The NBA trade deadline has come and gone. Anthony Davis didn’t get moved. Tanking teams stockpiled more picks in their quest for Zion Williamson and R.J. Barrett. Three of the four presumptive Eastern Conference contenders added significant players for their respective post-season runs.
But how do all of the moves at the deadline change the pecking order for teams vying for a championship or a lottery pick? Here are the latest NBA Power Rankings now that the dust has settled on the trade deadline.
1. Golden State Warriors
The Warriors’ starters missed one shot from the floor in the third quarter on Wednesday versus the Spurs and won by 39! They had no gaping needs via trade, but they’ll be a buyout candidate for a backup centre and/or wing depth.
2. Milwaukee Bucks
The team with the best record in the league got better. The Bucks gave up Thon Maker, who wasn’t playing, and got Nikola Mirotic, who is having a career year and was a beast in the playoffs last season. The Jazz, Rockets and Raptors were all interested in Mirotic and the Bucks get him without giving up a first-round pick or a rotation player. The only worry is he’s missed 22 games with a calf strain.
3. Toronto Raptors
They’d be higher on this list if they were also able to pry Mike Conley out of Memphis. Marc Gasol is far from the player who was defensive player of the year in 2013 but he still brings offensive playmaking and three-point shooting from the five. The question now is how they address the 3-5 extra roster spots they now have. Marcin Gortat, Robin Lopez, Enes Kanter, Nik Stauskas, Wayne Ellington, Frank Kaminsky, Jeremy Lin, Michael Beasley and Milos Teodosic are some of the names they could add in the buyout market.
4. Philadelphia 76ers
With the addition of Tobias Harris, the 76ers can roll out Ben Simmons, Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and J.J. Redick for the best starting five not in the Bay area. Trading 2017 No. 1 pick Markelle Fultz for guard Jonathon Simmons addresses Philly’s depth issue and signals Elton Brand is ending the “trust the process” era and moving into “win now” mode.
5. Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets stood pat at the deadline. They are ahead of schedule so giving their young core confidence via growth and continuity makes sense.
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6. Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder had a $10.8 million trade exception available to them that could have helped close the gap on Golden State. After Enes Kanter is bought out by the Knicks, a homecoming to Oklahoma City could be in order.
7. Houston Rockets
Houston somehow got out of the luxury tax and got better. Iman Shumpert adds to the defensive wing depth they lost after not re-signing Trevor Ariza and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute. They also opened up roster spots that could be filled in the buyout market.
8. Boston Celtics
Boston better hope Davis comes and Kyrie Irving re-signs because by standing pat they fell farther back from the pack in the East. Losing at the buzzer to their rival and main competition in the Davis sweepstakes, the Los Angeles Lakers, is a tough pill to swallow.
9. Portland Trail Blazers
Carmelo Anthony would be an interesting buyout candidate in Portland. Their stars want to play with him and unlike other playoff teams, they could offer him a starting role.
10. Indiana Pacers
The Victor Oladipo injury and their continued strong play afterwards clouded their deadline stance as a buyer or seller. Don’t be surprised if they still make noise as they still have a star in Myles Turner, who is on pace to be the first player in NBA history to lead the league in blocks and shoot 40 per cent from three. Adding Wesley Matthews and his 12.8 points per game was a good addition by team president Kevin Pritchard to fill Oladipo’s spot.
11. San Antonio Spurs
Only Houston, Washington, Atlanta, New York, Phoenix and Cleveland have worst defences than the Spurs. It’s surprising that general manager R.C. Buford didn’t address that at the deadline.
12. Sacramento Kings
If the Kings make the playoffs for the first time in 13 years they keep their first round draft pick, otherwise its headed to Boston. Harrison Barnes and his offensive versatility gives them a better shot to finish in the top eight in the West.
13. Brooklyn Nets
The Nets essentially bought a second-round pick from Toronto for the right to waive Greg Monroe. Sean Marks and Masai Ujiri continue to do cap gymnastic deals with each other.
14. Utah Jazz
The Jazz could have made a splash by getting Conley but once again they stayed on the sidelines and stayed conservative. Utah is not a free agent destination or a player in the buyout market. They need to get aggressive to get off the treadmill of mediocrity.
15. Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers weren’t going to re-sign Harris this off-season for near max money so trading him now made sense. They are not better today and will likely fall out of a playoff spot. However, they’re better in the long run now that they cleared up two max salary slots with a projected $59 million in cap space and grabbed Philadelphia’s 2020 first-round pick and Miami’s 2021 first-rounder.
16. Minnesota Timberwolves
Minnesota is without Robert Covington, Tyus Jones, Derrick Rose and Jeff Teague. They needed to make a move to give them some healthy bodies. They remain one of the leagues largest disappointments.
17. Detroit Pistons
Dwane Casey is in position to haunt the Raptors. Detroit is among the most aggressive teams trying to sign guard Wayne Ellington. You have to think Ellington is on the top of Toronto’s wish list.
18. Charlotte Hornets
Believed to be in the driver’s seat to land Gasol, Charlotte’s loss was Toronto’s gain. Will the inability to improve their team impact Kemba Walker’s free agency decision?
19. Miami Heat
Pat Riley finally gets Ryan Anderson four years after he’d be valuable. Stuck in the purgatory between competing and rebuilding, there isn’t a real method to many of Miami’s decisions this year.
20. Los Angeles Lakers
All of the Lakers’ young players, including Kyle Kuzma (23), Brandon Ingram (21), Lonzo Ball (21), Josh Hart (23) and Ivica Zubac (21) plus two first-round picks were offered to the Pelicans to no avail. Now the young core has to regroup knowing Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka wanted Anthony Davis over them and could still trade them this summer. Can they afford to waste a year of prime LeBron James? Not ideal.
21. Orlando Magic
The Magic are one of the few teams without a starting level point guard. D.J. Augustin and Jerian Grant are their internal options and now they get to see if they can rehab former No. 1 pick Markelle Fultz both mentally and physically.
22. Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls took on the hefty two years and $55.7 million remaining on Otto Porter Jr.’s deal. They do have a front court with lots of youth and length putting him beside Wendell Carter Jr. and Lauri Markkanen.
23. Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks were busy, trading four players from their starting five. Luka Doncic remains and Kristaps Porzingis waits in the wings. Now with an improved chance at a high lottery pick, Marc Cuban is trying to build a super team that could emerge after the sun sets on Golden State.
24. Washington Wizards
Let’s take a look at the Wizards’ top-five scorers last season. Bradley Beal is headed back to the all-star game. John Wall is out for the season and probably all of next season with two separate foot injuries. Otto Porter Jr., Kell Oubre Jr. and Markieff Morris have all been traded. But for some reason they’ve kept Trevor Ariza and Jeff Green. They are sinking fast and they aren’t even trying to tank. They did get under the luxury tax so that’s a plus.
25. Atlanta Hawks
The Hawks announced that they have waived Daniel Hamilton and Shelvin Mack, giving them two open roster spots. GM Travis Schlenk plans to use them to audition young players to better their chance to get a good young player via a high draft pick.
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26. Cleveland Cavaliers
J.R. Smith and the Cavaliers weren’t able to make a buyout deal. Nobody wins in this circumstance. They actually deserve each other.
27. Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies got a nice return for Marc Gasol but if you are rebuilding, then rebuild. The fact they didn’t also trade Conley makes no sense. With Jaren Jackson Jr. and Conley on the roster the Grizzlies won’t be bad enough to improve their odds at a high draft pick. The three former Raptors could all be under contract with Memphis next season so it’s not a cap saving deal either.
28. New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans played this perfectly. They didn’t trade Davis to the Lakers for 10 cents on the dollar. Instead they are improving the potential haul they’ll get for him by ensuring the potential 2019 Lakers pick in the deal is better than if the Lakers had Davis this year. The awkward part of the decision is keeping Davis around and being forced to play him, risking injury and improving their record which makes their own draft pick worse.
29. Phoenix Suns
Phoenix needed a point guard and they got one in Tyler Johnson. Somehow at $19.2 million he’s their highest paid player but won’t impact their ability to continue to lose.
30. New York Knicks
The Knicks did their deadline work early but they still have three roster spots that will be filled with G League guys to ensure they continue to collect lottery balls. If they land Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant via free agency this trade deadline will be legendary. If they strike out in free agency it will be laughable.
