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History tells us that deadlines spur action, and that trade deadline day should be a busy one.
The NBA trade deadline has become a whole event. What used to be a date on a calendar has become a multi-week festival of rumors, speculation and even the occasional trade. The days and weeks leading up to the deadline often see the games overshadowed by the rumormongering and endless of debate of “Who says no?”.
In recent years, including this one, we’ve seen big trades made anywhere from a few days to a week in advance of the deadline. But the day of the deadline itself is often when the best stuff happens. Let’s talk a walk down memory lane, shall we?
2022 Trade Deadline – February 10
Deadline Day Trades: 10
Notable trades:
· Boston Celtics acquired Derrick White; San Antonio Spurs acquired Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, first-round pick, first-round pick swap rights
· Washington Wizards acquired Kristaps Porzingis; Dallas Mavericks acquired Spencer Dinwiddie, Davis Bertans
· Philadelphia 76ers acquired James Harden, Paul Millsap; Brooklyn Nets acquired Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and two first-round picks
2021 Trade Deadline – March 25 (calendar adjusted due to pandemic)
Deadline Day Trades: 16
Notable trades:
· Denver Nuggets acquired Aaron Gordon, Gary Clark; Orlando Magic acquired Gary Harris, R.J. Hampton, first-round pick
· Chicago Bulls acquired Nikola Vucevic, Al-Farouq Aminu; Orlando Magic acquired Wendell Carter Jr., Otto Porter Jr., two first-round round picks
· Boston Celtics acquired Evan Fournier; Orlando Magic acquired Jeff Teague, two second-round picks
· Miami Heat acquired Victor Oladipo; Houston Rockets acquired Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk, first-round pick swap rights
· Portland Trail Blazers acquired Norman Powell; Toronto Raptors acquired Rodney Hood, Gary Trent Jr.
2020 Trade Deadline – February 6
Deadline Day Trades: 11
Notable trades:
· Golden State Warriors acquired Andrew Wiggins, first-round pick, second-round pick; Minnesota Timberwolves acquired D’Angelo Russell, Omari Spellman, Jacob Evans
· Cleveland Cavaliers acquired Andre Drummond; Detroit Pistons acquired John Henson, Brandon Knight, second round pick
· LA Clippers acquired Marcus Morris, Isaiah Thomas; New York Knicks acquired Maurice Harkless, Yusuf Sanon draft rights, first-round pick, first round-pick swap rights, second round pick; Washington Wizards acquired Jerome Robinson
· Memphis Grizzlies acquired Gorgui Dieng, Dion Waiters, Justise Winslow; Miami Heat acquired Jae Crowder, Solomon Hill, Andre Iguodala; Minnesota Timberwolves acquired James Johnson
2019 Trade Deadline – February 7
Deadline Day Trades: 14
Notable Trades:
· Toronto Raptors acquired Marc Gasol; Memphis Grizzlies acquired Jonas Valanciunas, Delon Wright, C.J. Miles, first-round pick
· LA Clippers acquired Ivica Zubac, Michael Beasley; Los Angeles Lakers acquired Mike Muscala
· Milwaukee Bucks acquired Nikola Mirotic; Detroit Pistons acquired Thon Maker; New Orleans Pelicans acquired Stanley Johnson, Jason Smith, four second-round picks
· Orlando Magic acquired Markelle Fultz; Philadelphia 76ers acquired Jonathon Simmons, first-round pick, second-round pick swap
· Sacramento Kings acquired Harrison Barnes; Dallas Mavericks acquired Zach Randolph, Justin Jackson
2018 Trade Deadline – February 8 (first deadline to occur pre-All-Star break)
Deadline Day Trades: 12
Notable Trades:
· Miami Heat acquired Dwyane Wade; Cleveland Cavaliers acquired second-round pick
· Los Angeles Lakers acquired Channing Frye, Isaiah Thomas, first-round pick; Cleveland Cavaliers acquired Jordan Clarkson, Larry Nance Jr.
· Cleveland Cavaliers acquired George Hill, Rodney Hood, Arturas Gudaitis draft rights; Sacramento Kings acquired Joe Johnson, Iman Shumpert, Dimitrios Agravani draft rights; Utah Jazz acquired Jae Crowder, Derrick Rose, second-round pick swap rights
2017 Trade Deadline – February 23 (last deadline to occur post-All-Star break)
Deadline Day Trades: 8
Notable Trades:
· Oklahoma City Thunder acquired Taj Gibson, Doug McDermott, second-round pick; Chicago Bulls acquired Cameron Payne, Anthony Morrow, Joffrey Lauvergne
· Toronto Raptors acquired P.J. Tucker; Phoenix Suns acquired Jared Sullinger, two second-round picks
· Houston Rockets acquired Lou Williams; Los Angeles Lakers acquired Corey Brewer, first-round pick
· Dallas Mavericks acquired Nerlens Noel; Philadelphia 76ers acquired Andrew Bogut, Justin Anderson, first-round pick
2016 Trade Deadline – February 18
Deadline Day Trades: 9
Notable Trades:
· LA Clippers acquired Jeff Green; Memphis Grizzlies acquired Lance Stephenson, first-round pick
· Washington Wizards acquired Markieff Morris; Phoenix Suns acquired DeJuan Blair, Kris Humphries, first-round pick
· Cleveland Cavaliers acquired Channing Frye; Orlando Magic acquired Jared Cunningham, second-round pick
2015 Trade Deadline – February 19
Deadline Day Trades: 12
Notable Trades:
· Boston Celtics acquired Isaiah Thomas; Phoenix Suns acquired Marcus Thornton, first-round pick
· Detroit Pistons acquired Reggie Jackson; Oklahoma City Thunder acquired Enes Kanter, D.J. Augustin, Kyle Singler, Steve Novak, second-round pick; Utah Jazz acquired Kendrick Perkins, Grant Jerrett, Tibor Pleiss draft rights, two second-round picks
· Miami Heat acquired Goran Dragic, Zoran Dragic; Phoenix Suns acquired Danny Granger, John Salmons, two first-round picks, cash considerations; New Orleans Pelicans acquired Norris Cole, Justin Hamilton, Shawne Williams, cash considerations
· Minnesota Timberwolves acquired Kevin Garnett; Brooklyn Nets acquired Thaddeus Young
· Portland Trail Blazers acquired Arron Afflalo, Alonzo Gee; Denver Nuggets acquired Will Barton, Victor Claver, Thomas Robinson, first-round pick
· Boston Celtics acquired Jonas Jerebko, Gigi Datome; Detroit Pistons acquired Tayshaun Prince
2014 Trade Deadline – February 20
Deadline Day Trades: 9
Notable Trades:
· None. Most deadline day deals this season were salary-cap related ones involving teams moving money around to avoid the luxury tax.
2013 Trade Deadline – February 21
Deadline Day Trades: 12
Notable Trades:
· Orlando Magic acquired Tobias Harris, Doron Lamb, Beni Udrih; Milwaukee Bucks acquired JJ Redick, Ish Smith, Gustavo Ayon
· Houston Rockets acquired Marcus Morris; Phoenix Suns acquired second-round pick
· Boston Celtics acquired Jordan Crawford; Golden State Warriors acquired Leandro Barbosa, Jason Collins, cash considerations
That’s an average of 11 trades made on Deadline Day over the past decade. Each of the last five years have given us at least 10 deals. History tells us to be ready on Deadline Day, because it’s bound to be a busy one!
