Phoenix Trade

["hironaka@nomade.fr"<hironaka@nomade.fr>]

The Herald reports that the Celts may use 
Palacio/RBrown's roster spot on Omar Cook, who had 90 
assists in a five-game span playing for Fayetteville of 
the NBDL. They also think Portland may be looking at "get 
off of" McLeod and McCarty, as cap moves. I wonder what 
they are offering.

Rodney Rogers is 30 years old and a free agent this 
summer. He was 6th man of the year in Y2K, shooting .439 
from 3-point land. He's listed at a solid 255 pounds, and 
has missed just one game for the Suns in three seasons. 
This year he is averaging 12.6 points in just 25.1 
minutes per game (4.8 boards). His FG% inside the arc is 
501. He is .350 on treys with roughly 3 attempts per 
game. Whether you like the Celts offense or not, he seems 
like a good fit and the key player in the trade. I don't 
know how Wallace plans to re-sign him though. He sounds 
like a solid citizen BTW. 

Tony Delk is what Forte hopes to be someday (he'll 
probably be another guy that gets traded). He's a 28-year-
old former McDonald's All American and a NCAA Final Four 
MVP, as well as MVP of the Midwest regional. He had a 53 
point game last season versus the Kings, shooting a 
ridiculous 20-27. He was voted captain of the Suns team. 
He's a streak shooter (.408), without a great 3-point 
touch (.319 career). But he seems pretty fearless and 
clutch. Presumably, he could be something of 
a "microwave" off the bench. This obviously will have an 
effect on Strickland (and Forte). 

Here is Phoenix GM Bryan Colangelo and coach Frank 
Williams' take:

"as we now maintain Bostons pick in this coming draft, 
as well as adding a good young talent in the 10th pick of 
last years draft, a lottery selection, Joe Johnson, we 
feel that we have further added to the core of youth that 
we began with last year. The trade last year, Jason Kidd 
for Stephon Marbury, brought us down four years in age. 
We talked about a core of (Shawn) Marion and Marbury 
moving forward, and now you can add Joe Johnson to that 
list of names, and possibly two more selections from this 
years draft."

"But moving forward, it does free up some flexibility for 
us because Tonys contract went out for a period of years 
beyond next season." 

"The bottom line is, we were facing a future (luxury) tax 
problem. Not so much in this immediate summer, but in the 
following year, when you plug in a contract extension for 
Shawn Marion, we were basically unable to do anything 
going forward with Rodney that wouldve gone beyond one 
year. That doesnt make a lot of sense for Rodney Rogers 
to stay in Phoenix on a one-year deal when hes got 
opportunities, Im sure, this summer to move on and do 
something on a longer-term basis. So when we looked at 
this, we basically felt that if Rodney was not moved 
before the trade deadline, we were effectively going to 
lose him for nothing at the end of the summer. 
Effectively, we viewed this accordingly as Tony Delk was 
being traded for two first round picks, one lottery 
selection (Joe Johnson) and one later future first round 
pick that, again, is coming from Boston this year." 

"We kind of see Joe as a two (guard) more than a three. 
In fact, I think in last years draft rating, he was 
ranked as the number two two guard. But he is capable of 
playing both positions and Shawn is capable of playing 
both positions. But we see them side-by-side out there on 
the court, filling the lanes. Again, were getting 
another athlete with some length. Hes listed at 6-8, but 
I believe hes 6-7 by all accounts. But hes long and 
hes got skills." 

QUESTION: Frank, what was the reaction of some of the 
other guys? 

FRANK JOHNSON: Disappointment. Theyve lost two guys 
that we all have a lot of respect for. You know, Tony was 
voted captain and when youre voted captain by your 
peers, that says something about you. It hurt for them, 
as well. They were both friends to a lot of the guys on 
the team and they had certainly formed a bond with 
certain guys on the team. So its tough when you know 
someone is hurting from that, when someone is moving on 
and are no longer a part of your family. 

QUESTION: Frank, how much do you know about Joe Johnson? 

FRANK JOHNSON: I saw him earlier when we played Boston 
there. I am familiar with some of the things he can do. I 
talked with Dick Van and he filled me on what he did when 
he was in college, the type of player he is. I know he is 
capable of making basketball plays. You know, we often 
talk about, can a guy dribble, pass and shoot, and he 
fits the bill there. I know he has lost some confidence 
in what hes been able to do. But I think they saw him 
earlier in the year as a player being touted as Rookie of 
the Year. He has fallen off. Its my job to get him back 
to that level, to playing with a lot of confidence, to 
playing where hes enjoying himself and to where he can 
contribute to this ball club. 

QUESTION: Frank, what was the reaction from Tony and 
Rodney? 

FRANK JOHNSON: They were certainly disappointed, very 
disappointed that this happened. I told them that they 
were going to a situation where they have a chance at 
being one of the top teams in the East, in terms of a 
playoff spot. Even saying that, its still tough to be 
traded at this point. You know, Rodney really didnt say 
much. Neither did Tony. And when we got to the hotel, I 
asked if they had talked to anyone from Boston and they 
had not. They were just trying to make their plans right 
now, but they were certainly disappointed theyre leaving 
Phoenix. Theyve always felt that this was a great 
organization, a class organization and they wanted to be 
a part of that. One thing Rodney said, he loves the area. 
He said regardless of what situation hell be in next 
year, hes going to live in Phoenix. He has certainly 
enjoyed the area. 

****








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