Finally! A trade has gone down in the NBA!

After weeks of speculating a bunch of different trades all around the league, the Dallas Mavericks and the Washington Wizards have completed a semi-blockbuster deal to kick off the trade season. Here is a breakdown of the deal for each team:

Mavs get:

Caron Butler                  Brendan Haywood               DeShawn Stevenson                     Cash

Wizards get:

Josh Howard                Drew Gooden              Quinton Ross                   James Singleton

This move was made for one reason for each team:

Mavericks = talent. Wizards = money.

The Mavs were looking for some kind of upgrade from their roster, and they wanted to trade Howard away since he is not longer productive. In that case, the Mavs are very, very happy. But I don’t think this trade makes them a better team, I think it just upgrades their roster. Do I think they can beat the Lakers now? Heck no. Do I think they feel better about their chances? Probably.

As for the Wizards, they wanted to move Haywood and Butler, and they satisfied that with this trade. I know they’re both making a ton of money and Butler still has another year left on his contract. Meanwhile, Howard and Gooden have expiring contracts. So if they can void Gilbert Arenas’ contract, they’re in a great situation in DC.

Hopefully this trade is the start of something big in terms of upcoming trades before the deadline!

-Shooter