Finally, Iggy has been traded. The Saga ends, and he ends up in Miami. Here is how the trade played out:
 Miami Gets |  Memphis Gets |  Minnesota Gets |
|---|---|---|
| Andre Igoudala Jae Crowder Solomon Hill | Justice Winslow Dion Waiters Gorgius Gjieng | James Johnson |
Here is how this deal impacted each team
The Miami Heat
Pat Riley does it again. Somehow, a what seemed like an impossible trade was completed. At face value, Iggy may seem to be the most influential player in this deal, and that is just plain wrong. The fact that the heat were able to add Jae Crowder in this deal speaks volumes on the talent of their front office. Crowder is one of the better 3 and D guys in the league, and though he is shooting a career worst from 3 this year, he still has been a valuable contributor off the Grizzlies bench. At times we even saw Crowder taking crunch time shots for the Grizz. The Heat got back one elite helpful piece in this deal, and it is Jae Crowder.
Switching gears to Igoudala; it isn’t the fact that Iggy doesn’t bring some value to the Heat, it is the fact that the sentiment around the league is that Iggy is going to help the Heat so much that they are elevated into the upper echelon of the eastern Conference, and that simply is not the case. The last time we saw Andre Iguodala play basketball was in the 2019 NBA Finals, roughly 8 months ago. We have no clue what Iggy we will get the last few months of the season. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if Iggys 2nd year of the extension he signed gets voided his off-season, due to it being non-guaranteed. Iguodala at his best is a solid 10 PPG scorer and an above average defender, so was that really worth Dion Waiters and Justice Winslow?
Solomon Hill will be the 11th or 12th man off of the bench for Miami, he simply was just in the deal to make salaries meet.
The Memphis Grizzlies
There is something brewing in Memphis, NBA fans watch out. Over the last calendar year, the best front office in the NBA has been the Memphis Grizzlies. Move after move, NBA fans questioned their sanity and decision making, and once again they proved us all wrong. The Memphis Grizzlies somehow turned Andre Iguodala into one of the more promising forwards in the NBA, Justice Winslow. Though Winslow has only dressed for 11 games this season, his progression for his career should not be ignored.
Justice has improved his game every season he has been in the league. He went from an athletic wing defender, and transformed his game into a play making-shooting forward. Winslow has shot above 38% from 3 each of the last 3 season, and even had a 10 game stretch where he shot 43% from 3 last season. If he continues to grow in Memphis, they will have found their missing piece for thier young core.
Dion Waiters isn’t a slouch either. Though Dion has had issues with suspensions in the past, we have to give him the benefit of the doubt now. In games where Dion Waiters plays 15 or more minutes, he averages 14.5 PPG on 44% shooting, what team wouldn’t want that. Essentually, he is a chubby J.R. Smith, and the type of guy you want on your team when fighting for the 8 seed. Memphis got a great haul for two average players.
Minnesota
For my thoughts on the Timberwolves, please visit my piece on the DLO/Wiggins deal.
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