Should good people be held at gunpoint?
But if Wade was willing to let James take the lead of the team, what’s the big deal about him playing as a substitute with the Cavaliers?
What? You say Wade did that for a championship before?
Isn’t he still doing it for a championship with the Cavaliers?
This is what Hansen said about the difference between the Cavaliers and the Bulls.
Hansen is so sure because Malone talked to Wade after returning to Cleveland.
The result surprised Malone; Wade quickly agreed when Malone made the request.
"For the championship, I’m willing to sacrifice."
When it comes to understanding Wade, it has to be Hansen.
The Cavaliers’ first game after the All-Star Weekend is against the Warriors, their second meeting of the season.
However, before that, there is a crucial time point after the All-Star game: the trade deadline.
With the dust settled on the trades involving Irving and Cousins and Bird rejecting all offers for George, the rest of this season’s trade deadline was just minor tweaks.
In a season with the "Universe Warriors," many teams will selectively give up.
But right at the last moment of the deadline, a jaw-dropping trade was completed.
The Hawks traded Howard and Sefolosha to get Boban Marjanovic, Borris Diaw, Portis, and two second-round picks;
The Bulls traded Paul Gasol and Portis, plus two second-round picks, to get Howard and Sefolosha;
The Spurs traded Boban Marjanovic and Borris Diaw to get Paul Gasol.
The most shocking part is that Howard, who could once be traded one-for-one for James, suddenly became so cheap!
You should know that last season, the Hawks paid Horford and a first-round pick to get Howard.
If you analyze it carefully, it’s the result of multiple factors.
Firstly and most importantly, Howard’s defensive dominance has greatly declined under the siege of the vertical leap rule and age.
Secondly, his experience with the Hawks severely lowered his trade value. Last season, the Hawks were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, and Howard had a big fallout with Coach Budenholzer over usage issues. This season, the Hawks are still hovering on the edge of the playoffs.
In a situation with no championship prospects, it’s better to tear down and rebuild than drag along half-dead.
This is identical to the reason why the Brooklyn Nets traded away Howard last season.
The Bulls’ choice is a chain reaction.
According to Griffin, the Bulls originally planned to rebuild.
But when they managed to keep Butler while acquiring Irving, adding more was inevitable.
Being able to trade a declining Paul Gasol for Howard, despite Howard’s contract, will burden their salary in the future. It is fully worth it at this stage.
Moreover, they also got Sefolosha in the trade. Follow current novels on 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡⁂𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢⁂𝘯𝘦𝘵
After the Heat’s rebuilding, Sefolosha was immediately abandoned by the Heat Team.
The Hawks initially traded for him to strengthen competitiveness. Now deciding to rebuild, it’s only natural to send him away to make room for the younger players.
As for Portis, it was the Bulls’ choice.
Before this season, something big happened within the Bulls during training camp.
During a practice session, teammates Portis and Mirotic got into a fight, with Portis punching Mirotic and fracturing two facial bones and giving him a concussion.
The Warriors have the "Splash Brothers," and the Bulls have the "Blood Brothers."
Punching a teammate is considered a serious offense in the NBA, forcing the Bulls to choose between the two.
Although it didn’t necessarily mean the Bulls would trade away Portis.
The "justice" fans see is not present in management; the management is more focused on benefits.
The reason for the Bulls’ decision is simple: Mirotic is a space-stretching power forward, more suitable to pair with Howard.
As for the Spurs, it was a pure steal.
Last summer, Boban re-signed with the Spurs for 3 years at $21 million, but his playing time remained limited, and Diaw was too old to be effective, with his value mainly being his $7 million expiring contract in the final year.
Trading two players with limited playing time for Paul Gasol looked like a blood bargain.
However, Paul Gasol’s 2-year, $30 million contract with the Bulls had people worried about his form during the contract.
Of course, Popovich wasn’t worried at all.
Immediately after the trade, he expressed his welcome to Paul Gasol in front of reporters.
"They didn’t understand Paul’s value. Here, Paul will have a career revival."
You can clearly hear the confidence in Popovich’s words. Whether this confidence will become reality, perhaps only time will tell.
The Cavaliers didn’t make any moves by the deadline.
The previous trade greatly enhanced the Cavaliers’ depth but also brought Malone significant rotation challenges.
Deron, Powell, JR, Korver, Covington, Conningham, Nene, plus the starting five, Malone either has to go for a large rotation like Cole or squeeze someone out of the rotation.
Malone chose the latter, with Powell and Nene gradually falling out of the rotation before the All-Star game.