Trade
Pacers get Pascal Siakim, 2024 Pelicans 2nd rd pick; Raptors get Bruce Brown, Jordan Nwora, Kira Lewis Jr, two 2024 1st rd picks, one 2026 1st rd pick, one 2024 2nd rd pick; (Pelicans get....nothing?)
I was actually a little skeptical of Siakim's fit in Indy, but supposedly Siakim has long been an admirer of Myles Turner and really looked forward to playing with him. Okay, that doesn't look like it'll work to me but if they're into it, then let's see it in action. On paper this deal is a win for the Pacers, a team that either has to draft well or make shrewd trades and this looks like a good one (assuming they can re-sign Siakim long term this summer). Losing Bruce Brown is tough but Siakim's offense and defense should make up for that loss.
Personally I thought the Raptors were going to re-sign Siakim this summer and that that was the plan all along...but, apparently not. I guess they thought they either had to trade him or else just loved this deal so much they couldn't pass it up. Either way, they add Bruce Brown to the rotation, where I think he'll fit in right away (or Brown can still be flipped to another team and while I assume there would be many suitors, that doesn't necessarily mean the right deal will come together). And they get three 1st rd picks and the Raptors are a pretty good draft team, so more fuel for their fire. Nwora and Lewis are not high on anyone's lists of must-have players, but they give enough depth for other players on the Raptors (*ahem* Denis Schroder and, well, Bruce Brown) to be moved by the deadline, too. And since the Raptors are clearly punting on this season, there's no need to bring back quality unless the contract matches future desires. I thought the Raptors had their Siakim problem fixed all long (re: I thought they loved each other and it was a mega-re-signing just waiting to happen), but I guess they chose to pull the rip chord instead. Okay, not a bad idea and a pretty good haul.
The Pelicans pitched in a 2nd rd pick and Kira Lewis Jr. and received....nothing at all....? Uh....isn't there some provision that requires this trade to look somewhat balanced? Pelicans didn't even get a future 2nd rd pick or anything? Do they get a trade exception? Anything? (How is this still possible?)
Heat get Terry Rozier; Hornets get Kyle Lowry, 2027 1st rd pick
Great deal for the Heat. Rozier is a playmaker or a scorer, he wants to win, has a range of additive skills and has been playing for a losing team for so long that he's probably dying to play meaningful games again.
The Hornets don't really need Rozier any more since they're not trying to win. Lowry will be waived, I presume, or if not, he won't help the Hornets win games. And an unprotected 1st rd pick is always good (on paper). The Hornets don't really add much but they've got nothing to lose anyway.
Firings
Bucks fire coach Adrian Griffin; hire Doc Rivers ($40m/3.5yr)
Wow, 40 games into his coaching career and now he's out? Well, it started shaky enough. First off, I thought they were foolish for firing Coach Budenholzer. Secondly, Nick Nurse was the obvious replacement (but apparently he and Giannis did not hit it off). And then this team with championship aspirations hires a 1st time head coach? From outside the organization? Then right before the season starts, new guy fires off Terry Stotts, the one veteran coach on the staff (and presumed Dame-whsiperer). Yeah....none of that is good. The Bucks overreacted to getting bounced in the playoffs (uh, Giannis was hurt, you'll recall), fired a good coach, panic-traded for Dame (don't hate the trade but I'm not convinced it needed to be done), then went pennywise-pound-foolish on the new head coach. Now their defense is a disaster and they had to overpay Doc Rivers (while still overpaying the last two coaches). All right, the good news is: Dame and Giannis together are quite the offensive juggernaut, they're still 2nd in the East and if they could get any kind of defensive identity going, then they could still win it all. Doc is fine for this team (though that price tag--whooch!) but it all just reminds us that Coach Bud should be coaching this team still.
Wizards fire (and re-assign) coach Wes Unseld Jr; Brian Keefe named interim head coach
Yup, it was all the coach's fault. Whew! Thank god the Wizards have finally put that problem to bed! Uh....just kidding. This organization is a mess and Unseld is probably better off collecting his severance and trying to get a job on Doc Rivers' staff in Milwaukee. Where do the Wizards go from here? Well, I mean "up" is the only direction available, right?
Waivings
Christian Koloko (Raptors)
The fallout of the Siakim trade. Koloko played 58 games for the Raptors last year but has played 0 this year. Turns out he has a seemingly major blood clot issue that could be life-threatening much less career-threatening. I hope the NBA insurance policy is a good one (I would assume it is as good as any on planet Earth). Hopefully we'll see him in Summer League.
2-way Contracts
Scottie Pippen Jr (Grizzlies)
A hot prospect at Vanderbilt, Pippen hasn't really done much as a pro. Seems like he's more of a playmaking PG than a scorer, seems like the Grizzlies could use that. We'll see if he gets minutes this year.
10-day Contacts
Pete Nance (Cavs), (2x) James Johnson (Pacers), Taze Moore (Blazers), Trey Jemison (Wizards), Malcolm Hill (Pelicans), Matthew Hurt (Grizzlies)
Will any of these guys really make a difference for their squads? I dunno. The 10-day contract thing is more about roster paperwork shuffling than on the court activity, so probably not. But, these guys are all NBA players and I'm not.
No comments:
Post a Comment