NBA Trade Deadline Roundup

This year we had a really fun NBA trade deadline day! There was some talk before the deadline about how it could fizzle out and ultimately be another boring one, but we had a couple of huge trades and even one involving the Cavs, so let’s get into it. (Note: These are in no particular order, and I will only be covering the notable trades for the sake of brevity.)

Marcus Morris goes to the Clippers:

LA Clippers get:

F Marcus Morris Sr.

G Isaiah Thomas

New York Knicks get:

F Maurice Harkless

2020 first-round pick

Second-round pick (via Detroit)

Washington Wizards get:

G Jerome Robinson

This was a very good trade for all of the teams involved. The Wizards got a point guard replacement in Shabazz Napier in another trade with Denver, so they do not lose out on depth by being included in this deal. The Knicks, without anyone to lead the front office because they just fired Steve Mills two days before the deadline, actually got great value for Morris. With a lottery protected pick this year that will surely be theirs unless the Clippers lose every game for the rest of the season, they have another nice piece that they can use to rebuild. The Clippers are the biggest winners here, getting a veteran who can shoot and stretch the floor, and also adds to their depth. It may not be important now, but come playoff time, especially if guys get hurt, having more guys like Morris could be crucial, and with a rumored Reggie Jackson buyout also coming their way, they could be the title favorites if they were not already.

This is something I never thought I would say: the Golden State Warriors have traded for Andrew Wiggins

Minnesota Timberwolves get:

G D’Angelo Russell

G Jacob Evans

F Omari Spellman

Golden State Warriors get:

F Andrew Wiggins

2021 top-3 protected first-round pick

2021 second-round pick

There were some people who thought this was a steal from the Timberwolves and some that thought this was a good move for the Warriors, I am somewhere in the middle. Andrew Wiggins has been bad, but if the Warriors could somehow salvage his career, maybe he can show some of that talent he was projected to have when he was picked first overall. The main part of the deal is that 2021 top-3 protected pick. The 2021 and 2022 drafts are projected to be very good, and that 2021 pick becomes unprotected in 2022 if the Wolves get a top 3 pick in 2021. Unless you are really high on the Wolves making the playoffs for the next two years, they will probably be a lottery team and this pick should be valuable for the Warriors, whether they keep it or trade it later on.

The Wolves get D’Lo for what they hope to be a mid to late first, if this works out. It is no secret that Russell and Karl Anthony Towns are close friends, so this trade was one that was made to make their star player happy, which also happens to get them off of a terrible player on a bad contract for a better player that’s on a similar contract. I am not sure this was a steal as there are still questions about KAT as a star and D’Lo is a complimentary guy on a good team (not to mention this team may give up 200 points a game) but I like this deal for them.

Next: Iggy finally gets out of Memphis

Miami Heat get:

F Andre Iguodala

F Jae Crowder

F Solomon Hill

Memphis Grizzlies get:

F Justise Winslow

G Dion Waiters

C Gorgui Dieng

Minnesota Timberwolves get:

F James Johnson

I do not really have a lot to say about this one. I think there is a solid chance that Iguodala will show his age in Miami, and I am not a fan of Crowder (if you remember the 2018 season you will know why) and Solomon Hill is serviceable at best. I will say that what they gave up to get Iggy is not a lot, and if I am wrong about Iggy being washed up then that would change my take on this trade a lot.

The Grizzlies came out fairly well in my opinion. I am not a fan of them taking on Dion and Dieng, but I really like Justise Winslow, even if his fit on this team is hard to see right now. The Wolves getting James Johnson is fine, he is definitely better than Dieng.

This is a big one:

Houston Rockets get:

F Robert Covington

C Jordan Bell

2024 second-round pick (via Golden State Warriors)

Atlanta Hawks get:

C Clint Capela

C Nene

Minnesota Timberwolves get:

G Malik Beasley

F Juan Hernangomez

G Evan Turner

F Jarred Vanderbilt

2020 first-rounder (via Brooklyn Nets, lottery protected)

Denver Nuggets get:

G Gerald Green

F Keita Bates-Diop

G Shabazz Napier

F Noah Vonleh

2020 first-round pick (via Houston Rockets)

This one is a lot to take in. This is the first 12 player trade since the Patrick Ewing trade in 2000, and the largest trade since the 13 player, 5 team trade that occurred in 2005. This trade was a shock to me purely because of the scale. This was the first big trade of the day, and what a great way to start the day it was.

That being said, the trade itself is not a great one. The Rockets got someone who was, in my opinion, overvalued in Robert Covington. He is a good player, but they gave up their only big man to get him, and even later traded the big man they got back in this trade for Brun Caboclo, a man who was once dubbed the Brazilian KD (spoilers: he was no the Brazilian KD). They seem to be taking their small ball experiment to the limit, so we will see how that works out.

The Hawks get a couple of nice big men without giving much of anything up. They already got Dedmon in a deal but they continue to get players and assets for value. They made a lot of solid moves this year and I like where they are going.

The Wolves got a couple of solid players in Malik Beasley and Hernangomez, I really liked what they got back. The Nuggets were even able to get a first rounder out of this, which was a solid catch.

Now onto the main event:

Cleveland Cavaliers get:

C Andre Drummond

Detroit Pistons get:

F John Henson

G Brandon Knight

2023 second-round pick (lesser of Cleveland’s or Golden State’s)

I have zero idea what Detroit were doing here. I know Drummond was possibly leaving in free agency this year, and if he did not he could have opted into his player option. Maybe they just wanted to rip the band-aid off and end the relationship. But they basically gave us a free trial of Drummond with an option to keep him. I was never a huge Drummond guy, but after watching the Cavs be the Cavs at various points this year, it will be nice to have another guy who is good at basketball on the team. No shade to Henson or Knight, but Drummond is an all star. He’s just better. Best case scenario is Drummond opts in to his player option and we can free up the cap next year instead of this year, as this year’s free agent class is absolutely horrid. I am incredibly unsure of giving him any sort of long term deal, but I am not even worrying about that right now. We just got an all star center for a couple of expiring contracts and a 2nd round pick. How can you beat that? Nice job Koby Altman, great job to the front office, thank you to the Pistons for continuing to be the Pistons we have known and loved ever since you traded Chauncey Billups for a past his prime Allen Iverson.

And that is it for the 2020 NBA trade deadline! A lot of fun moves throughout the day that had me glued to my phone, I wish it was like this every year.