3:00 PM Eastern Standard Time on a Mid-February Thursday afternoon— NBA teams have until this fateful time to conduct any final trades. Indeed, February is an open season for NBA teams, but in this open season, basketball superstars are pursued. However this year, no blockbuster, earth-shattering trades occurred on deadline day; the biggest deal of the NBA trade season was actually made four days earlier.

Each year the NBA trade deadline comes and goes. It usually falls on the third Thursday of February, the culmination of the All-Star break. This year, there was a decent amount of trades conducted on Thursday alone, six to be exact. It was a relatively tame deadline, as most big-name players did not shift teams. Some notable players who were traded on Thursday include 76ers Center Nerlens Noel traded to the Dallas Mavericks, Taj Gibson and Doug McDermott of the Chicago Bulls traded to the Thunder for former Lausanne standout guard Cameron Payne. Tough, fundamental P.J. Tucker of the Phoenix Suns was dealt to the Toronto Raptors for Jared Sullinger and other assets. Many other minor deals occurred on Thursday and the days leading up to Thursday, involving complementary role players, such as Lou Williams to Houston and Bojan Bogdanovich to Washington.  

The deadline is always a frantic time for everyone, including players, general managers and, of course, the fans. Chris Shead (11), an avid basketball and NBA fan, finds the trade deadline time to be one of his favorite parts of the year.

“It’s one of my favorite parts of the season because I love to see how competitive teams can get just to try to get the player(s) they need to win and close out the season strong,” Shead said.

However, some fans prefer trades comprised of superstar players. Rumors leaked of Indiana Pacers star Paul George being shopped to the LA Lakers or the Boston Celtics. There was also hearsay of a trade involving Bulls All-Star guard Jimmy Butler. None of these trades materialized.

Zach Matheney (12) is one of the fans that wished there were more trades, especially those involving key players that could have helped take down the league’s most daunting team, the Golden State Warriors.

“I wish there were more trades because the biggest threat to the league is the (Golden State) Warriors,” Matheney said. “I would have liked to have seen Russell Westbrook gain a sidekick to aid his newfound rivalry with the warriors and former teammate Kevin Durant.”

As previously stated, the DeMarcus Cousins trade is easily the biggest trade of the season and one of the most memorable in the recent history of the league. Cousins, nicknamed “Boogie,” is young, powerful and one of the most dominant big men in the league. He is a three-time NBA All Star and is having a career year averaging 27.8 PPG and 10.6 rebounds per game. He has had a tumultuous time in Sacramento and is known around the league as a quick-tempered, fiery player. The Kings shipped him to the Pelicans, where Cousins will team up with another one of the league’s superstars, Anthony Davis. Davis and Cousins are two of the NBA’s top players, and they instantly turn the Pelicans into a playoff contender.

“For one, I very much expected Demarcus to leave the Kings, but for him to go to the pelicans was never my first guess,” Shead said.”If Boogie gels with the rest of his [teammates], then the pelicans have a really nice team considering they have arguably the best front court duo in the league.”

For many reasons, NBA trade deadline time is one of the best parts of the season. It is dramatic, unpredictable and will have any sports fan on the edge of his or her seat. Teams may gain that one player who can take them to the next level or it may just be a scrub. Either way, each NBA team is gearing for the second half of the basketball season.