Mavs’ stock rising after deadline dealing
More than 20 teams swung deals and more than 20 draft picks changing hands in the days leading up to Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline in the NBA. Some of those draft picks extend until 2024. And that means there are players perhaps in eighth or ninth grade, right now, who essentially have gotten traded in the last couple days — because the draft slots they’ll fill five years from now have changed hands already. So nobody will know with absolute certainly what the full impact of trade deadline 2019 will have on the NBA, but in the short term, there’s some clear teams that did really well and others who didn’t come away happy from trade season.
SALARY-CAP WINNERS
Dallas Mavericks: The way the Harrison Barnes trade went down was awkward and unforgettable — Dirk Nowitzki will be the answer to the trivia question: “Who replaced Barnes when the Mavs had to take him out of a game because they agreed to trade him during play?” — but Dallas transformed itself during trade season. They now have a ton of cap space for this summer, and the additions of Kristaps Porzingis and Tim Hardaway Jr. to play alongside Luka Doncic suggest that Dallas is ready for the long haul. Los Angeles Clippers: Their trade where they sent Tobias Harris to Philadelphia was truly smart for both sides. Getting a pair of future first-round picks is huge for the Clippers, who are well-positioned financially (and in terms of roster flexibility) to be in the mix for Kawhi Leonard this summer. The whole week was a series of good moves for the Clippers. New York Knicks: Though it wasn’t a true trade-deadline move, the trade last week that sent Kristaps Porzingis to Dallas means the Knicks will have room for two max free agents this summer. They also waived Enes Kanter and Wes Matthews on Thursday, a step toward a buyout for both.
JURY’S OUT ON
Carmelo Anthony: He’s free to find a new home following his acquisition and subsequent waiving by Chicago, and now that the trade chips have settled Anthony will finally be able to decide where he fits best and target those teams as he offers himself up as a late-season rental. His closest friends in the league, players such as Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul, insist that Anthony can still play. Soon we’ll know which NBA team agrees. Wayne Ellington: Ellington was stuck in a rotation crunch with Miami, so getting traded to (and then waived by) Phoenix means he gets to choose his own future. Contenders will come calling for Ellington, the Heat record-holder for three-pointers made in a season.
THOSE WHO LOST
The games: Trade season has seemed to overshadow everything on the court for the last few days. Golden State had a 15-minute stretch against San Antonio on Wednesday night where it shot 24 for 25 — 96 per cent! — from the field and scored 65 points in barely over a quarter. All that was overshadowed by Kevin Durant’s postgame comments where he blasted reporters for what he considers to be unfair reports about his future. Mike Conley: He stayed in Memphis, and lost his wingman in Marc Gasol. Conley has faced one challenge after another in recent years, and this is going to be another one for one of the league’s most-respected players.