NBA Trade Deadline 2018: Winners and losers

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CLEVELAND, OH – JANUARY 28: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers pauses between plays during the first half against the Detroit Pistons at Quicken Loans Arena on January 28, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

Winner: LeBron James

After dealing with what has likely been his most frustrating season in his NBA career, LeBron saw his team aggressively attack the trade deadline this year. Out are the two members of the “new guard” that have caused the most trouble chemistry wise (Isaiah Thomas, Derrick Rose, and Dwyane Wade) along with some of the other pieces that had fallen out of favor as of late (Channing Frye, Jae Crowder, and Iman Shumpert).

In their place, the Cavaliers brought in a steady veteran point guard in George Hill, youth and scoring on the wings with Jordan Clarkson and Rodney Hood, and an athletic and versatile big in Larry Nance Jr. Cleveland remodeled one of the oldest rosters in the NBA by injecting youth and athleticism at the deadline.

Still, this roster isn’t immediately putting fear in any of the top four teams in the league right now (Golden State, Houston, Boston, and Toronto) and that’s where James comes out with a leg up. Ever since the 2017 NBA Finals ended everyone has had an eye on where the 15-year veteran could land next when he enters free agency in the summer of 2018.

With Cleveland moving Kyrie Irving before the season began and subsequently giving away the major pieces they got in return besides the 2018 Brooklyn Nets draft pick James can play his favorite angle if he chooses to take his talents somewhere else this offseason; not enough help. The gift and the curse of LeBron is his talent. He’s so good that he could turn a cellar dweller into a team with home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. However, at 33 years old he needs requisite caliber of talent around him to make sure he’s not carrying the entire burden on his shoulders.

Cleveland’s gotten younger, but there’s no guarantee that this group will gel better with LeBron than the previous installment. If it doesn’t, no one is really going to blame James if he decides to move on from the Cavaliers once again when he becomes a free agent.

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