NOW that the NBA trade deadline has lapsed, there were several teams who decided to gamble and take the plunge. For me, two teams benefitted the most, the Golden State Warriors and the Los Angeles Clippers.
Warriors. Though there was some hope at the start of the season that D’ Angelo Russell would fill the void left by the injured Klay Thompson, alas, things were not meant to be.
Steph Curry got injured, and consequently, GSW is mired at the bottom of the NBA standings, bringing up the rear with a 12-40 slate.
Still, Russell did his part but it may all have boiled down to fitting well with the GSW culture. This is where Andrew Wiggins comes in. With a healthy Klay and Curry back next season-- Russell who plays the guard position, was looking at nothing but a mere duplication of roles. With the departure of Kevin Durant, Wiggins may be a better fit, both offensively and defensively.
The Warriors get a wingman with a decent outside shot they can develop, and who doesn’t mind being the 3rd offensive option. Plus, they will probably get a lottery pick next season so watch out for a rebooted Warriors next year.
Clippers. So its looks like the Clippers have one-upped the Lakers again. After missing out on Kawhi Leonard during the off-season, rumors were that the Lakers were going to make a move for Marcus Morris before the trade deadline.
Surprise, surprise, the LA vs LA battle was on stage again, and the Clippers came out on top of this one. Morris is a 44 percent three point shooter, and an aggressive defender who fits in well with the Clippers brand of play. Sure, they lost Mo Harkless and a first round draft pick, but getting Morris makes them match up even better with their Staples Center rivals.
More importantly, the fact that they got Morris and the Lakers didn’t is what matters. Morris was going to be a factor for either team, and so this was crucial.
Lakers. Where does that leave the Lakers? Like most fans, I was hoping they could pull the trigger on Kyle Kuzma and get some help on the guard position. Kuzma is a great talent, but he just doesn’t fit well with Lebron James who directs the plays with his uncanny basketball wizardry. Lebron is so good at the point position that his team is on top of the Western Conference and he leads the league in assists.
But in their strength also lies their weakness. At age 35, he needs to rest and the problem is that when he is off the floor, their offense sputters.
Verbatim. “But for the vast majority of NBA players, the fit is everything. We feel like the fit here is really good for Andrew. We have a hole at that spot. We’ve lost Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston on the wing last year.”---GSW Coach Steve Kerr (www.tv5.espn.com)
Last Round. It’s on my sister in law, Claudine Navarro who recently celebrated her birthday. Cheers, Din!