At this year’s trade deadline the Los Angeles Lakers pulled off a deal that sent Larry Nance Jr. and Jordan Clarkson to the Cleveland Cavaliers. In exchange the Lakers received Isaiah Thomas, Channing Frye, and Cleveland’s 2018 first-round pick.
Much of the focus initially was on the acquisition of Thomas, a lifelong Lakers fan who had interest in joining the team as a free agent in 2014. Additionally, there was a lot of attention paid to the amount of salary cap space the Lakers created with the deal, but considering the team’s recent draft history, that first-round pick is huge.