There weren't any "blockbuster" trades like I had hoped during last night's draft, but there were certainly enough to shake things up for next year (if we actually have a season). Here are some of the more important ones:
1) Charlotte- 7th pick ( Bismack Biyombo) and Corey Maggette
Milwaukee- 19th pick (Tobias Harris), Stephen Jackson, Beno Udrih and Shaun Livingston
Sacramento- 10th pick (Jimmer Fredette) and John Salmons
I talked about this a bit yesterday, but I can't stress enough how truly awful this trade was for the Kings. What did they actually accomplish? The had a worse draft pick moving from 7 to 10, and they took on an atrocity of a contract in John Salmons. Really baffling move. Charlotte came out of this looking pretty damn good, picking up Biyombo with the 7 pick. Add that to gaining a nice scorer in Maggette and the fact that they drafted Kemba Walker at 9, and the Bobcats are heading in the right direction. Milwaukee gained a good young talent in Harris, Stephen Jackson, and a solid back-up for Brandon Jennings in Udrih. The Kings must've lost a bet to MJ, because this was a joke of a trade for them.
2) Trail Blazers- Raymond Felton, 57th pick (Tanguy Ngombo)
Nuggets- Andre Miller, 26th pick (Jordan Hamilton), future second round pick
Mavericks- Rudy Fernandez and Petteri Kaponen
Raymond Felton showed during his time in New York that he is perfectly capable of being starting point guard in the NBA. He is definitely an upgrade from Andre Miller, and in my opinion is a much better value that Rudy Fernandez. I'm a fan of this for the Blazers. The Nuggets already have Ty Lawson as their point guard of the future, so losing Felton is not that big of a blow. They also gain Andre Miller as back-up, and Jordan Hamilton is a fantastic value at the 26th pick. Not a bad deal at all for the Nuggets, who got rid of a player they didn't need for a very promising prospect. The Mavericks picked up a quality shooting guard in Rudy Fernandez, a postion where they could use a consistent starter since Jason Terry is far more comfortable coming off the bench. Also, J.J. Barea is likely looking for a hefty raise this offseason, and the Mavs may be unable to sign him back on, so Rudy fills that spot in the rotation. Overall, pretty sound trade for all three teams involved.
3) Indiana- George Hill and Erazem Lorbeck
Spurs- 15th pick (Kawhi Leonard) and 42nd pick (Davis Bertans)
Another trade where both sides benefit, and my favorite trade of the night. George Hill is a great young guard that should fit right in with the young and improving Pacers, a team who played very well against the top seeded Bulls in this year's playoffs. (It also looks like the Pacers will be looking to deal either Brandon Rush or TJ Ford, since the guard positions are now just a little crowded.)
The Spurs needed to inject some young talent into their aging roster, and they have to be ecstatic with picking up a player who many (including myself) saw going in the top 10. It's also worth noting that the Spurs absolutely loved George Hill, so they must REALLY think highly of Leonard. This trade carries some serious implications about what the Spurs plan on doing with Tony Parker. George Hill was the apparent PG in waiting, so it now appears unlikely that the Spurs will be dealing Parker at all, a move that many people believed was going to occur.
4) Timberwolves- Brad Miller, 2013 First Round Pick and the 23rd Pick (Nikola Mirotic)
Rockets- Jonny Flynn and the 20th Pick (Donas Montiejunas)
Not all too sure what to make of this one. Jonny Flynn is going to need to fight for PG minutes with Kyle Lowry and Goran Dragic, and Montiejunas is coming to a Houston team loaded with forwards. Both are decent players, and Montiejunas has solid potential as a good scorer in this league, but I'm not sure either of these players truly fill a need for the Rockets. The T-Wolves rolled the Mirotic pick back for cash and more picks, so there was decent value with that part of the deal. And unless the Rockets start to seriously improve, that 2013 pick could be pretty valuable for Minny. And Brad Miller is no stud, but the T-Wolves were pretty weak in the big man department besides Kevin Love, so not a bad pick-up. I'd say the winners here were the T-Wolves, something I never thought I'd say when David Kahn is involved.
There were other instances of pick swapping and buying, but nothing too noteworthy. Hopefully, for the sake of entertainment, more trades come out in the coming days.
Look for my reactions to the draft picks later on today while I recover from getting my wisdom teeth removed. Good times.
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