RETRO: trading day

All teams (except the Knicks, who aren't even remotely believable) put themselves in better positions. Denver gets Ruben Patterson and Reggie Evans, who might be distractions after a while, but for now, will give them solid D at spots they need.

Seattle gets rid of Flip Murray and Evans, and brings in Earl Watson. I'm glad they didn't go crazy with trades. They actually have a potentially great foundation for the next few years. It all depends on if the young big guys (Wilcox, Swift, Petro) and whomever they get this year can develop.

Cleveland adds some temporary help for LeBron, with Larry Hughes out for a while, with Murray.

Portland gets rid of Patterson, who wanted out bad, and gains post depth in Brian Skinner.

Sacramento gets another young swingman, Sergei Monia, to test out. They have quite a few as it is.

In other trades, Houston basically moved Derek Anderson for Keith Bogans, which I guess is an improvement. They need a definitive sidekick on the perimeter for McGrady, and they haven't found it yet. They'll be sending scouts to look at Adam Morrison, Rudy Gay, and even J. J. Redick for the rest of the season.

The Clippers brought back Vin Baker from the local soup kitchen for reasons unknown, other than they're the Clippers and it just wouldn't feel right if all their moves this year were fruitful.

Nokla Orle-city adds post depth in Marc Jackson, though what do the Nets have now off the bench down low?

Several teams expected to be dealers, like Atlanta, Minnesota and the Lakers, were silent. Hawks apparently will let Harrington walk and use his money on a true post player… or another small forward. Lakers were rumored to get several people but didn't pull anything. Wolves needed another piece and didn't get it.

None of these trades change my predictions all that much from the midseason report. In fact, I think Denver and Cleveland and a few others solidified themselves and now I won't have to worry about picking them to finish high. But as I said, Detroit needed to pick up some depth, and they didn't, while San Antonio, Dallas, Phoenix, and Miami have a lot of options (Miami picked up Derek Anderson for almost nothing, by the way). This might have me leaning towards them not going all the way. Those other teams just need health; they have depth. Maybe it would've been better for both parties if Orlando kept that draft pick they traded for Darko and tried to give the Pistons Keyon Dooling or Pat Garrity. I know Detroit wanted to save on contracts, but they need people. Maybe they'll reach out to Latrell Sprewell, the only visible free agent left.

Also, without any progress, I think the Lakers are in serious danger with that last playoff spot. Sacramento and Utah have gotten people back from injury and are starting to catch on a little.

And I think the Knicks could actually go on a little winning streak, honestly, until they realize what a terrible mess this is and beat each other to death, during a game, around Smarch.

That is all.