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Hardwood Paroxysm presents: NBA trade deadline’s most memorable trades

By HP Basketball Network

Feb 25, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett (21) pounds his chest before a game against the Washington Wizards at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett (21) pounds his chest before a game against the Washington Wizards at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 25, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd talks with guard Michael Carter-Williams (5) during the second quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd talks with guard Michael Carter-Williams (5) during the second quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports /

Michael Carter-Williams and Milwaukee’s Gospel of Length

By Bryan Toporek (@btoporek)

Under the tutelage of new head coach Jason Kidd, Milwaukee Bucks point guard Brandon Knight was in the midst of a career year in 2014-15. He was averaging 17.8 points on 43.5 percent shooting, 5.4 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 2.0 treys and 1.6 steals in 32.5 minutes per game, while setting new career highs in player efficiency rating (18.3), win shares per 48 minutes (.127), box plus/minus (2.4) and value over replacement player (1.9), per Basketball-Reference.com. His breakout year helped vault the rebuilding Bucks into the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race, even with then-Rookie of the Year front-runner Jabari Parker tearing his ACL in mid-December.

Knight was also set to become a restricted free agent this summer, however, and his explosive leap forward figured to set him up for a massive payday. The Bucks thus decided to flip Knight to Phoenix in a bombshell of a three-way trade that netted them point guards Michael Carter-Williams and Tyler Ennis along with big man Miles Plumlee.

In speaking with reporters about the trade, Kidd said the length of the 6-foot-6 Carter-Williams would help Milwaukee accomplish its goal of touting the league’s best defense. As SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell noted, the Bucks could feasibly trot out a lineup of five players all 6-foot-6 or above — four of who have wingspans stretching at least 6-foot-11.

Having that sort of length at their disposal could allow them to switch on everything defensively, creating nightmarish mismatches against smaller foes.

Consider this: Opponents are shooting 4.4 percentage points below average when matched up against Carter-Williams, per NBA.com, a trend which holds true for Khris Middleton (4.5 percentage points worse), Giannis Antetokounmpo (0.8 percentage points worse) and John Henson (0.1 percentage points worse). Having that many long-armed, swarming bodies on the floor at one time will help cover up Jabari Parker’s defensive deficiencies — opponents shot 6.6 percentage points better against him compared to their average — and prevent foes from generating many easy looks in the paint.

Though their offense figures to be a work in progress — MCW is just a 26.1 percent career shooter from deep — the Bucks may be on the verge of becoming the NBA’s next great defensive franchise. In 10 years’ time, we could wind up remembering Milwaukee’s acquisition of Carter-Williams as the piece that helped complete its defensive puzzle.

Next: Kevin Garnett’s narrative has been saved

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