The NBA trade deadline has come and passed and quite honestly, there really were not too many surprises, as the writing was on the wall for a lot of these moves.
James Harden going to the Philadelphia 76ers was a bit of a surprise to some, but Harden’s frustrations in Brooklyn over the last month had been well documented. All the chatter leading up to the deadline was not a matter of “if” James Harden wanted out from the Nets, but a matter of “when” he decided to tell them he wanted out.
Ultimately, the Nets granted James Harden his wish, sending him and Paul Millsap to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, and two first-round picks, first reported by ESPN. Both teams are still very much in the hunt for a title this season and it should be very interesting to see if the 76ers and Nets run into each other in the playoffs.
Caris LeVert going to Cleveland, Domantas Sabonis going to Sacramento and CJ McCollum going to New Orleans really were not shocking moves either, as each team was pursuing their new addition hard over the last few weeks.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Emerging Names To Watch As NBA Buyout Candidates
Near the end of the trade deadline, Kristaps Porzingis was on the move to the Washington Wizards, a move that did shock many given that Porzingis’ name had not been brought up in trade talks lately. In an effort to get out of his salary, the Mavericks moved the Latvian big man and a second-round pick for a new playmaker in Spencer Dinwiddie and a shooting weapon in Davis Bertans on the perimeter.
Compared to past years, this year’s trade deadline was pretty quiet for the most part with fireworks that were heavily expected.
Now, all attention in the NBA turns towards the buyout market, as the deadline for players to get waived and retain playoff eligibility is March 1.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Emerging Names To Watch As NBA Buyout Candidates
The buyout market has turned into a big deal in recent years, as many playoff contenders tight on cap space look to bring in impactful role players on minimum-like contracts for the remainder of the season, mainly to try and make a strong playoff push.
There could be quite a few notable names hitting the “free-agent market” in the coming days either by being waived or being bought out of their contracts, so let’s take a look at the best players who could become available at each position and the latest news surrounding each of them.
