Kyle Singler traded to Oklahoma City Thunder at Deadline
Duke alumnus Kyle Singler was part of a manic NBA trade deadline. He went from the Detroit Pistons to the Oklahoma City Thunder along with a bunch of other guys. The Utah Jazz are even involved to make the numbers work.
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The key player in this trade was the Thunder. They had been looking for frontcourt help for the last couple months. Their discussions had mostly been with Brooklyn to try and acquire Brook Lopez, but those could never get the money right. The Thunder needed to do something and so they moved into talks with Utah and Detroit. Their new target would be Enes Kanter.
Their spare talent was former Boston College guard Reggie Jackson whose role had been reduced by the acquisition of Dion Waiters earlier in the year. Detroit, missing Brandon Jennings to injury, showed interest and the three team deal came together.
In the end, the Thunder sent Jackson to Detroit. They sent Kendrick Perkins, Grant Jerrett, and Tibor Pleiss to the Utah Jazz. They also got a second round pick.
The Jazz sent Kanter and Steve Novak to the Thunder. They received a first and a second round pick in return.
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The Pistons sent Singler and DJ Augustin to the Thunder.
Singler now gets to play as the backup to Kevin Durant, which will allow him to maximize his skill set even though he will be playing reduced minutes. He had been playing about twenty-four minutes a game in Detroit. He had averaged seven points and shot 40% from the three point area.
The others involved in the trade will have different fates. Augustin will become a shooting option as a backup point guard. It will be interesting to see what his reunion with college teammate Durant will be. Detroit got good mileage from Augustin as a starter with Jennings hurt. I assume that Jackson is a better fit, but Stan Van Gundy will have to make that work.
Perkins will probably be bought out. That will put a defensive post on the market.
Kanter had been shunted aside in favor of Greg Favors and Rudy Gobert in Utah, so he is probably ecstatic. He could become either the third post or possibly take Perkins’ spot in the starting lineup.