The Week in Hoops: February 28, 2011 (Trade Deadline Edition)

Wow, what a trade deadline. League sources are reporting that I'm still spent from all the Twitter refresh-clicking and Chad Ford chat-transcript reading last Thursday. Many expected a relatively quiet deadline week with the lockout looming and Carmelo dominating most of the conversation. But once Melo got dealt early in the week, it was open season.

In this day and age of 24 hours media coverage, twitter feeds, discussion boards and blogs, it was refreshing that the Deron Williams trade came completely out of the blue. Absolutely nobody saw that one coming. Then the Celtics and Thunder shocked the league with their Jeff Green-for-Kendrick Perkins deal minutes before the 3 pm deadline hit.

In the days immediately following the deadline, seemingly everybody comes out with a column grading the trades or picking the Winners and Losers. I suppose I could do that, but it's already old hat just three days after D-Day. Plus, if there's one thing that the Deron Williams trade proved (other than you don't become a Russian billionaire with taking a few chances), it's that we have no idea right now if the Nets win or lose that deal. It all depends on Williams seeing it through to Brooklyn in 2012.

Avery, watch your back!

One thing we can do is go back and see how some of these old deadline-week deals worked out for the teams involved. We're always quick to assign a winner or loser for each trade right after it happens, but rarely does anybody ever follow up to see if it actually turned out that way. I jokingly brought up the following scenario with my buddy Wego: what if the Deron ended up going back to Utah after next season? Wouldn't that be the greatest ruse of all-time (and maybe the only thing Williams could do to make Utah fans forgive him for running Jerry Sloan out of town)? Utah gets Derrick Favors, two probable lottery picks and Deron Williams in 2012 in exchange for Williams playing in New Jersey for a year and a half. It'll probably never happen, and even if it did, Deron would have to travel Delonte West-style to protect against a possible mob hit.

For the safety of Deron and his family, forget I brought it up. Here are the five most lopsided trade-deadline deals over the last 15 years (note: the deals had to occur during the week leading up to the deadline, so no Pau Gasol-to-LA on this list).

5. The Houston Rockets trade Carl Landry and Joey Dorsey to Sacramento for Hilton Armstrong and Kevin Martin (2009)


Landry was one of the most-productive per minute guys during the first half of the 2008-09 season with Houston and was one of the league-leaders in fourth-quarter scoring at the time of the trade to Sacramento. With rookie Tyreke Evans and Martin failing to mesh in Sac-Town, it seemed like a logical deal at the time. However, Landry regressed in his time with the Kings, eventually going back to a bench role and averaging only 11.8 points per game this year. The Kings ultimately flipped Landry to the Hornets in a controversial deal for reserve guard Marcus Thornton, effectively a very poor man's version of Martin. Meanwhile, Martin has emerged as Houston's best player and the league leader in free-throw makes.

4. The Chicago Bulls trade Brad Miller, Ron Artest, Ron Mercer and Kevin Ollie to Indiana for Jalen Rose, Travis Best, Norm Richardson and a 2002 second-round pick (Lonny Baxter) (2002)

The early 2000's were some dark times for the Bulls as the franchise struggled to find its way after MJ's (second) retirement. Who can forget wonderful first-round draft picks such as Marcus Fizer, Dalibor Bagaric, Eddy Curry and Jay Williams. The Bulls actually did well getting Brad Miller as a free agent and landing Ron Artest in the middle of the first-round in 2000, but those players did not blossom until after they were traded to Indiana. Jalen Rose put up some big numbers in Chicago (22.1 points per game in his one full season with the Bulls), but was later dealt to Toronto (in what was eventually labeled "the Donyell Marshall trade, another deal that backfired for Chicago). The Bulls were 43-85 during the Rose-led era in Chicago. Indiana, on the other hand, went from 42 wins in 2001-02 to 61 wins and an Eastern Conference finals appearance two years later before the Artest-melee sent them into a tailspin.

3. The Boston Celtics trade Jiri Welsch to Cleveland for a future first-round draft pick (2005)

Lebron's running mate,
circa 2005

This is one of my favorite deadline deals even though it seemed so insignificant at the time. Welsch played 16 games for the Cavs, averaging 12 minutes and 2.9 points per game during that span. The Cavs were 5-11 in those games and had a monumental collapse down the stretch that led to them missing the playoffs by a game in LeBron's 2nd year in the league. Really this is one of the first of many bungled moves the Cavs made during the LeBron-era, all of which collectively played a role in James eventually taking his talents to South Beach. GM Jim Paxson was fired at the end of the season and four months later, the Cavs traded Welsch to the Bucks for a 2006 2nd round pick (the venerable Lior Eliyahu). So effectively the Cavaliers traded a first-round pick for a second-round pick. Great work, Jimmy P!

From Boston's perspective, this deal turned out to be a gold mine. The future first-round pick came in 2007 (Rudy Fernandez), but the Celtics ended up trading that pick to the Suns during the 2006 draft for a point guard from Kentucky named Rajon Rondo. If you factor that in, this one moves even higher up the charts.

2. The Detroit Pistons trades Lindsey Hunter, Chucky Atkins, its 2004 first-round draft pick and cash to Boston and Zeljko Rebraca, Bobby Sura and a 2004 first-round draft pick to Atlanta in exchange for Rasheed Wallace and Mike James (2004)

Rasheed was traded to the Hawks by Portland (for Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Dan Dickau and Theo Ratliff) just 10 days prior. However, he was unhappy in Atlanta and only ended up playing one game for the Hawks, who were 18-36 at the time. Atlanta ended up shipping him off to Detroit, and Wallace turned out to be the one missing ingredient for a Pistons team that won the title that year, made the finals the following year and was the Eastern Conference's most formidable team from 2004 to 2008. The Hawks went on to win 13 games in 2004-05, but did land Josh Smith with the 17th overall pick from this trade.

1. The Seattle Supersonics trade Gary Payton and Desmond Mason to the Milwaukee for Ray Allen, Kevin Ollie, Ronald Murray and a 2003 first-round draft pick (Luke Ridnour) (2003)

Get. Me. Outta. Here!

If you need any additional proof that this was a bad deal for the Bucks, consider that there's a Facebook group called "Bucks Trade Ray Allen = Worst Trade Ever" with 51 members. This trade continues to baffle to this day. The Bucks were 27-26 at the time of the deal and already had a starting point guard in Sam Cassell. Allen was deemed expendable because the Bucks had Michael Redd ready to take over the starting shooting guard position. But why take on Gary Payton who was at the end of his contract instead of filling a bigger need?

To say the trade didn't work out for the Bucks would be an understatement. They finished the season 42-40 and promptly lost to the Nets in the first round of the playoffs. Payton was on the first flight he could find out of Milwaukee and bounced at the tail end of his career with the Lakers, Boston and Miami before finally winning a ring in 2006. Allen has made seven out of eight all-star games since the trade, won a ring in Boston and just became the all-time leader in three-pointers made. All the Bucks got out of the deal was 2 1/2 exceedingly mediocre years out of Desmond Mason and the opportunity to pay Redd $91 million dollars to play an average of 42.7 games per season the last six years.

Honorable Mention:
- New Orleans trades Baron Davis to Golden State for Dale Davis, Speedy Claxton and cash (2005)
- Atlanta trades Dikembe Mutombo and Roshown McLeod to Philadelphia for Theo Ratliff, Toni Kukoc, Nazr Mohammed and Pepe Sanchez (2001)
- Washington trades Juwan Howard, Obinna Ekezie and Calvin Booth to Dallas for Christian Laettner, Loy Vaught, Etan Thomas, Hubert Davis and Courtney Alexander

The Colton Index:

Teams of the Week:

	1. Houston Rockets(from 18th to 16th) - Wins at Detroit, at Cleveland, vs. New Jersey, at New Orleans. Nice week for the Rockets. They cleaned up on three of the lesser teams in the East and capped it off with a nice win in New Orleans. Also, Houston saw two teams ahead of them (Denver and Utah) get significantly weaker at the trade deadline. Plus, Daryl Morey got a future first-round pick from Memphis essentially for taking Hasheem Thabeet off their hands. How'd that Number 2 pick work out for you, Memphis?
	2. Phoenix Suns (stays at 15th) - Wins vs Atlanta, at Indiana, at New Orleans. Another borderline Western Conference team cleaning up on Eastern Conference foes. Here's a little fun fact for you...the Western Conference is 200-147 in interconference games this season. Of course, Indiana is probably going to make the playoffs while either Phoenix or Houston is going to get left out.
	3. Los Angeles Lakers (stays at 6th) - Wins vs Atlanta, at Portland, vs LA Clippers, at Oklahoma City. A great start of the homestretch for the Lakers, with three wins against playoff teams (and one against their roommates). They seem to have Oklahoma City's number.

Teams of the Weak:

	1. Golden State Warriors(from 19th to 20th) - Losses vs Boston, vs Atlanta, at Minnesota. The All-Star break came at the wrong time for the W's. Coming off a week with three straight wins against teams over .500, the Warriors got blown out at home by the Celtics and Hawks, and then for the icing on the cake, lost to the lowly Timberwolves (somebody box out that Kevin Love guy!).
	2. Portland Trailblazers (from 11th to 13th) - Losses vs LA Lakers, vs Atlanta; Win vs Denver. Portland's choke job against the Lakers was eerily reminiscent of their overtime loss to Miami last month. But overall things are looking up for the Blazers, with their franchise player hitting a big three in their win against Denver and their heist of Gerald Wallace from Michael Jordan's Charlotte Bobcats (small retribution for that whole Sam Bowie-thing).
	3. Los Angeles Clippers (stays at 23rd) - Losses at Oklahoma City, at New Orleans, at LA Lakers, vs Boston. Check out those four opponents. That's a brutal week for any team. The Clippers finished their Grammy roadtrip 2-9 then salted away a great start against a demoralized Boston team on Saturday. I blame Baron Davis.

Updated with Games as of Sunday February 27th

Rk	Move	Team	W-L	Last 15	Avg Diff	SOS Rk	Colton
1	-		49-10	12-3	7.12	24	61.99
2	-		43-17	12-3	7.62	30	57.04
3	+1		43-16	14-1	3.88	18	57.02
4	-1		42-15	9-6	6.74	28	55.83
5	-		40-17	12-3	5.79	26	55.08
6	-		42-19	9-6	6.21	23	53.59
7	-		38-22	9-6	6.03	29	50.88
8	-		36-22	8-7	1.98	4	49.12
9	+3		34-26	7-8	2.73	16	46.12
10	+3		36-23	8-7	1.08	27	46.07
11	-1		33-28	11-4	1.79	14	45.84
12	-3		35-26	5-10	2.15	12	45.16
13	-2		33-26	9-6	0.53	17	44.36
14	-		30-29	11-4	1.92	25	43.71
15	-		30-27	10-5	0.11	19	43.49
16	+2		30-31	9-6	0.7	8	43.01
17	-1		30-27	8-7	0.51	21	42.37
18	-1		32-28	5-10	-0.5	15	41.52
19	+1		26-32	9-6	-0.21	22	37.81
20	-1		26-32	7-8	-3.12	13	36.37
21	-		26-33	7-8	-2.46	20	36.14
22	-		22-36	5-10	-1.48	7	33.07
23	-		21-39	4-11	-3.6	6	31.21
24	-		22-39	5-10	-4.11	10	30.68
25	-		17-42	5-10	-6.42	3	26.56
26	-		14-43	4-11	-5.82	11	25.55
27	+1		16-44	3-12	-6.18	5	24.38
28	-1		15-43	2-13	-6.98	1	23.98
29	-		14-46	4-11	-5.95	9	23.52
30	-		11-48	3-12	-10.19	2	18.58

Plan Accordingly:

Must watch games this week (all times ET):

Mon 2/28: Atlanta at Denver (9:00 PM)
Tues 3/1: New York at Orlando (7:00 PM, NBA TV Fan Night)
Weds 3/2: Chicago at Atlanta (7:00 PM); Phoenix at Boston (7:30 PM); New Orleans at New York (7:30, NBA TV)
Thurs 3/3: Orlando at Miami (8:00 PM, TNT); Denver at Utah (10:30 PM, TNT)
Fri 3/4: Chicago at Orlando (7:00 PM, ESPN); Oklahoma City at Atlanta (7:30 PM); Miami at San Antonio (9:30, ESPN)
Sat 3/5: Denver at LA Clippers (10:30 PM) - 6 games on slate for Saturday, the 12 teams playing are an average of 13 games below .500
Sun 3/6: Chicago at Miami (1:00 PM, ABC); LA Lakers at San Antonio (3:30); New York at Atlanta (6:30 PM, ESPN); Phoenix at Oklahoma City (7:00 PM)

Top Dunkers:

Continuing our series from last week, here's #4 on our list of the Top 10 Dunkers in the NBA.

#4. J.R. Smith
Team: Denver Nuggets
Pos: Wild Card
School: St Benedict's Prep School (NJ)
Height/Weight: 6'6" 220 lbs
Dunk Signature: Man-in-flight hang time, baseline dunks usually over big men, flashy fast-break dunks, and unique post-dunk celebrations.



Previous Weeks: #10. Russell Westbrook
 #9. DeMar DeRozan
 #8. Dwyane Wade
 #7. Rudy Gay
 #6. Josh Smith
 #5. Derrick Rose

Dunks of the Week:

Here are the top 5 Dunks for the week ending 2/19, as voted on by the Wegobomber Dunk Committee.



5. Andre Iguodala with the breakaway windmill against the Pistons, while Andres Nocioni practices his shadow puppets.
4. LeBron James with an impressive double-clutch reverse jam against the Bulls (not sure if he touched his shins though, Reggie)
3. Amare Stoudemire with an emphatic slam over J.J. Hickson, who is quickly becoming the Shawn Bradley of the NBA
2. Randy Foye with a great bounce pass from Blake Griffin and a powerful stuff on Jeff Green, literally only 90 seconds into Green's career with the Celtics
1. Blake Griffin turns a poor alley-oop pass into yet another highlight reel dunk

Bonus: I put together since last week's Dunk Contest Review column. It shows the evolution of the Slam Dunk Contest with signature dunks from each of the champions from 1994 to 2011. I particularly enjoyed Magic Johnson's insightful commentary after Dee Brown's no-look dunk in 1991 and the prediction of big-time endorsement dollars for Harold Miner after winning the dunk contest in 1993.




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Oklahoma City Trades Jeff Green

The end of the Jeff Green-era in Oklahoma City...



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Who Says No?

And here I thought all along that Carmelo Anthony was going to sap all of the fun out of what is one of my favorite weeks of the year: trade-deadline week (which is still, for my money, the single best reason to use Twitter). Mikhail Prokhorov didn't even wait until the ink was dry on the Melo-to-Knicks deal before stealing the thunder with today's trade for Deron Williams.

Eventually we'll get around to dissecting these two mega-deals, but with the deadline less than 24 hours away, let's focus on a few hypothetical deals, with thanks from the good ol' ESPN Trade Machine. Feel free to comment on these potential deals or add your own in the comment section. Keep checking back and I'll add more tonight and tomorrow.

1. Jazz and Bucks Four-Player Trade (see in Trade Machine)

	Milwaukee gets Al Jefferson and Andrei Kirilenko
	Utah gets Andrew Bogut and Michael Redd (expiring) and option to swap first-round picks with Milwaukee in the future

Comment: Since the Jazz are in rebuilding mode, then they should try desperately to find a home for Andrei Kirilenko and his ridiculous, albeit expiring $17.8 million contract. (Wow, Andrei Kirilenko is making $17.8 million this season. I need to ask for a raise.) The Bucks are only 3 1/2 games behind Indiana for the 8th seed in the East. Kirilenko is a shell of his former self but he's definitely an upgrade if he's taking minutes from Carlos Delfino and Ersan Ilyasova. Jefferson has been better than Bogut this season and is a year younger. Bogut would be beloved back in the state where he went to college. Who says no?

2. Jazz, Rockets and Bulls Three-Player Trade (see in Trade Machine)

	Houston gets Andrei Kirilenko and Miami's (or Chicago's) first-round pick from Bulls
	Utah gets Yao Ming (expiring) and $3 million from Chicago
	Chicago gets Courtney Lee

Comment: The Bulls crave Courtney Lee and this might be enough to get it done. They just cleared some cap room and acquired Miami's pick in the James Johnson deal with Toronto. They would get a solid player in Lee to shore up their deficiencies at shooting guard at little cost. With Utah and Denver on the way down, and Memphis maybe joining them with Rudy Gay out for at least a month and Zach Randolph possibly on the way out this week, playoff spots are suddenly there for the taking for the Suns and Rockets of the world. Who says no?

3. Trailblazers and Thunder Two-Player Trade (see in Trade Machine)

	Oklahoma City gets Marcus Camby
	Portland gets Nick Collison and first-round draft pick

Comment: Are the Thunder close enough to roll the dice and try to make it happen this year? Nick Collison is a valuable glue guy on their team, but Camby specifically addresses their front-court defensive and rebounding woes. Although he just signed a five-year deal, Collison's contract is front-loaded and is very cap friendly next year and beyond. Who says no?


4. Nuggets and Thunder Six-Player Trade (see in Trade Machine)

	Oklahoma City gets Nene, Al Harrington and Arron Afflalo
	Denver gets Jeff Green, Nenad Krstic, Mo Peterson and first-round draft pick

Comment: Along the same lines as above. Would the Thunder be willing to part with one of member of their young nucleus in order to shore-up their front court? If you saw the end of the their game against the Spurs Wednesday night, you can probably make a case for it. Who says no?

5. Cavaliers and Pistons Four-Player Trade (see in Trade Machine)

	Cleveland gets Richard Hamilton, Jason Maxiell and 2011 first-round pick
	Detroit gets Antawn Jamison and Anthony Parker

Comment: If Cleveland is in the market for lottery picks in the upcoming (very weak, by the way) draft, then there are probably teams willing to shed some contracts on them. How about an end to the Rip-Kuester drama in Detroit? Cleveland takes on additional money and additional years in exchange for Detroit's pick. Who says no? Another possibility for Cleveland would be Milwaukee (two of the following three guys: Corey Maggette, John Salmons and Drew Gooden and a 2011 first-rounder for Jamison).

6. Cavaliers, Rockets, Thunder and Wizards in Four-Team, Nine-Player Trade (see in Trade Machine)

	Houston gets Antawn Jamison and Anderson Varejao
	Oklahoma City gets Shane Battier
	Washington gets Yao Ming and Mo Peterson expirings
	Cleveland gets Rashard Lewis, Andray Blatche and first-round picks from Oklahoma City and Washington

Comment: Along the same lines as above, how far is Cleveland willing to go to get additional draft picks? In this deal, they take on additional money and two bad contracts in Lewis and Blatche. The Wizards wipe the slate clean at the cost of what would be a very high pick next year, but would be able to build around John Wall. The Thunder would get a defensive stopper that helps them out for the playoff drive this year. And the Rockets get a reasonably-priced big man for the future at the cost of taking on Jamison's bloated contract for next year. Who says no?

[Here's a variation on the same theme involving the Sixers instead of the Wizards. Doug Collins has Philadelphia playing well and in good position for a play-off spot, although nobody expects them to go anywhere. This allows them to wipe the slate clean of Andre Iguodala and Elton Brand. Plus, wouldn't it be great if Elton and Baron played together in Cleveland after Brand left Davis high-and-dry in L.A.? Awkward!]

7. Nuggets and Bulls One-Player Deal (see in Trade Machine)

	Chicago gets Arron Afflalo
	Denver gets two first round draft picks

Comment: This is the guy I'm hoping the Bulls land for this year's stretch run. Not Anthony Parker. Not Courtney Lee. Not even O.J. Mayo. I think Afflalo puts them right with Boston and Miami in the East, assuming they are not there already. With the Melo trade, Denver has a scrap heap of average to slightly above average players, almost two at every position. They'd swap Afflalo for two picks in next year's draft - the Chicago and Miami late first-rounders. Who says no?

8. Nuggets and Timberwolves Two-Player Deal (see in Trade Machine)

	Minnesota gets Raymond Felton
	Denver gets Wesley Johnson

Comment: Despite drafting three point guards in the first round and signing a couple others, the Timberwolves find themselves in desperate need of a floor general. Felton proved himself more than capable this year in New York. If the Nuggets are truly ready to hand over the keys to Ty Lawson (originally drafted by Minnesota), then they can deal Felton if he's the only player leaving in the deal. The deal also works for Michael Beasley, depending on how you feel about the prospects of Beasley, J.R. Smith and Chris Andersen traveling together. Who says no?

9. Nuggets and Rockets in Five-Player Deal (see in Trade Machine)

	Houston gets Nene Hilario and Al Harrington
	Denver gets Yao Ming (expiring), Patrick Patterson, Chase Budinger and future first-round pick

Comment: If the Nuggets are going to go into rebuilding mode, then they have to find somebody to take on the remaining 4+ years of Al Harrington's contract. I'm sure Masaj Ujiri's phone is ringing off the hook with interest for Nene, who is one of the most underrated big men in the league. He'd be a great fit with Houston and would shore up their playoff chances immediately. The Nuggets get some young talent in Patterson and Budinger and a future first rounder. Who says no?

10. Nuggets and Heat in Five-Player Deal (see in Trade Machine)

	Miami gets Nene Hilario, Al Harrington and J.R. Smith
	Denver gets Chris Bosh and Mike Miller

Comment: It's crazy to think about the Heat trading Chris Bosh, but would this be even to push them over the top for a title this year? Nene has comparable numbers to Bosh, Smith would be an upgrade over Miller and Harrington would provide depth for their thin bench. Denver gets a marquee guy locked-in long-term for less than max money. Who says no?

11. Mavericks and Pistons in Two-Player Deal (see in Trade Machine)

	Dallas gets Tayshaun Prince
	Detroit gets Caron Butler (expiring), $3 million and future first-round pick

Comment: You gotta believe that Dallas needs to get something in exchange for Caron Butler's expiring deal. Tayshaun would welcome the change of scenery and would fit in immediately. Detroit gets a draft pick or two and some cash for its troubles. Who says no? Other options for Dallas include Boris Diaw, Chris Kaman, Andris Biedrins, (gulp) Corey Maggette, Antawn Jamison or Sam Dalembert (if Dallas throws in Brian Cardinal to make the numbers work), and Andrei Kirilenko or Zach Randolph (if Dallas includes DeShawn Stevenson and probably Roddy Beaubois in Randolph's case).

12. Mavericks, Suns and T-Wolves in Three-Team, Eight-Player Deal (see in Trade Machine)

	Dallas gets Steve Nash, Grant Hill, Josh Childress and Martell Webster
	Phoenix gets Caron Butler (expiring), Roddy Beaubois, DeShawn Stevenson (expiring), $3 million from Dallas and two first-round picks from Dallas
	Minnesota gets Jason Kidd

Comment: Dallas has to at least make an offer for Steve Nash, right? Mark Cuban is never one to shy away from rolling the dice. This deal is probably enough to make them the favorites to come out of the West. Suns fans would be okay with shipping their hero Nash off to a contender. They clear the decks with some expiring contracts, get an interesting prospect in Beaubois and force the Mavs to take on Josh Childress's awful deal. Who says no?

13. Hornets and Heat in Five-Player Blockbuster (see in Trade Machine)

	Miami gets Chris Paul, David West and Emeka Okafor
	New Orleans gets Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh

Comment: This is what happens when you play with the Trade Machine for too long. After a few (plus or minus five) hours, even the craziest deals start to look good. But think about this one for a second. Doesn't a lineup of LeBron and Paul along with West and Okafor equate to a title this year? Right now, Miami is obviously one of the top 3 or 4 teams in the league, but there are no guarantees that they make it past Boston or even Chicago, much less whoever makes it out of the West. James and Wade have redundant skill sets, and although it's crazy to think of Wade being run out of his town, if Miami had to trade one of them, it definitely wouldn't be LeBron. The Hornets get two big-names locked in for at least the next few years...the perfect scenario for the franchise to stay in New Orleans and attract a buyer. Who says no?

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