Life can come at you fast. Just ask Isaiah Thomas.
One season ago, Thomas was the third-highest scorer in the NBA — averaging 29 points per game — and he helped lead the Boston Celtics all the way to the Eastern Conference finals.
Things drastically began to change for Thomas over the summer, as he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a blockbuster deal that sent Kyrie Irving to Boston. It was déjà vu all over again for Thomas on Thursday, as he was dealt to the Los Angeles Lakers as part of the Cavaliers’ fire sale hours before the NBA trade deadline.
It would have been nearly impossible to envision Thomas being traded twice in a six-month span last season, which culminated in the veteran guard placing fifth in the MVP vote. But everything seemed to spiral out of control for Thomas once he left Boston, leading one sports analyst to claim the trade from the Celtics “destroyed” the 29-year-old.
“Clearly Kyrie Irving won the trade. I think we all can agree on that,” FOX Sports’ Jason Whitlock said during ‘Speak For Yourself’ on Friday. “But I think maybe a bigger takeaway than Kyrie winning the trade: Isaiah Thomas is perhaps the biggest loser in NBA history. This trade has destroyed him. What’s the bigger takeaway: Kyrie winning the trade, or Isaiah Thomas never getting anywhere close to a max contract.”
A max contract for Thomas certainly seems highly unlikely at this point, but if he stuffs the stat sheet with the Lakers for the duration of the 2017-18 campaign, he could somewhat salvage what has been a roller coaster of a season.
