This year’s NBA trade deadline is one of the craziest trade deadlines of all time! Just in case you didn’t know, Ben Simmons is in Brooklyn, the beard is a 6er and Kristaps Porzingis somehow found his way into D.C! Other minor changes like Dennis Schroder for Daniel Theis and the gigantic 4 team trade. We will cover a little bit about every trade that hit our way, only yesterday, on February 10th, 2022!
I will not break down the Wizards trades since I have a full podcast breakdown on that yesterday on Wiz Talk with Chase!76ers receive: James Harden, Paul Millsap
Nets receive: Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and 2 1st round draft picks
This is an insane trade. We heard multiple sources, specifically stated, that James Harden won’t be traded at the trade deadline. Well, we were wrong! The NBA top 75 player, a former MVP, a former scoring champion and an all time great will now be paired up with Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris to win an NBA championship. However, it took a pretty penny to get him there. Ben Simmons will now be wearing a Brooklyn Nets jersey and hoping to rebound from his playoff mistakes. Seth Curry is a very good shooter and great rotational player and they will now be missing him. And Andre Drummond is a very caliber center. He will now pair back up with Blake Griffin, even though Griffin does not play a lot of minutes if any at this point in his career. I do think the 76ers picking up Paul Millsap will make a bigger impact than you think. I think both teams go what they wanted. This morning, Harden was demanding a trade without demanding a trade and Ben Simmons refused to play basketball for the 76ers. Now, the Nets get rid of Harden and his clearly stated, made up mind about himself being a Net and get Ben Simmons, a well rounded, 3 time all star along with top tier depth and 1st round picks for the future. Both teams, once Kevin Durant get’s healthy and a possible Kyrie Irving vaccination, will both be competing for championships, not only this season, but for the next few seasons!
Bucks receive: Serge Ibaka and 2 future 2nd round picks
Pistons receive: Marvin Bagley III
Clippers receive: Semi Ojeleye and Rodney Hood
Kings receive: Josh Jackson, Trey Lyles and Donte DiVincenzo
This trade makes perfect sense for all 4 teams. However, some better than others. I do think it is good Milwaukee picked up a good, veteran, rotational center but they had to give up a young, very good defensive forward to do so. I think getting rid of Ojeleye’s 2 million dollars and his 27 year old self along with getting rid of Rodney Hood’s 2.2 million dollars considering he has regressed dramatically over the last couple of seasons is fine. Giving up DiVincenzo is questionable though. The Pistons couldn’t have done a better trade. For a rebuilding team, getting rid of Josh Jackson’s 7 points per game (Happy Birthday to him yesterday) and Trey Lyles who has already hit his peak is fine. It’s actually better than fine when you’re considering you’re getting Marvin Bagley III, a former #2 pick who has shown promising signs is great. Bagley averaged around 15 points per game and his rookie season and has shown signs of being a good player even after his injury. Also, if the Pistons don’t want to commit to him long term, they don’t have to since Bagley is on the final of year of his rookie contract. They can just let him go in free agency if they don’t like what they see from his in their remaining 28 games. We are not 100% sure though when he will return.
The Clippers, to me, did the worst in this trade out of the 3 of teams. Yes, I think it was smart to get rid of Ibaka’s 10 million dollar contract considering he is an unrestricted free agent this offseason. Also, with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard probably done for the season, it wouldn’t make sense for them to keep a veteran like Ibaka who they probably won’t sign next offseason due to the money new additions Norman Powell and Robert Covington have on their contracts. So, getting something for Ibaka is better than nothing. But, I do think that something could have been more due to the experience and talent Ibaka brings. Because like I said, Ojeleye and Hood aren’t that great and will probably be on a different team next offseason. For the Kings, this is a win for them. The Kings, now that they are going all in to win with Sabonis, they can’t take a risk on a young talent. They need for sure talent, especially to keep De’Aaron Fox happy if Sabonis and him aren’t working out. Donte DiVincenzo brings experience the Kings need to compete. He also brings pretty good defense, something the Kings lack. They also get Josh Jackson, a somewhat consistent scorer and Trey Lyles who is having a career season and has also been somewhat consistent. The Kings didn’t need Bagley and they got more than they would from any other team for him by doing this trade. Great move by Monte McNair!
Celtics receive: Daniel Theis
Rockets receive: Dennis Schroder, Bruno Fernando and Enes Freedom (Later dropped)
To me, the Rockets may not have won the trade but the Celtics lost it! The Celtics, after a bad start, have got it together. They currently sit at a 31-25 record, 0.5 games out of the 6th seed which means they wouldn’t have to compete in the play-in tournament. However, I think this trade was bad for the Celtics. I think Robert Williams and Al Horford can handle the big man position and not need Daniel Theis. Now, I get that Horford, 35, has to rest and Theis is a good replacement but you can’t make a trade like that for someone’s 5-7 minutes of rest. 6 minutes of a game is 12.5%. Sure, that is a good portion of the game. But what are you supposed to do the other 87.5% of the game? To me, they made a good trade for 12.5% of the game, not for the other 87.5%. Schroder, 28, is having a classic Dennis Schroder season, And according to basketballreference.com, his stats this year and nearly equivalent to his career averages:
*Schroder 2021-2022 stats on the top, career averages in the middle and difference in each category on the bottom14.4 PPG, 4.2 AST, 3.3 REB, 0.8 STL, 0.1 BLK, 29.2 MPG, 5.2 FG, 11.9 FGA, .440% FG%, 1.4 3P, 3.9 3PA, .349% 3P%, 2.5 FT, 3.0 FTA, .848% FT%
14.3 PPG, 4.7 AST, 2.9 REB, 0.8 STL, 0.1 BLK, 26.5 MPG, 5.3 FG, 12.2 FGA, .436% FG%, 1.2 3P, 3.4 3PA, .338% 3P%, 2.4 FT, 2.9 FTA, .832% FT%
0.1 0.5 0.4 None None 2.7 0.1 0.3 0.04 0.2 0.5 1.1 0.1 0.1 1.6
Really, a typical Dennis Schroder season. While Schroder has never made an All Star game or been a top tier player, he has been a key player on winning teams. He has a 341-265 record in his career that has lasted 9 seasons so far. He had an 188-164 record with the Hawks, a sub-par team at the time. He had a 87-57 record with the Thunder. He had a 38-23 record with the Lakers and a 28-21 record with the Celtics. He clearly impacts winning. And, the 15-40 Rockets don’t need that. The Celtics do. Having to give up 2 other assets as well, even if they’re not the most valuable assets, make the trade worse. Houston may not have won the trade but the Celtics trading Schroder easily lost it!
Celtics receive: Derrick White
Spurs receive: Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, 2022 1st round pick (protected), 2028 1st round pick swap
Another trade the Celtics easily lost! So, not only do you trade a productive player with Schroder and now you give up valuable depth + 2 1st round picks for Derrick White! No disrespect for Derrick White but that is the value for a Norman Powell type player. Championship experience, reliable scorer, athletic. White doesn’t bring that. The Spurs, an obvious rebuilding team, got themselves a steal. 2 1st round picks for White plus a young forward with potential. Richardson will probably be on a different team next season once his contract expires at the end of the year. The Celtics giving up that big of a package is a mistake for a contending team. I think the Celtics before this trade would have a better chance of succeeding now and in the future.
However, this is not saying White is a bad player. He is a very good player. He has career highs in assists and rebounds per game and has tied his carer high in steals. He is a good defensive 6’4 guard that is averaging almost 1 block per game. I do think White fits on the Celtics. After giving away Schroder and Richardson, they would need a player that is a reasonable hight that is well-rounded. White being 6’4 can play the 3 if he had to. But a starting job or a bench role for the 14-15 point per game scorer is perfect on the Celtics. He fits what the Celtics need so I do give the Celtics credit for that. But, I do think they could have got him for less value and trading Schroder made the Celtics give up this insane amount to get a guard that fits their team but not an All Star or a very reliable player like a Norman Powell. For San Antonio, I think they got perfect value for White considering the situation they are now in! Again, the Celtics got a guy they needed for too much and they may have not need him without some trade mistakes in this year’s deadline!
We can keep going and talk about another Celtics trade and Torrey Craig getting traded. But above is the most important trades not involving the Wizards (learn more on Wiz Talk with Chase)! This year’s trade deadline was insane and the trades that went down yesterday make this one of the craziest trade deadline’s in NBA history!
Chase Coburn
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chase@chasessportsnews.com
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