On Monday night, the Cavs, Knicks, and Thunder completed a stunning three-way deal that apparently broke Twitter. The swap sent Dion Waiters to the Thunder, Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith to the Cavs, and Lance Thomas, Louis Amundson, and Alex Kirk to the Knicks. In addition, the Cavs received a future first-round choice from OKC and the Knicks got the Cavs’ 2019 second-round choice. The deal gave the Thunder a solid scorer off the bench, shook things up in Cleveland, and gave the Knicks a whole lot of salary relief. Phil Jackson also waived Samuel Dalembert to make the deal possible. Here’s our look back at the week that was..
- The Cavs later got the big man they wanted when they acquired Timofey Mozgov from the Nuggets. Mozgov heads to Cleveland in exchange for the Grizzlies’ 2015 first-round pick and the Thunder’s 2015 first-round pick, both of which carry protections. The Nuggets send Cleveland the less favorable of the Bulls’ 2015 second-round pick and the Blazers’ 2015 second-round pick.
- The Grizzlies are nearing a deal with the Celtics for Jeff Green with a little bit of help for the Pelicans. The deal should become official tomorrow. Austin Rivers, who is going to the C’s in the proposed deal, might not be in Boston for long. The Clippers are interested in taking on Rivers if they can find a third team to give Boston an expiring contract and a second-rounder in a potential deal.
- The Grizzlies were also said to have their eye on Luol Deng.
- Larry Sanders wouldn’t delve into specifics about his absence, but he denied that he’s thinking about retirement.
- The Bulls are planning a max offer for Jimmy Butler.
- The Suns acquired Brandan Wright from the Celtics.
- The Knicks waived Thomas, Kirk, and Amundson shortly after acquiring them in the three-team deal. Thomas and Amundson were later signed to 10-day deals.
- The Trail Blazers signed GM Neil Olshey to a three-year contract extension.
- The Sixers waived Jared Cunningham shortly after acquiring him from the Clippers. It turns out that they never had to waive someone to open up a roster spot for him due to Andrei Kirilenko‘s absence.
- Speaking of AK47, he has been suspended without pay.
- A number of people, including a group featuring former Suns and Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo, have their eye on buying the Hawks. Investor Chris Hansen and financier Thomas Tull are reportedly planning to make separate bids to buy the Hawks and move them to Seattle.
- Tyrus Thomas is D-League bound.
- The Bucks waived Nate Wolters to accommodate their 10-day deal with Kenyon Martin.
- The Hornets continue to explore the market for Lance Stephenson, and they’re looking for frontcourt help, according to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Berger also reports that Clippers guard Jamal Crawford is off-limits in trade talks.
- Despite the Lakers‘ struggles this season, team president Jeanie Buss is satisfied with the job that coach Byron Scott is doing.
- The Knicks still have an interest in acquiring Reggie Jackson from the Thunder, but New York likely lacks the assets to pull that off.
- Wizards have maintained “routine” contact with Ray Allen since first reaching out to him in July and they plan on chasing him until he retires or turns them down. Still, it’s a longshot that he lands in D.C.
- The Nets waived recent trade acquisition Brandon Davies.
- The Cavaliers waived guard A.J. Price.
- The Wolves released Jeff Adrien.
- The Wizards said goodbye to Glen Rice Jr.
- The Wolves inked Miroslav Raduljica to a 10-day deal.
- The Knicks signed Langston Galloway to a 10-day pact.
- The Heat will re-sign Tyler Johnson to a 10-day deal.
- It’s likely that the Knicks will eventually decide to shut down Carmelo Anthony for the rest of the season so he can rest his sore left knee.
- The Jazz signed Elliot Williams to a 10-day deal. The Jazz waived Patrick Christopher to make room.
- The Blazers are now after Jermaine O’Neal.
- Marquee draft prospect Emmanuel Mudiay plans to stay in China all season.
- The Heat waived Andre Dawkins.
- Multiple NBA teams, including the Lakers and the Jazz, have expressed interest in Lithuanian small forward Mindaugas Kuzminskas.
- Jabari Parker sounds intent on staying in Milwaukee and isn’t concerned about market size.