Around The League: Trade Deadline Day Edition
May 2, 2023 14:25:18 GMT -6
redrum741 and jupee like this
Post by New York Knicks on May 2, 2023 14:25:18 GMT -6
Who's Hot
Ironically, on the day of the trade deadline we're going with the Chicago Bulls, a team who's season will be defined by two major trades. The first one was trading their upcoming 2004 1st Round Pick for Eric Snow. A deal that remains a bit of a head scratcher. Fortunately, they were able to bounce back with the highly praised acquisition of all-star Kevin Kunnert. Kunnert has breathed new life into the Bulls after their horrific start to the season. They are now 14-9 with him in the lineup. And more impressively they have won 9 of their last 11 games (They began the season with 9 wins in their first 37 games). From a 9-28 record to a 9-2 record. The Bulls have risen from the dead like Lazarus. Unfortunately, they don't have much of a pulse in terms of postseason chances. They're 10 games back of #8 seed Atlanta (With only 17 games left in the season). So you could probably kiss the playoffs goodbye. But right now it's about building for next season. Finding new interesting strategies for next season. Such as, moving Nikola Jokic over to the SF position. Jokic is a well known defensive liability around the paint. So take him out the paint, and hide his deficiencies at SF instead. That makes their team defense a little more formidable. Over the last 7 games, the Bulls have held 5 of their opponents below 100 points. And 4 of them were held to 90 points or less. This is the best stretch of defense that I can remember the Bulls playing. Offensively they have a nice little trio with Jokic, Kunnert, and Penny Hardaway. Moving forward it's all gonna be about the internal growth of Jokic and Penny. The 2002 #1 pick and the 2003 #2 pick. They were both selected that high to become franchise players. If they can manifest into that, the Bulls will one day become a dominating team in the Central Division. But right now they gotta go through the growing pains. The pains of likely being a lottery team with no lottery pick.
Who's Not
The Dallas Mavericks have their own first round pick, and they have realized that instead of going for a pointless #8 seed + A first round sweep vs the Clippers, that they were much better off concentrating their efforts on becoming a lottery team. The Mavs had a winning record just over a month ago (24-23), but after losing 13 of their last 16 games. The Mavs have temporarily fallen out of the playoffs with a 27-36 record. Leading the charge is new tank commander point guard Armond Hill. The Mavs recent struggles have coincided with his arrival in Dallas. In 14 games since Hill joined the team, the Mavs are 3-11. A 36.9 % FG shooter and some of the worst PG defense you will ever see in your life, makes Hill the perfect starting point guard if you're trying to lose games. Also benching Bob Lanier doesn't hurt the cause neither. Lanier, who averaged nearly 24/10 last season, has only played 24+ minutes once in the last 13 games. That includes 7 minutes vs Utah, 8 minutes vs Denver, and more recently 9 minutes vs Washington. Despite being benched for the last month, Big Bobby remains the teams leading scorer, as he wonders why the hell did he sign a 2 year/37.5 milliom free agent contract with a team that wont even play him. But as for the Mavs, the losses are stacking up and lottery odds keep improving. They got a key sim coming up, with four games against their fellow lottery bound competitors (Lakers, Spurs, Kings, and Bulls). Can the Mavs go a perfect 0 for 4? With Smooth Cuban leading the way, I like their chances.
Injury Report
Garfield Heard (11) - Another team thats looking to move up in the lottery is Golden State, and they just got some pleasant news with Garfield Heard set to miss the next 11 days with broken ribs. Heard is the teams second leading rebounder (9.6) and arguably their best defender as well. So with 9 games in the next 11 days, this is some perfect tanking timing.
Killian Hayes (6) - Not the greatest timing in Toronto though. The Raptors are embarking on a stretch of 7 games in 7 days, and unfortunately Killian Hayes will miss the first 6 of them. The teams leading scorer (27.7) will be out with a broken nose. But that can't break the spirit of this team. It's time for Brandon Roy, Jimmy King, and Joel Embiid to all step up and score some points. I mean who doesn't like more Shot attempts? This is a great opportunity for all 3 of these guys.
Gorgui Dieng (5) - The Clippers will be without Dieng for 5 days, as he will miss 3 games. But they got plenty of front court depth. Gilmore, Lacey, Hillman etc.
News Around The League
- Congratulations to Tyrese Maxey for winning his first Player of the Week award this season. In the timespan of day91-day95 Maxey had 67 assists in 5 games (13.4 APG). He's now 6th in the league in assists (9.4).
- Things are real TIGHT in the league assist leaderboard. #5 to #1 is only separated by 0.2 APG.
5) John Lucas (9.5) is averaging a career high in assists thanks to playing alongside the scoring trio of Reeves, Mickey, and Pistol Pete.
4) Travis Best (9.5) got the same luxury of scoring options like two time MVP Kenon, McAdoo, Shumate, etc. Best is leading the Jazz to being the #3 highest scoring offense in the league.
3) Killian Hayes (9.5) has enjoyed a BIG jump in his assists after averaging only 6.2 assists last year. This can be attributed to the arrival of three point shooting marksman Jimmy King and new pick n roll partner Joel embiid. Hayes's Raptors are #2 scoring team in the league.
2) Randy Smith (9.6) continues to be old reliable. He's averaged at least 9.6 APG for 4 consecutive years. What separates Smith from the pack are his microscopic turnover numbers (1.4 TPG).
1) Michael Carter Williams (9.7) leads the way, as he's got the Heat 21 games over 500 even after the loss of Jimmy King in the off-season. He might just be my MVP this season.
But who do YOU have winning the assist title this season?
- We also having an interesting development going on for the scoring title. After holding the #1 spot for almost the entire Season, Lamelo Ball (29.7) has dropped to #2 in the league. John Drew (30.3) has finally jumped him for that number 1 spot. The Orlando Magic have always been a pain in the ass for the Knicks. They've knocked them out the playoffs the last 2 years. And now this.
- Greg Ostertag (12.6) of the 76ers is looking to win the rebounding title. Ostertag is #1 in boards and blocks this season. He's probably gonna be the DPOTY again.
- On the topic of tough big men in the league, the deal for center Steven Adams has fallen through. It looked like the Hornets and Wizards had a deal completed. With Washington adding some muscle to their front line with Big Bad Adams. Unfortunately, shady behavior destroyed the trade.
- We're on the last day of the trade deadline and rumors are cooking. The Lakers are still trying to serve you their pu pu platter consisting of Fake Iverson and friends. There doesn't seem to be much interest. The Chicago Bulls are looking for cash. And the Utah Jazz are looking to improve. Hopefully they all find a way to achieve their goals.
- As for the Phoenix Suns, they seem to be entertaining deals for Saddiq Bey (18.0 PPG 6.9 RPG). It was actually the Houston Rockets that reached out with interest in Bey. While Bey is a good young player, it's a rather interesting choice by Houston. They have already made trades for other young small forwards like Chris Mills and Antoine Walker. Do they really need to trade for a third one?
- Its been a very strange season for the Houston Rockets, but when you look at the standings today...THEYRE IN THE PLAYOFFS. Largely due to the white flag that's been waved in Dallas, Houston has moved up to #8 seed in the West. That's despite losing 7 of their last 11 games. But Earl Monroe is back. He just had a 33 point game vs Denver. And a near triple double (28/10/9) in a surprising upset win vs Toronto. The Rockets are sitting kinda pretty right now. Good job Joshhouston.
- Speaking of pretty. The Portland Trailblazers got the 3rd best record in the entire league. It wasn't that long ago that GM Sid resigned and 90% of their roster was set to hit free agency. And all their future picks were gone too. It was a doom and gloom reality. Until that reality changed. An excellent off-season has Portland (46-21) back near the top of the league
- As for Sid. I see you lurking on the board. I know youre fighting the temptation of returning. But don't fight it. It's telling you to come back. Because it's time to COMEBACK.
Breaking News - Like we reported earlier the Utah Jazz were looking to improve their roster. They were looking and now they're cooking, as they have agreed on a 3 player trade with the Chicago Bulls. Utah will receive 2nd year forward Dwight Powell (11.9 PPG 7.4 RPG) and 24 year old guard Lucius Allen (7.8 PPG 2.5 APG). In exchange the bulls get veteran PF Mike Green (4.7 PPG 4.5 RPG) and more importantly $650. This was the cash compensation the Bulls were seeking to help with their future camp cashflow. As for Utah, they're adding two young quality players to their rotation. Maybe this infusion of youth will spark the Jazz, who have struggled since the all-star break.
We will continue to keep you informed if more deals come in before the deadline.
Ironically, on the day of the trade deadline we're going with the Chicago Bulls, a team who's season will be defined by two major trades. The first one was trading their upcoming 2004 1st Round Pick for Eric Snow. A deal that remains a bit of a head scratcher. Fortunately, they were able to bounce back with the highly praised acquisition of all-star Kevin Kunnert. Kunnert has breathed new life into the Bulls after their horrific start to the season. They are now 14-9 with him in the lineup. And more impressively they have won 9 of their last 11 games (They began the season with 9 wins in their first 37 games). From a 9-28 record to a 9-2 record. The Bulls have risen from the dead like Lazarus. Unfortunately, they don't have much of a pulse in terms of postseason chances. They're 10 games back of #8 seed Atlanta (With only 17 games left in the season). So you could probably kiss the playoffs goodbye. But right now it's about building for next season. Finding new interesting strategies for next season. Such as, moving Nikola Jokic over to the SF position. Jokic is a well known defensive liability around the paint. So take him out the paint, and hide his deficiencies at SF instead. That makes their team defense a little more formidable. Over the last 7 games, the Bulls have held 5 of their opponents below 100 points. And 4 of them were held to 90 points or less. This is the best stretch of defense that I can remember the Bulls playing. Offensively they have a nice little trio with Jokic, Kunnert, and Penny Hardaway. Moving forward it's all gonna be about the internal growth of Jokic and Penny. The 2002 #1 pick and the 2003 #2 pick. They were both selected that high to become franchise players. If they can manifest into that, the Bulls will one day become a dominating team in the Central Division. But right now they gotta go through the growing pains. The pains of likely being a lottery team with no lottery pick.
Who's Not
The Dallas Mavericks have their own first round pick, and they have realized that instead of going for a pointless #8 seed + A first round sweep vs the Clippers, that they were much better off concentrating their efforts on becoming a lottery team. The Mavs had a winning record just over a month ago (24-23), but after losing 13 of their last 16 games. The Mavs have temporarily fallen out of the playoffs with a 27-36 record. Leading the charge is new tank commander point guard Armond Hill. The Mavs recent struggles have coincided with his arrival in Dallas. In 14 games since Hill joined the team, the Mavs are 3-11. A 36.9 % FG shooter and some of the worst PG defense you will ever see in your life, makes Hill the perfect starting point guard if you're trying to lose games. Also benching Bob Lanier doesn't hurt the cause neither. Lanier, who averaged nearly 24/10 last season, has only played 24+ minutes once in the last 13 games. That includes 7 minutes vs Utah, 8 minutes vs Denver, and more recently 9 minutes vs Washington. Despite being benched for the last month, Big Bobby remains the teams leading scorer, as he wonders why the hell did he sign a 2 year/37.5 milliom free agent contract with a team that wont even play him. But as for the Mavs, the losses are stacking up and lottery odds keep improving. They got a key sim coming up, with four games against their fellow lottery bound competitors (Lakers, Spurs, Kings, and Bulls). Can the Mavs go a perfect 0 for 4? With Smooth Cuban leading the way, I like their chances.
Injury Report
Garfield Heard (11) - Another team thats looking to move up in the lottery is Golden State, and they just got some pleasant news with Garfield Heard set to miss the next 11 days with broken ribs. Heard is the teams second leading rebounder (9.6) and arguably their best defender as well. So with 9 games in the next 11 days, this is some perfect tanking timing.
Killian Hayes (6) - Not the greatest timing in Toronto though. The Raptors are embarking on a stretch of 7 games in 7 days, and unfortunately Killian Hayes will miss the first 6 of them. The teams leading scorer (27.7) will be out with a broken nose. But that can't break the spirit of this team. It's time for Brandon Roy, Jimmy King, and Joel Embiid to all step up and score some points. I mean who doesn't like more Shot attempts? This is a great opportunity for all 3 of these guys.
Gorgui Dieng (5) - The Clippers will be without Dieng for 5 days, as he will miss 3 games. But they got plenty of front court depth. Gilmore, Lacey, Hillman etc.
News Around The League
- Congratulations to Tyrese Maxey for winning his first Player of the Week award this season. In the timespan of day91-day95 Maxey had 67 assists in 5 games (13.4 APG). He's now 6th in the league in assists (9.4).
- Things are real TIGHT in the league assist leaderboard. #5 to #1 is only separated by 0.2 APG.
5) John Lucas (9.5) is averaging a career high in assists thanks to playing alongside the scoring trio of Reeves, Mickey, and Pistol Pete.
4) Travis Best (9.5) got the same luxury of scoring options like two time MVP Kenon, McAdoo, Shumate, etc. Best is leading the Jazz to being the #3 highest scoring offense in the league.
3) Killian Hayes (9.5) has enjoyed a BIG jump in his assists after averaging only 6.2 assists last year. This can be attributed to the arrival of three point shooting marksman Jimmy King and new pick n roll partner Joel embiid. Hayes's Raptors are #2 scoring team in the league.
2) Randy Smith (9.6) continues to be old reliable. He's averaged at least 9.6 APG for 4 consecutive years. What separates Smith from the pack are his microscopic turnover numbers (1.4 TPG).
1) Michael Carter Williams (9.7) leads the way, as he's got the Heat 21 games over 500 even after the loss of Jimmy King in the off-season. He might just be my MVP this season.
But who do YOU have winning the assist title this season?
- We also having an interesting development going on for the scoring title. After holding the #1 spot for almost the entire Season, Lamelo Ball (29.7) has dropped to #2 in the league. John Drew (30.3) has finally jumped him for that number 1 spot. The Orlando Magic have always been a pain in the ass for the Knicks. They've knocked them out the playoffs the last 2 years. And now this.
- Greg Ostertag (12.6) of the 76ers is looking to win the rebounding title. Ostertag is #1 in boards and blocks this season. He's probably gonna be the DPOTY again.
- On the topic of tough big men in the league, the deal for center Steven Adams has fallen through. It looked like the Hornets and Wizards had a deal completed. With Washington adding some muscle to their front line with Big Bad Adams. Unfortunately, shady behavior destroyed the trade.
- We're on the last day of the trade deadline and rumors are cooking. The Lakers are still trying to serve you their pu pu platter consisting of Fake Iverson and friends. There doesn't seem to be much interest. The Chicago Bulls are looking for cash. And the Utah Jazz are looking to improve. Hopefully they all find a way to achieve their goals.
- As for the Phoenix Suns, they seem to be entertaining deals for Saddiq Bey (18.0 PPG 6.9 RPG). It was actually the Houston Rockets that reached out with interest in Bey. While Bey is a good young player, it's a rather interesting choice by Houston. They have already made trades for other young small forwards like Chris Mills and Antoine Walker. Do they really need to trade for a third one?
- Its been a very strange season for the Houston Rockets, but when you look at the standings today...THEYRE IN THE PLAYOFFS. Largely due to the white flag that's been waved in Dallas, Houston has moved up to #8 seed in the West. That's despite losing 7 of their last 11 games. But Earl Monroe is back. He just had a 33 point game vs Denver. And a near triple double (28/10/9) in a surprising upset win vs Toronto. The Rockets are sitting kinda pretty right now. Good job Joshhouston.
- Speaking of pretty. The Portland Trailblazers got the 3rd best record in the entire league. It wasn't that long ago that GM Sid resigned and 90% of their roster was set to hit free agency. And all their future picks were gone too. It was a doom and gloom reality. Until that reality changed. An excellent off-season has Portland (46-21) back near the top of the league
- As for Sid. I see you lurking on the board. I know youre fighting the temptation of returning. But don't fight it. It's telling you to come back. Because it's time to COMEBACK.
Breaking News - Like we reported earlier the Utah Jazz were looking to improve their roster. They were looking and now they're cooking, as they have agreed on a 3 player trade with the Chicago Bulls. Utah will receive 2nd year forward Dwight Powell (11.9 PPG 7.4 RPG) and 24 year old guard Lucius Allen (7.8 PPG 2.5 APG). In exchange the bulls get veteran PF Mike Green (4.7 PPG 4.5 RPG) and more importantly $650. This was the cash compensation the Bulls were seeking to help with their future camp cashflow. As for Utah, they're adding two young quality players to their rotation. Maybe this infusion of youth will spark the Jazz, who have struggled since the all-star break.
We will continue to keep you informed if more deals come in before the deadline.
