The Whiteboard: 5 big questions left hanging after the NBA Trade Deadline..
Championship implications. Missed opportunities. Heartbroken fans. Kevin Durant’s future and the next star up in trade rumors. Our NBA team is answering them all…
The Whiteboard is FanSided’s daily NBA email newsletter with each daily edition written by a different member of our team — Matt Moore, Wes Goldberg, Chris Kline, Lior Lampert, Quinn Everts and Ian Levy. On Saturday, we all get together for one big roundtable to answer the biggest questions of the week.
Here’s what we’re talking about today:
Does any trade deadline have bigger championship implications than the Cavs stealing De’Andre Hunter?
Matt Moore: As much as I liked that move, the deal that actually moved the needle the most is probably one we don’t see now. Maybe it’s Mark Williams (which would actually be the Luka move, but still). Maybe it’s Bogdan Bogdanovic for a surprise Clippers run. But there are always plot twists in the NBA and even if it’s not a player, it could be one of the million seconds that got passed around. But there are so many ramifications from trade deadlines that you won’t be able to see the ripples of from here. That’s what’s fun about sports, and the unknowability of fate.
Wes Goldberg: No, the Cavs getting De’Andre Hunter is the most impactful deadline deal in the Eastern Conference. This reminds me of when the Raptors traded for Marc Gasol in 2019. That team was winning a bunch of games and didn’t have a glaring need, but it was a move aimed at the playoffs. The Cavs got Hunter for the playoffs. It’s an acquisition aimed directly at a series against the Boston Celtics. Worth noting that when the Hawks beat the Celtics last month, Hunter spent most his time guarding Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. He’s a big wing who can responsibly handle those assignments and won’t get played off the floor on either end.
Quinn Everts: I don’t think so. Hunter isn’t a first- or second-leading scorer on a team with championship aspirations, but luckily… he doesn’t have to be! In fact, I think he’s the perfect caliber of player to add to Cleveland’s lineup. He’s better enough than the Cavs other wing options to make a real difference to an offense that’s already sizzling, but he’s not too much of an engine that he could muck up the Cavs offensive rhythm. It’s kind of a perfect deal – and the most important one for the current title chase.
Lior Lampert: It’s hard not to envision the Thunder and Hornets swapping future second-round picks swinging the pendulum in this season’s title race. Jokes aside, Hunter is a nice addition for Cleveland, but I also think there’s a “strength in numbers” case for them. The Cavs’ second unit is sixth in bench points per game but lost two top scorers and minutes earners. Since the Lakers acquired Luka Doncic well ahead of the deadline, I’ll say Jimmy Butler going to the Warriors has the most significant championship implications, which the betting odds reflect. Golden State has gone from +6600 to +4000 to win it all, a sizable shift in response to Stephen Curry getting a viable running mate.
Christopher Kline: Cleveland didn’t exactly “steal” De’Andre Hunter considering the nice haul Atlanta got back, but he’s the fifth starter you’d build in a lab for this Cavs team. That said, how can we not point to the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis swap here? Hell, the biggest swing might be Dallas going from second or third-favorites in the West to a complete nonfactor in the championship hunt. Doncic was in the NBA Finals last season! If Mark Williams can hold up health-wise, the Lakers probably aren’t as far off as we’d like, either. LeBron James has been on a renegade against Father Time this week. Doncic is the truth. That trade could end up having a direct impact, one way or the other, on who represents the West on the Finals stage.
