Kemp/Baker/Brandon trade

["Jeremy Warren" <jeremy.warren@alphatech.com>]

                      Kemp/Baker/Brandon trade                     9/26/97

This is probably all over the list by now, but the following three way trade
happened yesterday:

Seattle gets Vin Baker.
Cleveland gets Shawn Kemp and Sherman Douglas.
Milwaukee gets Terrell Brandon, Tyrone Hill, and a conditional first rounder.

It looks like I'll have to redo my Eastern Conference predictions.  I really
like this deal for Cleveland if they can renogotiate with Kemp and keep him
happy.  They lose an all star in Terrell Brandon, but they weren't going
anywhere with him.  Sherman Douglas will man the point position while Brevin
Knight is brought up to speed.  I think Kemp can return them to the playoffs. 
We'll have to see if Fratello stays with his slow as molasses, down tempo
style now.

Milwaukee is hurting from this trade.  They had chemistry problems before.  
But now they have talent problems.  They seem to have some good individual
players.  But I don't see a team that can do any better than last year.  Now I
actually like the Celtic's roster better than Milwaukee's.  We have bigger
guards and I'd take Walker over Robinson any day.

Seattle did well in this trade.  They get rid of big headache who could have
taken down the whole team this year and they get back a player who is almost
as good and a much better citizen.  Vin Baker will be very happy in Seattle. 
I would put the Celtic's chances of acquiring him at nearly zero.

I can't wait for training camp to start.  I'll be very interested in seeing
how DeClerq, Mercer, and Billups perform.  I'd love to see us move Mills for a
real center.  What about Priest Lauderdale?  Atlanta still needs a 3, and if
Lauderdale is any good he would give us a respectable front line.  We could
move Antoine back to the 3 and Knight to the 4, where they won't get
manhandled.  Although this would have to wait until the beginning of the
season.  What about Mills, Knight, and Barros for Derrick Coleman.  Coleman
would be a bad influence, but only for one season.  We could then use his cap
space to sign someone else.  Whatever happened to Garth Joseph?

Jeremy