This trade deadline was one of the craziest in NBA history, with 14 trades, over 18 teams involved and some blockbuster moves. But what were the best trades at the deadline?
Sacramento Kings receive: Harrison Barnes
Dallas Mavericks receive: Justin Jackson and Zach Randolph
This is a deal that makes sense on both ends and is a worthy pick for the best deal. On the Sacramento side, the Kings get a capable wing player in Barnes to pair with De’Aaron Fox, Marvin Bagley and Buddy Hield.
The small market Kings need to make deals like this, taking a slightly overpaid, but good starter quality player in Barnes in order to further their pursuit of a playoff berth.
Hopefully, this will be a return to the best version of Barnes. As a Maverick, he was disappointing as he was primarily put on the nail in the high post in isolation situations. Taking contested mid-range jump shots and failing to create shots for a slew of below average teammates proved to be advantageous for the Mavs in the long term, as it was a perfect tanking environment resulting in the acquisition of Luka Doncic.
Barnes is now relieved of the pressure of being the man, a mantle which was taken from him by the Slovenian rookie sensation in Dallas. The best form of Barnes is to play in the style he enjoyed with the pre-Durant Warriors, taking advantage of three-point and driving opportunities created by a dynamic point guard like Fox, while continuing to be an above average defender for a team poor in the perimeter defence department on the wings.
For Dallas, it’s a welcome relief to what was becoming a high-cost roster. ESPN’s Bobby Marks reports that the trade creates a $21.3 million trade exception for the Mavs (the largest in league history). This means that the Mavs can absorb a huge expiring salary down the road. This also gives the team some financial manoeuvrability going into a loaded offseason.
Justin Jackson should prove to be a capable player in Dallas, but by no means is the 23-year-old a lock to be as good as Barnes. Zach Randolph was waived by the Mavs after the deal and will not be joining the team this season.
Who Won: Any team that is able to shed a huge salary like this without sacrificing a pick is a winner in my books. Kudos to the Kings for taking on an above average player and taking a chance on him, but the Mavericks are clearly the winners here.
Two trades here, but two that strengthen already dominant Eastern Conference teams. First, the Gasol Deal.
Toronto Raptors receive: Marc Gasol
Memphis Grizzlies receive: Jonas Valanciunas, Delon Wright, C.J. Miles and a 2024 second-round draft pick.
Two European big men switch centre spots in the trade, which for Toronto is a major upgrade.
For Toronto, Marc Gasol bolsters an already loaded frontcourt depth chart featuring a reinvigorated Serge Ibaka, a revelatory Pascal Siakam and All-Star Kawhi Leonard. It will be interesting to see how Ibaka, Gasol and Siakam split minutes and roles, with each player having a convincing claim to a starting role.
Marc Gasol drives past Kevin Love. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
However, the Raptors would benefit greatly from having Gasol anchor a bench unit on both ends of the floor from the middle. While the deal makes the Raptors bench much better, the Bucks’ deal may still give them the edge in the Eastern Conference.
Milwaukee Bucks receive: Nikola Mirotic
New Orleans Pelicans receive: Stanley Johnson, Jason Smith, four second-round picks
The Bucks have been dominating teams recently and rightly sit atop the Eastern Conference. While the Raptors can boast about having great depth on their roster, the Bucks may have the only roster that can match that depth and perhaps surpass its quality.
Mirotic adds another layer to an already complex team to scout. The Bucks were already running with a starting five of Eric Bledsoe, Malcolm Brogdon, Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez. Four high-quality shooters around Giannis with an anchor in the middle in Lopez.
However, the Bucks have also experimented with line-ups with Giannis at five and played extremely fast.
Mirotic would find great success in this line-up, player four to Giannis’ five. Even with Giannis at three and Lopez at five the Bucks can expect to see good results in short amounts of time.
Mike Budenholzer is a coach perfectly capable of tinkering with the line-ups over the next two months to maximise the deep rotation of big shooters he has at his disposal. Nikola would excel as a bench bucket getter for Milwaukee. Mirotic is also a big-time player, who steps up to big moments rather than shrinking, which bodes well for the Bucks in the playoffs.
Who won: Both the Raps and Bucks won their trades, as their deals were necessary for the furthering of their championship campaigns. Of the two teams, one stood out as the favourite going into the deadline period and that same team still remains the favourite, so a slight edge goes to the Bucks here.
However, a potential Eastern Conference final showdown between the two teams should help us to sort which deal was better in the long run.
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