NBA Midterm Trade Evaluations: Early Team Report Cards

After all the deals went down, everyone, including myself, graded the teams and looked at their potential for the future. Now that we have seen all the teams that made big trades before the deadline in action, it is a good time to do an early evaluation. The Los Angeles Lakers, Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls, and Cleveland Cavaliers all pulled off blockbuster trades in hopes of pushing their respective teams closer to a championship. You might say it's a little too early to make any type of judgement—but some teams have already shown that they are the ones to beat. So who are biggest winners and losers this far? Let's pull out the old-fashioned grade book to determine that.   Atlanta Hawks  New Faces: Mike Bibby  Record Since Trade: 3-5 Due to a weaker Eastern Conference, the Atlanta Hawks actually have a shot of making the playoffs this season. Atlanta sat eighth in their conference earlier this season, but hold the ninth seed ... (link)