PBT’s trade deadline report card

By Kurt HelinFeb 24, 2011, 9:35 PM EST

In the last few days, nearly 10 percent of the players in the NBA got traded. Think about that. Apparently the NBA GMs have been watching their baseball counterparts too much.

We won’t really know how all this will shake out for a few months, but what follows is our first impressions. And grades. We like to give things grades.

Atlanta Hawks (Out: Mike Bibby, Jordan Crawford, Maurice Evans. In: Kirk Hinrich, Hilton Armstrong.) The Atlanta Hawks needed to upgrade at the point guard spot and Hinrich is an upgrade. He’s a better defender, a better decision maker, and can knock down the three almost as well as Bibby. This is a good trade for the Hawks from a talent perspective. They still don/t match up with Celtics/Heat/Bulls, but they got better. Grade: B

Boston Celtics (Out: Kendrick Perkins, Nate Robinson, Marquis Daniels, Semih Erden, and Luke Harangody. In: Jeff Green, Nenad Krstic, a first round pick [top 10 protected] from the Clippers, a 2nd round pick from the Cavaliers, and cash from the Kings.) We talked about this, Boston got worse now for the hopes of easing the transition after the big three leave. The question is how much worse and can Danny Ainge find any scraps out there bought out by other teams that can help? I don’t like messing with the core in the middle of the trade deadline. Grade C-

Charlotte Bobcats (Out: Gerald Wallace, Nazr Mohammed. In: Joel Przybilla, Dante Cunningham, D.J. White and Morris Peterson.) This was all about saving money; Wallace was owed $21 million over the next two seasons. But in doing so the team got worse, they were 1.5 games out of the last playoff spot and they will now take a huge step back. Grade: D.

Chicago Bulls (Out: James Johnson. In: first round pick from Toronto.) Nice move all around. Johnson was out of the Bulls rotation but is starting in Toronto. He gets a chance, and the Bulls get a pick they could use. Grade: B

Cleveland Cavaliers (Out: Mo Williams, Jamario Moon. In: Baron Davis, first round pick.) Yes for this was all about the pick, and they were paying for that by taking on Davis. I get why you do it. But I think an unhappy, unmotivated Davis is a bigger drain on your organization than the Cavs realize. Grade: D

Denver Nuggets (Out: Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups. In: Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov, Wilson Chandler, Kosta Koufos, first round pick) Their had was forced and at the end of the day they did fairly well under the circumstances. They will make a playoff push this year to at least get in, but they are in rebuilding mode now and need to make bold moves in the future. Grade B-

Golden State Warriors (Out: Brandan Wright, Dan Gadzuric. In: Troy Murphy.) Murphy is about to be bought out, this was about saving money. Which is nice in these recessionary times. Grade: C

Houston Rockets (Out: Aaron Brooks, Shane Battier. In: Goran Dragic, Hasheem Thabeet, first-round pick from Memphis.) Your big winner here could be Chase Budinger, who will get more minutes at the three with Battier gone. Budinger dropped 30 the other night and could really blossom now. Aside that, they get a pick to rebuild on and a quality point guard in Dragic and a pick. You would have thought Battier could have drawn more in, but it helps start the rebuilding and isn’t terrible. Grade: B-

Los Angeles Clippers (Out: Baron Davis, first round pick. In: Mo Williams, Jamario Moon.) Fantastic trade for the Clippers, just to get out from under the Baron Davis contract. Mo Williams can play and more importantly spread the floor with his three-point shooting. Grade: A-

Minnesota Timberwolves (Out: Corey Brewer. In: Anthony Randolph, Eddy Curry.) It’s probably not going to make a big difference. Brewer was out of the rotation. Anthony Randolph will get some run and we’ll see if he can start to live up to that potential. Probably not, but no harm in the risk. Grade: B

New Jersey Nets (Out: Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, Troy Murphy, two first-round picks. In: Deron Williams, Brandan Wright, Dan Gadzuric.) They needed to get a big piece to start building around and they got a very good one. It didn’t come cheap, but they punked the Knicks a little in the process so it worked out well. Grade: A

New Orleans Hornets (Out: Marcus Thornton. In: Carl Landry.) The Hornets were looking for depth along the front line, they got it with a professional and hard working player. Good pick up. Grade: B+

New York Knicks (Out: Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov, Corey Brewer, Wilson Chandler, Eddy Curry. In: Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Renaldo Balkman, Shelden Williams.) They wanted the second star, they got it in Carmelo Anthony. There are serious questions about fit, there are a lot of steps left for them, but the Knicks are going to be entertaining if nothing else from here on out. Grade B+

Oklahoma City Thunder (Out: Jeff Green, Nenad Krstic. In: Kendrick Perkins, Nazr Mohammed.) This was a brilliant trade. Sure, a bit of a risk because Perkins is coming off an injury and could be a free agent, but the Thunder addressed their biggest need — a defensive presence in the paint — with one of the best in the game at it. They just got a whole lot better and the West playoffs just got a lot more interesting. Grade: A

Phoenix Suns (Out: Goran Dragic, first round pick. In: Aaron Brooks.) Does this make them that much better? Not a bad move but I still don’t see what the big picture plan is. Grade: C

Portland Trail Blazers (Out: Joel Przybilla, Dante Cunningham. In: Gerald Wallace.) The Blazers did well with this one. They are taking on more long term salary but Wallace and Nicolas Batum give them fantastic defensive wing players. Man, if Brandon Roy were healthy this team would be scary. Grade A-

Sacramento Kings (Out: Carl Landry. In: Marcus Thornton, Marquis Daniels.) Landry is the kind of solid professional that fits better on a playoff team than the rebuilding Kings. Thornton showed a lot of promise as a rookie, but the return of Chris Paul and a change of role threw him off. We’ll see how he adjusts to playing with Tyreke Evans (when he returns) but it’s not a bad risk for the Kings. Daniels is not expected to play the rest of this season, that was a money thing. Grade: B

Toronto Raptors (Out: first round pick. In: James Johnson.) Really depends on how the shooter pans out. He started and scored nine against the Bulls, but did they really need to give up a first for him? This is a time-will-tell thing, but it’s good to see him get the chance. Grade C

Utah Jazz (Out: Deron Williams. In: Derrick Favors, Devin Harris, two first-round picks.) The Jazz had a challenge with Williams. Owner Greg Miller said he saw what happened with LeBron, with Carmelo Anthony and he didn’t want that to happen with the Jazz and Deron. So they were insanely proactive. They got a decent amount back, you never get equal money for a superstar but they got some nice pieces. But the hardest piece to get is the superstar and they traded theirs away before they had to. Grade: D+

Washington Wizards (Out: Kirk Hinrich, Hilton Armstrong. In: Mike Bibby, Jordan Crawford, Maurice Evans.) We like Jordan Crawford, he could be the kind of shooter that could develop into the kind of guy to go with John Wall. Mike Bibby will not be happy backing up Wall, being a veteran on a losing team, or much of anything else. The Wizards do save a little money. There was demand for Hinrich, could the Wizards have done better? Grade: C-

It’s not just Harden, Rockets reportedly eyeing VanVleet, Lopez, Brooks

By Kurt HelinJun 7, 2023, 9:07 AM EDT

Vaughn Ridley/NBAE via Getty Images

The Houston Rockets are done rebuilding, ownership and management want to shift gears to picking up some wins and making the playoffs. That means using their league-best $60 million in cap space to add difference-making veterans to the young core of Jalen Green, Alperen Şengün, Jabari Smith Jr. and whoever they draft at No. 4 (if they keep the pick).

And it’s not just James Harden they are going after, reports Jake Fischer at Yahoo Sports.

…sharp-shooting center Brook Lopez, is a veteran free agent on Houston’s radar, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

There will be no shortage of players on the market connected to the Rockets between now and the opening of free agency June 30… The Rockets, though, are prioritizing adding a proven table-setting point guard, then looking to acquire upgrades at the wing and center position, sources said. And for that, should Harden ultimately stick with the 76ers, Raptors point guard Fred VanVleet has often been linked to Houston as a secondary option who could perhaps slot into the team’s lead ball-handling role.

On the wing, the Rockets do hold an interest in sharpshooter Cam Johnson, sources said, although Brooklyn personnel has indicated the Nets’ plan to match any realistic offer sheet for the restricted free agent, who was part of the franchise’s return for Kevin Durant. Dillons Brooks, last seen as Memphis’ starting small forward, is another Rockets target, sources told Yahoo Sports, and appears to be a more realistic candidate to join Houston this summer.

There’s a lot to digest there.

Milwaukee is facing some hard decisions as their championship roster is getting old and expensive fast, with the restrictive new CBA’s second tax apron looming. As Fischer notes, the Bucks are expected to extend Khris Middleton, who is owed $40.4 million next season (player option), and Jrue Holiday is extension eligible soon. Lopez will demand a big salary, he finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting and is a floor-spacing big who averaged 15.9 points per game last season. The Bucks would struggle to win without him, but at age 35 how will that contract age?

A lot of teams are eyeing Fred VanVleet and Toronto wants to keep him, he will have options. A lot of teams are watching Cam Johnson as a restricted free agent, but the Nets like him as part of their future and are not expected to let him walk. Dillon Brooks will not be back with the Grizzlies as a free agent, and for all the drama he is an elite on-ball defender and energy player who could help the Rockets.

Houston needs the James Harden domino to fall, then they can see what they have left to spend elsewhere. But one way or another, that will be a very different roster next season.

Three things to watch in Game 3, starting with who wins the fourth quarter

By Kurt HelinJun 7, 2023, 8:15 AM EDT

MIAMI — After looking flat in Game 1, the Heat got some rest, acclimated to the altitude, and looked like themselves in Game 2 — particularly in the fourth quarter. Miami had a game reminiscent of the Boston series, and when it was done the NBA Finals were tied 1-1.

Can Denver bounce back in Game 2? The Nuggets are facing adversity they have not seen yet this postseason — they were up 2-0 in every other series — and the question is how will they respond? That and how well will Miami shoot the 3-pointer?

Here are three things worth watching.

1) Who wins the fourth quarter?

While the Heat’s 48.6% 3-point shooting in Game 2 was at the heart of their win, the question shouldn’t be can they repeat it? Of course they can. It’s why they are still playing. They have seven games this postseason shooting 45+% from 3.

However, there is one other key factor in this series: The fourth quarter.

Through two NBA Finals games, the Denver Nuggets are +29 in the first three quarters but are -21 in the fourth.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone is no fan of the trend — and he had the stats to back himself up.

“If you really want to simplify the first two games, in the first three quarters we have dominated both games. The Miami Heat are dominating the fourth quarter,” Malone said, “They’re averaging 33 points a game in the fourth quarter, shooting over 60% from the field in the fourth quarter and over 50% from three.”

Malone was just getting started.

“I’ve got a great stat: I think quarters one through three after two games, we had around 19% of our possessions were [shots] at the end of the shot clock, last seven seconds,” Malone said. “In the fourth quarter of Game 1 and 2, that jumps from 19% to 32%.

“Which means we’re taking the ball out of the net, we’re walking it up, we’re playing against the zone and we’re getting caught playing in really late-clock situations, which is hurting our offense.”

Miami’s late-game dominance goes back to the regular season, when they had the second-best net rating in the clutch of any team in the league. It has continued through the playoffs, starting with against the Bulls in the play-in — when the Heat had to come back in the fourth just to be in the playoffs, — and has been a through line to the NBA Finals.

This is not going to be a series won in blowouts, there will be more games decided in the fourth quarter and the clutch. If Denver can’t figure out the final frame starting in Game 3, they will be in trouble this series.

2) Can Heat keep Nikola Jokić from being an assist machine

The Miami Heat need to make Jokić a scorer.

Erik Spoelstra hates that phrasing and Nikola Jokić says he’s just playing the game, not thinking about it that way. Fine. We’ll put it this way:

The Heat can’t allow Jokić to become an assist machine.

Phrase it any way you wish, but if Jokić is allowed to score and dish the Heat will not be able to keep up with the Nuggets offense. Put simply, if Jokić scores 35+ points but has around five assists, the Heat have a chance to win. But if he scores around 25 points but with 10+ assists, if Denver is raining down scoring from everywhere, Miami will not be able to keep up.

The Heat plan is a lot of Bam Adebayo and to keep giving Jokić different looks.

“He can go through two or three coverages and figure it out in a matter of, up and down, up and down,” Adebayo said, nodding his head up and down. “He’s already read the game, reading the game. So the biggest thing for us is switching up the coverages and having him see different looks.”

3) It’s all about the Heat shooting

It’s simple and reductive, but it’s been true thought the playoffs and continues into the Finals: When the Heat hit their 3-pointers at a 40%+ clip, they win. It was true in Game 2, and it’s how Miami can keep pace with Denver.

Game 2 was not some shooting aberration, the Heat can keep doing this and the Nuggets know it.

“They are shooting against Milwaukee 43%. They are shooting against Boston 40-something percent,” Jokić said. “They have good shooters, and that’s why they are so deadly and dangerous, because you cannot leave them open.
“Yes, the first game Max [Strus] and Caleb [Martin] didn’t shoot well. But we know they’re going to be better. We just need to don’t give them wide-open looks. They are two great shooters that at least they need to see somebody in front of them, not just a basket.”

That was the theme from Denver — get out and contest. Make it tougher. Use the Nuggets’ length and size advantage to challenge them. The problem is the Heat have shot incredibly well on contested 3s on the night their shots are falling, and with the comfort level their role players have at home it may not matter who is in their face.

Lakers question coming in August: Extend Anthony Davis, or wait?

By Kurt HelinJun 6, 2023, 9:54 PM EDT

Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images

Anthony Davis had an incredible playoff run: 22.6 points and 14.1 rebounds a game while looking like the best defender in the league. It was a reminder of why he has a championship ring and what he is capable of when healthy.

Coming off that, should the Lakers offer him a contract extension?

Davis is under contract for $40.6 million next season, with an early termination option (essentially a player option) for the 2024-25 season for $43.2 million. Come August, the Lakers can offer Davis an extension of up to three years, $167 million (approximately, it would depend on the official salary cap numbers).

Should the Lakers? ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported on Get Up that locking Davis up so he can’t test free agency in 2024 will be a priority and they will extend him. However, on Sedano and Kap on ESPNLA, ESPN’s Lakers beat writer Dave McMenamin was more cautious. (Hat tip Real GM.)

“Certainly, the Lakers’ thinking ever since they acquired Anthony Davis is that it’s an Anthony Davis, LeBron James combo deal. With LeBron James only under contract for sure for another year with a player option the following year., and with him openly contemplating retirement at this stage of his career… But you just don’t do it. You play out this year with him. You see where things stand with him and LeBron. Obviously, then you risk the second year he has left, he can opt-out and leave as a free agent…

“You hope Anthony Davis stays healthy and you get the best out of him next year. But I don’t think they’re going to be in a position to be interested in a long-term extension for him this summer.”

At its core, this comes down to LeBron James and his future. If he retires, leaves, or in whatever way is not on the Lakers after the summer of 2024, as great as Davis can be, he is not the No. 1 option the Lakers would want to rebuild around. At that point, the Lakers would want to move on, although trading Davis (or completing a sign-and-trade) would be the Lakers’ preferred option, bringing back pick and young players to help jumpstart whatever comes next.

If LeBron is still a Laker in 2024-25, the Lakers would want Davis on the roster.

It’s not an easy decision for the Lakers, but with an increasingly strict CBA looming, it’s understandable if the Lakers want to wait and see how this season plays out before committing to Davis.

James Harden reportedly ‘torn’ over Philadelphia vs. Houston

By Kurt HelinJun 6, 2023, 9:01 PM EDT

Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

Reports of James Harden strongly considering a Houston reunion have grown stronger throughout the season, with reporting on it here at NBC Sports and across the NBA media universe.

But would Harden really leave a contending team in Philadelphia to go to a rebuilding Houston team? He appears torn on his decision, Shams Charania of The Athletic said on The Ryen Russillo Podcast (hat tip Real GM).

“We’re less than a month out from free agency starting. I really think he’s torn with the prospect of staying in Philadelphia or moving on to Houston potentially and returning back to his home. That’s where his roots are and his family there of course. They’ve got upwards of $60 million [in cap space]. They can make even more money available. Close to $70 million in cap space. They’re going to have a ton of money and I think this is a team in Houston where I do believe they are going to be aggressive in the marketplace…

“My sense right now is this is someone that is torn. I think whichever way it goes, it’s going to be relatively close. That’s why as we get closer to July 1, June 30th, those conversations that he’s going to have, as he becomes a free agent, with Nick Nurse [the new 76ers coach] and with Daryl Morey, what their vision is for him, what their vision is for that team, what that offer ultimately is going to be versus comparing it to whatever Houston comes with on June 30th or July 1, those are all very important factors. This is a guy that you would assume would sit down with both teams. Philadelphia is going to have a window earlier, potentially going in and scheduling meetings. This is a situation now where we’re going to see which way it lands.”

Both league sources NBC Sports has spoken with and other media members traveling with the NBA Finals — Harden has been a topic of conversation over meals — think Houston is the frontrunner. There is almost an expectation in league circles that Harden will be a Rocket next season, though nobody feels anything is decided.

Is that the right move for the Rockets? They have an interesting young core with whoever they draft at No.4 plus Jalen Green, Alperen Şengün, Kevin Porter Jr., Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason and others, but it’s not got a group ready to win a lot of games on the NBA level yet. The Rockets have been through three years of a rebuild and the reports are ownership wants to start seeing wins and a playoffs trip. Harden gets them closer to that now, but at what cost to building a long-term winner and culture?

The ball is in Harden’s court. The only real questions are, has he decided, and how much would the Rockets offer? (The max is four years, $201 million, but do they want to pay him $50 million a season for four years with where his skills are currently and are trending?)

Check out more on the Rockets

1) Who wins the fourth quarter?

2) Can Heat keep Nikola Jokić from being an assist machine

3) It’s all about the Heat shooting

Here's more from the NBA Finals

Check out more on the Lakers

Check out more on the Rockets