Episode II: Has Chad Rode Off Into The Sunset; KU Decides to QuickDraw
“To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan and not quite enough time.”
― Leonard Bernstein
― Leonard Bernstein
Welcome to another special episode of my whatever-it's-called where I take a detailed approach to breaking down notable big mover teams in the early offseason. Last episode, we broke down the rollercoaster of trades that was the Milwaukee Bucks and their patented "We shall cleans the lands of this plague that we call a team." I wanted to shift my focus to the other conference. Actually, I'm shifting my focus to the Pacific division.
We all witnessed the newest Pacific champion catch everyone by surprise as they defeated a gauntlet of teams that honestly almost everyone pegged the Suns as underdogs in each matchup. We also saw the rise of the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors led by their young franchise players, and the division was a lot more competitive than given credit for before the season started. Two teams have made quite an impact on this offseason already, so let's dive right in to the mouth that runs the West.
SEATTLE SUPERSONICS
This will ultimately prove to expect the unexpected when predicting what active general managers will do once the draft rolls around...
Big name trade right here. The Sonics decided to scrap the old team and it began with moving possibly the best frontcourt duo in the league with Eddie Griffin and Steven Hunter. Also gone is a potentially solid role player Courtney Lee, who probably wasn't part of Darth's future whether or not he decided to rebuild. The biggest takeaway here is obviously Blake Griffin, who has just finished up his rookie season and is the most explosive and athletic PF in the league already. Blake is so versatile that with time he may be able to play the SF, PF and C position without seeing a big drop in production or efficiency. He's that good and I know the Sonics are pleased to already have their foundation piece at a position of premium. The big draw here is that the Sonics needed to take on Antawn Jamison's 2 year contract that is very sizable. Jamison will probably be the most overpaid player in the league, but I'm sure the Sonics didn't mind taking on the contract for Griffin here. I believe they used the Timberwolves pick to grab Eugene Jeter, who probably won't amount much, but we've seen training camp turn unknown guys into starters.kucoach7 wrote:Blazers Send:
Blake Griffin
Antawn Jamison
2010 Timerwolves 1st
9 points
Sonics send:
Steven Hunter
Courtney Lee
Eddie Griffin
The rebuild begins.
Ahhh I love trades that can't be processed until after RFA. Unfortunately for us, there won't be much potential drama here. Both teams are pretty set during the RFA period and I don't believe much could be done salary-wise that could hinder this trade. Deal is also beneficial for both teams.ballsohard wrote:Sonics Send:
D Wade
76ers Send:
Monta Ellis
Once again, a star is gone from the Sonics, and in comes 24 year old SG Monta Ellis from the 76ers organization. I have mixed feelings about this trade. On one hand, the Sonics grab a younger developing prospect who can score. On the other hand, Ellis has consistently been a piss poor shooter in terms of efficiency. He has shot 38% from the field for his career, and what's really freaking impressive is he has only hovered between 38.3-39.6 in 5 seasons. That consistent at it's finest.... er I mean worst. Ellis does have upside though from inside with an A there. Unfortunately he isn't that bad at shooting from inside, it's just that he can't create plays to get there. He may be undersized at the SG spot but he isn't a capable handler or passer at the PG position. Darth has three seasons before his next contract to either get better efficiency from Ellis or scrap the project quick. This situation will be interest perhaps as early as next offseason!
As for Balls, he gets an elite yet aging player to pair Tyson Chandler up with and begins to form his team into a possible division competitor. With not much money to spend in the free agency class, keep an eye on round 1 of unrestricted free agency for this team. If the 76ers strike out there, only prayer to the training camp gawds can make or break this team.
The last, and probably most talented, player of the core group was traded last night to the Magic. What I found interesting about this trade is that once the trade went through, the Magic became the new Sonics of the East. Dragic, Anthony, Lewis and Howard form a four-headed terrifying team and the Magic quickly rose from lotto/low seed playoff team to maybe the new favorites to win the division. How will Coltsguy take advantage of these players with only one ball? Dragic only averaged 5 assists but didn't have better than a 2/1 assists-to-turnover ratio last season, and the next best passer is Carmelo Anthony with a whopping 35 rating. The Magic do not have much space in salary, so mins will need to fill this team. They will desperately need a pass-first backup at PG if they wish to finally win a ring.DarthVegito wrote:Sonics send:
Rashard Lewis
10 points
Magic send:
Shaun Livingston
Greivis Vasquez
Tyler Hansbrough
As for the Sonics, they actually acquire rookie Greivis Vasquez who is a pass-first PG with great potential in that area, along with versatile guard Shaun Livingston who keeps getting better each season. Although not a superstar package for a superstar, the Sonics were able to acquire 3 young assets who will be solid down the road. The transformation is complete for this team and they now possess multiple talented youth and a franchise piece in Blake Griffin. The question now is: is this team ready to compete if they have a good training camp, or will the Sonics look to sandbag and hope for a top 10 pick in a semi-weak draft? All in all, really like what the Sonics did so quickly. It isn't a traditional rebuild where they sold everything like fire for picks, so where they go from here may start a new strategy for teams down the road if they are successful in this regard.
Now, on to the other side of the plate....
PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS
However, a general manager can only be so Fryeing patient, and I think ku reached the tipping point when they received a dick-in-the-face #7 pick in this draft. "Larry Fryeing Sanders is not going to change my team" ku has been rumored to have said.
Time for a new strategy.
A bold strategy....
It's great how these things intertwine, as we've already discussed this trade. Only last time we focused on the Bucks. Now it's time for someone to shine light on the Blazers after being in the shadows for so long. Ron Artest is probably the best at what Artest does: defend and score. He can potentially play SG, SF or PF for the Blazers if needed and has 100 rating in 3 point shooting, perimeter defense and stealing. Textbook 3&D, the definition of it, see: Ron Artest. Teaming up with an actual PG in Derrick Rose will do Artest well. Larry Sanders was picked with the Blazer 2010 first, and the Hornets have a knack for sneaking into the players. The big losses here is saying goodbye to two decent frontcourt pieces that might have been missed if it wasn't for another trade. Also, lol was 3 points really a trade bargain piece here?kucoach7 wrote:Bucks send:
Ron Artest
Blazers send:
Blazers 2010 1st
Nikola Pekovic
Hornets 2011 1st
Blazers 2012 1st
Tiago Splitter
3 points
On to a trade we've halfway covered much earlier in this article.
Some may wonder "Why give up Griffin? He was so young and talented and you got Artest to pair up with him and Rose!?"kucoach7 wrote:Blazers Send:
Blake Griffin
Antawn Jamison
2010 Timerwolves 1st
9 points
Sonics send:
Steven Hunter
Courtney Lee
Eddie Griffin
It's ballsy and I wouldn't have done it. BUT DAMMIT WE'RE Fryeing TIRED OF LOSING.
Steven Hunter and Eddie Griffin are only 28 and have wrecked this league on defense for many seasons. It fits so well with the trade with Artest. Get the best perimeter defender and get the 2 Time DPOY who has never placed below Tyson Chandler in the All NBA Team. Eddie Griffin is expiring, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out if the Blazers do well. They also pick up a possible contributor in limited minutes with Courtney Lee. Lee isn't great by any stretch, but when you're competiting, every minute played by a player counts. Lee has shown promise of being an efficient 3 point threat and the Blazers will need that to pair with Artest.
Hunter is the big grab here though. He's averaged double-digit rebounds for 3 seasons now and keeps improving in points per game. Steven Hunter may be able to average 20-10 with this team, as he moves away from Rashard Lewis and into a role where he may be looked to as a #1 option on offense finally.
Teams don't like trading youth for star players, as they rather the potential for many seasons of winning over the risk of short term success. The Blazers still have Rose as their young star, so it's not like they abandoned all hope. The gamble has been placed, will the reward be greater than the risk?
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