David Aldridge, http://www.nba.com, 23.11.2014Not often do you see two of their respective conference leaders trade within eachother, yet it has happened now. The
Golden State Warriors have agreed to trade
Harrison Barnes and a
2017 1st round pick for
Terrence Ross of the
Toronto Raptors. Many people did not see this trade coming as the Warriors have been on a search for a back-up point guard for
Stephen Curry. Meanwhile, the Raptors have enjoyed success with the current roster that they have, being first in the Eastern conference. The trade however does make sense for both teams.
Harrison Barnes, who is currently averaging 6.7 PPG and 3.6 RPG, has been demanding more minutes from the coaches, who have not granted his wish, due to the play of
Andre Iguodala and
Draymond Green. Reports have said that Barnes was unhappy and thought he could be more of an impact than the two players mentioned earlier.
Terrence Ross, who is currently averaging 8.0 PPG, 2.2 RPG and 1.5 APG, has had the same problem, being benched behind
Demar DeRozan. Toronto has not played him in the small forward position, stating that he is not strong enough to cope with the players who play the three.
Yet at the same time, Raptors have not had a strong, impactful small forward to begin with. Players like
Landry Fields and
James Johnson have shown poor performances through out the season.
Barnes is certain to bring in more strength and scoring to the team.
For the Warriors,
Ross is a agressive scorer and a good defender. He fits perfectly to come off the bench behind
Klay Thompson and impact the game in many ways.
That is all in theory - how the trade will actually pan out, nobody has a clue. One thing is for certain - both of these teams are the best in their divisions, they don't make trades to become weaker.
Warriors trade: Harrison Barnes, 2017 1st round pick
Raptors trade: Terrence Ross