.5MM in guaranteed money. Given Williams’ play so far this season, most pundits estimated a yearly guarantee exceeding that amount, but Williams is reportedly happy in Los Angeles and prefers the stability this new contract provides as opposed to testing the free agent market.

In yet another tough break for Team LeBron, not to mention the Knicks, All-Star forward Kristaps Porzingis suffered a torn ACL in his left knee during Tuesday night’s game against Milwaukee and will miss the remainder of the season. And, despite being able to put weight on the knee after the injury occurred, recovery time could be as long as 12 months.

Here are 11 more worthwhile NBA headlines from last week:

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