Community Shootaround

The final hours before the 2017 trade deadline may not have produced any blockbusters, but they didn’t lack for excitement. Eight deals were completed today involving 11 teams, and rumors involving Paul George, Jimmy Butler, Derrick Rose and others kept the intensity level high right up until 3 p.m. Eastern time.

This year’s biggest deal came four days before the deadline when the Kings agreed to send DeMarcus Cousins to the Pelicans. Several other significant trades were completed in the past 10 days as some teams got their roster work out of the way early.

Apart from New Orleans, Toronto looks like a major winner, picking up Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker in separate deals. Both should see plenty of playing time as the Raptors hope to challenge for Eastern Conference supremacy.

Some teams decided their best strategy was to stand still. The Pacers turned down all offers for George, and the Bulls elected to hold onto Butler. Both teams may revisit those decisions in the offseason, but for today neither one moved. The Celtics let the deadline pass without a deal, holding on to Brooklyn’s first-rounders in the next two drafts along with a collection of young talent.

Some teams turned their focus to buyout season, which started this afternoon when the Mavericks waived Deron Williams. He seems certain to wind up with the Cavaliers, who are also interested in Andrew Bogut if he agrees to a buyout with the Sixers. However, the Cavs will face competition from the Rockets, who have $3.54MM in cap space, along with the Spurs and maybe others.

Now that the teams have made their decisions, we want to hear yours. Who were the winners and losers from this year’s deadline? Who made the best deal, who made the worst and who should have been more active?

Please share your thoughts in the comments section below. We look forward to what you have to say.

After last year’s duel with Zach LaVine in the finals of the slam dunk contest, Aaron Gordon comes into this year’s event as a heavy favorite. The high-flying Magic forward impressed judges with some jaw-dropping dunks a year ago, and LaVine, the two-time defending champion, is out of action with a torn ACL that will sideline him for the rest of the season.

Gordon’s competition will come from Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, Pacers swingman Glenn Robinson III and little-used Suns forward Derrick Jones Jr., who has spent most of the season in the D-League.

In the 3-point contest, Golden State’s Klay Thompson is back to defend his title, but fellow “Splash Brother” Stephen Curry is sitting this one out. Thompson will be challenged by Kyrie Irving, C.J. McCollum, Kyle Lowry, Eric Gordon, Nick Young, Wesley Matthews and Kemba Walker.

There’s a wide-open field in the skills challenge, with MVP candidate Isaiah Thomas among the competitors. He will be challenged by John Wall, Devin Booker, Gordon Hayward, Anthony Davis, Kristaps Porzingis, DeMarcus Cousins and Nikola Jokic.

But before the action gets under way, we want to hear from you. Give us your picks to win the dunk contest, the 3-point contest and the skills challenge, along with the best bet to be named MVP of tomorrow’s game.

Please share your thoughts in the comments section below. We look forward to what you have to say.

The Bucks seemed to be on the upswing and a good bet to make the playoffs coming into this season.  As the trade deadline approaches, the outlook doesn’t look so rosy.

They have one of the league’s most dynamic players in Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has blossomed into an All-Star starter.  They also made a wise choice in the second round of last June’s draft in Malcolm Brogdon, who has exceeded all expectations as a scorer and playmaker.

Little else has gone right for the franchise this season. Despite the efforts of Antetokounmpo, the Bucks have floundered below the .500 mark, due in part to Khris Middleton‘s injury. Middleton made his season debut on Wednesday after recovering from a torn hamstring. Just when the Bucks had all their main pieces in place, they suffered another devastating setback.

Second-league scorer Jabari Parker tore his ACL on Wednesday. He will miss the rest of the season and probably a good portion of next season. The snake-bit Parker also suffered a torn ACL during his rookie campaign, and one can only wonder how a second major knee injury will affect the remainder of his career and the fortunes of the Bucks franchise.

That leaves the Bucks front office in a difficult spot. They recently traded center Miles Plumlee to the Hornets in what was, by all appearances, a salary dump of a questionable contract they handed out last summer. But Milwaukee still has limited financial flexibility after shelling out big money to acquire free agents Greg Monroe,  Mirza Teletovic and Matthew Dellavedova and retain John Henson.

Teletovic and journeyman Michael Beasley figure to get more playing time in the wake of Parker’s injury. Milwaukee finds itself with the 11th-best record in the East but it’s only one game in the loss column behind the Pistons, who currently hold the eighth and final spot.

That leads us to today’s topic: In the wake of Jabari Parker’s knee injury, should the Bucks make a move before the trade deadline to improve their playoff chances? Or should they stand pat and try to regroup in the summer?

Please take to the comments section to give us your input on this subject. We look forward to hearing your opinion.