Winners and Losers of the NBA Trade Deadline

"Hi, league office? It's us again..."

That's how i imagine the calls going between the Cleveland Cavaliers management and the NBA league offices.

On a hectic NBA trade deadline the Cavaliers traded away a whopping SIX players in a span of 30 minutes. The six players traded away ties an NBA record for most players traded away on the deadline over the last 30 years. The last team to also deal six players? Also the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2008.

In total, fans saw 12 trades involving 28 players on Thursday's deadline according to ESPN Stats and Info. So with so many moving pieces it may be hard to keep track of what happened on the NBA's equivalent of Christmas morning. But don't worry, we at SportsTake are here to help and present our winners and losers of the NBA Trade Deadline.

Winners

The Cleveland Cavaliers

It was no secret that something needed to be done in Cleveland. Locker Room riffs and on the court issues had people questioning not only whether the Cavaliers would win the Finals, but if they would even make it there to begin with. Talks of Cleveland exploring a trade for Demarcus Cousins or DeAndre Jordan made their ways throughout NBA circles earlier this month and most experts expected the Cavs to be active in trade talks. But nobody expected the Cavs to make to amount of moves they did. In total the Cavaliers traded away six players and brought in four new faces. Cleveland started the day with a splash when they shipped off two-time All Star Isaiah Thomas to the Lakers in return for Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. Thomas, who came to Cleveland as part of the Kyrie Irving trade over the summer, struggled to fit in with the Cavs as the point guard often found himself at the center of off the court issues. In the 15 games with Cleveland Thomas consistently found himself to be the odd-man out alongside Kevin Love and Lebron James. In return the Cav's added a young guard in Clarkson who can help to push the pace on offense while also adding an athletic wing who should help on the defensive end in Nance Jr. A mere 30 minutes following the Thomas trade Cleveland was yet again at the center of attention as the team sent Iman Shumpert to Sacramento and former MVP Derrick Rose to Utah along with Jae Crowder who also came over this summer as part of the Irving trade. In return the Cavs got a solid point guard in George Hill and a young 3-point shooter in Rodney Hood who is a big upgrade over JR Smith or Shumpert. And minutes later the Cavs sent an aging Dwyane Wade to Miami for a protected second-round pick. In total, the Cavs got younger and better all without having to trade the coveted Brooklyn pick. Cavaliers fans better hope that Coach Tyrone Lue can help this new-look Cavs team gel over the next two months of the regular season.

Los Angeles Laker's long term future

In a surprise trade with the Cavaliers the Lakers were able to bring in point guard Isaiah Thomas as well as a second round pick. The fact alone that the Lakers were able to get a former All Star point guard AND a first round pick lands them on our list of winners but what is even better is the fact that Los Angeles is poised for a big splash in 2018 free agency. The one major hurdle the Lakers needed to overcome before attempting to land Lebron or Paul George - or both- during the 2018 free agency period was moving salary. LA was able to do just that as they sent Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. to Cleveland. the Lakers now have the cap space to go after not one, but TWO max free agents over the summer. Whether Laker's President Magic Johnson decided to do so has yet to be seen. Reports earlier in the week suggested that the Lakers would wait to pursue big name free agents until the summer of 2019. So while Magic may have the ability to get Lebron or Paul George this summer, he may decide to wait until 2019, when guys like Jimmy Butler and Klay Thompson are available. Either way, the Lakers now have cap flexibility to do whatever they deem is best, something they haven't had for a long time.

De'Aaron Fox

The 20 year old rookie point guard found himself in a bit of a log jam at point guard with the Sacramento Kings throughout the first half of the season. Fox, a rookie from Kentucky, had to share point guard minutes with fellow rookie Frank Mason as well as veteran George Hill. But now with the departure of Hill, Fox finds himself as the clear starter in Sacramento with Mason as the backup. Fox is now free to go out and play, an ability crucial to the development of the young point guard. With Hill gone, Fox with take over most of the minutes left behind which should allow Fox's numbers to increase all while furthering the development of the young guard.

Phoenix Suns

Imagine this, just 4 years ago the Suns had three point guards on their roster, Isaiah Thomas, Eric Bledsoe and Goran Dragic. Two of those players are now multi-time All Stars while the other is enjoying relative success in Milwaukee. But for most of the 2017-18 season the Phoenix Suns were forced to start Tyler Ulis at point guard. No disrespect to Ulis, but he's better fit as a backup. So it was a surprise to no one that Phoenix was looking for a point guard before Thursday's deadline. And they may have found one. The suns were able to acquire Elfrid Payton from the Orlando Magic in return for a second round pick. the 22 year-old point guard was never able to find his niche in Orlando but the Suns hope that pairing Payton with another young guard in Devin Booker should help jump-start his career. A second round pick is exactly the low-risk, high-reward trade that Phoenix was looking for.

Detroit Pistons

With all the frenzy surrounding the actual trade deadline many people were quick to forget that the biggest name to be traded this week was actually Blake Griffin who was sent to Detroit a week before the actual deadline. Griffin has fit in tremendously with the Pistons since his arrival. Detroit was a big winner in this trade because the Pistons were finally able to get an All Star which they have desperately been searching for since the early-2000's. Griffin should pair well with Drummond and can space the floor for a Pistons team that lacks great outside shooting. Griffin should also help to fill seats in the new Little Ceaser's arena in downtown Detroit. Oh, and the Pistons are undefeated since Griffin arrived.

Losers

Frank Ntilikina

Frankie Smokes quickly became a fan favorite in New York after he took on Lebron James in front of a packed Madison Square Garden crowd. But the rookie point guard's job just got a little bit tougher. The Knicks acquired point guard Emmanuel Mudiay from the Nuggets in a three team deal that sent Doug McDermott to the Mavericks. The issue with bringing in Mudiay is that he plays the same position as Frankie Nicotine and is expected to take away much of Ntilikina's minutes which should hinder the development of the young guard. Knicks fans can expect to see a lot less of their beloved Frankie Smokes as he should struggle to get minutes behind Jarrett Jack and Mudiay.

Celtics

Surprisingly Danny Ainge and the Boston Celtics decided to stay put during the trade deadline. The decision to not make any moves is surprising sue to the amount of assets and draft picks and how close Boston is to competing for a championship. The Celtics, who had long been linked to Grizzlies guard Tyreke Evans failed to make a deal. While the Celtics didn't make a trade before the deadline they were able to add much needed help at the center position by bringing in Greg Monroe, who was bought out by Phoenix last week. Additionally the Celtics are expected to be major players after the buyout period ends and are expected to add Joe Johnson who should help bolster Boston's bench scoring and help come playoff time.

Portland Trail Blazers

For weeks the Trail Blazers were expected to be looking to add a significant piece to help Portland's playoff push in the Western Conference. Instead of landing a Kevin Love or a Deandre Jordan the Blazers made one simple trade as they sent Noah Vonleh and cash to Chicago. Portland's inability to land a star will most likely not sit well with Blazers guard Damian Lillard, who met with Portland's owner earlier this year to discuss the future of the team. Portland's roster is good enough to get the team to the playoffs although a first round exit is likely.

Tyreke Evans

Tyreke Evans signed a small, one-year deal with Memphis last off-season in order to prove that he could still contribute to an NBA team and he has done just that. Evans has had a tremendous season with the Grizzlies despite Memphis' struggles and appeared to have played himself right into a trade. Multiple playoff teams contacted Memphis about Evans' availability and seemed to be on his way out of Memphis. The Grizzlies even held out Evans in the games leading up the deadline. But at 3 PM ET Evans still found himself as a member of Memphis and not as a member of a playoff team. Evans should continue to put up impressive numbers with the Grizzlies but images of what could have been had he been traded to a contender like Boston could haunt the guard for the rest of the season.

Isaiah Thomas

A year ago Thomas was headed to the NBA All Star game, was the star of a team that was first in the Eastern Conference and was an MVP candidate. Now Thomas finds himself on his way to LA, traded for the second time in 8 months after just 15 games in Cleveland. You'd be hard pressed to find a player who has fallen from grace as quickly as Thomas has. the lone bright spot for Thomas is that he is now in a scenario in which he can just focus on putting up numbers and not try to win as the Lakers are not trying to win this season. Thomas should have chances to score a lot, which is important to a guy who obviously wants to get paid this off-season. But then again, going from MVP candidate to a starter on a championship level team to now being a backup on a terrible Lakers team has got to hurt.

TBD

Utah Jazz

The Jazz moved on from Rodney Hood who will be a restricted free agent this summer. The trade is indicative of Utah's reluctance to pay Hood big money this off-season and in return they received Jae Crowder, a player Utah wanted over the summer and should help stretch the floor for the Jazz as a small ball stretch-four. Whether this trade ends up being a good move for Utah depends on two things. first, what Crowder shows up? If Celtics Jae Crowder shows up Utah should be happy with the haul but if Cleveland Jae Crowder comes to Utah the Jazz will ahve a difficult time justifying the move. Secondly, if Rodney Hood turns into an All Star Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey may have a mutiny on his hands.

Golden State Warriors

The Warriors stood pat at the trade deadline despite reports that the Warriors would try to bolster their bench. Much of the Warriors success will depend on what players the Warriors can sign after the NBA buyout period. If Golden State can add players like Joe Johnson then they should be considered a winner. But if the Warriors fail to improve their bench then they might find themselves on the list of deadline losers.

Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers were the center of trade rumors for months, specifically involving center Deandre Jordan. But once the deadline passed Jordan was still a member of the Clippers. If Jordan opts into his player option this summer or if the Clippers can find a sign-and-trade deal in July that brings some pieces to LA then they could be winners. But if Jordan leaves this summer and the Clippers get nothing in return then the Los Angeles front office will be haunted by what could have been at the deadline.