Every year, the NBA trade deadline sees teams make last-ditch efforts to improve their roster so that they can win the championship. This year was no different, and may have topped any other deadline in the past. Let’s take a look at how the NBA’s trade deadline affected the rest of the league.

The biggest move of the deadline was the Brooklyn Nets trading Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns for Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, Jae Crowder and four unprotected first-round picks. Phoenix’s championship odds rose to second in the NBA following the trade. The new quartet of Devin Booker, Chris Paul, Deandre Ayton and Durant creates a team with a lot of playoff experience and will be tough to beat out in the Western Conference. 

Along with trading Durant, Brooklyn sent their other All-Star Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks. In return they received Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, a 2027 first-round pick & two second-round picks. Brooklyn is clearly entering a rebuild, which opens up a spot at the top of the Eastern Conference. The Nets still have a chance at making the playoffs, but are most likely a first-round exit.

The new Mavericks backcourt of Irving and Luka Doncic creates one of the scariest scoring duos in the NBA. Dallas made the conference championship last season, losing to the then champions Golden State Warriors. The addition of Irving gives the Mavericks someone other than Doncic that can create offensive opportunities for themselves and their teammates. 

The Los Angeles Lakers, desperate to keep their season alive, made multiple trades in hopes to make the playoffs. They acquired D’Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt and Malik Beasley in a three-team trade with the Utah Jazz and the Minnesota Timberwolves, which sent a trade package including Russell Westbrook to the Jazz, although he was bought out. They also traded Patrick Beverley to the Orlando Magic for Mo Bamba.

The Lakers were one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the NBA prior to the deadline, so adding positive shooters and defenders as they did should make them a much more well-rounded team. The Lakers need to win 16 of their last 24 games to make the play-in tournament, so it is an uphill battle to make the playoffs even though the team did significantly improve.

The NBA buyout market is the last chance for teams with championship aspirations to add pieces that they believe can help them in the playoffs. Bad teams will agree to release certain players, sometimes following trades, so they can join a contender. So far, Danny Green has signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers to bolster their bench, and Terrance Ross has joined the Suns to give them another shot creator, but many veteran players are still available.

Villanova teammates were reunited when Josh Hart was traded from the Portland Trail Blazers to join Jalen Brunson on the New York Knicks. Brunson and Hart won an NCAA championship in 2016 and hope to find similar success together in the NBA. The Knicks are battling to stay out of the play-in tournament, so the addition of Josh Hart hopes to help the team make the playoffs.

Most of the championship contenders made moves to improve in small ways. Eric Gordon, Bones Hyland and Mason Plumlee were all traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, giving them more depth off their bench. The Memphis Grizzlies traded for Luke Kennard to complete one of the best bench units in the NBA. Memphis desperately needed shooting, so adding a 42% three-point shooter in Kennard will be a great addition. Denver traded for Thomas Bryant, giving them a solid back-up center to play behind Nikola Jokic. 

With big names trading places across the board, it will certainly be interesting to see how the race to the playoffs pans out.

The Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving era in Brooklyn is officially over. In two of the biggest moves of the past NBA trade deadline, the Brooklyn Nets agreed on a trade sending Irving to the Dallas Mavericks for Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, a 2027 first-round pick and two second-round picks. Days later, Durant was shipped off to the Phoenix Suns. In return, the Nets received Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder, four first-round NBA draft picks and a pick swap. 

Let’s take a look at how the Brooklyn Nets fell apart and what it means for the rest of the NBA. Irving signed with the Nets in the summer of 2019 along with Durant, but constant injuries and off-court issues have only allowed him to play 143 out of a possible 278 games. Tensions continued to rise when the team suspended Irving after he shared a film with antisemitic views, but issues with a potential contract extension was the nail in the coffin.

The 30-year-old point guard was searching for a long-term extension from the team this past offseason, but due to injury concerns the Nets weren’t budging. The Nets offered a contract filled with money-based incentives such as winning a championship. Irving was reportedly offended by the offer, so following a win versus the Lakers he requested a trade. Three days later he was a member of the Dallas Mavericks.

The Mavericks had been criticized for not pairing another star next to All-Star and MVP candidate Luka Doncic, but the organization took their first risk since trading for Kristaps Porzingis back in 2019. Adding Irving creates one of the most deadly scoring backcourts in the NBA, and finally Doncic has someone else who can consistently create for himself and others. With championship pedigree and experience, the All-Star guard gives the Mavericks what they need to conquer the Western Conference. Irving is ecstatic to be joining the Mavericks, according to Chris Haynes and TNT. The trade has the potential to be a one-year rental, due to Irving’s contract expiring the upcoming offseason. Irving was reportedly looking for an extension from Brooklyn worth around $198.5 million.

This past offseason, Durant requested a trade in hopes of joining another true championship contender, with the Phoenix Suns as a team of preference. No trades were found, so an agreement was made for Durant to stay with the team. According to ESPN, Durant requested a meeting with Nets general manager Sean Marks.

Just a day later, Durant was officially a Phoenix Sun. Following the trade deadline, the Suns championship odds jumped to second in the NBA, only behind the Boston Celtics. Adding Durant, a two-time Finals MVP, makes them a very difficult out in the playoffs. Durant is currently out and not expected to return until after the All-Star break, so there will not be much time in the regular season to see how he meshes with Phoenix stars Devin Booker, Chris Paul and DeAndre Ayton.

When Durant and Irving signed to the Nets, there were championship expectations. Looking back at the Durant and Irving era in Brooklyn, it is full of what could have been. The duo only won a single playoff series in their time together. Irving’s off-the-court issues and constant injuries derailed a team with championship potential. Trading Durant and Irving is a full reset for the Nets. With lots of picks and talented assets, Brooklyn is building for the future.

Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving faced backlash for sharing a film with antisemitic views and is currently suspended from playing in the NBA. 

Last month, Irving tweeted a link to the film “Hebrew to Negroes: Wake Up Black America,” a film that caused massive controversy due to the film being considered antisemitic. Following the post, the Brooklyn Nets, Nike and the NBA quickly made social media posts condemning Irving and stating that they do not support any form of antisemitism. For a week after making the post, Irving did not comment on if he was antisemitic or had any antisemitic beliefs.

On Nov. 3, the Nets released a statement that Irving would be suspended a minimum of five games with no pay. Irving made an Instagram post soon after where he acknowledged that the film he posted contained antisemitic statements and apologized to the Jewish community.

According to Shams Charania and The Athletic, the Nets told Irving that he would have to complete a list of requirements, including apologizing and condemning the movie, making a $500,000 donation to anti-hate causes, undergoing antisemitic and sensitivity training and meeting with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Jewish leaders and Joe Tsai, to return to play.

Many NBA stars spoke out and criticized the list of demands, including Irving’s former teammate on the Cleveland Cavaliers LeBron James. James tweeted that Irving should still be able to play.

“I told you guys that I don’t believe in sharing hurtful information. And I’ll continue to be that way but Kyrie apologized and he should be able to play. That’s what I think. It’s that simple. Help him learn – but he should be playing. What he’s asked to do to get back on the floor I think is excessive IMO. He’s not the person that’s being portrayed of him,” James said.

On Nov. 11, Nets owner Joe Tsai tweeted that he had met with Irving and that he knows Irving has no hate toward the Jewish community. When later asked if Irving would be returning to the team, he said that Irving has more work to do before returning to the team.

Boston Celtics player Jaylen Brown, another one of Irving’s former teammates, commented on Tsai’s statement on Kyrie.

“It’s still an indefinite suspension, he’s already missed five or six games, so how many games is he going to continue to miss? Is it another situation going on there? Is it a larger situation going on there, is it a larger conversation that needs to be had? We’ve yet to find out,” Brown stated.

Nike suspended its relationship with Irving due to the post and will no longer launch the Kyrie 8, Irving’s eighth signature shoe with the company.

Shams reported that Irving was expected to be cleared to play in the Nov. 20 matchup versus the Memphis Grizzlies in the Barclays Center. The Nets on the year are 6-9 and in the eight games without Irving they went 4-3. Kevin Durant recently complained about how he needed to play amazing to give the Nets a chance at winning, so Irving’s return should give a stagnant Brooklyn team a shot in the arm with his scoring ability. 

The question that the media is asking is if Irving is worth all of the hassle for the NBA organization. No one can dispute that Irving is one of the best players of the current generation, but the off-the-court issues during the past couple of years are hurting his legacy and may make teams think twice about signing Irving.

With the opening week of the NBA season behind us, here are some of the storylines to keep an eye on during the 2022-23 NBA season.

During the past offseason the Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka was suspended for the 2022-23 NBA season after various reports of him having an affair with a female staffer. The Celtics have started off the season 3-0 at the time of writing, but with a new head coach and some new additions to the team it will be interesting to see if they can reach the finals like they did this past year.

The Los Angeles Lakers also have a brand new head coach in Darvin Ham. He got handed the keys to a team that missed the playoffs last season and has the task of dealing with a weirdly shaped roster. The Lakers had the opportunity to trade Russell Westbrook to the Indiana Pacers for Buddy Hield and Miles Turner in the offseason, but they turned the trade down. The Lakers have started off 0-3 on the year and their lack of three-point shooting has been a problem for them, shooting 25/118 from behind the ark. A team in LA will always be in the spotlight, and with LeBron James, Ham will be under a lot of pressure to fix this team. The question to be answered this season is if the Lakers will bounce back from this sluggish start.

The Philadelphia 76ers have championship expectations this season, but despite James Harden playing like an MVP candidate they have started 0-3. With Harden and their other star Joel Embiid both being very injury prone it’s important that they can get wins while the two of them are playing together. If one of the pair goes down for a prolonged period can Tyrese Maxey and their bench step up and keep them afloat?

The Utah Jazz traded three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves for a package of five players and five draft picks. This is a win-now move for Minnesota that puts them as a Western conference favorite. The thing to watch out for with the Timberwolves is how Karl Anthony-Towns will play on the perimeter and how they play against teams that go small-ball against them.

All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell was also shipped off by the Jazz to the Cleveland Cavaliers for more picks and young assets. Mitchell gives the Cavs a much-needed secondary ball handler to pair next to Darius Garland. Cleveland was off to a hot start last year before injuries caused them to fall in their tournament. After the trade Cleveland looks like a lock to make the NBA playoffs this year, but it will be interesting to see the fit between Garland and Mitchell and if J.B. Bickerstaff is a championship-level coach.

The rookie of the year race is off to a fiery start. The No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero for the Orlando Magic has been playing like a veteran already. Paolo is the first teenager to score over 20 points in his first three NBA games. Bennedict Mathurin, the 5th pick, has been one of the best rookies that the Pacers have ever had.  Before this season, no Pacers rookie had even scored 70 points through four games. Mathurin has scored 89. Jabari Smith of the Rockets, Keegan Murray of the Kings and Jaden Ivey of the Pistons are all averaging over 15 points per game. The future of the NBA is looking strong, not to mention the 2023 NBA draft prospect Victor Wembenyama.

When the best player in the upcoming draft is an 18-year-old who measured over 7-foot-4 barefoot, but dribbles and shoots like a guard while blocking nearly every shot in his area, no wonder teams are trying to be awful so they have a chance to get him. Wembenyama is a generational prospect. Richard Jefferson, a former NBA player and current analyst, said Wembenyama could have gone higher than LeBron James if they were in the same draft class. Teams like the Jazz and the San Antonio Spurs are expected to be at the top of the draft lottery after trading their allstars. Another team expected to continue to tank is the Oklahoma City Thunder, especially now that their No. 2 pick Chet Holmgren was ruled out for the season.