FULL NBA Review From March 25, 2021

The trade deadline did not disappoint today. A whopping total of 23 teams were involved in trades on Thursday. Some of the more notable moves included Victor Oladipo to Miami in return for Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk, and a 2022 first-round pick. Another notable move was Nikola Vucevic to the Chicago Bulls. He came with forward Al-Farouq Aminu in exchange for Wendell Carter Jr., Otto Porter, and two first round picks. Orlando’s fire sale continued with Aaron Gordon heading to Denver and Evan Fournier being sent to Boston.

One of the more surprising trades of the day came from the Clips, who sent Lou Williams and some picks to Atlanta for Rajon Rondo. Portland upgraded with the addition of Norman Powell, Dallas added J.J. Redick, and the premier buyout candidates Andre Drummond and LaMarcus Aldridge are already on the market.

Although the trade deadline dominated the headlines, there were still five contests Thursday night. Damian Lillard clutched up on the free throw line for Portland in a win over Miami. NYK came from behind thanks to Alec Burks‘ 27 points against DC. The Clippers took care of business against San Antonio, despite missing Kawhi Leonard. The Lake Show continued their woes without LeBron, losing at home to Philly, and Sacramento destroyed Golden State with a career-high 44 from De’Aaron Fox.

Here are the best NBA highlights, facts, performers, and takeaways from March 25th, 2021:

FINAL RESULTS

GAME OF THE DAY

Portland Trail Blazers (125) [GW-FT] vs. Miami Heat (122)

[Highlights] BLAZERS (+108; $10.40) d. @HEAT (-126; $8.98) 125-122 [POR +2 | o217.5]

[Highlights] @KNICKS (-150; $15.43) d. WIZARDS (+130; $8.77) 106-102 [NYK -3 | u224]

[Highlights] 76ERS (-218; $10.99) d. @LAKERS (+186; $10.15) 109-101 [PHI -5.5 | u215.5]

[Highlights] CLIPPERS (-255; $9.86) d. @SPURS (+216; $13.20) 98-85 [LAC -6.5 | u223.5]

[Highlights] @KINGS (-141; $9.77) d. WARRIORS (+125; $8.74) 141-119 [SAC -2.5 | o226.5]

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INTERESTING FACTS

PG Damian Lillard leads the NBA in both clutch PTS (128) and 4th Qtr PPG (8.0) during 2020-21
Victor Oladipo has the most PPG (20.8) by a player to appear on 3 teams during a season in NBA history
Kawhi Leonard has the most career PPG (25.8) against the Spurs among former Spurs players
Bam Adebayo is the 1st player with 25+ PTS/5+ REB/5+ AST/5+ BLK/80+ FG% during 1 GP since Shaq in 2004
De’Aaron Fox joined Oscar Robertson as the 2nd player with 80+ PTS & 65%+ FG over 2 GP in Kings franchise history
Most GP with 20+ 1st Qtr PTS since 2013-14: 1. James Harden (9), 2. Steph Curry (7), 3. C.J. McCollum (4)
J.J. Reddick (41.5 3P%) has the 5th highest 3P% among players with 1,500+ 3PM in NBA history
Russell Westbrook is the 1st player to record 0-8 FG or worse & 6+ Fouls committed during 1 half in the last 25 years
Kyle Lowry’s ranks in Raptors history: 360 Wins (1st), 4,215 AST (1st), 1,490 3PM (1st), 867 STL (1st), 16 Triple-Doubles (1st), 1,435 playoff PTS (1st), 526 playoff AST (1st), 84 playoff GP (1st), 592 GP (2nd), 10,392 PTS (2nd), 2,913 REB (3rd)

Nikola Vucevic facts:

Only player that was leading his team (ORL) in PTS, REB, AST, STL, and BLK this season
On pace to be the 1st player with 20+ PPG/10+ RPG/5+ 3PA/40+ 3P% over an entire season in NBA history
1 of 4 players with 20+ PPG & 11+ RPG over the last 4 years (Giannis, Joel Embiid, and Karl-Anthony Towns)

BEST HIGHLIGHTS

Haliburton had him on the floor

Tyrese Haliburton put the moves on 'em 😮 pic.twitter.com/mYRnx5CvjS
— NBA TV (@NBATV) March 26, 2021

Danny seals the champs fate

DANNY GREEN. CLUTCH. 🥶 pic.twitter.com/rQxsKKe4Bh
— NBA TV (@NBATV) March 26, 2021

Russ threw it down with authority

Russ dropped the HAMMER 🔨 pic.twitter.com/SJIv7Et2Qs
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 26, 2021

Dwight denies his replacement

DWIGHT SAID NO (via @NBAonTNT) pic.twitter.com/EAW2gDgLT9
— SLAM (@SLAMonline) March 26, 2021

Bam took Dame’s shot mid-air

Bam snatched this 😤 pic.twitter.com/Zf6LbzTOgY
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 25, 2021

Randle handled business vs. DC

Julius Randle was CLUTCH in the Knicks comeback win. 🥶❄️ pic.twitter.com/8AbWUKAzEU
— House of Highlights (@HoHighlights) March 26, 2021

Tyler Herro heat check in Miami

Tyler Herro is feeling it from deep 👀 pic.twitter.com/dotjSeYuwa
— NBA TV (@NBATV) March 26, 2021

Windmill from JTA

JTA does a windmill 😯 pic.twitter.com/M7hnA7VuWP
— Bleacher Report NBA (@BR_NBA) March 26, 2021

TOP PERFORMERS

[Highlights] PG De’Aaron Fox, SAC (W v.GSW): 44 PTS (16-22 FG | 3-7 3PT), 7 AST, 2 REB, 0 BLK, 3 STL, 2 TO

[Highlights] G C.J. McCollum, POR (W @MIA): 35 PTS (14-25 FG | 6-14 3PT), 8 AST, 1 REB, 1 BLK, 0 STL, 4 TO

[Highlights] C/F Bam Adebayo, MIA (L v.POR): 29 PTS (13-16 FG | 0-0 3PT), 7 AST, 9 REB, 5 BLK, 0 STL, 2 TO

[Highlights] G Tyler Herro, MIA (L v.POR): 29 PTS (9-19 FG | 5-9 3PT), 8 AST, 4 REB, 0 BLK, 1 STL, 2 TO

[Highlights] SG Danny Green, PHI (W @LAL): 28 PTS (9-14 FG | 8-12 3PT), 0 AST, 5 REB, 2 BLK, 1 STL, 1 TO

NBA TOP PERFORMERS

MAIN TAKEAWAYS

5 MAIN TAKEAWAYS FROM THE 2021 NBA TRADE DEADLINE

The closing hours of the NBA trade deadline was a hectic one, with trades happening every few minutes it seemed. Some teams stood out as winners of the day, and some not so much. Additionally, some teams made it clear that they were in win-now mode, and some are in full-rebuild mode as they focus on the future.

1. Houston Rockets botched the James Harden trade: Houston gave away Victor Oladipo to Miami, making it clear that a full rebuild is now in store. This trade looked quite poor for Houston, as it showed what they really got from James Harden. Essentially, they got future draft picks. No key player came to Houston for good as a result of this trade. They messed up greatly as they had a chance to land Ben Simmons or Caris LeVert, Jarrett Allen, plus picks, and ended up with about 20 games from Oladipo, Kelly Olynyk, Avery Bradley, and some draft picks, for superstar James Harden.

2. No title contender got better at the deadline than Denver: Denver made big waves on Thursday, as they were clearly trying to improve their current roster with bigger names with the West wide open after LeBron & AD’s injuries. They were able to get Aaron Gordon, and only lost an injured Gary Harris, unproven RJ Hampton, and a 2025 draft pick. Additionally, they picked up JaVale McGee from Cleveland. No title contender improved their roster more on deadline day than Denver did.

3. Miami Heat will be the #1 free agent destination this summer: Like Denver, Miami made it clear that they are in win-now mode. They traded for Victor Oladipo, and greatly enhanced their starting lineup. MIA now has a great core of established veterans with Jimmy Butler, Victor Oladipo, and Goran Dragic, along with a promising young group of Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, and Duncan Robinson. Miami will be a top destination for free agents this summer with significant cap space in South Beach.

4. OKC is building the biggest stockpile of draft picks ever seen before: It has been known for a while now that Oklahoma City wants to rebuild, and they’re getting all the future assets they can. The Thunder have made trades over the past couple of years that leave them with the biggest stockpile of draft picks that any team has ever seen before. With their draft capital, the Thunder are in a great position to become competitive in the future and it’d be a surprise if they’re not competing on a perennial basis in 5-10 years.

5. Chicago’s rebuild is over, it’s time to compete again in the Windy City: Chicago showed the rest of the NBA that they wanted to compete again. Chicago gave up some of their youth and draft picks for a proven All-Star in Nikola Vucevic. The team clearly wants to pair him with Zach Lavine in hopes of doing some damage in the Eastern Conference instead of continuing their rebuild and focus on developing young talent. Chicago also secured more Center depth with the addition of Daniel Theis via trade with Boston.

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