For this week’s NBA Rookie Ladder, we’re looking at first-year players who could be most affected by moves at the trade deadline.
The NBA Trade Deadline is slowly creeping upon us and with less than a week remaining teams are ramping up their conversations with each other. We’ve already seen two moves made: The Los Angeles Clippers put an official end to the “Lob City” era by sending Blake Griffin to the Detroit Pistons and the New Orleans Pelicans are trying to save their postseason hopes after DeMarcus Cousins tore his left Achilles by bringing in Nikola Mirotic.
The biggest names in each trade are usually the ones that get the bulk of the coverage and rightfully so. I am interested in how a Griffin and Andre Drummond pairing works when you account for the Pistons’ lack of perimeter shooting. I am intrigued by the possibility of Mirotic’s addition meaning we see more of Anthony Davis at center for the Pelicans.
But, this weekly effort isn’t called the “Veteran Ladder” and as such we have to approach trade season from a different point of view. The last rookie to be traded during his first season in the league was Joe Johnson who the Boston Celtics shipped off to the Phoenix Suns at the deadline in 2002 (and did that deal ever work in favor of the Suns). With that in mind, instead of starting unnecessary rumors that have about a zero percent chance of happening, let’s look at which rookies will likely be most impacted by the outcome of the trade deadline.
By now the names that are on the trading block are pretty much a well-known commodity to anyone that is part of #BasketballTwitter –if you somehow have been in Twitter jail all this time a quick search of #thisleague should catch you up to speed. Every year there are buyers and sellers in the trade market and it’s more likely that the sellers make moves than the buyers since there are often more buyers than sellers due to the fact that about 20 teams still technically have a shot at the reaching the playoffs.
The following is a look at some rookies who are on those teams that are sellers and how a move could impact them not only this season, but for their career. That is, except for the first member on this list. His team bought and bought big and that acquisition not only started off trade season in the NBA, but leaves him with quite the opportunity in his hands.