There was a flurry of movement at the end of the 2008 NBA Trade Deadline on Thursday, February 21st. What the last day missed in terms of quality considering the previous big-time trades of All-Stars, such as Shaquille O’Neal, Jason Kidd, and Pau Gasol, it more than made up for it in quantity.
All due respect to the following trades, but they didn't quite match up, significance-wise, as the trades I'll take a look at after the below:
- Detroit Pistons sending Primo Brezec to the Toronto Raptors for Juan Dixon
Upgrade for the Pistons with an extra guard off the bench that can contribute right away, especially if the young guards - Rodney Stuckey and Arron Afflalo - fall off, specifically in the playoffs.
- Portland Trail Blazers sending Taurean Green to the Denver Nuggets for Von Wafer
Not much going on here other than a possible money-saving move for the Nuggets.
- Minnesota Timberwolves sending Gerald Green to the Houston Rockets for Kirk Snyder and a second round pick
The Rockets get some upside here with Green who should provide some instant scoring off the bench, while the T-Wolves get a serviceable player along with an extra draft pick.
The above were more "minor" trades that could impact the respective teams, but might not. At least not as much as the following deals:
- Houston Rockets send Bonzi Wells, Mike James,and cash to the New Orleans Hornets, as well as the rights to Malick Badiane to the Memphis Grizzlies; Grizzlies trade the rights to Sergei Lishouk to the Rockets; Hornets trade Marcus Vinicius to the Grizzlies, as well as Bobby Jackson and Adam Haluska to the Rockets
For the Rockets, the addition of Bobby Jackson gives them an extra scorer that can create his own shot, which they sorely need. It helps that Jackson played under Rockets head coach Rick Adelman back with the Sacramento Kings, where Jackson put up his best numbers in Adelman's offense.
For the Hornets, they get some toughness inside as Wells is able to post down low against other shooting guards. He's also one of the best rebounding two guards in the league. I'm not sure what James will bring to the table as he hasn't been any good since leaving the Toronto Raptors after a career year a few years ago, but he has the proven ability to do some nice things with the ball. I wouldn't trust him to get much time to prove it though since Chris Paul's backup, Jannero Pargo, is more than capable.
The Grizzlies really get nothing but prospects that will probably not play much in the NBA, if at all.
- Chicago Bulls send Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, and 2009 second round pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers, as well as Adrian Griffin to the Seattle SuperSonics ; Cavaliers send Ira Newble and Donyell Marshall to the SuperSonics, as well as Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden, Cedric Simmons, and Shannon Brown to the Bulls; SuperSonics send Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West to the Cavaliers
No question this is one trade that you probably have to read a few times to fully understand whom is going where. Needless to say, it's one of the biggest trade in all of sports history in regards to number of players exchanged. But, how will is work out?
For the Cavaliers, it could work out well. Sure they don't get the point guard they want/need, but have gotten stronger up front, especially if Ben Wallace can get back to form and rebound like mad and defend. Joe Smith is also no slouch as he can score and board and is as efficient as they come. The Cavs also get one of the best pure shooters in the NBA in Szczerbiak. Think he's not going to get a lot of opportunities with LeBron James driving to the basket? And West is a nice acquisition because he can do a lot of everything and maybe that's all the Cavs need from the point guard position.
For the Bulls, they get a proven scorer in Hughes who just never panned out in Cleveland, but certainly has the talent to perform better. Gooden can rebound, we all know that, so he should do fine in Chicago. But the move of Wallace also frees up some room for Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah to show their stuff on the court more often. Brown and Simmons are youngsters that will get a look to see if they'll be a part of the Bulls' future.
The Sonics save money.
In the end, some teams tried to improve themselves for this season, others for the future. How it turns out... time will tell.
