IF: -we trade Steve and Grant
IF: -we're looking for a current 4 in the league
IF: -we're looking to unload Vince for some talent (not that, in my opinion, he isn't)
IF: -we're looking to find a replacement for Steve
and IF: -we're looking to contend
THEN: -this is what I suggest.
DISCLAIMER: Make sure you've read all the disclaimers pre-jump!
http://www.libertyballers.com/2011/1/10/1923018/good-bye-lottery-hello-playoffs-a-lesson-in-tanking#storyjump
While I'm at it, the above link is kind of funny, and a situation we are (gladly) not in yet.
THREE TRADES.
That's what it would take in my eyes.
Neither one of them is dependent on any other. If we only complete one trade, we get one goal accomplished and still get some talent. If we complete two, we accomplish two goals and do not conflict any one member of personnel with any other.
THE FIRST TRADE IS: THE NASH TRADE, also referred to as TRADE A.
IN THIS TRADE:
Objectives:
a) we send Steve Nash to a team that, when he is added, becomes a contender.
b) we get back Steve Nash's replacement, an Arizona born talent with the scoring capability to reign in a new type of point guard; not only, as aforementioned, a great scorer, but also an adequate distributor given the time to show his mettle.
c) we get back young talent to replace Vince Carter, who, while talented, is not young. The idea of replacing scoring definitely comes to fruition.
d) we add a defensive stopper, known as a force with the Boston Celtics before his departure from the team.
THIS IS THE TRADE LINK: http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=4ruwcsr
TL;DR VERSION:
Phoenix gets: O.J. Mayo, Jerryd Bayless, Tony Allen.
Memphis gets: Steve Nash.
Toronto gets: Darrell Arthur.
WHY PHOENIX DOES THIS: The backcourt of the future, of course!
WHY JERRYD BAYLESS?
a) He's from Phoenix, went to U of A, and can score. http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bayleje01.html
17 and 7 per 36. Pretty damn good (around what Steve had per 36 in Dallas). You know who scouts were drooling over in 2008? Bayless and Mayo. Miami did not want Michael Beasley, at all (as evidenced by the fact that they traded him). Before they drafted him, however, it was almost Bayless or Mayo in '08 (Miami, FYI, had the 2nd pick).
These are the stud freshmen who have been drafted.
age of the superfreshman | |||||||
pick # | draft | name | college | Position | then | now | |
4 | 2006 | T. Thomas | LSU | PF | exciting | getting there | |
1 | 2007 | G. Oden | Ohio State | C | solid | injury! | |
2 | 2007 | K. Durant | Texas | SF | whoo | WHOO! | x |
4 | 2007 | M. Conley | Ohio State | PG | meh | meh | |
8 | 2007 | B. Wright | UNC | PF | whoo | exciting | |
10 | 2007 | S. Hawes | Washington | C | exciting | still waiting | |
12 | 2007 | T. Young | Geo. Tech | F | interesting | more so | x |
19 | 2007 | J. Crittenton | Geo. Tech | G | meh | fail | |
21 | 2007 | D. Cook | Ohio State | G | solid - decent | solid - decent | |
1 | 2008 | D. Rose | Memphis | PG | ok | killing | x |
2 | 2008 | M. Beasley | K. State | F | watch out | watch out | x |
3 | 2008 | O. Mayo | USC | G | watch out | solid | x |
5 | 2008 | K. Love | UCLA | F | burning | BURNING | x |
7 | 2008 | E. Gordon | Indiana | G | burning | BURNING | x |
11 | 2008 | J. Bayless | Arizona | G | burning | still waiting | |
14 | 2008 | A. Randolph | LSU | F | mad potential | mad potential | |
19 | 2008 | J. Hickson | NC State | F | meh | potential | |
28 | 2008 | D. Greene | Syracuse | F | injury history? | still waiting | |
35 | 2008 | D. Jordan | T A&M | C | raw | balling | x |
47 | 2008 | B. Walker | K. State | G | meh | meh | |
1 | 2009 | B. Griffin | Oklahoma | F | WTF? | WTFF? | x |
4 | 2009 | T. Evans | Memphis | G | killing | KILLING | x |
9 | 2009 | D. DeRozan | USC | G | raw | improving | |
10 | 2009 | B. Jennings | Italy | G | ? | killing | x |
17 | 2009 | J. Holiday | UCLA | G | raw | solid | |
24 | 2009 | Blowjob Mullens | Ohio State | C | failsauce | fail | |
1 | 2010 | J. Wall | Kentucky | PG | ridiculous | ridiculous | x |
3 | 2010 | D. Favors | Geo. Tech | PF | lots o' potential | same | |
5 | 2010 | Run-DMC | Kentucky | C | ridiculous...but | same | x |
12 | 2010 | X. Henry | Kansas | G | super solid | waiting | |
18 | 2010 | E. Bledsoe | Kentucky | PG | unsure | improving | |
19 | 2010 | A. Bradley | Texas | PG | unsure | unsure | |
29 | 2010 | D. Orton | Kentucky | FC | meh | more meh | |
33 | 2010 | H. Whiteside | Marshall | C | unsure | no data | |
40 | 2010 | L. Stephenson | Cincinatti | GF | unsure | no data | |
47 | 2010 | T. Gallon | Oklahoma | C | killing |
no data |
Is there a PG on there with more potential that is not currently a franchise player?
WHY O.J. MAYO?: Somehow, Mayo is not the franchise in Memphis, which is perfect, because he can be the franchise here. There's no real PG in Memphis, which is why Mayo has had PG duties (which is stupid). He's started half his games this season, and it's obvious from previous seasons that he can score, albeit not so efficiently. Mayo kind of reminds me of Allen Iverson; flash, moves, breakdown scorer who can get to the basket anyway he wants. Those skills are pretty hard to come by (as is an 18 PPG scorer, or more, who is sitting on the bench of a ninth seeded team). Pretty cool, huh?
WHY TONY ALLEN?: Because he plays lots of defense (enough to keep him in Boston) and he's cheap. Why the hell not?
WHY MEMPHIS DOES THIS: Because they get Steve Nash. Mike Conley gets to sit on the bench and learn from the greatest. Steve gets to pass the ball to newly reformed Zach Randolph, along with bonafide scorer Rudy Gay and bonafide rebounder Marc Gasol. That team is solid, they have bright young pieces like little known Sam Young and Xavier Henry. They have, if they can summon whatever came out of UConn, a bonafide Dikembe Mutombo copy in Hasheem Thabeet. That team is going to be killing, and Steve Nash will definitely put them on the right path.
WHY TORONTO DOES THIS: Because they need to commit to a PG. Jose Calderon had T.J. Ford following him around, and T.J. Ford was sent to Indiana. Jarrett Jack was sent to New Orleans. Now they have the same problem where Jerryd Bayless is (was) trying to start, and Jose needs some job security, or he'll go to a team that wants those 20-17 games that he's had twice this season. Because they're starting Jose now, they might as well get something in return. This is where Darrell Arthur comes in. What I do know about Toronto's new wave is that DeMar DeRozan, Ed Davis and Andrea Bargnani are the future. The 3 is still a mystery to me. Darrell can play it, provide more dunkage and do the little things. Cool. BUT THEN, you question, THEY DON'T HAVE A BACKUP PG? Yes, they do. Remember that guy, Leandro Barbosa?
TRADE #2: THE VINCE TRADE, ALSO REFERRED TO AS TRADE B
IN THIS TRADE:
a) we send Vince Carter to a team more in need of the salary cap relief derivative from his contract than his actual playing abilities.
b) we receive our star 4, one that is not only one of the top undiscovered 4's in the league, but one of the top unnoticed players in the league.
c) we receive a 3 who makes plays, plays some serious defense, and certainly, certainly wants out of Charlotte.
THIS IS THE TRADE LINK: http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=4ecn4at
TL;DR VERSION
Phoenix gets Tyrus Thomas and Stephen Jackson
Detroit gets Vince Carter
Charlotte gets Ben Gordon and Jason Maxiell.
WHY PHOENIX DOES THIS: Because they get both young talent and experienced talent in exchange for a guy who is giving them much less than what they receive in return.
WHY TYRUS THOMAS?: http://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/psl_finder.cgi?request=1&sum=0&per_minute_base=36&type=advanced&lg_id=NBA&is_playoffs=N&year_min=2011&year_max=2011&franch_id=&season_start=1&season_end=-1&age_min=0&age_max=99&height_min=0&height_max=99&birth_country_is=Y&birth_country=&is_active=&is_hof=&pos=&qual=&c1stat=&c1comp=gt&c1val=&c2stat=&c2comp=gt&c2val=&c3stat=&c3comp=gt&c3val=&c4stat=&c4comp=gt&c4val=&c5stat=&c5comp=gt&c6mult=1.0&c6stat=&order_by=per
WHAT IS THIS, you ask? It is the list of players in the league, sorted by PER. There is one player within the top 50 players in the league on that list that is not a starter and has played more than 500 minutes. His name is Tyrus Thomas. He has a PER of 19.9. The only stat you will find substantial (2nd in BLK% in the league at 6.4%) may not float your boat. You will instead find that he is top 20 in almost every statistic. He is an all around demon. His steal percentage lies between Rodney Stuckey and Chauncey Billups. His rebounding percentage lies between Roy Hibbert and Shaquille O'Neal. His defensive rating, although 21st, is a mere 101. He is quietly good at everything (with the exception of shooting). You bring him to Phoenix with the intention of him doing the little things. All those little things are the things that very few players in this league or on that list up there can do. This kid is a once in a life time talent.
WHY STEPHEN JACKSON? Because he's got talent. Captain Jack is a bonafide scorer and always has been. He can also pass, and rebound a little bit. He's like Andre Iguodala, but cheaper. Also, in the six games he's been playing for Paul Silas he's averaged 26 PPG. Not bad, right? (If you check his game log, after picking up Silas on the 22nd of December, Jax's production has gone way up). The production is the same, but now he goes to the Phoenix Suns. Pretty good, right?
WHY CHARLOTTE DOES THIS: Because Paul Silas is tired of the character issues by now, probably, and wants to get rid of the Larry Brown era that was. Thomas and Jackson are the two main acquisitions of that era. Larry Brown may have actually had team playing better ball than it could have, but it was clearly, also, time for him to go. They need something new.
WHY BEN GORDON AND JASON MAXIELL? Ben Gordon and Jason Maxiell are just that. Gordon is one of the few pure shooters in the league, which is good. Charlotte is last in FGAPG, and not so great in FG% as a team either. Gordon remedies that problem. Jason Maxiell provides...well, everyone has been in Detroit too long for their own good. He did at one point provide solid defense and rebounding. Charlotte does love defense and rebounding.
WHY DETROIT DOES THIS: Because Vince provides salary relief. Why does Detroit need salary relief? Because the team is being sold. Why does that matter? Because the next owner of the Pistons is not going to want to have to pay mad dough to players he/she hasn't even signed off on.
TRADE #3: THE GRANT TRADE, ALSO REFERRED TO AS TRADE C
IN THIS TRADE:
a) we pick up a center who finally, actually gives us defense and rebounding like Robin and Gortat were supposed to.
b) we sent Grant Hill to a contender, and get rid of unneeded depth in exchange for a semi-star that we need.
THIS IS THE TRADE LINK: http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=4wxj3eo
TL;DR VERSION
Phoenix receives Emeka Okafor
New Orleans receives Grant Hill, Josh Childress and Robin Lopez.
WHY PHOENIX DOES THIS: Because Emeka Okafor, if nothing else, blocks shots and rebounds the ball. He is also big. We really don't need much more out of a center.
WHY NEW ORLEANS DOES THIS: They are a shallow team. Depth might be OK. It's 5 AM EST, and I'm really tired. I really don't have much to say.
IN:
Okafor
Thomas
Jackson
Mayo
Bayless
Allen
OUT:
Nash
Hill
Childress
Lopez
Carter
The rotation now looks like this:
PG Bayless/Dragic
SG Mayo/Pietrus/Allen
SF SJax/Dudley
PF Tyrus T/Frye/Warrick
C Okafor/Gortat
If you really can't handle Stephen Jackson becoming a Phoenix Sun, consider trade B2.
TRADE B2
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=4qrkqeb
TL;DR version
Phoenix gets Tyrus Thomas, Andre Iguodala
Charlotte gets Ben Gordon and Jason Maxiell
Detroit gets Vince Carter
Philadelphia gets Boris Diaw and Gerald Henderson
only differences: AI is essentially traded for Boris Diaw and Gerald Henderson
WHY PHOENIX DOES THIS MORE THAN THE FIRST B TRADE: Because Iggy is more problematic, less offensively skilled and more pass worthy.
WHY PHILLY DOES THIS: Because they need Evan Turner to step forth and conquer. Diaw is simply an expiring contract. Gerald may be the scorer that that team needs. If Philly can't deal with that, they may be more comfortable with http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=4zgo43r this (B3), which exchanges Diaw for Gerald Wallace. If Philly needs more than that, Charlotte can send them their first round pick. I feel like either of those will be OK, because Iggy is essentially another Evan Turner, and as evidenced by a stop to Liberty Ballers, Andre is on the way out.
I'm not going to create B4, but you might even be able to pull the same thing off with Indiana and Danny Granger.
Would look something like http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=4ea68tp that.
New rotation:
PG Bayless/Dragic
SG Mayo/Pietrus/Allen
SF Iggy/Dudley
PF Tyrus T/Frye/Warrick
C Okafor/Gortat
Your 3 main scorers are Mayo, Iggy and Bayless. Bayless is the most pass worthy, but Iggy can bring it up the floor just as much, creaing opportunities for Bayless to sit on the wing when Iggy is the 1 and the opposite to happen when Bayless is the 1. Tyrus Thomas is essentially Lamar Odom, and Okafor turns into Andrew Bynum. Mayo is (one day) Bryant, Iggy is Scottie Pippen. The best part about this is the 3 combo guard offense, essentially. Either Mayo, Bayless or Iggy can drive to the hoop at any time. They are equally adept at playing the point and scoring. On the second unit you not only have 3 pt shooters plus Gortat a la Orlando, but you have great defensive players (the second unit really doesn't change it all). Bayless can average 25 a night, Mayo can average 25 a night, Iggy can average 25 a night. They could all get 5 points and 5 rebounds. Bayless is the best shooter, Iggy is the passer of the bunch, Mayo is the best hole driver of the bunch. If Iggy is at the top of the key he can chuck it to either Mayo or Bayless, who can drain the 3. If Mayo is at the top of the key he can drive the lane, pass it out to Bayless for 3 or have Iggy set the pick (it's a longshot, but at 6'6" it's not the worst thing in the world). If Bayless is at the top of the key he can run the offense like a normal point guard. Tyrus steals the ball from random people and hustles like a madman. Okafor sits and the paint and guards the paint guy.
I'm going to bed.