gdragic01.jpg

The 2015 NBA Trade Deadline has come and gone.  Over 30 players changed teams in total, which is a record for a deadline day in the NBA.  While there weren’t any blockbuster trades including any of the leagues premier players, there were plenty of deals that went down and some that will undoubtedly affect the playoff race in both conferences.  We saw top teams like the Hawks, Spurs, Warriors and Raptors let the deadline pass without making a deal while teams like the 76ers continue to make head scratching moves that almost make you wonder what direction the organization is trying to go in, other than down.

Now that the dominos have fallen and the dust has settled, it is time to break down the deals that as an aggregate, made for the busiest deadline day in league history.

Heat acquire Goran Dragic from the Suns for Danny Granger and two First Round Picks

Miami Grade: B+
Phoenix Grade: B-

After Dragic’s comments on Wednesday where he stated that he didn’t trust the Sun’s front office, a trade was inevitable.  There were several teams interested in the 28 year old point guard but it was Pat Riley and the Heat that were able to land him.  For the Heat, this trade makes a ton of sense.  At the moment the Heat are a game up on the Nets for the 8th seed in the East.  With an injury riddled Dwyane Wade and a point guard rotation that has been less than mediocre, an upgrade at that position was necessary if this team wanted to get back into the mix in the East.  Dragic has been a 20 point per game scorer in the league and provides an immediate upgrade at the PG position.   I don’t see a scenario where he comes off the bench as Mario Chalmers hasn’t been the same player since his poor performance in last year’s playoffs but whatever way Head Coach Erik Spoelstra decides to go, this team is better today than they were yesterday and they kept their core in tact while doing it.  Oh, and they kept Goran happy by bringing in his brother Zoran in this deal as well.

For the Suns, they had no choice but to trade Dragic and while you never want to be the team trading away the best player in the deal, two future first round picks isn’t a bad haul for a disgruntled player.  The Suns weren’t going to resign Dragic this summer so their backs were against the wall here and pulling the trigger on a deal was the right thing to do.  I am a believer that they could have gotten more in terms of assets that could help them win now but GM Ryan McDonough felt that this was the best package he could get given the amount of time he had to throw this thing together.  And who knows, if Wade’s health keeps deteriorating and the Heat fail to resign Dragic  this summer, those picks could end up being higher than most people think.  Granger and Justin Hamilton are throw ins to make the salaries work and it is likely neither player will be part of the team’s plans moving forward.  This deal in itself isn’t all that bad, but what the Suns did the rest of the day makes this one look worse.

Pistons acquire Reggie Jackson from the Thunder, Thunder receive Enes Kanter, Kyle Singler and D.J. Augustin from the Pistons and Jazz, Jazz receive Kendrick Perkins from Thunder.

Detroit Grade: A
Thunder Grade: C
Jazz Grade: C+

This Pistons came away with the best player in this deal.  Jackson is a starting caliber point guard in this league with the ability to play some two as well.  He is a nice piece in what is becoming a very solid squad up in Motown.  With big men Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond in the fold along with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and now Jackson, the Pistons have a nice young core that should lead them back to the playoffs in a year or so as long as the team can learn how to spend money in free agency (see Josh Smith, Charlie Villanueva & Ben Gordon).  The Pistons are just two games out of the playoff race at the moment and the addition of Jackson automatically makes them a better team.  In just two short months this team had rid itself of a horrendous contract while adding a franchise point guard and did so without giving up any key players, which the exception of Singler, nor any draft picks.

Much like Dragic in Phoenix, Jackson wasn’t happy in OKC and the team obliged him by shipping him to Detroit.  GM Sam Presti got some decent players in the deal and replaced Jackson with Augustin but the drop off in talent in that swap is pretty deep.  Augustin isn’t a bad player and has really turned his career around these last two season after an abysmal 2012-2013 season with the Pacers but he just isn’t the playmaker that Jackson is.  Kanter could be a nice piece moving forward but that is ONLY if they can resign him this summer.  If they can’t and he walks in free agency then this trades looks that much worse.  Singler is a nice role player but he’s just a filler at this point and is a free agent this summer as well.  My guess is the team felt that the newly acquired Waiters could fill Jackson’s shoes if given the opportunity.  That’s a big gamble for Presti and the Thunder as Jackson showed what type of player he could be when both Durant and Westbrook were injured earlier this season.

The Jazz were really just a facilitator in this deal and got a few draft picks in exchange for taking on Perkins’ salary.  They had to give up Kanter but it was pretty clear that the team wasn’t going to give him the extension he wanted so why not pick up a few draft picks in the process.  They also picked up little used forward Grant Jerrett from the Thunder but he is a project big man that is a year or two away from contributing.

Phoenix Suns acquire Brandon Knight from Bucks, Milwaukee acquires Michael Carter-Williams, Miles Plumlee and Tyler Ennis from the 76ers & Suns, 76ers receive multiple draft picks including 2015 First Rounder (Top 5 protected) from the Suns via the Lakers

Phoenix Grade: C
Milwaukee Grade: B
76ers Grade: D

The Suns basically flipped Goran Dragic, Tyler Ennis, Miles Plumlee and a 1st Round Pick for Brandon Knight…need I say more?  One would have to wonder what the Suns were thinking in this deal.  The Dragic trade was understandable but this one just doesn’t make sense.  As well as Knight has played this season, he isn’t worth what the Suns gave up.  Why send that pick to the 76ers to help facilitate this deal?  Why make this deal at all?
The Bucks are the clear cut winners of this deal as they got two for one on impact players that can contribute right away.  MCW, the Rookie of the Year a season ago, is a guy that Jason Kidd reportedly loves and sees as a younger version of himself.  While he’s not the player that Knight is right now, he has the potential and ability to be every bit as good.  Ennis is another Syracuse guy that should be a viable backup for MCW for the near future.  Plumlee gives the Bucks some depth on a front line that officially lost Larry Sanders just a few days before.  The Bucks just improved their team heading down the stretch and into the playoffs and that is why they win this deal.

The 76ers, oh the 76ers.  There’s really no reason in trying to explain this deal because there is no good explanation other than the fact that Sam Hinkie just loves draft picks.  Honestly, your guess is as good as mine when it comes to what Hinkie was/is trying to accomplish.  The 76ers have been the worst team in the league for the better part of three seasons and today’s trade all but ensures that they will keep their spot in the NBA cellar for the foreseeable future.

Portland Trailblazers acquire Aaron Afflalo from the Nuggets for Thomas Robinson, Will Barton and a 2016 lottery protected First Round Pick

Portland Grade: A-
Denver Grade: C

Blazers fans have to be rejoicing after this deal.  They finally have a viable backup on the wing and a guy that can play and defend multiple positions.  Afflalo will slot in behind both Wes Matthews and Nicolas Batum and will give the Blazers a guy to come in and bring stability to that second unit.  Robinson has been a bust since he was drafted and hadn’t really found his groove in Portland and Barton is a former second round pick that, while talented, just isn’t the caliber of player you want as your first wing off the bench for a team with Championship aspirations.  Afflalo may not be a superstar in this league but his presence vaults the Blazers ahead of teams like the Clippers, Spurs and Mavericks in terms of teams that can win it all this season.

The Nuggets were rumored to be trying to flip Ty Lawson but nothing ever materialized.  They are headed nowhere at this point and decided that the best option for the team was to flip Afflalo for future assets.  While Robinson and Barton are fairly underwhelming from an asset perspective, the first round pick will likely be delivered upon next season as the Blazers, barring an unforeseen injury, won’t be in the lottery next season.  There will be big changes in Denver this offseason as this team is in need of a serious rebuild.  Moving Afflalo is the first step in that rebuilding process.  Don’t be surprised to see guys like Lawson, Hickson and Gallinari moved at some point this summer as well.
Pair of veterans headed back to where it all started: Kevin Garnett to the Timberwolves and Tayshaun Prince to the Pistons.

It was nice to see a couple of veterans in Garnett and Prince get a chance to go back to where it all started.  Garnett was traded by the Nets to the Wolves in exchange for Thaddeus Young while Prince was traded by Boston to the Pistons for Jonas Jerebko.  While Garnett will be more of a figurehead on this Wolves roster and will mentor a young team not in the playoff pictures, Prince is going into a situation where he can help the Pistons get back to the playoffs.

Complete trade details can be found on ESPN.com or RealGM.com, whichever you prefer.
Follow me on Twitter @CCroweNBADraft

Facebooktwitterredditmail

26 Comments

  1. okc?

    that okc trade grade is horrible.  i really think they were the clear cut winners in that deal.  the same questions about enes kanter re-signing can be said about reggie jackson.  him and monroe will both be free agents and if both get max offers, can detroit afford to keep both with keeping drummond in their future plans? 

    you get augustin another year at $3M, which is a steal the way he was playing.  on top of that, him and durant have a great relationship from their ut days so you know there won’t be a chemistry clash.  they basically upgraded an expiring contract in perkins with an expiring contract in kanter at a time when their starting center is injured.  the 1st rd pick they gave up is protected and tibor pleiss really didn’t show much in barcelona to make him a credible piece to their future.

    if you are going to be playing this team in the playoffs, watch out…

    1st team – adams, ibaka, durant, roberson, westbrook

    2nd team – kanter, mcgary, morrow, waiters, augustin

    that’s some real depth there.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  2. okc?

    that okc trade grade is horrible.  i really think they were the clear cut winners in that deal.  the same questions about enes kanter re-signing can be said about reggie jackson.  him and monroe will both be free agents and if both get max offers, can detroit afford to keep both with keeping drummond in their future plans? 

    you get augustin another year at $3M, which is a steal the way he was playing.  on top of that, him and durant have a great relationship from their ut days so you know there won’t be a chemistry clash.  they basically upgraded an expiring contract in perkins with an expiring contract in kanter at a time when their starting center is injured.  the 1st rd pick they gave up is protected and tibor pleiss really didn’t show much in barcelona to make him a credible piece to their future.

    if you are going to be playing this team in the playoffs, watch out…

    1st team – adams, ibaka, durant, roberson, westbrook

    2nd team – kanter, mcgary, morrow, waiters, augustin

    that’s some real depth there.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  3. Hinkie traded a gaurd that

     Hinkie traded a gaurd that cant shoot cant run pick and roll and turns ball over 4+ times a game.  He is shooting under 50% at the rim. Thats less than half his floaters and layups. Also his stock was actually dropping. He is a third or fourth option offensively and his individual defense is below average especially taking into account his length. That grade of a D is lazy. You said yourself you dont know what there plan is so why givr them a low grade based on your ignorance. Weak!

  4. Hinkie traded a gaurd that

     Hinkie traded a gaurd that cant shoot cant run pick and roll and turns ball over 4+ times a game.  He is shooting under 50% at the rim. Thats less than half his floaters and layups. Also his stock was actually dropping. He is a third or fourth option offensively and his individual defense is below average especially taking into account his length. That grade of a D is lazy. You said yourself you dont know what there plan is so why givr them a low grade based on your ignorance. Weak!

  5. The grade isn’t specifically

    The grade isn’t specifically about the players he traded.  I mean I can combat your stats with things that MCW does well but stats are misleading.  He just needs time to develop.  His stats are strikingly similar to that of Jason Kidd through his first two seasons, who coincidentally, traded for him.  I’m not saying that he’ll be Kidd but he’s still got potential.  He’s the reigning NBA ROY.

    The "D" is because yet again, the 76ers are trading away players for draft picks instead of actually developing these players.  Yeah, they got a first rounder for MCW but they’ve got plenty of picks and need to start building a TEAM, not continuously stockpiling first round draft picks that they may or may not have in two or three years.

    Would you have rather me given them an "I" for incomplete?  Because that would have been lazy.

    • I personally think it’s

      I personally think it’s lazier to give a D rather than giving an incomplete as you seemed to take a stance without really contemplating the rational behind the move. The sixers have been bad for a season and a half and even then they haven’t been the worst in the league. Sam Hinkie has a clear vision and has proceeded with it unwaiveringly. Understandably they need to move forward with actual players rather than future assets but that’s not where the sixers are. A short term view is what hinders a team for the long term and was what was the main issue with the previous regime in which the Sixers looked doomed to wallow in mediocrity for the next decade. MCW was rookie of the year and he could potentially improve but the fact of the matter is that his perceived value may never be higher than it is right now as the longer people had to focus on his weaknesses, it would become clearer that he wouldn’t ever drastically improve.. He has a very high usage rate with very low efficiency which is the worst possible mix and something that can also stunt the growth of the other young players on the team. Basic per game stats do lie but more advanced analytical stats paint a clearer picture. Our brains, eyes, hearts are all subjective but numbers, projections and facts are predictable indicators of what a player will be. Despite his high character and other more tangible things he brings to the court, MCW is not a player that fits into what the Sixers are looking to build and they were best served to get the best possible offer they could for him, which it seems like they effectively did. 

  6. The grade isn’t specifically

    The grade isn’t specifically about the players he traded.  I mean I can combat your stats with things that MCW does well but stats are misleading.  He just needs time to develop.  His stats are strikingly similar to that of Jason Kidd through his first two seasons, who coincidentally, traded for him.  I’m not saying that he’ll be Kidd but he’s still got potential.  He’s the reigning NBA ROY.

    The "D" is because yet again, the 76ers are trading away players for draft picks instead of actually developing these players.  Yeah, they got a first rounder for MCW but they’ve got plenty of picks and need to start building a TEAM, not continuously stockpiling first round draft picks that they may or may not have in two or three years.

    Would you have rather me given them an "I" for incomplete?  Because that would have been lazy.

    • I personally think it’s

      I personally think it’s lazier to give a D rather than giving an incomplete as you seemed to take a stance without really contemplating the rational behind the move. The sixers have been bad for a season and a half and even then they haven’t been the worst in the league. Sam Hinkie has a clear vision and has proceeded with it unwaiveringly. Understandably they need to move forward with actual players rather than future assets but that’s not where the sixers are. A short term view is what hinders a team for the long term and was what was the main issue with the previous regime in which the Sixers looked doomed to wallow in mediocrity for the next decade. MCW was rookie of the year and he could potentially improve but the fact of the matter is that his perceived value may never be higher than it is right now as the longer people had to focus on his weaknesses, it would become clearer that he wouldn’t ever drastically improve.. He has a very high usage rate with very low efficiency which is the worst possible mix and something that can also stunt the growth of the other young players on the team. Basic per game stats do lie but more advanced analytical stats paint a clearer picture. Our brains, eyes, hearts are all subjective but numbers, projections and facts are predictable indicators of what a player will be. Despite his high character and other more tangible things he brings to the court, MCW is not a player that fits into what the Sixers are looking to build and they were best served to get the best possible offer they could for him, which it seems like they effectively did. 

  7. Sixers ended up with 2 first

    Sixers ended up with 2 first rd picks, one lotto and a second rd pick. Plus Canaan. Hinkie wants lottery picks. They are assests either used, traded, or combined with other assests to improve your team. He took the deal because the lakers pick is worth more than the player. I would prefer an incomplete grade…if grades must be given out.

  8. Sixers ended up with 2 first

    Sixers ended up with 2 first rd picks, one lotto and a second rd pick. Plus Canaan. Hinkie wants lottery picks. They are assests either used, traded, or combined with other assests to improve your team. He took the deal because the lakers pick is worth more than the player. I would prefer an incomplete grade…if grades must be given out.

  9. “They are assests either

    "They are assests either used, traded, or combined with other assests to improve your team."

    You don’t know that these assets will improve your team.

    "He took the deal because the lakers pick is worth more than the player."

    Again, you don’t know that.  Depends on the player they get there.

    Thus, a grade of a "D".

    Ask Sporting News, Yahoo and Joel Embiid about what grade they would give the 76ers.

  10. “They are assests either

    "They are assests either used, traded, or combined with other assests to improve your team."

    You don’t know that these assets will improve your team.

    "He took the deal because the lakers pick is worth more than the player."

    Again, you don’t know that.  Depends on the player they get there.

    Thus, a grade of a "D".

    Ask Sporting News, Yahoo and Joel Embiid about what grade they would give the 76ers.

  11. Embiid is the backbone of

    Embiid is the backbone of this team. Everything else is about finding a star to play with him. I know these things because i am a sixers fan and i watch every game.  based on what Hinkie wants to do he has actually improved his situation. now you can either grade him based on that or give him an incomplete based on what I wrote earlier and what you just quoted.

  12. Embiid is the backbone of

    Embiid is the backbone of this team. Everything else is about finding a star to play with him. I know these things because i am a sixers fan and i watch every game.  based on what Hinkie wants to do he has actually improved his situation. now you can either grade him based on that or give him an incomplete based on what I wrote earlier and what you just quoted.

  13. Fair enough, but by your

    Fair enough, but by your logic, I would have to give all trades an "Incomplete" because no one knows how well they will work and no one knows if the deal will work out.  But wouldn’t that just exacerbate the original issue you had saying that my grade was "lazy"?

    If you don’t agree with the grades I can respect that because we all see through rose colored glasses when evaluating our teams and clearly you want to believe that what the 76ers are doing will work out, but giving a poor grade based on reasoning (even if you don’t agree with it) is far from lazy.  Giving incompletes on the other hand would be lazy.

  14. Fair enough, but by your

    Fair enough, but by your logic, I would have to give all trades an "Incomplete" because no one knows how well they will work and no one knows if the deal will work out.  But wouldn’t that just exacerbate the original issue you had saying that my grade was "lazy"?

    If you don’t agree with the grades I can respect that because we all see through rose colored glasses when evaluating our teams and clearly you want to believe that what the 76ers are doing will work out, but giving a poor grade based on reasoning (even if you don’t agree with it) is far from lazy.  Giving incompletes on the other hand would be lazy.

  15. understood. And I enjoyed the

    •  understood. And I enjoyed the banter.  And if the Sixers pull two of the first three players in the draft i will send you a t-shirt with Hinkie’s face on it…In Hinkie we trust
  16. understood. And I enjoyed the

    •  understood. And I enjoyed the banter.  And if the Sixers pull two of the first three players in the draft i will send you a t-shirt with Hinkie’s face on it…In Hinkie we trust
  17. The rational? Behind

    The rational?  Behind continuously "re-tanking" as it has been called?  The 76ers have been bad for longer than a season and a half althought not all of that is Hinkie’s fault.  He inherited a mess.  I would argue that Hinkie doesn’t really have a clear vision as trading for pick after pick after pick is far from clear since you don’t know how good players are going to be at the next level.  He’s drafted back to back players who wouldn’t be able to play their rookie season due to injuries, he just traded away a promising young player in McDaniels as well as the MCW deal that we are discussing here.  And you admit that MCW could improve, as I think he will.  He’s less than two seasons into his career.  Don’t see how you can write a player off that quickly.  Especially considering what he’s done during that short time.  A high usage rate and a poor efficiency is what guys on a horrendous team like the 76ers do.  It will be interesting to see what he does for the Bucks the rest of the season and into next year as he’ll be on a much better team and won’t have to try and do everything.

    That pick they received probably won’t be theirs this year as I doubt the Lakers finish the season strong and will likely have a top five pick.  So then you have to wait ANOTHER year for that pick to be yours.  And I doubt the Lakers will be this bad next season so the pick won’t be as high when you do get it.

    • It’s only been a year and a

      It’s only been a year and a half, The Sixers had the 11th pick in 2013 so they were a fringe playoff team that year and the year previous to that they were a game away from the conference finals before trading away Iggy and a first rounder for Bynum. Though pick after pick isn’t a guarantee, it is more palpable than a player that doesn’t fit at all. Though MCW is just a second year player, he is an older second year player and his room for growth is less than younger players in similar situations. He hasn’t progressed at all from the first year to this year and though it isn’t a significant enough data set to determine definitively that the regression is significant, why would they wait around to see if it is when an opportunity presented itself in which they could maximize on his value? I agree that the Lakers will probably end up keeping their pick this year as they’ll probably end up with the 4th worst record and would need two teams to pass them in the lottery, but why wouldn’t they be equally as bad next year? They finished with the 7th worst record with Kobe who is 2 years older and coming off another injury while still occupying half of their salary cap. Sure they’ll have couple young assets, but how is that any different from the Sixers who you seem to say aren’t moving towards a more positive direction? If the pick ends up even in the top 10, the pick is statistically proven to end up better than what MCW is projected to be.

       KJ McDaniel I was a little more upset about as I feel he has a lot of potential and could end being a great two way player. He was more of a victim of circumstance for the Sixers as he was on a 1 year contract which they negotiated because he bet on himself and believed he would warrant a higher salary after that initial contract and refused offers for longer guaranteed years. KJ made it clear that he wants to be a contributor for a contender rather than being a part of a rebuild, so the Sixers risked losing him for nothing  so they instead took on another young asset who is locked up for a longer term and another 2nd round pick along with him.

       

  18. The rational? Behind

    The rational?  Behind continuously "re-tanking" as it has been called?  The 76ers have been bad for longer than a season and a half althought not all of that is Hinkie’s fault.  He inherited a mess.  I would argue that Hinkie doesn’t really have a clear vision as trading for pick after pick after pick is far from clear since you don’t know how good players are going to be at the next level.  He’s drafted back to back players who wouldn’t be able to play their rookie season due to injuries, he just traded away a promising young player in McDaniels as well as the MCW deal that we are discussing here.  And you admit that MCW could improve, as I think he will.  He’s less than two seasons into his career.  Don’t see how you can write a player off that quickly.  Especially considering what he’s done during that short time.  A high usage rate and a poor efficiency is what guys on a horrendous team like the 76ers do.  It will be interesting to see what he does for the Bucks the rest of the season and into next year as he’ll be on a much better team and won’t have to try and do everything.

    That pick they received probably won’t be theirs this year as I doubt the Lakers finish the season strong and will likely have a top five pick.  So then you have to wait ANOTHER year for that pick to be yours.  And I doubt the Lakers will be this bad next season so the pick won’t be as high when you do get it.

    • It’s only been a year and a

      It’s only been a year and a half, The Sixers had the 11th pick in 2013 so they were a fringe playoff team that year and the year previous to that they were a game away from the conference finals before trading away Iggy and a first rounder for Bynum. Though pick after pick isn’t a guarantee, it is more palpable than a player that doesn’t fit at all. Though MCW is just a second year player, he is an older second year player and his room for growth is less than younger players in similar situations. He hasn’t progressed at all from the first year to this year and though it isn’t a significant enough data set to determine definitively that the regression is significant, why would they wait around to see if it is when an opportunity presented itself in which they could maximize on his value? I agree that the Lakers will probably end up keeping their pick this year as they’ll probably end up with the 4th worst record and would need two teams to pass them in the lottery, but why wouldn’t they be equally as bad next year? They finished with the 7th worst record with Kobe who is 2 years older and coming off another injury while still occupying half of their salary cap. Sure they’ll have couple young assets, but how is that any different from the Sixers who you seem to say aren’t moving towards a more positive direction? If the pick ends up even in the top 10, the pick is statistically proven to end up better than what MCW is projected to be.

       KJ McDaniel I was a little more upset about as I feel he has a lot of potential and could end being a great two way player. He was more of a victim of circumstance for the Sixers as he was on a 1 year contract which they negotiated because he bet on himself and believed he would warrant a higher salary after that initial contract and refused offers for longer guaranteed years. KJ made it clear that he wants to be a contributor for a contender rather than being a part of a rebuild, so the Sixers risked losing him for nothing  so they instead took on another young asset who is locked up for a longer term and another 2nd round pick along with him.

       

  19. The comparison that fits the

    The comparison that fits the Sixers best is what the Seattle Supersonics/ OKC Thunder did. They had a star player that they could have teamed with KD but they chose to trade Ray Allen for the 5th pick (which ended up being Jeff Green) and build from the bottom up. They were bad for 3 years but ended up with 5 valuable assets (KD, Green, Westbrook, Harden and Ibaka) through the draft.  Though it’s not likely that every pick will hit, by accumulating more high-end assets while maintaining flexibility by having low committed salary, they can acquire more assets when the opportunity presents itself (ala the McGee trade) and can sign free agents when they are in position to move forward. The major difference between the Sixers and the Thunder though is that the Sixers aren’t opposed to commit money when the opportunity presents itself, I assume, as they are in a larger market with billionaire owners so they won’t deconstruct when they do finally build a contending team. The Sixers will be bad this year. They’ll probably be bad next year, but they actually have a plan and remain malleable without overcommitting to mediocrity. That’s more than can be said for most of the league.

     

  20. The comparison that fits the

    The comparison that fits the Sixers best is what the Seattle Supersonics/ OKC Thunder did. They had a star player that they could have teamed with KD but they chose to trade Ray Allen for the 5th pick (which ended up being Jeff Green) and build from the bottom up. They were bad for 3 years but ended up with 5 valuable assets (KD, Green, Westbrook, Harden and Ibaka) through the draft.  Though it’s not likely that every pick will hit, by accumulating more high-end assets while maintaining flexibility by having low committed salary, they can acquire more assets when the opportunity presents itself (ala the McGee trade) and can sign free agents when they are in position to move forward. The major difference between the Sixers and the Thunder though is that the Sixers aren’t opposed to commit money when the opportunity presents itself, I assume, as they are in a larger market with billionaire owners so they won’t deconstruct when they do finally build a contending team. The Sixers will be bad this year. They’ll probably be bad next year, but they actually have a plan and remain malleable without overcommitting to mediocrity. That’s more than can be said for most of the league.

     

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.