The 2017 NBA Trade Deadline has come and gone. With it, we have seen stars get moved, playoff teams get better, and contenders stay pat.
It’s time to take a statistical look at each trade and how it impacts the teams involved, starting with one that occurred more than a week before the deadline.
1. Toronto Raptors trade: Terrence Ross, lesser of two 2017 first-round picks.
Orlando Magic trade: Serge Ibaka
The unofficial start of the trade season, Ibaka’s move to Toronto may turn out to be the most impactful trade for this season. In Ibaka, the Raptors bolster their biggest position of need, with a power forward who can protect the rim and shoot the ball on the other end. In effect, they are getting a super-sized version of Patrick Patterson, with 2Pat backing Ibaka up off the bench.
Ibaka is one of only two players this season to shoot at least 38 percent from behind the arc and have a block rate of at least four percent. He is one of the original unicorns, taking games over defensively by protecting the rim and providing spacing on the offensive end.
The most promising part of this, however, is that Ibaka is back on a contending team and could be more motivated than he was in Orlando, where his block rate was actually the worst of his career. Aiming to help the Raptors get home-court advantage as well as give them a shot to upset the (maybe vulnerable) Cavaliers, Ibaka could see that number improve and get closer to his career average of 6.3 percent.
The Raptors will take Ibaka’s shooting considering their lack of spacing in the starting lineup. But his main role will be to improve the team’s 17th ranked defense.
2. Sacramento Kings trade: DeMarcus Cousins, Omri Casspi
New Orleans Pelicans trade: Buddy Hield, Langston Galloway, Tyreke Evans, 2017 firest-round pick
I wrote extensively about this trade here, so I’ll keep this short.
The Pelicans now have one of the greatest big-man duos of all time. Throughout the entire history of the NBA, there have never been two big-men on the same team with a player efficiency rating (PER) of at least 26. Until now.
PER is an all-encompassing stat and as such has a lot of error that one has to take into account. However, when looking at the history of the league, it’s remarkable just how good this duo is compared to any that came before them. Whether that will translate to enough wins this season to push for the playoffs is a different question, but this is a dynamic duo that could dominate the league for years to come.
3. Brooklyn Nets trade: Bojan Bogdanovich, Chris McCullough
Washington Wizards trade: Andrew Nicholson, Marcus Thornton (waived), 2017 first-round pick
The Wizards gain some depth in this trade to help their lowly bench. For the season, Washington has had the second-lowest-scoring bench in the NBA, with the third-worst net rating (-6.2) in the league.
Bogdanovich will give Washington some much-needed shooting and scoring off the bench. Bogdanovich is shooting 35.7 percent from three this season, better than all but five of the Wizards’ players. He is a decent scoring threat (14 points per game on 43.8 percent shooting) and will be a weapon who can either help keep bench units afloat or provide spacing for the likes of John Wall.
Philadelphia 76ers trade: Nerlens Noel
Dallas Mavericks trade: Andrew Bogut (will likely be bought out), Justin Anderson, 2017 first-round pick protected 1-18 (will turn into two second-round picks if not conveyed this season)
It’s hard not to look at this trade and think that the 76ers were fleeced, especially considering the protections on the Mavericks pick. It’s very likely that it will not be conveyed this season, making the trade in effect Justin Anderson and two second round picks for Noel.
For the 76ers, this is simply a means of breaking up their logjam in the front court. Embiid and Okafor are the two main bigs now but this does not mean that the latter won’t be traded at some point. When Ben Simmons comes back from his injury, the logjam will be back.
The main implication from the trade, however, is for the Mavericks. Dallas is getting a young player, whom team president Donnie Nelson has already deemed a “Tyson Chandler starter kit.” Looking at Noel’s numbers, one can see the comparison on the defensive end.
Noel has the makings of being an elite defender, with a steal rate of 3.5 percent and a block rate of 3.7 percent. Only three players in the history of the NBA have had such numbers while playing in at least 20 games.
Noel also has a career-high true shooting percentage of 62.6. Under the guidance of Rick Carlisle, one can infer that he may soon be a multi-dimensional and dynamic force in Dallas, the best center they’ve had since Chandler.
Los Angeles Lakers trade: Lou Williams
Houston Rockets trade: Corey Brewer, 2017 first-round pick
The Lakers made this trade to get a first-round pick and continue their rebuild.
The Rockets made this trade to get a phenomenal scorer who fits perfectly in Mike D’Antoni’s shoot first, ask questions later offense.
Williams is shooting a career-best 61.2 true shooting percentage. His 18.7 points per game are the 37th most in the NBA this season, in significantly fewer minutes per game than any of the players ahead of him.
Lou Will gets most of his efficiency through his ability go the free throw line, shooting .466 free throws per field goal attempt. That is a great sign for their regular season success but it may be a worry come playoff time when officials tend to not make as many calls. Nevertheless, the Rockets have plenty of additional weapons and Lou Will turns them into an even more dangerous offensive team.
Philadelphia 76ers trade: Ersan Ilyasova
Atlanta Hawks trade: Tiago Splitter, second-round pick
The 76ers clear up a little more playing time for their young bigs as Splitter does not appear to be nearing a return to the court. He has played more than 60 games only once in his career.
The Hawks get a solid shooter at the four-spot adding more spacing to a system that calls for it. Ilyasova is a career 36.7 percent three-point shooter.
Denver Nuggets trade: Second-round pick
Milwaukee Bucks trade: Roy Hibbert
Sure, why not. The Nuggets gave up a second round pick to get closer to the salary floor which doesn’t make much sense.
Phoenix Suns trade: P.J. Tucker
Toronto Raptors trade: Jared Sullinger, two second-round draft picks
The Suns get something for Tucker as they go into full rebuild mode. They will be hoping to get some value out of those picks in the form of young rotation players.
The Raptors get a good perimeter defender who should help their biggest need. But they will need him to have more of an impact on their defense than he did with the Suns, where he improved the defense by only 0.7 points per 100 possessions when he was on the court.
Toronto is banking on that being a factor of the Suns’ poor defense in general, which may be a safe bet.
Brooklyn Nets trade: Cash
Houston Rockets trade: K.J. McDaniels
Trading McDaniels into cap space frees up roughly $3.3 million in cap space for the Houston Rockets. Houston now has about $3.5 million to spend in the buyout and free agency market without resorting to veteran minimum deals. This means they can offer more money to veteran free agents than any of the other contenders with a roster spot ready to be filled.
The Nets get an athletic, young forward who has played a total of 1801 minutes in his three seasons in the NBA.
Los Angeles Lakers trade: Marcelo Huertas (waived)
Houston Rockets trade: Tyler Ennis
Another cap and roster spot clearing move for the Rockets. The Lakers get a young player to give minutes to but not one they should have high hopes for. Ennis has a career true shooting percentage of 46.5 in three years.
Atlanta Hawks trade: Mike Scott
Phoenix Suns trade: Heavily-protected second round pick
The Hawks get a roster spot to give to younger players. The Suns? Who knows.
Chicago Bulls trade: Taj Gibson, Doug McDermott, Second-round pick
Oklahoma City Thunder trade: Cameron Payne, Joffrey Lauvergne, Anthony Morrow
The Bulls get yet another guard who can’t shoot in Cameron Payne. Payne is shooting under 34 percent from the field and under 31 percent from three this season. They may be giving a lot of minutes to Morrow to take advantage of his 41.7 percent career shooting from behind the arc.
The Thunder, meanwhile, get McDermott, a decent shooter with the potential to get better. More importantly, the Thunder now have Taj Gibson, someone who improved the Bulls defense by nearly two points per 100 possessions when he was on the court. The Thunder are accentuating their strength – they already have the eighth best defense in the NBA.
