Trade Deadline: Team By Team Analysis
One of the things I enjoy doing the most is talking about trades, and everyone knows that. I've been really quiet this year with zero trades so far, and since I miss the excitement of talking deals, here's a quick review of all 27 teams with a GM for the approaching trade deadline!ATLANTA HAWKS
NEEDS - Perimeter defense, inside scoring, shotblocking.
With lots of high end youth, Andre could be patient and work things out in offseason, but they seem ready to make a playoff push. Acquiring a defensive stopper and an inside scorer could make this team deadly both in short and long term. Giddey, Marshall and Okoro is deadly offensively, but how to have a championship caliber D with those three as your perimeter?
BOSTON CELTICS
NEEDS - Interior defense / rebounding. Gotta be careful about hard cap next season.
Boston stars are "available" but should be hard to obtain due to the asking price. Dennis is probably going to offer Tryggvi's expiring deal for an upgrade who doesn't screw up his cap situation for next season.
BROOKLYN NETS - GM LESS
CHARLOTTE HORNETS
NEEDS - Starting level PG and SG.
Hornets are in a real good spot. They have an amazing young trio already and will continue to add talent via draft. Is Grant Williams a long term fit with that roster, or will Jovic be moved to PF full time? Either way, getting some perimeter help is their next step in the rebuilding.
CHICAGO BULLS
NEEDS - I can never figure out if Rhox is rebuilding or not, and what does he need. Figuring out a direction would be a great deadline idea.
Chicago has players like Morant, Mitchell and Maxey available. Contenders looking for defense with enough money to spend could go for Briante Weber as a two-year solution. Their recent surge could mean they are looking for talent, but I do not know and neither does Rhox.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS
NEEDS - Backup PG.
After dealing Caruso and clearing space for next season, Cleveland did their job for the deadline. Of course, a backup PG would do wonders for this team, but Josh's bet on Porter is paying off and the follow up moves made it even better.
DALLAS MAVERICKS
NEEDS - Starting unit upgrades
Dallas has a very good team with good chemistry between players. They have great quality, lots of depth and are playing great basketball. Finding upgrades to the starting five at the expense of some depth can make the team stronger for a postseason run, though.
DENVER NUGGETS - GM LESS
DETROIT PISTONS
NEEDS - Getting rid of some huge contracts, acquiring more youth and picks.
Detroit's season is lost. Hamilton is hard to swallow with that contract but is available. Campazzo is a cheap option for teams looking for a backup PG. Okobo could help as a 6th man somewhere.
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
NEEDS - A true second star.
Golden State has a lot of talent and depth, that’s unquestionable. Finding a 2nd star (therefore moving Dunn to a 3rd scorer role) could do wonders for last year’s runner ups. The West is much improved and won’t be any easy to repeat as Conference Champs without aggressively pushing for another great player next to Dozier.
HOUSTON ROCKETS
NEEDS - Two-way C, playmaking PG past this year
Great job by Kyrus with every move he has made dating from last season. If they can find a true 2-way PG even if that costs some of the amazing perimeter depth of the team, they instantly becomes one of the best teams in the league. Finding a great playmaker at the point who can contribute beyond this year, unlike Livingston, would be a bonus.
INDIANA PACERS
NEEDS - Youth and picks, and rebuild around Avidja.
Many great, experienced players like Adams, Porzingis, Murray and Semi Ojeleye specially should attract lots of interest from wanna be contenders. Indy has a core that could be much better but without a manager around, their primes are being wasted.
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
NEEDS - Keep adding youth, absorb contracts for assets.
Tim is just cruising past another lost year for the Clippers, only this time they have their first. With lots of potential expirings, LA could be the place where teams dump bad contracts along with assets now or in the offseason.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS
NEEDS - Figure out the core, find starting wings.
Bowman, Rui, Melli, Mobley.. Lakers players seems to be too one dimensional if you ask me. Is that bad? Not necessarily. They can work on what they have, not trade low or anyone, and prepare for offseason moves. Finding a good SG and SF could be a big time bonus.
MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES
NEEDS - Final piece of the puzzle.
Damn, Memphis has had an amazing core for so long, yet could not take the next step towards a ring. I can’t figure out what the team needs or how to get that, but it’s clear in my mind they need to change something around the Culver / Fernando duo in order to finally improve to contender level.
MIAMI HEAT
NEEDS - Leading scorer.
Now that rebounding has been solved, Miami could work on finding a leading scorer for the team, maybe the missing piece they need. Everyone and everything has a price, but I'm willing to bet they could move picks and youth for a good scorer.
MILWAUKEE BUCKS
NEEDS - Better wing defender, shooting.
Manu wont agree, but an upgrade over Dixson could evelate this team even further. They have two available first rounders to trade and several role players. Don't expect any movement, though.
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES
NEEDS - Shooting, perimeter D
Minny revamped it’s roster quite a lot during the season and won’t make any other major moves right now. While they have CSL’s arguably best shooter in Kulboka, an extra sniper to spread the floor, one who can also defend at good level, would do wonders for that team. Musa is a candidate to be dealt, in case anyone needs a good, relatively young expiring playmaker.
NEW ORLEANS PELICANS
NEEDS - Time to rebuild?
New Orleans has very solid pieces in Lauri, Bamba and Frank. Yet, those three plus marginal help won’t be enough to win a ring. Would Ozy be wise to start a rebuild while they have some value instead of wasting the prime of their careers for a team that probably won’t make it with this core? Teams in need of win-now players should really be looking at New Orleans as an opportunity to upgrade the roster.
NEW YORK KNICKS
NEEDS - Perimeter scoring around Luka.
With many players restricted, probably the Knicks will overlook the need for more perimeter help. Luka will score 50 a game for the rest of the year. Will that be enough to make postseason?
OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER
NEEDS - Do something! Or not..
Jon made a bet on Nunn stabilizing OKCs roster and it hasn’t payed off yet. Key pieces like Barrett and Bagley suggests OKC should be much better. Is it too late for a late surge and aiming for a play in spot? Acquiring great players to surround both stars is possible, and so is to wait for Quickley to develop even if that means giving the Wizards a great pick.
ORLANDO MAGIC
NEEDS - 3&D SF
Orlando has a fantastic young core and needs to wait for development of some key pieces. In the meantime, they could really improve their perimeter defense and overall shooting on the roster, and a 3&D low usage SF around several good offensive weapons could do wonders here. Maybe a future pick for the SF who could be the last piece of the puzzle?
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
NEEDS - The defending champs have one of the most complicated financials to work with, so I don't expect any movement unless....
Players like Lonzo Ball, KAT and Wagner can catapult teams from pretenders to real contenders status, but Philly can also wait for the offseason to deal them for youth and picks. Many trade talks, nothing good enough to make Marcos pull the trigger.
PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS
NEEDS - True PF.
Doug has the Blazers in a fantastic spot. With lots of youth and already playing over .500 ball, they can just give their prized lotto picks time to develop. However, with many SFs in the roster, a logjam at C and no true PF, that’s probably what needs to be taken care of now.
PHOENIX SUNS - GM LESS
SACRAMENTO KINGS
NEEDS - Skip to the draft.
Ryan must be enjoying this year after dealing with the pressure to win a ring every single year. They have lots of youth to develop and even if they can deal some like PWill, Donta Hall or Waters, that’s actually not necessary. They can afford to be patient, wait for the Lakers pick to convey, see who they draft and make moves based on that.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS
NEEDS - Depth?
The Spurs have an amazing core and could just try to bring everyone back while Alex Antetokounmpo develops. Some depth could be very valuable for the team in the short term, though. Acquiring some cheap veterans can be very helpful for a postseason push. That team has more talent than the .500 record shows.
TORONTO RAPTORS
NEEDS - Anything that could increase the talent level should be of Toronto's interest.
Anyone should be on the table for upgrades for a team that does not own any of their firsts. Toronto was playing very well but have been inconsistent. How to make that team better?
UTAH JAZZ
NEEDS - Pieces for next season
My good friend Phil already made impact at the deadline by acquiring a great shooter in Caruso. All efforts should be towards next season, when they will have a likely extra lotto pick and development from a key piece in Moody.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
NEEDS - 3&D SF, improve at C
Gary has defined a direction and that makes it easier for Washington to figure out what to do. With two likely lotto firsts, they can be patient enough to skip this deadline and work things out in the offseason. Are Weatherspoon and McLaughlin a good fit long term, though?
2020, 2023, 2027
Dixson is one of the most underrated defenders in the league (0.79 points allowed per shot faced, for example). I actually don't see a better wing defender, at least off the top of my head, in terms of decreasing your opponent field goal percentage. We wouldn't have won some playoff series in the past without him, most recently against the Bulls last season, and if I remember correctly our series three seasons ago, too (I think he was defending Louzada Silva or your other wing, can't remember who, but his efficiency dropped). Nice article, though, with some interesting ideas.
