Eastern Conference teams are helping Boston win the Kyrie trade

[crimson_stallion]

I feel we won the Clevleand trade based on players alone - I have no doubts about that.  But the one thing that made me worried was that Brooklyn pick. 

To start this season, it seemed pretty clearly that Brookln was gong to finish bottom 3, and that the Cavs would finish the season with a top 5 pick in a loaded draft.  I really couldn't see any teams aside from maybe Atlanta and Orlando, who could possibly finish worse than Brooklyn.

But then some things happened...

1. Indiana traded Paul George to the Thunder for scraps
2. Chicago traded Butler to Minnesota for scraps, and bought out Dwyane Wade
3. New York somehow traded Carmelo for an even more one-dimensional player in Enes Kanter
4. Orlando proceeded to add nobody of any real value
5. Atlanta proceeded to add nobody of any real value
6. The Kings traded Demarcus Cousins to the Pelicans for scraps
7. The 7ers success rests on two guys who've played a combined 31/328 (9%) of games so far

Just like that we now have some 6-7 teams out there who all have a legit chance of competing with Brooklyn for the bottom seed, meaning that if the ping pong balls fall the wrong way, that Brooklyn pick could potentially fall as far as 10th.

If that pick falls outside the top 5, then given Cleveland's previous draft history, I really can't see them picking up anybody of significance to the future of the franchise. 

The other thing I worried about was the potential for the Cavs to trade that pick for an established star - but with all of the bottom-dwelling teams that have now emerged in the East, the value of that Brooklyn pick is going to be nowhere near as high as it was only 2 months ago. 

If Cleveland cannot move that pick for a player who can either (a) help them put them above Golden State this year or (b) provide future star potential - then I think Boston has clearly won this trade. 

[mr. dee]

Im not sure the Cousins trade is a complete heist right now. Buddy Hield still have that potential. The NOP pick which they traded for Harry Giles could end up a steal if he becomes healthy for a long term.

[More Banners]

Wow. The east blows. That alone likely gets us into the playoffs with HCA in the first round.  Though I'm not sure I'd count Miami and Washington, and possibly Toronto competing for playoff seeding 1-5, and then down the tiers from there. Health and ease of chemistry will be factors in team records and seeding since the east is so thin on talent up top. This isn't a lock for an ECF rematch.

[crimson_stallion]

Im not sure the Cousins trade is a complete heist right now. Buddy Hield still have that potential. The NOP pick which they traded for Harry Giles could end up a steal if he becomes healthy for a long term.

Remember. were' talking about a 26/11/3 guy here.

While Hield certainly has potential as a scorer, I'm struggling to see any other ways he is likely to contribute.  Maybe he can develop into an average defensive player, but I doubt he'll ever be more than that.  Not going to dominate the boards, or excel as a playmaker.  I could see him becoming a Wiggins type - a guy who puts up nice scoring numbers, but doesn't really do anything else. 

I don't see Giles helping them much this year either, and WCS seems to be struggling to prove he is anything more than a role player. 

I don't see either one of those guys ever coming close to sniffing the talent level of Cousins.  While I can certainly understand why the Kings did the trade, I can't help but feel they set their franchise back years in the process.  But alas they weren't really going anywhere as they were, so they had real choice.

[Moranis]

I really don't get this notion that BKN was clearly a bottom 3 team.  I had them at 6th worst before the Knicks dumped Anthony for a pile of crap (and before we traded the pick). 

[pearljammer10]

I really don't get this notion that BKN was clearly a bottom 3 team.  I had them at 6th worst before the Knicks dumped Anthony for a pile of crap (and before we traded the pick).

Yeah I was in the same boat. I remember getting blasted at one point for saying that Brooklyn pick could be anywhere from number 3 in the draft to number ten.... And that was before all the trades to water down the East even more happened.