Power Rankings: Quiet deadline produces winners, losers

Updated Feb. 27

Understand why so many teams didn't make drastic changes at the trade deadline. The upcoming draft is strong, luxury tax concerns are prevalent, and it seems to be more of a hassle to make a fair trade than ever before. Deals are often swaps of bad contracts, and no one wants to be the next sucker to give up young talent for Steve Francis.

Erring on the safe side was the right move for most. But a few teams should have thrown caution to the wind in order to take advantage of current opportunities.

Just because there wasn't much action around the deadline doesn't mean we can't have a few trade deadline losers and winners.

Bulls leading scorer Ben Gordon stays put, and that's good for the team. (AP)

Chicago made the right move keeping future All-Stars Luol Deng and Ben Gordon, the reported asking price for Pau Gasol, but still should have filled its need for low-post offense. Shareef Abdur-Rahim was a strong candidate, but John Paxson decided that having his contract for the next couple of seasons was not something he wanted. That might have been the right move for the long-term. Short-term, the veteran forward would have been a great asset, supplying an offensive option off the bench they don't have with P.J. Brown and Tyrus Thomas.

Cleveland was another loser, but not for lack of trying. Danny Ferry had the right idea, willing to gamble for the chance to win now. In making a play for Mike Bibby, the Cavaliers were attempting to grab the wide open East by the throat. Instead, they'll have to go with rookie Daniel Gibson and veteran Eric Snow. That combination doesn't exactly strike fear in opponents' hearts.

Phoenix and Dallas also missed the boat on spending to add a key piece or two for the stretch run. The Suns could have used another athletic big body and a steady backup guard, but opted to stick with their current group. The Mavericks were in the market for another post defender/rebounder, but wound up staying put as well, even ridding themselves of a veteran, third-string point guard Anthony Johnson.

Detroit was a team many thought would move a veteran like Nazr Mohammed, Dale Davis or Flip Murray, but ended up keeping them all. Good move. Considering Joe Dumars didn't get an offer he deemed worthy, he might as well stockpile quality bodies that could come in handy.

Denver really wanted to trade a big body like Eduardo Najera or Reggie Evans for a shooter, but never got a deal it liked. This works in the Nuggets' favor. Although Marcus Camby and Nene are healthy and productive now, both are injury prone. At least now there's insurance behind them. Besides, isn't it time they trot out Voshon Lenard for the 17th time?

Philadelphia holding on to Andre Miller was also the correct call. It's hard to find a point guard of his caliber, and although he might help Sixers win a couple more games than they would like to, putting a dent into their lottery chances, he'll pay dividends down the road. Philadelphia has done enough housecleaning, ridding itself of Allen Iverson and Chris Webber.

Finally, the biggest winners are the New Jersey Nets, who made the biggest statement by standing still. If Rod Thorn couldn't pluck a piece like Andrew Bynum, he was right to keep his aces for use down the line. Now was not the time to pull the plug, even if Vince Carter walks at season's end. Rather than give him away, the Nets might as well do some hard selling in hopes he'll return.

If nothing else, it does keep hope alive.

The week's Power Rankings:

Power Rankings
Current		Team	Previous
	1	Lakers · Trends	1
	Big Thumbs Up: Kobe Bryant. Selfish? Many nights, his assist figure was as impressive as point total. ... Big Thumbs Down: Derek Fisher. Yeah, he had a few golden moments in Finals. But over course of the season, often left alone as teams flocked to Bryant, lefty shot just 42.4 percent.
	2	Magic · Trends	7
	Big Thumbs Up: Dwight Howard. It's shocking that the Magic could be 59-game winner and playoff finalist, given the big guy's supporting cast. ... Big Thumbs Down: Rashard Lewis. One of league's most overrated players rocked Cavs with big shots, but came up small again vs. Lakers.
	3	Cavaliers · Trends	2
	Big Thumbs Up: LeBron James. For as often as he maneuvers through traffic, he sure doesn't turn over ball much. ... Big Thumbs Down: Ben Wallace. Outplayed by guy named Gortat with season on line.
	4	Nuggets · Trends	5
	Big Thumbs Up: Chauncey Billups. Ex-Piston did the impossible: He gave stability to the wildly inconsistent Nuggets. ... Big Thumbs Down: Allen Iverson. Difference between Nuggets, Pistons: Denver dealt A.I. for Billups; Detroit sent him to bench for nothing.
	5	Rockets · Trends	6
	Big Thumbs Up: Ron Artest. Rockets took risk on perennial trouble-maker; it paid off big-time. ... Big Thumbs Down: Tracy McGrady. Given team's ability to win without him, he ought to sit out more often.
	6	Celtics · Trends	3
	Big Thumbs Up: Kevin Garnett. Take him away and this club's barely better than the Bulls. ... Big Thumbs Down: Glen Davis. He's no Garnett; well, duh. But wildly inconsistent galoot is no Leon Powe, either.
	7	Mavericks · Trends	8
	Big Thumbs Up: Dirk Nowitzki. Fifth man on one of most impressive All-NBA teams of all time. ... Big Thumbs Down: Jerry Stackhouse. Blame foot for useless season, but there's no excuse for disappointing career.
	8	Trail Blazers · Trends	4
	Big Thumbs Up: Brandon Roy. West's version of LeBron; does a variety of good things on almost nightly basis. ... Big Thumbs Down: Greg Oden. Excels in one area: Getting into foul trouble.
	9	Spurs · Trends	10
	Big Thumbs Up: Tony Parker. Tim Duncan remains face of franchise, but Parker now embodies it. ... Big Thumbs Down: Manu Ginobili. King of flop hurt so often, team now must consider trading him.
	10	Hawks · Trends	9
	Big Thumbs Up: Josh Smith. Imagine if the Hawks had allowed him to get away to Grizzlies in offseason. ... Big Thumbs Down: Mike Bibby. Out-assisted by Joe Johnson; has become point guard known for shooting 3s.
	11	Jazz · Trends	11
	Big Thumbs Up: Deron Williams. Has become elite-level scorer without sacrificing shooting percentage. ... Big Thumbs Down: Carlos Boozer. If he's lost in the offseason, club will simply plug in Paul Millsap.
	12	Heat · Trends	13
	Big Thumbs Up: Dwyane Wade. Guy shoots 49.1 percent; that's amazing. ... Big Thumbs Down: Shawn Marion. If Magic's Lewis isn't most overrated former Western star, then ex-Suns standout -- who was shipped to Toronto -- is.
	13	Bulls · Trends	14
	Big Thumbs Up: Derrick Rose. What a year for VP John Paxson; drafts Rose, then steals John Salmons and Brad Miller in key deal before vacating his GM role. ... Big Thumbs Down: Kirk Hinrich. Now we see why Rose was coveted in first place.
	14	76ers · Trends	16
	Big Thumbs Up: Andre Iguodala. Call him Mr. Clutch; no one not named LeBron consistently hit bigger shots this season. ... Big Thumbs Down: Elton Brand. Brought in to be difference-maker; turns out club did just fine without him.
	15	Hornets · Trends	12
	Big Thumbs Up: Chris Paul. Draft loaded with point guards, but none likely to be next Paul. ... Big Thumbs Down: Mo Peterson. Couldn't hit 40 percent even with double-team magnet feeding him open jumpers.
	16	Suns · Trends	15
	Big Thumbs Up: Amare Stoudemire. Went from guy most likely to get traded to most indispensible piece within matter of weeks. ... Big Thumbs Down: Shaquille O'Neal. Suns were better when he wasn't slowing them down.
	17	Pistons · Trends	17
	Big Thumbs Up: Tayshaun Prince. Became club's best player, which doesn't say much for the club. ... Big Thumbs Down: Rasheed Wallace. Technicals down this season; so was just about every other stat.
	18	Pacers · Trends	18
	Big Thumbs Up: Danny Granger. Improved so much, league gave him trophy as reward. ... Big Thumbs Down: T.J. Ford. Turns out Jarrett Jack is the better point guard.
	19	Nets · Trends	19
	Big Thumbs Up: Devin Harris. Club still missed Jason Kidd, but not as much as anticipated. ... Big Thumbs Down: Yi Jianlian. Team gave up Richard Jefferson to get him? Awful move.
	20	Grizzlies · Trends	20
	Big Thumbs Up: O.J. Mayo. Franchise has poster boy for its future. ... Big Thumbs Down: Hakim Warrick. As team's talent level increased, truth came out: He's no more than serviceable backup.
	21	Bobcats · Trends	21
	Big Thumbs Up: Gerald Wallace. Bobcats' goal in draft: Find someone better. ... Big Thumbs Down: Adam Morrison. Exhausting No. 3 pick on Morrison -- who was traded to the Lakers -- set back franchise at least two years.
	22	Raptors · Trends	22
	Big Thumbs Up: Chris Bosh. Special mention to Andrea Bargnani, who finally emerged as legitimate NBA force. ... Big Thumbs Down: Jermaine O'Neal. Stock dipped so low, club could get only underachiever Shawn Marion in return.
	23	Warriors · Trends	26
	Big Thumbs Up: Stephen Jackson. Team gave him in-season contract extension; wise move. ... Big Thumbs Down: Monta Ellis. Scooter crash cost him $3 million, cost team respectability.
	24	Bucks · Trends	25
	Big Thumbs Up: Charlie Villanueva. Was so impressive, now rates among plums of this summer's free-agent crop. ... Big Thumbs Down: Joe Alexander. Great year for rookies, but not for this one.
	25	Clippers · Trends	29
	Big Thumbs Up: Blake Griffin. Soon to join Eric Gordon as two pieces this perennial embarrassment can build around. ... Big Thumbs Down: Baron Davis. Move south crushed Warriors, didn't help Clippers.
	26	Timberwolves · Trends	23
	Big Thumbs Up: Al Jefferson. Best thing about his injury: Gives team an opportunity to draft big-time sidekick. ... Big Thumbs Down: Mike Miller. Better suited to being role player on good team, rather than must-produce guy on bad club.
	27	Wizards · Trends	24
	Big Thumbs Up: Antawn Jamison. Give this guy a medal; no one has tried harder on bad teams. ... Big Thumbs Down: Gilbert Arenas. Fifteen games past two seasons; time to give back some money?
	28	Knicks · Trends	27
	Big Thumbs Up: David Lee. Will be interesting to see how much restricted free agent commands this offseason. ... Big Thumbs Down: Stephon Marbury. Lot to choose from here with Knicks; Eddy Curry is a solid second choice.
	29	Thunder · Trends	28
	Big Thumbs Up: Kevin Durant. Warning to D-Wade: This guy's coming after your scoring title next season. ... Big Thumbs Down: P.J. Carlesimo. Made Scott Brooks look good by comparison.
	30	Kings · Trends	30
	Big Thumbs Up: Kevin Martin. No April fool: Poured in 50 points on April 1, then took rest of season off. ... Big Thumbs Down: Spencer Hawes. Once highly regarded, now no better than undistinguished teammate Jason Thompson.