When the news came through the wire Tuesday, no one in the NBA community was quite sure how to react. There had been a blockbuster trade, one that would undoubtedly impact the league, the country and, perhaps, the world.
I’m sure at this point you’ve heard, but just so it sinks in I’ll repeat it again: Timofey Mozgov is officially a Denver Nugget.
Ok, so maybe a small forward by the name of Carmelo Anthony was a bigger name in the deal. In total, nine players, numerous draft picks and an undisclosed amount of money were exchanged between Denver, New York and Minnesota, who I’m told still hosts an NBA franchise. In the end Anthony, one of the league’s premier scorers, and Chauncey Billups, a steady veteran guard with playoff experience, landed in the Big Apple, where they’ll team up with established star Amar’e Stoudemire.
And then, before we even had time to take a breath (and order our “Hello ‘Melo!” t-shirts on nba.com), another of the league’s premier players packed up and headed east. Deron Williams was dealt Wednesday from Utah to New Jersey for Derrick Favors, Devin Harris, two first-round draft picks and cash considerations. Within 24 hours the power struggle in the NBA had shifted.
Of course, this eastward migration didn’t start on Tuesday. This past summer saw the most epic and star-studded free agent market in league history, and slowly but surely big names decided either to move to or remain in the Eastern Conference. Dwayne Wade stayed in Miami. Lebron fled to South Beach, as did Chris Bosh. Joe Johnson stayed with Atlanta, and Ray Allen remained in Boston. Carlos Boozer went to Chicago, and Stoudemire took his defensive laziness to New York. At the end of it all the Western Conference was left in the dust. The Carmelo and Deron Williams trades were just the next step in that process.
That’s not to say that the East is necessarily the superior conference. Since Michael Jordan, Jud Buechler and the Chicago Bulls repeated their three-peat in 1998, the Western Conference has won nine of the last 12 NBA titles. The Lakers and Spurs dominated the past decade, and in many ways the Eastern Conference as a whole seemed to be a watered-down version of the West (like any of the Baldwin brothers compared to Alec). In fact, in the past 5 seasons the Eastern Conference has had five sub-.500 teams make the playoffs, as compared to zero in the West. What does that tell you?
This past summer’s acquisitions as well as recent trades have seemed to bring balance to the basketball Universe. In previous seasons, the Eastern Conference touted one or two excellent teams that dominated the conference and served as the Western Conference’s only real competition. Now, Boston, Miami, Chicago, Orlando and New York are all legitimate contenders. And if New Jersey can build around Williams and Brook Lopez, they’ll be added to that mix. Sadly, the same can’t be said for Cleveland, Washington or Toronto.
For me, these moves are just another reason to be excited about the future of the NBA. The league has more young stars than it ever has, and there’s a buzz in Boston, Los Angeles, New York and Chicago simultaneously for the first time…ever. The only thing that depresses me is the fact that the playoffs are still a few months away. On the bright side, while I have to wait months for the playoffs, my “Hello ‘Melo!” shirt should be arriving in a matter of days. Be jealous.