RK LAST WK
1 (1) BULLS 37-10
The Bulls just keep winning, even without Rose and Rip Hamilton, the Bulls managed to pull off a 106-102 win over the Miami Heat last week. The Bulls have the best record in the league at 37-10, so it came as no surprise that the team decided not to make a trade.
2 (2) HEAT 33-11
The Heat are once again banking more on talent and less on effort, a very familiar trait that caused them an NBA title last summer. Maybe it's a long season, but recently the Heat have put together some lackluster performance as if they just show up and expect for their talents to win games. The Heat did not address their hole at the center position before the trade deadline, which leave Kaman as the team only viable option, assuming his contract gets bought out by the Hornets.
3 (3) THUNDER 34-11
The trade deadline came and went with the Thunder making no moves. Durant and Westbrook continues to impress, but of all the top teams in the Western Conference, the Thunder to me, definitely needed a trade, but unfortunately they chose to stayed pat. Maybe they too could join the Chris Kaman sweepstake if he indeed gets bought out by the Hornets.
4 (5) SPURS 29-14
Stephen Jackson trade from the Bucks to the Warriors only lasted a day, before Greg Popovich decided to reunite him with the Spurs. Pop has always been fond of Jackson, going back to their championship days when Jackson last played with the Spurs. Richard Jefferson has fallen out of grace with coach Pop for a while now, so it came as no surprise when the Spurs traded him for Jackson. Basically, the Spurs are counting on Jackson to start at the small forward position, as well as backing up Ginobili at the shooting guard spot.
5 (6) LAKERS 28-17
The Lakers had an offer of Andrew Bynum for Dwight Howard on the table before that deadline, but the Magic opted not to trade Dwight. The Lakers also had a trade on the table for Timberwolves' Michael Beasley, but that trade was also turned down by the Wolves. As a consolation, the Lakers traded for the Cavs Ramon Sessions and the Rockets Jordan Hill. An Athletic point guard like Sessions is something the Lakers desperately needed to help Kobe in the backcourt, and his acquisition allowed the team to trade Derrick Fisher - the slow-footed aging veteran point guard - for Jordan Hill. Hill is expected to backup both Bynum and Gasol.
6 (4) MAGIC 29-17
Magic owner Richard Devos made a desperate plea on a last second conference call to Dwight Howard and that was said to be the determining factor that swayed Howard to sign with the Magic. The Magic were successful in convincing Dwight to stay for an additional year, but unless the Magic add another star player within the next year, Dwight Howard will ultimately leave for another team.
7 (7) GRIZZLIES 25-18
The Grizzlies were not active before the deadline because of the anticipated return of Zack Randolph, the team's leading scorer from last season. The Grizzlies have a 1-1 record since Z-Bo's return and may be looking to bolstering their backcourt by adding Gilbert Arenas.
8 (10) CLIPPERS 26-18
The Clippers have been determined to fill the void created at the shooting-guard position since Chauncey Billups went down. The team finally were able to fill that void by trading for Nick Young from the Washington Wizard. The good news is Young's 16.4ppg is more than adequate to fill the scoring void, but his erratic temperament is what concerns me. He could be gunner because he's in the last year of his contract and playing for an extension, but then again Chris Paul controls the ball, so maybe Young's gunning ways will be put under control.
9 (15) MAVERICKS 26-20
The Mavs breathe a sigh of relief when Dwight Howard decided to stay in Orlando, because their chance of signing Deron Williams - who is from Dallas - increased to over 50 percent. I don't expect them to repeat as champions, but this team won't go down without a fight.
10 (11) NUGGETS 25-20
The Nuggets traded Nene to the Washington Wizards for JaVale McGee and many criticized the trade, because McGee has a bad rep of being a "hothead." I truly believe that players tend to develop bad habits on terrible teams and those habits are usually magnified, which is unfortunately what happened to McGee. For the season Nene is averaging 13.4ppg,7.7rpg and .9 blocks with a PER of 16.83 while McGee is averaging 11.9ppg, 8.8rpg and 2.5 blocks with a PER of 19.84 per game. Offensive Nene has a slight edge, but McGee is a far better defensive player. Overall I think the Nuggets really improved their team, especially on the defensive end. I think McGee has a chance to completely revamp his image, which should earn him a contract in the neighborhood of a $12 million average come next season.
11 (9) HAWKS 26-19
The Hawks did not make a trade before the deadline, which was very shocking to me. When Dwight Howard became unavailable, I expected the Hawks to trade Josh Smith for the Lakers Pau Gasol. I felt that trade would have benefited both team, but the Hawks decided to stay pat. I don't see this team getting past the Second Round, so I really don't understand why they didn't make a trade.
12 (18) SUNS 23-22
With four straight wins, the Suns have moved up to only .5 games behind the Rockets for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West. All I have to say is, poor Steve Nash! Once the Suns started winning, I knew the team was not going to trade him. With a salary of $11.7 million, Nash is definitely the most valuable player per dollar in the entire NBA. Unfortunately he'll have to wait until the summer when he becomes a free agent, if he expect to play for a championship contender.
13 (12) PACERS 25-18
The Indiana Pacers traded for Leandro Barbosa, but he's not expected to join the team until Tuesday. He was certainly missed in the team's back-to-back losses to the New York Knicks, but his acquisition will definitely help solidify the Pacers backcourt.
14 (8) 76ERS 25-20
The Sixers was another team I really expected to go after the Lakers Pau Gasol, because they clearly need inside scoring and Gasol fits the bill perfectly not to mention, the team had a fews assets to entice the Lakers with. The Sixers decided to stay pat even though they continue to fall in the standings, which to me makes absolutely no sense why this team didn't make a move.
15 (20) JAZZ 23-22
The Jazz have moved back into the playoff picture by winning 4 of their last 5 games and are currently only a half game behind the slumping Rockets for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Devin Harris did not get traded and believe me, it wasn't because the Jazz weren't trying. I think the Jazz made every effort, but they simply couldn't find any suitors for Harris. I expect this to motivate Harris and I look for him to have a much better second half of the season.
16 (13) CELTICS 23-21
The Celtics made the absolute best move possible and that was to stay pat and roll the dice with their current roster. Obviously once KG and Ray Allen contracts come off the books this summer, the Celtics will be $25 million under the salary cap and will be in a great position financially to go after free agents.
17 (23) KNICKS 21-24
Former Knicks head coach Mike D'Antoni resigned after leading the Knicks to as very disappointing 18-24 record. Since taken over, interim head coach Mike Woodson - who was previously the Knicks assistant coach - has the team off to a 3-0 start. Obviously the Knicks are going through a honeymoon period, but even after it fizzles, one thing's for sure, this new Knicks team will play a lot better defense under Woodson and Carmelo and Amare will both be the focus on offense.
18 (21) BUCKS 20-24
The Bucks are sporting a 5-game winning streak and the team made a big splash by trading injured center Andrew Bogut and disgruntle guard/forward Stephen Jackson to the Warriors for Ekpe Odoh, Kwame Brown and former all-star Monte Ellis. This trade was made to give the Bucks the best chance of making the playoffs this season and if their recent 5-game winning streak is any indication, I think the Bucks are on the right track.
19 (14) ROCKETS 24-22
The Rockets traded away Jordan Hill for Derrick Fisher, who contract was bought out. And the team also acquired Marcus Camby from Portland to help fortify their center/power forward position. Of course the trade makes the Rockets better, but whether it's enough to secure a playoff spot remains to be seen.
20 (16) TIMBERWOLVES 22-24
The Timberwolves opted against trading Beasley to the Lakers in a 3-team-trade that would have netted them Jamal Crawford in the interest of team chemistry. The Wolves management realized that their playoff hopes pretty much went out the window when Ricky Rubio - their sensational rookie point guard - went down, so rather than make drastic changes and tinker with team chemistry, they decided to simply play out the season with their current roster and let the chips fall where they may. Not a bad move in my opinion.
21 (17) TRAIL BLAZERS 21-24
The Blazers finally pulled the plug and fired Nate McMillan - the team's head coach for the last 7 years - after a very disappointing season. At 21-24, the Blazers are currently 2.5 games behind the Rockets for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference so I definitely expected McMillan to get fired. Unfortunately, unless the Blazers players really do some "soul searching," this team still may not make playoff this season.
22 (19) WARRIORS 18-24
The Warriors have been trying to get a scoring center all season, beginning with Tyson Chandler and then Dwight Howard, so it came as no surprise that the team traded for Andrew Bogut. The fact that Bogut is injured and may not return this season to help the Warriors make the playoffs, is the only thing that has me confused, especially since management proclaimed that their number one focus was to make the playoffs this year. Moving forward, I think Bogut acquisition allows David Lee to finally move over to the power forward spot - his natural position - and that could improve the Warriors from being one of the NBA's worst to best rebounding teams. I really liked the fact that the Warriors were able to get Stephen Jackson, but his stay was short-lived. The team traded him to the Spurs for Richard Jefferson, who is not a bad player, but I would have preferred Jackson - who played on the Warriors last playoff team - instead of Jefferson for this current Warriors team.
23 (26) KINGS 16-29
Why make a trade if you're bad team and are clearly in rebuilding mode? The Kings were right to stay pat, because a trade would not have landed them a playoff spot, unless of course they were adding Dwight or Lebron. Like I predicted before, the Kings will be a playoff team by the 2013-2014 season.
24 (24) PISTONS 16-29
The Pistons decided to stay pat as well - a trend taken by most of the bad teams - in an effort to hopefully land a high draft pick. This team reminds me a lot of Kings, because they both have nice young centers and some promising guards. I was a bit surprise that the team didn't move veteran forward Tayshaun Prince and guard Ben Gordon, but then again, maybe they simply couldn't find any suitors.
25 (22) CAVALIERS 16-26
The Cavs Kyrie Irving got his first double-double of the season as in points and assist and found that to be a very surprising stat. I had no idea Kyrie had never had more than 10 points and 10 assist in the same game. What that tells me is that Kyrie needs to really work on distributing the ball. The Cavaliers will make the playoffs next season if Kyrie Irving becomes a 20/10 player next season. His 18.6ppg proves he can score with the best, but the next step for him would be to average over 9 assist a game and that could come as early as next season.
BOTTOM FEEDERS
26 (27) RAPTORS 15-30
I understand teams like the Raptors are rebuilding for the future, but I don't understand why they traded Leandro Barbosa to the Pacers for a future second-round pick and cash consideration. Maybe the cash considerations was in the $3 million range, in which case it might have made sense and especially since the team is not going to make the playoffs this season anyways.
27 (25) NETS 15-31
The Nets suffered a major, major blow, one that may have a trickle down effect. After losing out on Dwight Howard, at least for another year, keeping Deron Williams may prove to be more difficult. Trading for Gerald Wallace should help make the team better, but I don't think it's enough of an improvement to convince Williams to stay with the Nets. Then again, Brooklyn New York and a new arena may be the ultimate issue that sways Williams.
28 (28) HORNETS 11-34
The Hornets decided not to trade Chris Kaman and have made it known that they would like to re-sign him when he becomes a free agent this summer. I don't see Kaman re-signing with the Hornets unless they are willing to overpay him which I doubt. My prediction is that the Hornets might buyout Kaman's contract before this season is over.
29 (29) WIZARDS 10-34
Trading Nick Young made sense, but trading McGee for Nene was an even more calculated move from the Wizards standpoint. McGee is going to be a free-agent this summer and wants a contract with an average of $14 million. I don't expect him to get that, but he could easily get between $10-12 million and the Wizards were not willing to pay him that either. So they figure, Nene was more of a high-character guy and felt he was worth the $13-15 million investment. They also felt, McGee had reach his ceiling in Washington and I agree. I think the Nuggets got the better talent, but the Wizards got a solid center, whose a high-character guy and that was what they wanted.
30 (30) BOBCATS 7-36
The Charlotte Bobcats were in talks with the Warriors to get Steph Curry, but things went sideways after the Warriors traded Ellis. It wouldn't surprise me to see the Bobcats revisit that trade this summer. Until then, they will remain the worst team in the NBA.
No comments:
Post a Comment