Winners and losers at the NBA Trade Deadline in 2022: Ben Simmons and James Harden get their way, and the Lakers are caught in limbo.
So many times, we build something up in our minds just to be disappointed when it falls short of our expectations. That’s why it’s so wonderful and rewarding when the reverse occurs, when reality exceeds our greatest fantasies.
The latter was the NBA trade deadline in 2022, which included a mix of blockbuster trades featuring superstar players, unexpected shocks, and geeky roster manipulation that would make even the world’s best economists cheer. We nearly persuaded ourselves that the rumoured James Harden-for-Ben Simmons trade was a ruse, but the transaction went through in all its grandeur, shaking up the Eastern Conference and the championship chase.
There’s a lot to talk about just from one agreement, and there’s a lot more. Here’s a rundown of all the transactions that took place, as well as the winners and losers from the NBA trade deadline in 2022.
Before the deadline on February 10th, there are a few key deals to be made.
- James Harden scored a blockbuster for the 76ers: Trade grading
- Kristaps Porzingis will join the Wizards in a deal that also includes Spencer Dinwiddie. Trade grading
- The Celtics have acquired Daniel Theis from the Rockets in exchange for Dennis Schröder. Trade grading
- The Milwaukee Bucks, Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Clippers, and Sacramento Kings have agreed to a four-team deal: Trade grading
- Goran Dragic is traded by the Raptors to the Spurs in exchange for Thad Young. Trade grading
- Torrey Craig has been acquired by the Suns from the Pacers: Detailed information
- Josh Richardson was traded to the Spurs in exchange for Derrick White by the Celtics. Trade grading
- In a cost-cutting move, the Celtics sent PJ Dozier and Bol Bol to the Magic. Detailed information
- In a three-team trade, the Jazz get the Blazers’ Alexander-Walker and the Spurs’ Hernangomez: Grades for Business
- To obtain Sabonis, the Kings gave up Haliburton: Business grading
Related NBA Trade Deadline : Is a Donovan Mitchell trade inevitable for the Miami Heat?
McCollum joins the Pelicans in a seven-player trade with the Blazers: Grades for Business
In exchange for Rubio, the Pacers send LeVert to the Cavaliers. Business grading
Powell and Covington have been acquired by the Clippers from the Blazers: Trade Grades
The Knicks acquired Reddish from the Hawks in exchange for Knox and a 2022 first-round pick. Business grading
Click here for a detailed analysis of each transaction.
Here are your 2022 NBA trade deadline winners and losers:
Ben Simmons was the winner.
Whatever you may think of Simmons, the young guy has never wavered in his goal. He made it obvious that he did not want to play in Philadelphia again, and he was ready to put up with constant criticism, threats, and obscenities from fans, as well as significant financial losses due to penalties and delayed payments, in order to force the move. Simmons called 76ers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey’s bluff when he said he’d waited four years for a favourable trade, and now he’ll play for a contender in a major market. After hearing that clubs like the Indiana Pacers, Houston Rockets, and Sacramento Kings were interested, Simmons has to be overjoyed that he’ll be joining a Brooklyn Nets squad that, assuming Kevin Durant stays healthy, is still a viable contender for the NBA championship.
Simmons may have used unusual methods, and we can argue whether or not what he did was fair to the 76ers’ organisation all day, but in the end, he got precisely what he wanted.
Daryl Morey was the winner.
Simmons may have achieved his wish, but Morey did as well. The 76ers not only added James Harden, who Morey has admired since their days together in Houston, but they also avoided having to go with valued rookie-contract players Tyrese Maxey and Matisse Thybulle. Morey’s patience with Simmons paid off, and the Sixers are now an indisputable championship challenger alongside an MVP-level Joel Embiid, according to Brad Botkin.
James Harden, a teammate, was the loser.
First and foremostWhen the Rockets shipped Chris Paul, two first-round selections, and two pick swaps to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Russell Westbrook, Harden was a driving force behind one of the worst moves in recent NBA history. Harden and Westbrook’s friendship had deteriorated to the point that the Rockets moved Westbrook to the Washington Wizards for John Wall only a year later. Harden decided he wanted out of Houston after two straight downgrades at point guard, showed up late for training camp, and loafed his way into a trade to the Nets. Fast forward to last week, when Harden put up four points in a dismal performance against the Sacramento Kings, sparking rumblings that he wanted to be dealt to the Philadelphia 76ers.
And now we’ve arrived. With Harden’s ongoing dissatisfaction with teammates and organisations, you have to wonder how long it will be until things in Philadelphia go south.
James Harden, a human being, is the winner.
I realise it’s hypocritical to praise Simmons for sticking to his guns while criticising Harden for doing the same, but I’ll declare him the winner. Everyone has the right to happiness, and Harden has obviously been looking for a scenario that makes him feel at ease for years. Hopefully, Embiid will be his teammate, and Philadelphia will be the city that brings him happiness and calm.
Kyrie Irving is the loser.
Is Harden still looking to leave Brooklyn if Irving gets the vaccination and plays in every game this season? We’ll never know, but Harden is said to be angry with “having to be the man” on the Nets after mistakenly believing he was joining a superteam, and we know he’s not blaming Kevin Durant for his injury. Harden was more than likely annoyed that Irving was sent home for the first half of the season and can now only play in road games due to his reluctance to acquire the COVID-19 vaccination. With Durant, Harden, and Irving on the court together, the Nets were considered the championship favourites entering the season. We’ll never see that core healthy in the playoffs again, and Irving bears some of the burden.
The Los Angeles Lakers are losers.
https://t.co/GWTeOCYLQM pic.twitter.com/6vWpIQ6fde
— Colin Ward-Henninger (@ColinCBSSports) February 10, 2022
The Lakers are in freefall, and LeBron James has said on the record that he does not feel his current group is capable of winning a championship.
“Do I believe we can get to the point where Milwaukee is now?” According to The Athletic, James said. “No, no, no. Is this what you were hoping to hear? No, it does not.”
The trade deadline has passed, and the Lakers have made no moves. Their lineup will stay the same, with minor additions conceivable via the buyout market.
The Lakers were unable to find a suitor for Russell Westbrook, who has now been demoted to the bench in crunch time, and their alleged unwillingness to include their 2027 first-round selection in any trade may have put a stop to a lot of phone conversations before they ever began. The Lakers needed a miracle at the deadline to rescue them, given how badly they’ve been playing. That didn’t happen, which must be discouraging for the struggling team.
The New York Knicks are the losers.
The Knicks, who were in a similar position to the Lakers, were allegedly eager to make a trade before the deadline. They intended to shed some payroll if acquiring talent wasn’t in the cards, but that didn’t happen either. Instead, they’ll play the remainder of the season with the same lineup that has lost 10 of its previous 12 games in a bid to move out of 12th place in the Eastern Conference. We’ve come a long way since “Bing Bong!”
The Boston Celtics are the champions.
Although the Celtics didn’t make the most exciting deals, Brad Stevens’ first trade deadline as general manager was a complete success. To clear up a congested backcourt, Boston signed Derrick White, a player who seems to flourish in a supporting position on a solid team. He replaced Josh Richardson and Romeo Langford. The price was a first-round selection, but White seems to be more than deserving of it.
Boston also released Dennis Schroder, Enes Freedom, and Bruno Fernando while re-signing former Celtic Daniel Theis.Overall, the Celtics might have avoided the luxury tax while still upgrading their squad, which is very tough to achieve in the current NBA.
The Dallas Mavericks were the losers.
With the deal of Kristaps Porzingis to the Washington Wizards, the Mavericks offered the greatest WTF moment of the trade deadline. When it was reported that Dallas would get Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans in exchange, we all kept checking Twitter to see how many future first-round picks the Wizards would include in the trade. We persisted in our search. Also, I’m looking. Also, I’m looking.
There were none, as it turned out. There are no first-round picks. In reality, in return for Dinwiddie and Bertans, Dallas handed a future second-round selection to Washington along with Porzingis. Even with his injury troubles and his problematic relationship with Luka Doncic, it seems to be pennies on the dollar for Porzingis. Bertans seems to be a terrific match for Dallas on paper, but he is due $33 million for the next two years and is shooting 32 percent from 3-point range this season. Dinwiddie has struggled this season after undergoing his second ACL surgery, is due to earn $18 million next season, and is redundant in his position with Jalen Brunson.
Brunson is a free agent this summer, and the Pistons are expected to make a substantial offer, so part of the reason for signing Dinwiddie might have been to give insurance in case Brunson left. It’s probably not a good thing if the Pistons are pushing your hand in a deal involving one of your putative franchise cornerstones.
The Washington Wizards are the champions.
The Wizards executed probably the most under-the-radar move of the trade deadline, getting Porzingis and a potential second-round selection from the Mavericks in exchange for Bertans’ inflated deal and Dinwiddie, who was allegedly wanted transferred by his teammates. Porzingis isn’t without his flaws, the most serious of which are injuries, but he and Bradley Beal would form a potent offensive duo to build around. Porzingis adds some protection as a stop-gap No. 1 option if Beal is dealt with. Even if Porzingis never completely recovers, the Wizards did not give up anything in order to get him.
The Portland Trail Blazers were the losers.
When trade rumours around Damian Lillard started to circulate last summer, the goal was to put pressure on the Portland front office to assist in the development of a contender. They’ve now traded CJ McCollum, Norman Powell, Robert Covington, Larry Nance Jr., and Tony Snell for Josh Hart, Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow, Keon Johnson, an injured Joe Ingles on an expiring contract, a protected 2022 first-round pick, and three future second-round picks, all within the last six months.
The stated intention was to generate flexibility this summer in order to enhance the roster around Lillard, but now that anticipated target Ben Simmons has been sold to Brooklyn, the Blazers have made no more moves. Even if they free up salary room, Portland hasn’t always been a hotbed for high-profile free agents, and the class is already thin on difference-makers. The moves make perfect sense if the Blazers are rebuilding and want to trade Lillard. Not so much if they’re still attempting to compete with Lillard, as they claim.
The New Orleans Pelicans are the champions.
Assuming Zion Williamson returns to basketball at some point, the Pelicans have assembled a formidable trio (at least on offence) of Williamson, Brandon Ingram, and CJ McCollum. The remainder of the roster is still up in the air, although youngster Herb Jones has been impressive, and youthful big man Jaxson Hayes has made strides recently. One thing is certain: the Pelicans are much more optimistic now that McCollum has arrived.
The Los Angeles Clippers are the champions.
The Clippers were already defying the odds by making the playoffs despite Kawhi Leonard’s zero games and Paul George’s injury-plagued season, so they bolstered the squad by signing Norman Powell as a wing scorer and Robert Covington as a Swiss Army 3-and-D forward. The beauty of the deal is that it benefits the Clippers both in the immediate and long term, as Powell and Covington will complement Leonard and George whenever they return. When you consider that the Clippers only had to give up Keon Johnson, the No. 21 overall selection in 2021, this is a home run trade for them.
By participating in a four-team transaction that sent Serge Ibaka to the Milwaukee Bucks, they were able to shave $30 million off their luxury tax burden and generate a trade exception. For the Clippers, this was a fantastic deadline.
The Sacramento Kings were the losers.
Related NBA Trade Deadline : Injury to Anthony Davis: Here are five big guys the Lakers might target on the trade market to fill in for the injured star.
Despite their joy after winning their first game with Domantas Sabonis, the Kings made an odd decision by moving Tyrese Haliburton, their finest asset and already one of their most effective offensive players, to the Los Angeles Clippers. In a short spell with De’Aaron Fox out lately, Haliburton looked like the Kings’ future floor manager, and his ability to knock down 3-pointers and assist teammates is quite interesting.
The Kings chose to sign Sabonis, which gives them an All-Star to combine with Fox in the hopes of making a playoff run in the near future. However, Sacramento already had a good starting centre in Richaun Holmes, who was not dealt at the deadline, and Haliburton is skilled enough to make this transaction appear short-sighted in a few years. Time will tell, but it seems like Haliburton was the one guy the Kings should have refused to deal with, and they instead shipped him away for a very excellent player who may or may not have a meaningful influence on the team’s ability to win.
Marvin Bagley III was the winner.
Everybody deserves a new start, and Bagley was given one on Thursday. Bagley’s first four seasons were marred by injuries and the stigma of being picked ahead of Luka Doncic, Jarrett Jackson Jr., and Trae Young, and now he’ll have a chance to start over in Detroit, a rebuilding team with nothing but time to develop and nurture young players. Bagley and the Pistons are hoping that this is the case.
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source: cbssports
