Sporting KC Trades Ryan Smith To Chivas USA For Supplemental Draft Picks

Ryan Smith has been traded from Sporting Kansas City to Chivas USA for a pair of 2012 supplemental draft picks. The trade is the first of what is expected to be a busy day of transactions in MLS, as teams are due to announce who they will protect in Wednesday's Expansion Draft.

During his first season in Kansas City, Smith was one of the league's top newcomers. The Englishman had three goals and seven assists. He had offseason knee surgery, though, and appeared in only six matches in 2012 before leaving the team for family reasons. Smith's tenure in MLS was largely believed to be over.

But Chivas USA apparently had enough faith that he'd come back to trade first- and third-round picks in this year's supplemental draft. Essentially, those are the equivalent of third- and fifth-round SuperDraft picks.

The deal has the potential to be a win-win for both clubs, as Sporting had clearly moved on without Smith. If Chivas USA can get production out of Smith, those picks would be a small price to pay for a player of his caliber.

For more insight and analysis of the trade, be sure to check out Chivas USA blog The Goat Parade and Sporting KC blog The Daily Wiz.