NBA 2020-21: 5 mid-season trades that have not worked out
Mid-season trades in the NBA generally help teams achieve their goals for the campaign and improve their rosters as well.
Aaron Gordon to the Denver Nuggets, Norman Powell to the Portland Trail Blazers and Evan Fournier to the Boston Celtics have turned out to be some highly impactful mid-season moves in the 2020-21 NBA season.
The Nuggets and Celtics have been plagued by injuries all season, so the signings of Gordon and Fournier, respectively, have helped them stay afloat. Meanwhile, Powell has given the Blazers a solid scoring option in addition to Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum.
However, not all mid-season trades this season have been successful. On that note, let's take a look at five such signings that've made little to no difference for their new teams.
#5 2020-21 NBA: Nikola Vucevic to Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls went all out to sign Nikola Vucevic at the NBA trade deadline to provide Zach LaVine with some solid support. Many expected the Bulls to qualify for the postseason easily after Vucevic's addition.
However, things haven't gone according to plan, as the Bulls are 2.5 games behind the tenth-seeded Washington Wizards in the Eastern Conference standings and are unlikely to make the play-in tournament.
The Chicago Bulls have gone 10-16 since the arrival of Nikola Vucevic. He has been solid for the team, averaging 22.2 points and 11.4 rebounds per outing. However, his performances haven't improved the team's fortunes.
#4 2020-21 NBA: JaVale McGee to Denver Nuggets
JaVale McGee was added to the Denver Nuggets' roster to ensure Nikola Jokic some much-neeeded rest during games. The three-time NBA champion was also expected to benefit the team with his experience
However, McGee has hardly featured for the Nuggets, playing just 12 minutes per contest so far. He is averaging only 4.5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.
#3 2020-21 NBA: Nemanja Bjelica to Miami Heat
The Miami Heat acquired Nemanja Bjelica to add some much-needed depth to their frontcourt and have a backup for Jimmy Butler.
However, Bjelica has featured in just nine games for the team in the 2020-21 NBA season. He has played just 10.9 minutes per contest and hasn't helped the Miami Heat address their scoring woes either, averaging 2.6 points while shooting at 36% from the field.
The Miami Heat have often preferred to play Trevor Ariza and Andre Iguodala in rotations, leaving Bjelica on the bench.
#2 2020-21 NBA: PJ Tucker to Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks saw PJ Tucker as a solid veteran player to play Giannis Antetokounmpo's rotation minutes. But his impact has been very minimal since he joined the team a week before the 2021 NBA trade deadline on March 19th.
Tucker has received a decent amount of playing time, featuring in roughly 20 minutes per game. However, he hasn't produced significant numbers at either end of the floor. Tucker is averaging 2.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.5 steals per game for the Bucks this campaign.
#1 2020-21 NBA: Victor Oladipo to Miami Heat
Trading for Victor Oladipo was always going to be a gamble, as he has been injury-prone in recent years.
Nevertheless, the Miami Heat, who were in desperate need of some backcourt depth, decided to take a punt on Oladipo. It was seen as a shrewd trade by the Heat, as they did not have to give up too many of their assets for Oladipo's services.
Unfortunately, Oladipo's injury issues continued at his new franchise as well. He played only four games for them before he suffered a season-ending injury in the game against the LA Lakers.
The Heat have struggled to find consistent performers in Oladipo's absence and have had to rely on Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo more often than they would have liked to.
Oladipo was expected to especially benefit the team in the playoffs, but the Heat will now have to rely on their star duo once again.