HOOPSWORLD’s Derek Page in Charlotte

The Oklahoma City Thunder are head-and-shoulders the winners of the trade deadline. They acquired a defensive stalwart down low in Kendrick Perkins that can play the free safety type role, so to speak, if a perimeter defender gets beaten. Then, when Perkins needs a breather, Nazr Mohammed (acquired for the Bobcats via trade) can come in and play a comparable level of hard-nosed defense. A solid one-two punch at the center position is something any playoff team needs if they are looking to be a true contender.

HOOPSWORLD’s Mark Nugent in Chicago

The easy answer is Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups heading to the New York Knicks, or Deron Williams heading to the New Jersey Nets. But no team traded for a player that fits exactly what they needed more than the Oklahoma City Thunder by acquiring Kendrick Perkins from the Boston Celtics. The Thunder sent out Nenad Krstic and Jeff Green for Perkins and Nate Robinson. Robinson will fit in perfectly as a spark plug off the bench and Perkins will move Serge Ibaka into the starting lineup at his natural position of power forward. Perkins brings an interior toughness to the Thunder that they have sorely lacked and along with Ibaka provides one of the best shot blocking duos in the NBA. This is a great trade this season as well as moving forward for the Thunder. They are now one of the elite teams in league and will be for years to come.

HOOPSWORLD’s Susan Bible in OKC

The Oklahoma City Thunder filled the proverbial missing piece yesterday when they acquired center Kendrick Perkins just prior to the trade deadline. To sweeten the pot, they landed defensive-minded veteran Nazr Mohammed as well; both big-bodied 6’10" players should propel OKC to the next level. With Perkins, they got exactly the player they need: a threatening presence in the low post who fits the Presti mold. While it’s tough to lose four players (including starters Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic), the Thunder is well-positioned to make a real postseason push with an solid enforcer at the rim. Given the fact Oklahoma City’s last eight losses were by six points or less, Perkins should make all the difference.

HOOPSWORLD’s Yannis Koutroupis in San Antonio

The Knicks are the clear winners of the deadline by getting Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups and company. Say what you want about the supporting cast, the Knicks now have a legitimate shot against anyone in the East and you couldn’t say that before. With that said, it’s still hard not to love the Thunder swooping in and taking Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson from the Celtics. Letting someone else pay Jeff Green is the right decision. Their money is better spent on Kendrick Perkins, a tremendous fit at center for them. He’ll make watching Tyson Chandler’s re-emergence a little easier to stomach.

HOOPSWORLD’s Alex Kennedy in Orlando

The Oklahoma City Thunder added size for a deep playoff run, the Portland Trail Blazers acquired Gerald Wallace for change and the New Jersey Nets shocked the league by landing Deron Williams when few teams knew he was available. But at the end of the day, the winner has to be the New York Knicks. Even though negotiations didn’t play out the way they had hoped, they were able to land one of the best scorers in the game along with an experienced point guard who knows a thing or two about winning. It was just seven months ago that the media expected New York to miss out on every superstar available in free agency and continue on as a bottom feeder. Landing Anthony and Billups was huge, and New York basketball is exciting again. 

HOOPSWORLD’s Joel Brigham in Chicago

The most immediate impact of any trade is going to come out of Oklahoma City, who all of a sudden are back to being everybody’s favorite Western Conference team. As far as the big picture is concerned, though, Carmelo in New York is huge. It’s so much bigger than I think anybody realizes to have a star that big end up in New York. Losing out on LeBron was painful, but in some ways this was even sweeter considering ‘Melo’s heritage. They aren’t built for a ‘Ship yet, but they’re a heck of a lot closer than they were 12 months ago. Knicks are my big winners, with the Thunder right behind them. 

HOOPSWORLD’s Eric Pincus in Los Angeles

It was certainly an eventful trade deadline for the NBA. With so many bold, moves the playoff picture will undoubtedly change. The Celtics added more depth on the wing, which was a concern. They may have given up too much size and strength to deal with the likes of the Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers. Kendrick Perkins and Kevin Garnett were a very difficult defensive tandem, especially against size. This move may come back to bite them.

The New York Knicks have all the firepower they need offensively to compete with any team this postseason. The big question is defense. Can they get stops? It’s not clear just how elite the Knicks will become but the potential is there . . . rather than last week when they were just a better than average team completely reliant on all-things Amar’e Stoudemire.

HOOPSWORLD’s Lang Greene in Atlanta

The Boston Celtics are well positioned to defend their Eastern Conference throne. The club entered trade week with the intention of picking up some wing help and landed a borderline future All-Star in Jeff Green. Those worrying about giving up center Kendrick Perkins do not understand the team’s current number one ranking in the conference was largely achieved without him in the lineup.

Seriously, how many teams in the league can boast to having a player of Green’s caliber as a fifth option?

HOOPSWORLD’s Stephen Litel in Minnesota

The big winner of the trade deadline is the Oklahoma City Thunder, without question. If they weren’t in the top three teams in the Western Conference already, they now are. Their youth and talent allowed them to play with the "big boys" out West, but now they have playoff experience in Perkins at a position that is vital to postseason success. Adding Mohammed to the mix as well allows for lineups when Perkins/Mohammed are on the floor at the center positions with Serge Ibaka at power forward, making their interior defense and rebounding quite formidable.