Who was the biggest winner and loser in the NBA trade deadline 2024?
In the twenty-four hours leading up to the deadline on Thursday afternoon, there was a flurry of activity; nevertheless, none of the key players who were already on the roster swapped teams. The most significant transactions that took place during the 2023–24 season took place earlier.
James Harden joined the Los Angeles Clippers in November, and the Toronto Raptors traded forwards OG Anunoby (to the New York Knicks) and Pascal Siakam (to the Indiana Pacers) well before the deadline. Both of these trades were very successful.
The guard for the Atlanta Hawks, Dejounte Murray, who was the most prominent player that was anticipated to be traded this week, did not.
Despite rumors that they were interested in him, the Los Angeles Lakers, who won the tournament during the current season, did not make any moves.
Nevertheless, the moves that teams make before the deadline have the potential to completely change the course of the postseason in 2024 and beyond. By acquiring lottery picks, playoff teams were able to fill important weaknesses, including the league-leading Boston Celtics, who added frontcourt depth with the addition of Xavier Tillman Sr., as well as the rebuilding Charlotte Hornets and the Washington Wizards.
When it comes to the deadline, let’s have a look at who helped themselves the most and who might be regretting decisions they made or did not make.
NBA Trade Deadline 2024: Winners and Losers Summary
Here is a summary of the biggest winners and losers from the NBA Trade Deadline 2024:
Winner: New York Knicks
It’s possible that the Knicks have progressed more than any other team, even if we take into account the trade of Anunoby that took place in late December. New York was able to address a long-term need for second-unit scoring as well as a short-term necessity in the frontcourt with Anunoby and All-Star Julius Randle being out due to injury.
Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks were able to provide the team two solid contributors, which allowed them to meet both of these needs.
With the assumption that Anunoby and Randle are able to return, the Knicks will have eight players in their rotation who are capable of performing well in postseason competition. At this point, they are brimming with shooting around Isaiah Hartenstein, who is the center.
And New York was able to do all of this without giving up a single first-round selection or putting the team’s ability to match money in a prospective deal for a star player for the next season in jeopardy.
When it comes to the deadline, let’s have a look at who helped themselves the most and who might be regretting decisions they made or did not make.
Loser: Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers left with the same roster that they had at the beginning of the day, despite the fact that fans had fantasized about adding Murray to the superstar duo of Anthony Davis and LeBron James.
Given that the Lakers would have had to part with a premium first-round selection in order to complete a large trade, it is debatable whether or not this would have been the best decision for the entire organization in the long run.
On the other hand, if the Lakers had improved their roster, they would have had a better chance of avoiding the play-in round and allowing themselves to replicate their run to the Western Conference finals from the previous season.
Due to the fact that their payroll is lower than the luxury tax threshold, the Lakers are still able to acquire a buyout candidate. Considering that Gabe Vincent is still recuperating from arthroscopic knee surgery, the acquisition of Spencer Dinwiddie and Kyle Lowry, both of whom are point guards, would be very essential.
Because the Philadelphia 76ers avoided paying the tax with their deals on Thursday, the Los Angeles Lakers will have to face with the fact that a new team has entered the buyout market. By utilizing their non-taxpayer midlevel exception, which the Lakers utilized in order to sign Vincent during the summer of 2017, the Sixers have the ability to make a more generous offer.
The decision of the Los Angeles Lakers to not deal Christian Wood, which would have allowed the franchise to avoid paying the luxury tax, was one of the more unexpected results that occurred during the trade deadline.
Winner: Lakers’ Trade Offers This Summer
As a result of the Lakers’ decision to not trade a first-round pick at this time, they will have three picks available for trade by the time the draft takes place. There is a possibility that the Los Angeles Lakers may be allowed to trade this year’s pick as soon as it is made official, provided that the New Orleans Pelicans decide to postpone the pick that they owe them until the year 2025.
The Los Angeles Lakers may make that decision on behalf of another team in a deal that is now in the works.
If this were not the case, the Los Angeles Lakers would have a first-round pick in 2025, in addition to picks in 2029 and 2031, which would provide them with a substantially larger amount of draft capital to choose from than they do at the moment.
Because LeBron James has a player option for the following season, he won’t be required to exercise it until June 29th, which is two days after the draft. This is the source of the difficulty.
James has never been shy about using leverage to persuade his team to go all in, which may force the Lakers to spend for upgrades at the draft in order to keep him in Los Angeles for another season. LeBron James has never been shy about using leverage.
Loser: Dejounte Murray, Still a Hawk
In Los Angeles, Murray was most likely hoping to meet up with James and Davis, both of whom are clients of Klutch Sports. Rather than that, he finds himself in a tough position in the backcourt opposite Trae Young, who is an All-Star point guard.
Murray has been able to produce at an All-Star level at times when Young is sitting on the bench. Murray has a true shooting percentage (TS%) of.598 to go along with his average of 26.0 points and 7.4 assists per 36 minutes when Young is not there.
These statistics are equal to the productivity that All-Star starter Damian Lillard has had with the Milwaukee Bucks this season: 25.4 points and 6.9 assists per 36 minutes on an identical.598 TS%.
As a result of Young, Murray’s performance lowers to 19.5 points and 4.0 assists per 36 minutes, with a total assist percentage of.534 percent. If Murray hadn’t opted to a four-year agreement the previous summer, he would have been a free agent this summer, and he would have been the most attainable option in a free agency environment that is becoming more competitive as a result of players signing extensions and players moving to teams where they are expected to re-sign.
Winner: Boston Celtics
The front-runners for the championship received very little attention, despite the fact that there was a lot of action around the deadline. The defending champion Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Clippers did not make any roster changes among the four teams that have odds of winning the championship at YouWager.lv that are less than plus-1500.
The Milwaukee Bucks made only a few minor adjustments to their squad, including the trade of Robin Lopez and the replacement of the unproductive Cameron Payne with Patrick Beverley.
It is because of this that the Celtics are in the greatest possible position to win the championship. However, Tillman is the answer to Boston’s most immediate need for depth behind centers Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis.
This need is relative, but it is pressing nonetheless. There is a possibility that the Celtics may not be able to win their first championship since 2008, but it is highly unlikely that this would be the result of anything that occurred during this week.
Loser: Post-Luka Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks’ decision to forego a player option in order to create a contender around Doncic before he becomes eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2026 is starting to feel like a desperate attempt.
Dallas acquired a first-round pick in 2027 that is only protected if it is among the top two picks, as well as a first-round trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2028, in order to strengthen their frontcourt with the addition of Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington.
Take into account the unprotected first-round pick from the year 2029 that was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Kyrie Irving in the pre-deadline deal that took place the previous year, as well as the first-round trade that the Mavericks made with the San Antonio Spurs in the summer of last year (to acquire Grant Williams, who was traded to Charlotte as a matching salary in the Washington trade),
Then, Dallas suddenly finds itself in a position where it does not have any of its tradable first-round picks.
In the event that these precautions are not sufficient, and I have a pessimistic outlook regarding that situation, the Mavericks may be in for a bleak future without Doncic.
Winner: Charlotte Hornets
As it turns out, the Hornets aren’t exactly terrible when it comes to amassing draft points.
The Hornets’ pick from Dallas in return for Washington could be the best one to change hands all season because to its weak protection.
The Hornets obtained a first-round pick from the Miami Heat in exchange for Terry Rozier.
The Hornets received the pick from Dallas. In addition, the Thunder provided Charlotte with two second-round selections in exchange for them taking on a salary of $18 million for the 2024-25 season as part of the Gordon Hayward transaction.
Even though none of these choices will immediately be beneficial to the Hornets, they do demonstrate that the organization has come to terms with the fact that it will be rebuilding.
Charlotte will be better prepared to support LaMelo Ball with young talent and cap flexibility by the time that the anticipated No. 2 pick Brandon Miller and the second-year center Mark Williams are ready to construct a core that is capable of competing for a playoff spot with LaMelo Ball.
Loser: Chicago Bulls
On the other hand, Chicago’s lack of activity was a continuation of a pattern that was cause for alarm. NBC Sports Chicago’s K.C. Johnson reports that the Bulls have not dealt a player since August 2021.
Additionally, the Bulls have only traded away two players since Arturas Karnisovas became the executive vice president of basketball operations. These players are journeymen Al-Farouq Aminu and Garrett Temple.
Despite the fact that Chicago considered making a trade for All-Star player Zach LaVine, the team did not make a deal before he underwent foot surgery.
The Chicago Bulls made the decision not to move Alex Caruso, who appears to be at the peak of his worth, as well as DeMar DeRozan and Andre Drummond, who are both scheduled to become free agents in the near future.
Chicago, on the other hand, decided to keep the group together in order to make another low-ceiling run in the play-in tournament.
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