The NBA trade deadline is over and it was a wild one, particularly in Cleveland where the Cavaliers made a flurry of roster-changing deals.
But the Cavs weren’t the only ones to pull the trigger on trades today and you can catch up on all that below.
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NOTABLE 2018 DEADLINE-DAY DEALS:
* Cavs trade Thomas to Lakers for Clarkson, Nance Jr.
* Cavs land Hill, Hood and deal Rose in three-team deal
* Cavaliers trade Wade back to Heat
* Suns acquire Payton from Magic
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Thunder should be players in buyout market
Oklahoma City was rumored to be looking for backcourt depth at the trade deadline. That did not materialize for the Thunder as they held tight with the roster they have.
As veteran players across the league begin to hit the buyout market and become free agents, OKC may have a second life. Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post reports via Twitter that the Thunder could make a serious run at any number of veteran free agents:
Thunder didn’t make a move, either. Oklahoma City will be one of the top buyout destinations in the league – particularly for any wing players that shake free. Can offer a ton of playing time on a contending team.
— 3:53 p.m. ET
Aldridge: Rockets interested in adding Johnson
For now, Joe Johnson is reportedly headed to Sacramento as part of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ George Hill/Rodney Hood trade. He’s not expected to be there for long and will likely be bought out by the Kings, reports TNT analyst David Aldridge.
Aldridge reports on Twitter that once Johnson clears waivers, the Houston Rockets may make a push for him:
Joe Johnson will seek a buyout from Sacramento after going to the Kings in three-team deal Thursday, per source. He goes to the top of the list of playoff teams as a pre-March 1 signing (postseason eligible) once that is executed.
Rockets have been, and are, very interested in Joe Johnson as a potential add, and have been working on the assumption that he’d be available one way or the other after trade deadline, per source.
Houston won’t be alone in its pursuit of Johnson, though. The Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics could also push to pick him up as well, reports Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports via Twitter:
Joe Johnson is expected to seek–and receive–a buyout from Sacramento, per sources, and will be coveted: Golden State, Boston will be among the early favorites.
— 3:35 p.m. ET
Smart, Evans, Jordan staying put
Some of the most talked about names heading into the trade deadline aren’t going anywhere.
Marcus Smart, Tyreke Evans, Derrick Favors, Marco Bellinelli and others seem to be staying where they are. Although all were in trade talks to varying degrees over the last few days, ultimately, they will ride out the rest of 2017-18 in their current locales.
— 3:02 p.m. ET
Magic send guard Payton to Suns
In the midst of a rebuilding season, the Phoenix Suns are adding another young guard to their mix.
The Suns have acquired Orlando Magic guard Elfrid Payton for a second-round pick. Payton is in the midst of a solid season, averaging career highs in scoring (13.0 points per game) and field goal percentage (52 percent).
Phoenix’s guard rotation currently consists of second-year guard Tyler Ulis and rookie Josh Gray after Isaiah Canaan suffered a gruesome leg injury on Jan. 31. Canaan was waived on Thursday.
— 2:59 p.m. ET
Hawks trade for Wizards’ Mac
The Hawks acquired guard/forward Sheldon Mac and cash considerations from the Wizards in exchange for a protected 2019 second-round draft pick. Mac was waived in a subsequent move by Atlanta.
— 2:54 p.m. ET
Pelicans trade for Nets’ Vaughn
Rashad Vaughn’s time with the Brooklyn Nets was short lived, it seems. Vaughn was traded to the Nets in a Feb. 5 trade with the Milwaukee Bucks and played one game with Brooklyn.
Now, he is being dealt to the New Orleans Pelicans for Dante Cunningham, according to The Athletic and Yahoo Sports.
— 2:31 p.m. ET
Bulls add Vonleh in reported trade with Blazers
The Chicago Bulls are giving their young players plenty of time to play this season. They added another youthful presence to the mix after acquiring Noah Vonleh from the Portland Trail Blazers. Portland gets the rights to 2007 Draft pick Milocan Rakovic.
The deal helps the Blazers get under the luxury tax and also gets them a $3.5 million traded player exception.
— 2:22 p.m. ET
Nuggets send Mudiay to Knicks
Point guard Emmanuel Mudiay, the former No. 7 pick of the 2015 Draft, is on his way out of Denver.
The Nuggets are sending Mudiay to the New York Knicks as part of a three-way according to media outlets. The trade also includes the Mavericks, who will get Doug McDermott from New York while the Nuggets will get veteran guard Devin Harris. The Knicks will also send the Nuggets a 2018 second-round pick while the Nuggets send a 2018 second round pick (via Portland) to Dallas.
— 2:09 p.m. ET
Raptors trade for Kings’ Richardson
The Toronto Raptors have pulled off a small trade, adding high-energy guard Malachi Richardson of the Sacramento Kings for reserve big man Bruno Caboclo.
— 1:30 p.m. ET
Wade dealt back to Heat from Cavs
The Dwyane Wade experiment with the Cleveland Cavaliers is apparently over.
Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Wade is being shipped back to the Miami Heat, the team he spent the first 13 seasons of his career. The Cavs will receive a heavily protected 2024 second-round pick as part of the deal.
Wade joined the Cavs in the offseason after being bought out by the Chicago Bulls in September. Wade was both a starter and a reserve at times for the Cavs and is averaging a career-low 11.2 points per game this season.
— 1:12 p.m. ET
Cavs land Jazz’s Hood, Kings’ Hill
The Cleveland Cavaliers are adding to their backcourt remodel, it seems.
According to reports, the Cleveland Cavaliers have landed Utah Jazz guard Rodney Hood and Sacramento Kings guard George Hill. In return, the Cavs will send Derrick Rose and Jae Crowder to Utah. The Cavs are also trading Iman Shumpert to the Kings as part of the trade and Utah is trading Joe Johnson to Sacramento, too.
The reported trade marked another blockbuster for the Cavaliers, as they reportedly traded former All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas, veteran forward/center Channing Frye and a 2018 first-round pick to the Los Angeles Lakers for Larry Nance Jr. and Jordan Clarkson.
— 1:02 p.m. ET
Ennis dealt from Grizzlies to Pistons
The Detroit Pistons had been rumored earlier today to be looking to move newly acquired forward Brice Johnson. Although they did not end up picking up Dante Cunningham of the New Orleans Pelicans, they did add a solid contributor to their mix.
The Pistons have acquired James Ennis from the Memphis Grizzlies for Johnson and a second-round pick.
Ennis is averaging 6.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game for Memphis and joins a Detroit small forward mix that includes Reggie Bullock and Stanley Johnson.
— 12:34 p.m. ET
Hawks trade Babbitt to Heat
The Miami Heat have added some 3-point shooting to their mix after trading for Atlanta Hawks forward Luke Babbitt.
Babbitt, who is shooting 44.1 percent from 3-point range this season, is returning to the Heat for forward Okaro White.
— 12:25 p.m. ET
Cavs trade Thomas, Frye for Clarkson, Nance Jr.
The Cleveland Cavaliers had sought to be buyers at the trade deadline and have accomplished that goal.
In a surprising blockbuster deal, the Cavs have landed Larry Nance Jr. and Jordan Clarkson from the Los Angeles Lakers for Isaiah Thomas, Channing Frye and their own 2018 first-round pick.
Nance is averaging 8.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game this season, all of which are career highs. Clarkson is averaging 14.5 ppg, 3.0 apg and 3.3 apg in 53 games. Nance’s father had his No. 22 retired by the Cavaliers in 1995.
As for Thomas, he had expressed after the Cavs’ win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday that he did not desire to be traded by the team. Thomas is averaging 14.7 points, 4.5 assists and 2.1 rebounds in 27.1 minutes.
— 12:07 p.m. ET
Pistons add veteran guard Nelson
The Detroit Pistons are shoring up their backcourt after adding heft to their frontcourt a week ago.
Detroit is trading center Willie Reed to the Chicago Bulls for veteran guard Jameer Nelson. Both teams agreed to swap second-round picks in the 2022 NBA Draft. The Bulls waived Reed as a subsequent move. He was suspended six games without pay by the NBA on Feb. 6 as a result of a domestic violence incident involving his wife.
Chicago acquired Nelson in the Nikola Mirotic trade on Feb. 5 and had been a player whom many thought the Bulls would part with. Nelson’s move to Detroit reunites him with coach Stan Van Gundy, who coached Nelson on the Orlando Magic. Under Van Gundy, Nelson enjoyed some of his best seasons in the NBA, garnering an All-Star bid in 2008-09 as the Magic reached The Finals in 2009.
Detroit added former All-Star forward Blake Griffin in a trade with the LA Clippers on Jan. 30.
— 11:10 a.m. ET
