How did Andrew Wiggins do in his Heat debut?
How have the former Warriors looked with their new teams?
The Golden State Warriors pulled off a four-for-one trade at last week’s deadline, shipping off Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson, Dennis Schröder, and Lindy Waters III (plus a protected first-round pick) while welcoming in Jimmy Butler.
Trades almost always have to be judged well after the fact — though I’m more than willing to publicly shame the Dallas Mavericks for the idiocy of trading Luka Dončić — but it’s also fun to keep tabs on how players do in the immediate aftermath of a deal.
We know how things have gone for Butler, who has fit right in while helping the Warriors win both games since he joined the team. But how have things gone for the other former Warriors in their debuts?
Wiggins, the primary outgoing pice in the deal, made his Miami Heat debut on Monday. He started for the Heat in a 103-85 loss to the Boston Celtics, and played 30 minutes. He did a lot of the little things that endure a player to a fanbase, finishing with five rebounds, a team-high five assists, a steal, and a block. He struggled to score, however, shooting just 3-for-12 from the field (and 2-for-8 from deep) en route to 11 points.
Anderson also ended up in Miami, where he seems the type of player that coach Erik Spoelstra covets. Unfortunately, his debut was a bit of a clunker, as he put up a donut in the points column while shooting 0-for-5.
Both Wiggins and Anderson will be back in action Wednesday night, when the Heat visit the Oklahoma City Thunder at 5:00 p.m. PT.
Schröder, after a brief detour to Salt Lake City, ended up with the Detroit Pistons. He came off the bench to give the Pistons 15 minutes in a 112-102 win over the Charlotte Hornets, and finished with five points and three assists. It’s not surprising that Schröder looked the most. comfortable in his debut, as this is nothing new for him: he’s now played for nine different teams in his 12-year NBA career. This is the third time in the last four years that Schröder has been traded in season, though it’s the first time that the point guard, who began the year with the Brooklyn Nets, has played for three teams in a single year.
Waters also made his way to Detroit, though he didn’t get any playing time on Sunday. Detroit is back in action Tuesday night, visiting the Chicago Bulls at 5:00 p.m. PT.
We’ll keep you updated on the performance of Wiggins, Anderson, Schröder, and. Waters as the season goes on, and we’ll be rooting for all four of them.