| My team's on the floor! Authored by Keith Berzanske - February 27, 2005 - 3:24 am
| Current Featured Columns | | The First Three Weeks of 2008-09 Now that we’ve had a little time to watch free agency unfold, along with the usual accompaniment of trades, let’s look at some of the key moves and how they impact the teams involved.
Grading The Deal: W's Sign Maggette And TuriafThe Boom Dizzle era is over, and the Warriors quickly recovered by signing two nice pieces to complement their young core.
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EAST
(1) 41-16 MIAMI
(2) 34-19 DETROIT
(3) 28-28 BOSTON
(4) 31-22 CLEVELAND
(5) 31-23 WASHINGTON
(6) 29-24 CHICAGO
(7) 28-26 ORLANDO
(8) 28-27 INDIANA
(9) 26-29 PHILADELPHIA
(10)24-32 NEW JERSEY
(11)23-32 TORONTO
(12)22-31 MILWAUKEE
(13)23-33 NEW YORK
(14)11-42 CHARLOTTE
(15)10-44 ATLANTA
MIAMI
The Heat's lone move was to trade the expendable Malik Allen for savvy veteran Steve Smith. It's uncertain how much Smith has left in the tank, but he can spot up and hit threes, and he does have experience in big games. The Heat's biggest question mark is the health of Shaquille O'Neal. If Shaq fully recovers from his sprained knee, then Miami should be a lock for the conference finals, at minimum. The question is whether they have enough horses to knock off Detroit, or to beat whoever comes out of the West. As good as Shaq and Dwyane Wade have been, it's easy to forget that this squad is essentially making its first run together.
DETROIT
The Pistons kicked into gear around Christmas and have been hot ever since (22-7 after 12-12 start). There's no reason to think they won't outlast the Cavaliers for the Central Division title. They have experience toughness, chemistry, and are terrific on defense. And I swear I saw Darko put up 8 points the other night. Antonio McDyess has ben a nice addition, and Carlos Arroyo gives them a legitimate point guard off the bench, something they missed when Mike James defected. They made no moves at the deadline only because they were pretty well set after making the Arroyo deal a month ago.
BOSTON
The trade for Antoine Walker was a shock. Walker and Paul Pierce made some magic before, but that was three years ago, with a differeny coach, different supporitng cast, and in a different Eastern Conference. To me, this is a lot like getting back together with an ex girlfriend becasue you remember the good times, and even though you weren't totally happy, since she left things have been pretty mediocre. That said, if the Celtics can reacquire Gary Payton off waivers, they'll essentially have gotten Walker for nothing except a first round pick they probably won't need. The Celtics struck gold in the first round this year - Delonte west is showing signs, Tony Allen is solid, and Al Jefferson is an old school type who in 3 years will be THE power forward in the East. The emergence of Allen and West made Jiri Welsch expendable, and the Celtics were able to deal Welsch to Clevleand for a future first round pick.
CLEVELAND
The Cavaliers traded a first round pick in 2007 for Jiri Welsch. The common thought is that this is another attempt to acquire an outside shooter to take advantage of the attention given to Zydrunas Ilgauskas and LeBron James.
However, I think this may be an insurance move in case the team is unable to sign Jeff McInnis in the offseason. The priority will be a new deal for 'Z', and then the Cavaliers will be going after a shooter, and a good one - one in the ilk of Michael Redd or Ray Allen. They'll need money for that and also need to save some room to pony up for extension for James, Drew Gooden and Anderson Varejao in the next couple of years. As valuable as McInnis has been, he is also a bit inconsistent and is at the age where he may have already peaked. If Welsch can avoid mistakes and hit enough jumpers to keep the defense honest, he may be the starter next year. At minimum, he's a solid third guard, which means the bench has a nice unit in Welsch, Aleksandar Pavlovic, Luke Jackson, Varejao, and DeSagana Diop. They'll need this unit to develop, since they've traded away first round picks in 2 of the next 3 years.
WASHINGTON
The Wizards held serve while Larry Hughes was out, recording a respectable 9-10 mark without their star guard. They made no moves at the deadline, but they didn't really have any pieces to move. It should be good enough for them to get Hughes, Kwame Brown, and Etan Thomas back at full strength. The Wizards would be a tough playoff matchup for the Cavaliers - it s a series that might be decided by homecourt advantage. Gilbert Arenas has been carrying them and it will be interesting to see whether he can keep it up.
CHICAGO
The Bulls are basically fighting with Orlando, Indiana, Boston, and Philadelphia for 4 spots (assuming nothing miraculous from New Jersey or Toronto). And while they are ahead, it's easy to see how they could fall back to the 9 spot and miss the playoffs yet again. First of all, it's hard to imagine they can stay as hot as they've been. They're also not a deep team, and while their young players have talent and some have big game experience, they're are also being relied on for heavy HEAVY minutes. Add to that a road heavy schedule, some strong acquisitions by the 76ers and Celtics, and signs that the once-decimated Pacers are starting to get their feet under them, and it's easy to see how the Bulls could slip just out of the playoff picture. Give management credit, however, for a spectacular draft (Gordon, Deng, and Duhon) and for not panicking and trading their other young players.
ORLANDO
The Magic were also very quiet, but probably already made their big move when they dealt Cuttino Mobley for Doug Christie. Unfortunately, they've been running in place (13-13 since Jan. 1st), and are in the same danger the Bulls are of slipping behind improved competition. Trading Mobley created opportunity for Jameer Nelson, who's actually probably contributed more than Christie.
INDIANA
Th Pacers can be excused for nto making any moves - they're still trying to figure out who is on their roster. This team has shown remarkable resilience all year, and as the season wears on, the experience gained by their backups in December will prove invaluable. The Pacers will make a scary low seed for one of the division winners to square off with. It's time for them to give up on Jonathan Bender.
PHILADELPHIA
The 76ers obviously improved on offense, upgrading at power forward from Kenny Thomas, Brian Skinner, and Corliss Williamson to Chris Webber and Rodney Rogers. However, they did give up some defense here, so they'll be counting on guys like Andre Iguodala, Allen Iverson, and Samuel Dalembert to cover for the defensive deficiencies of others. The biggest danger the 76ers face is the 'honeymoon period' - often after roster shakeups, a team will struggle for a couple of weeks, and then go on a hot streak once they fit all the pieces together. However, the 76ers run the risk of falling so far behind they can't catch up, if in fact their cold streak lasts too long. Webber and Rogers will need to assimilate themselves quickly. And although Philly has a large portion of their cap tied up in three players who are health risks (Iverson, Webber, and Jamal Mashburn, who may retire), they still have enough solid young players in place (Iguodala, Dalembert, Kyle Korver, Willie Green, and John Salmons) to make these acquisitions a worthwhile risk. The 76ers did not mortgage their future and weren't likely to attract any major free agents anyway. Better to roll the dice.
NEW JERSEY
The Nets made their big deal last month for Vince Carter, which was a steal. But the poor start they got off to while Jason Kidd was recovering, and losing Richard Jefferson - just too much to overcome. The Nets may make a run, but I expect they'll fall short. However, they'll develop younger guys like Nenad Krstic and they are set up well to rebound next year. They'll just need to get some frontcourt help in the offseason. The biggest problem the Nets have had lately is that they can't seem to decide whether they are rebuilding or contending. They traded Kenyon Martin becasue they dind't want to pay him, but then they acquired Carter. They don't trade Kidd and they sign Jefferson to a huge extension, but they gave away Kyle Korver in 2003 and their first round pick in 2004 esentially to save cash.
TORONTO
Who's running the Raptors? They gave Vince Carter away, but then they forgot to move Jalen Rose and Donyell Marshall, two guys who aren't as much use to them as they could have been to a contender. Marshall does have an expiring cotnract, but it's going to be hard to lure free agents to town, as good as Chris Bosh is. Of course, if he can be moved in a sign-and-trade deal this summer, then the Raptors will have salvaged something. But Rose always plays better when wanted, so if you make it known he's on the block, you'd best deal him. The Raptors have a bleak future unless they hit big in the draft.
MILWAUKEE
The Bucks made some moves at the deadline with the obvious intent on clearing cap space to resign Michael Redd. They are hoping for a return to health of TJ Ford and then building around Ford and Redd. They didn't really give up anything of value (Keith Van Horn is what he is and he wasn't playing much anyway) and they get to take a flier on Reece Gaines. Maurice Williams is another promising young player who now gets more time, with the departure of Mike James.
NEW YORK
Isiah Thomas has almost completed his destruction of yet another organization. Someone needs to tell Isiah this is not a 6-8 and under league. In his short tenure in New York, he's set a league record for acquiring undersized power forwards. We can now add Malik Rose and Maurice Taylor to Michael Sweetney, Kurt Thomas, Tim Thomas, Jerome Williams, along with former employees Othella Harrington, Vin Baker, Keith Van Horn, Antonio McDyess, Maciej Lampe, and Clarence Weatherspoon. OK, so McDyess was not really undersized - he just could not jump or run. Worse than the roster imbalance, the Knicks continually take on long term contracts without getting either impact players or young players to develop. Isiah defended his deals by noting that he acquired a couple of first round picks, but picks from Phoenix and San Antonio, the two best teams in the league, really aren't worth that much in the grand scheme of things. And remember, Stephon Marbury is the most overrated player in the NBA (see my previous column!)
CHARLOTTE
The Bobcats only deal was to trade Smith for ALlen, which is relatively inconsequential. The Bobcats are progressing nicely - hopefully all of the people who were doubting Emeka Okafor have been locked up by now.
ATLANTA
Is Pete Babcock still around? Hard to believe he's not. The Hawks trade their one main asset, Antoine Walker, who has talent and an expiring cntract, and get - NOTHING! Smooth. The only thing this deal accomplished is creating room at power forward for Al Harrington to play. Can I run the Hawks? Please?
WEST
(1) 43-13 PHOENIX
(2) 42-13 SAN ANTONIO
(3) 38-15 SEATTLE
(4) 37-17 DALLAS
(5) 35-21 SACRAMENTO
(6) 32-23 HOUSTON
(7) 31-25 MEMPHIS
(8) 28-25 LA LAKERS
(9) 27-29 MINNESOTA
(10)26-29 DENVER
(11)24-31 LA CLIPPERS
(12)22-31 PORTLAND
(13)17-37 UTAH
(14)16-28 GOLDEN STATE
(15)11-43 NEW ORLEANS
PHOENIX
The Suns made their moves a couple of weeks ago, picking up veteran bench hep in Jim Jackson and Walter McCarty. These guys fit in with their 'shott first ask questions later' style. It will be interesting to see how the Suns fare in the playoffs. Without Steve Nash this team is very average. every time Shawn Marion shoots a jumper I cringe.
SAN ANTONIO
The Spurs are not only the best team in basketball, but the best organization. They quietly rebuilt their team following their first championship run by drafting Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, and now they are quietly acquiring key pieces that can contribute, as they did with Nazr Mohammed. The price to acquire Mohammed was small, considering how often Malik Rose was in Gregg Popovich's doghouse. The Spurs are the definitive favorite to win the NBA championship.
SEATTLE
The best move the Sonics made was not making a move at all. Trading Ray Allen at this point would have been disasterous all around, a la Atlanta after dealing Dominique Wilkens while in first place in 1994. Play now, worry about resigning the guy later. Do not klill team morale when youa re going so well. The Sonics will be intersting to watch on two fronts - how deep can they go in the playoffs, and ho wmany of the team's 9 free agents will buy into Sonic ball and resign. But when you're hot, you gotta ride it.
DALLAS
You have to wonder what Mark Cuban is thinking. He can't afford to pay Steve Nash, but then he overpays erick Dampier,a nd then goes out at the trade deadline and picks up Keith Van Horn. Van Horn is a nice player, but grotesquely overpaid. The Mavs have a bench full of guys that could be starting for other teams, although to be fair they would be worse teams than the Mavs. Guys like Jerry Stackhouse and Jason terry must realize this because we havent' heard much griping from the Mavs camp yet. Van Horn is probably a worthwhle gamble as far as things go ont he court. He was acquired for basically nothing (Alan Henderson may in fact be reacquired off waivers), and his style of play should fit in nicely. He'll jsut have to adjust to coming off the pine.
SACRAMENTO
The Kings should still make the playoffs but realistically their chance fo winning the West is pretty nil. What they did do by dealing Chris Webber is set themselves up better long term to stay contenders. It is much more likely the Peja Stojakovic will now stay, and the pieces they acquired for Webber will be much easier to move individually if need be. The Kings did run a lot of their offense through Webber, and it can't be a good thing for Cuttino Mobley to get more shots, so the hope is that Stojakovic returns to the form he showed early last year, and that Kenny Thomas and Brian Skinner provide toughness inside. One other point is that Webber's exile may relieve the team of some of the stress associated with Webber's historically documented run on near-misses and apocalyptic failures. I don't generally like dealing All-Stars for role players, but I will call this deal even for two reasons - (1) Geoff Petrie has made few bad moves with the Kings, and generally has vision, and (2) The Kings still have enough potential All-Stars and scoring option remaining in Stojakovic, Mike Bibby, and Brad Miller that they can still be formidable, and now may be better on defense. It's a risky move, and it wil beinteresting to see how it pays off.
HOUSTON
The Rockets have made several nice trades since the season started. Mike James was basically had for free and he brings some much needed point guard play as well as championship experience. He's insurance for those days when Bob Sura's back acts up, and he makes a helluva backup otherwise. Getting rid of Maurice Taylor is addition by subtraction, and it's fun that Moochie Norris was brought back to boot. The Rockets are headed in the right directino, and will be a dangerous playoff opponent.
MEMPHIS
The Grizzlies are rolling along under Mike Fratello, despite seemingly always being 1-2 players short due to injury. They are looking forward to the return of Pau Gasol. The reason they didnt' make any moves? They already have enough guys as it is that they don't know what to do with them - when healthy. The Grizzlies need to be careful to avoid a slump - one small tailspin puts them in distance of the dangerous Nuggets and Timberwolves.
LA LAKERS
Lamar Odom might be the most undreappreciated players in the league. He's probably one of the top ten players int he NBA, but for some reason the Lakers go long stretches without Odom getting touches. This is a weird team, one that probably shoudl have made a deal for more frontcourt help. There's an overabundance of small forwards on the roster. Al eyes are on Kobe Bryant right now. I think it will be a major accomplishment for the Lakers if they can hold off Minnesota and Denver for that eighth playoff spot.
MINNESOTA
This was the team that really needed to shakw up the roster that ended up doing nothing. The Timberwolves almost have too much talent - they might be best off dealing some players for lesser talent and draft picks. Latrell Sprewell in particular better wake up - he's costing himself a lot of money with his lethargic play. Sam Cassell just isn't healthy, which means he was probably difficult to move. One thing I always wonder about the T-Wolves and the trade deadline is - do they ever get offers for Garnett? And do they ever take any of them seriously?
DENVER
The Nuggets have played better under George Karl, but it's going to be tough for them to grab a playoff spot. They made a minor move at the deadline, basically giving up on Rodney White and Nikoloz Tskitishvili and acquiring Eduardo Najera. I don't like this move. The Nuggets already have a bunch of physical bangers like Najera - Nene, Marcus Camby, Kenyon Martin - even Greg Buckner at guard. The other two forward were their for their scoring and floor skills, and the team may have been wiser to let them develop.
LA CLIPPERS
The Clippers didn't do much, but I don't recall Elgin Baylor making a midseason trade of note in the last 14 years. Their biggest concern is getting Shaun Livingston some lasagna so that he can withstand the pounding an NBA guard takes. At this rate, Livingston will be broken in half before he's old enough to drink away the pain.
PORTLAND
You know, other than the Raptors, there's not a team that's more puzzling than the Trail Blazers. They don't appear to like their leading scorer and rebounder (Zach Randolph) all that much, and they are overpaying two ineffectual point guards, not to mention the ridiculous amount they gave to role player Darius Miles. The Blazers dealt away some of their 'problem players' but forgot to acquire equal talent in return. Hopefully they won't fall into the trap of resigning Shareef Abdur-Rahim.
UTAH
It appears that Utah overpaid this summer for Carlos Boozer and Mehmut Okur. After giving away Carlos Arroyo in December, they were probably afraid to make any further moves. The Jazz are going to be pretty mediocre for quite some unless they get some decent guards. Fortunately for them, it's a strong draft for point guards. Getting Chris Paul or Raymond Felton could make the future look much brighter in a hurry.
GOLDEN STATE
The Warriors are the perfect team for Baron Davis. First of all, he's from the area. He'll be comfortable there and they will draw fans. Seocnd, they didn't give up much to get him, so even though Davis is injury prone and makes a lot of money, he worth the risk. The Warriors are already overpaying several marginal talents - why not overpay someone with All-Star skilsl who is still 25? Also, Davis won't have the same pressure here - the Warriros have not made the playoffs since Chris Webber wa a rookie - that's 10 years and counting! If they can just approach .500 the fans would be thrilled. If only they hadn't tied up so much money in the likes of Drek Fisher and Adonal Foyle...but the birght side is they have a nice foursome to build around in Davis, Jason Richardson, Michael Dunleavy, and Troy Murphy. Now they just need to keep them together. The last threesome they paired up with Richardson (Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison, and Larry Hughes) is doing quite nicely in Washington. The Warriors also took a solid risk in picking up White and Tskitishvili from Denver. While I doubt either will ever be an impact player, it didn't cost them much to take a look. White can put the ball in the hoop, on occasion.
NEW ORLEANS
The Hornets made good moves by getting rid of Baron Davis and Jamal Mashburn, and essentially starting over, but I'm not sure they got much in return. I love Speedy Claxton, but Davis was an All-Star point guard and the face of the franchise. He should have at least merited a draft pick in return. The Hornets have a nice core for the future with Dan Dickau, JR Smith, David West, and Jamal Magloire, and some veteran backups to fill in the blanks. But it will be awhile before they contend in a tough Western Conference. |
