2012 Trade Deadline: One Year Later
We've had an early start to the NBA's midseason swap meet this year, as Rudy Gay went to the Raptors as part of a three-team deal in a rare January trade of significance. Before we get wrapped up in this year's movement, let's look back at the activity that took place in the days before last year's March 15th trade deadline. With the advantage of a year (or almost 11 months, to be precise) of hindsight, we'll judge the deals accordingly. Feel free to give your own take on the trades by leaving a comment.
The Warriors traded Monta Ellis, Ekpe Udoh and Kwame Brown to the Bucks for Andrew Bogut and Stephen Jackson.
- This one can't really be judged until Andrew Bogut is back on the floor at full health, though he notched 12 points and eight rebounds in less than 24 minutes during his first game back this week. The Bucks' new backcourt hasn't been a rousing success, and coach Scott Skiles is gone, but the deal was apparently sufficient enough for GM John Hammond and assistant GM Jeff Weltman to receive three-year extensions. The Warriors flipped Jackson to the Spurs, and have gotten only four games out of Bogut. First-year winner: Bucks
The Warriors traded Jackson to the Spurs for Richard Jefferson, T.J. Ford and a first-round pick.
- Jackson experienced a renaissance in San Antonio, while Ford had retired before the trade and was included merely to make the salaries match. The Warriors turned the first-rounder into Festus Ezeli, who was starting in place of Bogut, and Jefferson has re-entered the rotation of late. Jackson's numbers are down this season, with a PER of 9.0 that nearly matches the number from his forgettable stint in Milwaukee. Two contributors are better than one. First-year winner: Warriors
The Grizzlies traded Sam Young to the 76ers for the rights to former second-round draft pick Ricky Sanchez.
- One of many salary dumps the Grizzlies have participated in over the past year. Young played only 135 total minutes for the Sixers before leaving in free agency, while Sanchez doesn't seem likely to land in the States anytime soon. Since it saved the Grizzlies from paying the tax and Young probably couldn't have helped them get any farther in the playoffs, the move was worth it. First-year winner: Grizzlies
The Raptors traded Leandro Barbosa to the Pacers for a second-round pick and cash.
- Toronto was well under the cap and didn't really need the short-term financial help. The Pacers had plenty of cap room to accomodate Barbosa's expiring contract, but he didn't play particularly well with Indiana. The Brazilian Blur recorded a 13.4 PER, which would have been his lowest since 2004/05 if it were a full-season figure. That might explain why it took so long for him to find a home in free agency this season. The Raptors used the pick on Tomislav Zubcic, who's playing overseas. First-year winner: Push
The Blazers traded Gerald Wallace to the Nets for Mehmet Okur, Shawne Williams and a first-round draft pick.
- The pick turned out to be Rookie of the Year candidate Damian Lillard, making this move a steal for Portland. There's no telling if the Nets would have taken Lillard in the draft, and perhaps doing so would have led to the departure of Deron Williams. The trade might not have hurt Brooklyn as much in the short term as it's helped the Blazers, who wound up with a quality point guard on a rookie contract and opened up the small forward spot for Nicolas Batum, who's having his best season. First-year winner: Blazers
The Blazers traded Marcus Camby to the Rockets for Jonny Flynn, Hasheem Thabeet, and a second-round pick.
- This deal was of significantly less importance than Portland's other move. Camby was remarkably efficient for Houston in his stint there last season, posting a 19.6 PER, but he couldn't get them into the playoffs, and the Rockets flipped him to the Knicks for a pair of second-round draft picks and players who are no longer on the roster. The Blazers let Flynn and Thabeet go and used the draft pick on Will Barton, on whom the jury's still out. First-year winner: Rockets
The Lakers traded Derek Fisher and a first-round draft pick to the Rockets for Jordan Hill.
- This one looked like a wash for both teams for much of last season. The Rockets bought out Fisher, allowing him to go to the Thunder, while Hill languished on the bench for the Lakers. That changed when Hill emerged in a huge Lakers comeback against the Thunder, and he became L.A.'s first big man off the bench for the playoffs. Hill re-signed with the Lakers in the summer, but he's out for the season with a hip injury. The Rockets used that draft pick as part of the James Harden trade. First-year winner: Rockets (but only because Hill is hurt)
The Lakers traded Luke Walton, Jason Kapono and a 2012 first-round pick to the Cavs, along with the ability for the Cavs to switch first-round picks in 2013, for Ramon Sessions and Christian Eyenga.
- This trade was all about an upgrade at point guard for L.A., and cap space and future considerations for Cleveland. Sessions' shortcomings were exposed in the playoffs against the Thunder, leading the Lakers to pursue Steve Nash in the summer. The Cavs parlayed the Lakers' 2012 first-rounder in a deal for 17th pick Tyler Zeller, and with L.A.'s surprising struggles this year, they could be in line for another draft choice in the middle of the first round. This deadline swap did get Walton's $6.1MM salary for this season of L.A.'s books, and Eyenga was used as fodder in the Dwight Howard blockbuster, but Cleveland got more of what it wanted. First-year winner: Cavs
In a three-team trade, the Nuggets sent Nene to the Wizards for JaVale McGee and Ronny Turiaf. The Wizards sent Nick Young to the Clippers for Brian Cook and a 2015 second-round pick.
- This essentially was a pair of two-team deals, the most notable of which was Denver's surprising reversal of course on Nene, who had just signed a five-year, $65MM deal with the Nuggets before the season began. Though McGee, whom Denver signed to another costly deal this summer, averages only 18.8 minutes per game, he's still played more total minutes this season than the oft-injured Nene. None of the other players involved in the transaction remain with the teams that acquired them last year, including Young, whose 9.9 PER during his stint with the Clippers was well below his 12.8 career average. First-year winner: Nuggets
Celtics Meet With Greg Oden
We heard a couple of weeks ago that the Celtics were keeping an eye on former No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden, and today the oft-injured center met with team officials, tweets A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. The meeting took place in Waltham, Mass., the site of the C's practice facility. Though the Celtics could use some healthy bodies with Rajon Rondo and Jared Sullinger out for the season, Oden isn't looking to return until 2013/14. Celtics basketball president Danny Ainge told Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald that nothing is imminent.
"We're just finding out as much as we can and letting Greg know what we have here," Ainge said. "He's not ready to play now, but he's someone who's very interesting."
Ainge said he wanted to ask Oden about his physical condition, and refuted a report that the 7-footer wasn't interest in the Celtics, pointing to the meeting as proof. The Heat and Cavs have been the frontrunners for Oden's services, but he's been linked to several other teams, including the Pacers, Hornets, Bobcats, Spurs and Mavericks. The Wolves are the only team that appears to be definitely out on Oden.
The Celtics have the minimum 13 players on their roster, but Ainge has said he'll fill the two available spots before the trade deadline. Boston could use a prorated portion of its $1.957MM biannual exception to exceed the minimum salary on a two-year deal. Signing Oden wouldn't help them lock down the final playoff spot this year, but it could give them a boost once Rondo and Sullinger return for next season. Still, it remains to be seen just how much Oden can give any team at this point, and even when healthy, he hasn't been particularly productive. He's averaged 9.4 points and 7.3 rebounds in 22.1 minutes per game in 82 NBA contests, the last of which came on December 5th, 2009.
Eastern Rumors: Josh Smith, Lowry, Lucas, Bulls
It doesn't look like anything will derail a trip to the postseason for the teams currently in the top seven of the Eastern Conference, but with Rajon Rondo and Jared Sullinger both lost for the year, the Celtics appear more vulnerable than their three-game lead for the eighth spot would suggest. The Sixers, who could get Andrew Bynum back soon, are ninth, and the Pistons and Raptors, a pair of teams that could get a boost from this week's trade, are next in line. Here's more from the East:
- Though other reports have contradicted Alex Kennedy's recent dispatch that the Suns have interest in Josh Smith, the HoopsWorld scribe stands by his story, and says the Rockets and Bobcats have had exploratory talks with the Hawks as well (Twitter links).
- While Marc Stein of ESPN.com has heard the suggestion that the Raptors might have intended to get rid of Kyle Lowry as well as Jose Calderon, he doesn't see that happening now, especially given the close friendship between Lowry and new acquisiton Rudy Gay.
- The Raptors signed John Lucas III last summer with the idea that he would slide into the rotation if a Calderon trade went down, Stein points out. Lucas responded with 17 points in less than 19 minutes during last night's upset of the Clippers.
- Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times wonders about the possibility LeBron James could sign with the Bulls in 2014, when the team is set to have plenty of cap space to accomodate King James and others.
- Cowley also notes that Bulls GM Gar Forman is likely to sign free agents primarily to one-year contracts this summer, just as he did in 2012, as last year's free agent tracker shows.
- HoopsWorld's Joel Brigham provides an update on Bynum, Derrick Rose, Danny Granger, and other key injured players due back around the All-Star break, speculating that their returns might make it less likely that their teams participate in trade deadline deals.
Glen Davis Breaks Left Foot, Likely Out For Season
11:51pm: Davis is likely out for the rest of the season, according to John Denton of Magic.com.
9:31pm: Magic coach Jacque Vaughn told reporters tonight that power forward Glen Davis has suffered a left broken foot, according to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. The injury happened in the first quarter of tonight's game. It's the second significant injury of the season for Davis, who just made it back two weeks ago after missing nearly a month with a shoulder injury. There's no word on just how long Davis will be out, but with the trade deadline in three weeks, it likely spoils any plans the Magic had of including Davis in a deal to shed salary, as they have reportedly been interested in doing.
Davis, in the second year of a four-year, $25.7MM contract, was averaging career highs in points (15.5), rebounds (7.5) and minutes (32.1) entering tonight's contest. The 27-year-old is Orlando's second leading scorer and rebounder, so his loss will be felt on a team that's fallen eight games behind the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
The losing may be a blessing in disguise, as Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel noted before tonight's game that the Magic's odds of winning the No. 1 pick in the lottery are increasing. The chances of doing so figure to improve further with Davis out. As our reverse standings show, the Magic currently have an 11.9% chance of landing the top pick, fourth best in the league.
Odds & Ends: Warriors, Splitter, Kings, Cousins
Two-time MVP Steve Nash made his first trip back to the city where he enjoyed his greatest success, but his Phoenix return has been overshadowed by the first major trade of the year. It's been quite a busy evening, with Rudy Gay heading to the Raptors, retirement talk surrounding Kevin Garnett, and another weapon in the quiver for the Lakers. Here's even more from the Association:
- Even with Andrew Bogut back, the Warriors still want to upgrade their front line and would love to trade for Timofey Mozgov or DeJuan Blair, Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group reports. Still, chances of a move are "remote," a source tells Thompson.
- Barring an unreasonable offer from another team, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News believes the Spurs intend to re-sign Tiago Splitter, who'll be a restricted free agent this summer (Twitter link).
- In the tug-of-war between Sacramento and Seattle for the Kings, Jason Thompson says the California capital has the players on its side, notes Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com.
- Though he was one of the more prominent trade candidates earlier this season, DeMarcus Cousins claims he's unaware of his name having come up in trade talk, as Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe observes, passing along some revealing comments from the mercurial Kings center. "I'm a loyal guy," he said. "I'm a family-orientated guy. But not so much in this league. You've kind of got to look out for yourself most of the time and always do what's best for you."
- The Mavs could have been involved in today's three-team deal, but reportedly refused to part with Vince Carter, and that was the right move, opines Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com.
- No team has more former lottery picks under the age of 25 than the Jazz, and that has them set up for a bright future, writes Mike Sorensen of the Deseret News.
GMs: ‘No Chance’ Garnett Plays Out Contract
Two GMs who spoke to Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game believe there's "no chance" that Kevin Garnett plays the final two seasons of the three-year, $36MM contract he signed this past offseason (Sulia link). The executives believe the 36-year-old won't be able to coax any more out of his aging legs, and wouldn't want to hang around as an albatross to the Celtics. The GMs also aren't expecting any team to take him on in a trade, given his outsized salary, though only $6MM of his $12MM for 2014/15 is guaranteed.
If Garnett were to walk away, the Celtics would still be on the hook for the guaranteed portion of his deal, unless the two sides arrange a buyout. Clearly the dynamics in Boston have changed after Rajon Rondo's ACL injury, though Celtics basketball president Danny Ainge is reportedly waiting to evaluate this year's post-Rondo team before making a move. The specter of Garnett's looming retirement may prompt Ainge to decide the championship window for this iteration of the Celtics has finally closed.
Garnett, in his 18th season, is averaging 15.0 points and 7.3 rebounds in 30.4 minutes a game. He also chips in 1.1 steals and 1.0 blocks every night and remains the linchpin of the Celtics defense, which allows the 10th-fewest points per game in the league. Still, his 18.7 PER, his lowest since his second season in the league, indicates that he isn't as efficient as he once was, and he's been unable to lift Boston to better than a 22-23 record this year.
Not counting this year's salary, Garnett has earned in excess of $291MM over his career, according to Basketball-Reference.com. That's a figure Bucher believes is the most any NBA player has ever made. Others will soon pass him for that distinction, to be sure, but it's enough of a sum to suggest that Garnett may be willing to leave a significant portion of his current contract on the table if he's ready to hang it up.
Fallout From Rudy Gay Deal
Reaction has been pouring in since the Grizzlies, Raptors and Pistons struck a deal that's headlined by Rudy Gay going to Toronto. Couper Moorhead of Heat.com thinks the trade is a win for the Grizzlies, who pulled off the rare trifecta of shedding salary while improving short-term and long-term (Twitter link). Ken Berger of CBSSports.com sees it as a step back for Memphis, and another reminder of the harsh reality of the new CBA for small and mid-size markets. Here's more of what we're hearing:
- Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo said to expect more deals from the Raptors before the deadline, notes Steve Buffery of the Toronto Sun via Twitter.
- Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free-Press, after discussions with those around the Pistons, wouldn't rule out the idea of the team keeping Jose Calderon around (Twitter link). I assume he means the team would try to re-sign him this summer, rather than merely pass up opportunities to flip him to another team before the trade deadline.
Earlier updates:
- Berger, in the same piece, says it would behoove the Pistons to trade some of the $26.5MM in expiring contracts they have as a result of the deal.
- As Chad Ford of ESPN.com notes via Twitter, the trade nets the Grizzlies an additional three wins according to trade machine metrics that were created by Memphis executive and former ESPN.com scribe John Hollinger.
- Not all of Hollinger's prior work portends the future, as Ford also points out, since Hollinger had new Grizzlies big man Ed Davis, the 13th pick in 2010, rated as the 54th-best prospect that year (Twitter link).
- The Grizzlies and Raptors were calling many other teams in their efforts to faciliate the trade, and the momentum toward the deal picked up steam this afternoon, recounts Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News (Twitter link).
- The Pistons' cap space for this summer increases from $25MM to $33MM as a result of the trade, as Keith Langlois of Pistons.com notes via Twitter. Langlois speculates that the majority of that space will be used in trades rather than to sign free agents (Twitter link).
- The Pistons, who tried to acquire Jose Calderon around the time of the 2011 draft, have been high on Calderon for a while, Langlois notes. (Twitter links).
- Grantland's Zach Lowe thinks Andrea Bargnani and Linas Kleiza could be the next Raptors on their way out of Toronto (Twitter link).
- Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun, who also believes Bargnani is on his way out, hears that the Grizzlies tried to send Darrell Arthur to the Raptors as part of the deal, but Toronto opted instead for Haddadi, whom they will reportedly waive (All Twitter links).
Kyler’s Latest: Pierce, Josh Smith, Redick, Lakers
HoopsWorld's Steve Kyler chimed in with roundup of trade rumors in advance of the Rudy Gay deal, and though his info about that swap quickly became outdated, he delivered much more from around the league. Let's hit the highlights here:
- The Celtics were entertaining offers for Paul Pierce before Rajon Rondo went down with a torn ACL, but for the moment they want to evaluate their team in the wake of the injury before making a move. Pierce wants to retire with Boston, and Celtics basketball president Danny Ainge and company will consider his special place in the team's history in deciding whether to move him. The C's will seek deals for their other players first.
- Though rumblings seem to indicate Josh Smith may be on his way out of Atlanta, the Hawks haven't considered any deal for him to this point. Still, Kyler believes that if they decide to deal Smith, they already know where they can send him. According to Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun, the Raptors probably aren't one of the teams that would make a deal for the power forward (Twitter link).
- More than half the league has tried to trade for J.J. Redick, but the Magic have rebuffed all offers for the soon-to-be free agent. The Magic front office has kept Redick informed about all the possible deals, and it seems more than likely he'll opt to re-sign this summer.
- The Lakers continue to discuss Pau Gasol deals, but as it stands now, they're more likely to hold off until the summer, when they'll know whether Dwight Howard, a free agent, will be back.
- Kyler also shares Lang Greene's pre-trade video interview with Raptors coach Dwane Casey, and catches up with Greivis Vasquez and new Grizzlies big man Jon Leuer, who revealed that it was former teammate Kyrie Irving who broke the news to him about last week's trade.
Grizzlies, Raptors, Pistons Finalize Rudy Gay Deal
8:23pm: The Raptors sent out a press release confirming the deal for all three teams. The second-rounder headed to the Grizzlies is Toronto's own 2013 pick, and Memphis is receiving cash from the Raptors as part of the deal, the statement notes.
8:20pm: Keith Langlois of Pistons.com tweets that Detroit's side of the deal is official, and that Calderon will join the team in time for Friday's game. Since it was the Pistons-Grizzlies part that seemed to have hit a snag earlier, rather than the Raptors-Grizzlies end of it, the swap appears to be squared away. Pistons GM Joe Dumars has released a statement, as Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News passes along (All Twitter links).
7:28pm: The trade call has ended, meaning the deal is now official, a source tells Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (Twitter link).
6:55pm: The trade call has been delayed slightly, but it's still going on, tweets Doug Smith of the Toronto Star, who adds that the deal is still going to happen.
6:18pm: Goodwill now hears from a source who says the trade will indeed go down (Twitter link).
6:06pm: A source tells Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News there's "one hangup" in the deal, though Goodwill doesn't specify what it could be (Twitter link).
5:56pm: The Pistons' side of the trade has not yet been finalized, Aldridge notes via Twitter, though with the trade call scheduled in a few minutes from now, it's likely we'll soon have official word. Both Prince and Daye are inactive for Detroit's game tonight.
5:33pm: The Raptors will likely waive and buy out the rest of Haddadi's two-year contract, reports Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (Twitter link). Haddadi is making $1.3MM this year and is due a partial guarantee of $200K on his fully $1.398MM salary next year. Under terms of the new CBA, the Grizzlies will not be allowed to sign Haddadi again for one year.
5:13pm: The Grizzlies, Raptors and Pistons have all reached agreement on a three-team trade. ESPN's Marc Stein reported the Grizzlies have acquired Jose Calderon and Ed Davis from the Raptors in exchange for Rudy Gay and Hamed Haddadi. TNT's David Aldridge reports the Pistons will receive Calderon from the Grizzlies in exchange for Tayshaun Prince (Twitter link). Stein added that Austin Daye is also headed to Memphis, and noted the Grizzlies will get a second-round pick from the Raptors as well.
The trade call will be placed to the league office at 7pm Eastern, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. When the trade becomes official, it will end several weeks of speculation about Gay's future in Memphis, as the Grizzlies look to avoid becoming a repeat taxpayer. It also ends months of chatter about Calderon in Toronto. The Pistons apparently beat out the Mavericks for the point guard, as Dallas refused to part with Vince Carter in any potential deal, Stein tweets.
The Grizzlies save significant money in the deal, as the combined salaries of Prince, Daye and Davis add up to $11.9MM, much less than the total of $17.8MM that Gay and Haddadi are getting. Daye can come off the books next season, as he's a restricted free agent this summer. Davis has one more season left on his rookie deal, at $3.15MM, and is set to hit restricted free agency in 2014 unless the Grizzlies extend his deal. Gay's contract runs through 2014/15, a player option season in which he's due to make $19.3MM. The Grizzlies are now $8MM under the luxury tax, which could give them more flexibility to make other moves this season, as Ken Berger of CBSSports.com points out (Twitter link). The Grizzlies will pay out $37.2MM less as a result of the moves, Berger adds.
Technically, the deal is actually a pair of two-team trades, rather than one three-team trade, notes Mark Deeks of ShamSports (Twitter link). The Raptors, operating exclusively with the Grizzlies, wind up with Gay's sizable contract, adding roughly $5MM to their payroll, which was at about $61.2MM. They're still well below the $70.307MM tax line, and figure to remain that way even when DeMar DeRozan's four-year, $38MM extension kicks in next season.
The Pistons, meanwhile, part ways with the last remaining member of their 2004 championship team, bringing in a point guard to mentor second-year man Brandon Knight. It also clears cap room, since Calderon's expiring $10.56MM contract will come off the books this summer, while Prince is signed through 2015.
Lakers Get Disabled Player Exception For Hill
The league has granted the Lakers their request for a disabled player exception for power forward Jordan Hill, tweets Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. It will be worth $1.78MM, or half of Hill’s salary for this season. The Lakers aren’t likely to use the exception, as Medina notes via Twitter, but it does give them one more way to acquire help down the stretch in case they need it.
L.A. already had a prorated portion of their midlevel exception remaining, worth about $1.235MM at this point, so now they possess multiple tools other than the midlevel exception to bring someone aboard. They can add $100K to the disabled player exception to acquire a player via trade. The Lakers have 14 players on their roster, so a spot is open.