Dead was the key word for NBA trade deadline
The NBA trade deadline didn't prove worthy of the hype that came in the months leading up to it, but it did live up to its name.
It was dead all right.
The Boston Celtics' breakup that so many league executives anticipated didn't happen, so Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and their green gang will remain. The Brooklyn Nets, who have the convenient blank-check policy that comes with being owner by Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, went shopping for another star but ultimately stood pat.
The Utah Jazz, who had been rumored to be moving big men Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap for years now, decided to let them become free agents this summer and get ready to spend their estimated $33 million in salary cap room. Chris Paul's Los Angeles Clippers, who had spoken with the Celtics about Garnett and were thinking about upgrading their roster one more time to help with a championship push, made no moves.
The Lakers, just days after the passing of legendary owner Jerry Buss, held onto center Dwight Howard while proclaiming that he is still the centerpiece of their future. Even Atlanta Hawks forward Josh Smith, the biggest name that was known to be on the market and seemingly a sure thing to be relocated, went nowhere.
NBA fans who were hoping for blockbuster moves were left with the underwhelming reality that J.J. Redick was the headliner here. And unless it's still 2006 and he's wearing a Duke jersey, there's something wrong with that picture.
Redick was traded from the Orlando Magic to the Milwaukee Bucks, who spent much of the day trying to team Smith with Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings but fell short in their pursuit when the Hawks backed out of the talks as the deadline neared. And so it was for those teams and so many others, their big moves left for another day and segueing into a summer that should be far more compelling.
For NBA teams that aren't in New York, Chicago or Los Angeles, team-building via free agency as opposed to trades can be a dicey proposition because it's far from certain that top talent will come their way. Case in point: the Hawks.
While the collective bargaining agreement grants the Hawks a competitive edge when it comes to trying to re-sign Smith, he is still not expected to return to the place where his career began in 2004. So with an estimated $38 million in salary cap room at their disposal after the season, will the Hawks convince someone like Dwight Howard to come their way (it's not likely) or be left wishing they'd secured more valuable pieces before the deadline?
There's even more uncertainty in a place like Milwaukee, where Redick will be a free agent along with the player who has openly admitted he's doing research on all the big-market teams, fourth-year point guard Brandon Jennings (though he will be restricted, meaning the Bucks can match any offer). Making matters worse for the Bucks in terms of their uncertain core, shooting guard Monta Ellis has the ability to opt out of the final year of his deal after this season. Milwaukee is expected to have nearly $20 million in cap room.
If there was a winner in it all, it may have been the Houston Rockets. After signing Jeremy Lin in the summer, landing James Harden from Oklahoma City in late October and quickly becoming one of the league's most promising young teams, they landed the top five pick in last year's draft from Sacramento, forward Thomas Robinson, in a six-player deal with the Kings. The Rockets, who are interested in Smith but opted against trading for him now since they could sign him as a free agent, will be front and center when the summer rolls around because they have ample cap room and an outside shot at landing Howard. Maybe then the excitement will begin.