Trade Alert
The trade deadline is still a few weeks away and its expected to be a very active one. We will now take a look at some trades that were made in previous weeks
Celtics Take (21-10, 2nd seed)
Boston has a good record but needed a upgrade at C and didn't need Kemba's scoring anymore. Myles Turner is still young and lines up with the ages of Brown and Tatum and is under contract for a while. He gives them the shot blocker and rim protector they haven't had in years. They are turning the reigns at PG over to Payton Prichard backed up by this years 1st round pick. Lamb gives them a solid bench player. They still have Triston Thompson's expiring if they need to make another move. The reason they gave up the 1st was Kemba likely regresses next year and is owed major $ and its lottery protected.
Pacers Take (14-19, 12th seed)
They still have time to move up the standings as only a few games separate them from the playoffs. Malcom Brogdan just got hurt and will miss 6-8 weeks so they need G's. They can replace Turners minutes with Bitadze whose per 36 stats are 22&12. They also have lottery pick Tisdale and Mcdermitt (48% from 3) at the PF spot and now Grant Williams. Walker gives them a #1 scorer that should still be a starting caliber player next year even with being overpaid. 1st round picks for the middle of the road small market teams are always handy even if its in the 20's.
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Hawks Take (20-14, 5th seed)
They just got devastating news Trae Young who is #1 in MVP voting will miss 4-6 weeks. Huerter has only played in 9 games and will miss a few more weeks. Bogdan is also out another 4-6 weeks so by the time they come back they will be lucky to be the 7th seed. Gallo just wasn't needed anymore and this opens up more minutes for last years 6th pick. They get two expiring's and two future 2nds. Old friend Milsap also gets to retire in Atlanta and will play a little bit while everyone is hurt. Atlanta was unlikely to pick up the option on Gallo.
Nuggets Take (18-17, 4th seed)
Bol Bol is the starting PF and is having a breakout season so this moves upgrades the bench and depth. Since Denver is over the cap next year they likely will pick up his team option as a trade piece. While he has limitations on defense he can shoot and this makes them a better team and they don't give up much.
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Raptors Take (20-13, 4th seed)
They had a huge trade exception created when Lowry went to Miami so they had to use it this year. They were looking for a quality player without having to give up a asset so Wiggins was the clear choice. They have injuries to all 3 PG on the roster including former Memphis player Tyus Jones who had been starting. Since they have such a good record they didn't want to waste anymore time to use the trade exception. They will for now start FVV at the 1 and Wiggins at the 2. Except for this year he had scored over 17 a game for the previous 6 years. This is a safer move then signing a big name FA since his contract is up after next year.
Warriors Take (10-20, 14th seed)
They are a major disappointment this year so this is a pure salary dump. They are able to trade him without having to give up a single draft pick. It also creates a big trade exception that can be used next year. They will move Klay to the starting 3 and this opens up minutes for younger guys like Tim Vincent who was a lottery pick. They also have a SF they took in the 2nd round that has A- potential.