Did Michael Carter-Williams Trade Really Help The Sixers Despite Only Receiving Draft Picks In Return?
Michael Carter-Williams was dealt to the Milwaukee Bucks in a three-team swap just before the NBA trade deadline this week. And according to many analysts, the Sixers are better off without the much-reigning NBA Rookie of the Year, despite the fact that they only landed draft pick compensation for him instead of a talented player.
Philly.com summed up the loss of Michael Carter-Williams and why it won’t impact the team very succinctly.
“Carter-Williams is not a good shooter, holds on to the ball too long at times, and commits a lot of turnovers,” the article said.
The site also questioned the durability of Carter-Williams and his leadership qualities.
“The 6-foot-6, 195-pounder is injury-prone. Also, indications from past and present people in the organization are that Carter-Williams is not exactly the leader that he has been portrayed to be. And his on-court toughness has come into question.”
In fact, SI.com gave Philadelphia high marks for dealing Michael.
“His 25.6 percent three-point shooting qualifies as atrocious, he ranks in the top five in turnovers and he penned one of the dumbest essays you’ll ever read for The Players’ Tribune. At 23, he’s older than most top-flight second-year players, and it’s fair to say that his star potential is pretty limited.”
Meanwhile, Carter-Williams himself is looking forward to a change of scenery, having played with one of the worst percentage teams in NBA history, as reported by Inquistr. According to FOX Sports, Carter-Williams is also looking forward to working with Bucks head coach Jason Kidd.
“After I got over the shock, I was ecstatic,” Carter-Williams said. “I was happy about being able to play under someone like coach Kidd. It is a dream come true to me. I watched him play when I was younger. Even before I knew I was coming here, I always said to a lot of people that I try to emulate my game after his. It’s a dream come true and I’m really happy to be here.”
Meanwhile, Michael got a major endorsement from none other than Hall of Famer Magic Johnson, who took to Twitter to endorse the addition of Carter-Williams to the Bucks. He also compared him to his new coach.
The Bucks just acquired the next Jason Kidd in Michael Carter-Williams.
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) February 20, 2015
Jason Kidd, on the other hand, mentioned the tweet during the introductory conference, deflecting the accolades Magic gave him.
“I wish he would have said he would be the next Magic Johnson because then he would be a much better player than Jason Kidd,” Kidd said with a smile. “We all believe in Michael. We see the potential, and we all want to help him get to Magic’s level. He needs to surpass my level. That’s average. He wants to be a star.”
[Michael Carter-Williams Photo Credit Christian Petersen / Getty Images]
