moves

[Ryan W]

--- steve knight <stevebknight at yahoo.com> wrote:

> any thoughts on who we
> should be willing to package to get better at the
> end
> of the year? the obvious ones are wally, telfair,
> perkins, but will that really get us much?  
> 

The only obvious trading chip in terms of
marketability and worth is Delonte West.  He's
redundant on this team, but has real worth to other,
higher level teams looking for a solid back-up
point/shooting guard.  I think teams like the Lakers
or the Cavs would be pretty interested.

The real issue to me, though, is the kind of trade we
end up making this summer.  It's either going to be
very big, or somewhat small, depending on what happens
with the lottery.  If we get a top 3 pick, I think
we'll draft the BPA and make a secondary trade, moving
anybody but Pierce, Al, Rondo, Green, and Allen for a
veteran power forward/center or point guard to placate
Pierce and stabilize the team.  Then, with Wally's
healthy return (I hope) and Allen's recovery, draft
pick X, acquired veteran X, and another year's
experience for Al, Rondo, and Green, we're looking at
a pretty good, up-and-coming team.  

But, if we don't get a top three pick, I think we'll
go in a different direction, trading the non-top 3
lottery pick, Theo, West, and probably Green, for an
impact veteran on the same level as Pierce.  This
would also put us in a good position, but in a
slightly different context with more veterans and less
young up-and-comers.  So, for me, it all hinges on
what pick we get because I think that'll determine the
kind of trade we end up making, either huge or
relatively small.

The next thing to consider is that kind of veteran we
target in a trade.  I think Danny has been wise in not
overpaying for some crap 30-year-old just for the sake
of getting experience.  We need to target the right
veteran, in the 27 to 32 years old range, someone
needing a change of location but still capable of
putting up All-Star numbers for at least 2 to 3 years.
 Candidates that I can think of off the top of my head
include Garnett, J. O'Neal, J. Kidd, V. Carter.  I'm
not saying those guys would fit, but those are the
types of players we would/should be considering if we
don't get in the top 3 of the lottery.  If we do get a
top 3 pick, players like Brevan Knight, Chris Kaman,
Troy Murphy, or someone of their ilk could be had
without giving up too much. 

But, to answer your question more specifically, these
are my top 3 players I wouldn't mind losing in the
right trade:

1. West--I think my reservations about his game and
his position have stated numerous times over.  Under
the right coach in the right system he could be a very
good player.  I just think we have better players at
both the positions he plays.  And his departure could
really open things up for Rondo and Telfair to play
without looking over their shoulders all the time.
2. Gomes--I like the trajectory of his career, but his
defensive issues will always be a problem.  If he adds
 three pointers to his game, though, those issues
could be minimized in the right system (like the
Suns').
3. Perkins--he's a much better player than he's shown
with the plantar faciitis and given his down year we
probably wouldn't get anything near his actual value. 
But I think Big Al can handle the center spot (or
draft pick X) and thus Perk's absence wouldn't be as
hard to take.

Note: I didn't consider Allan Ray in any of this
because in reality he's nothing more than a
non-drafted free agent who can score a bit.  If
ANYTHING, he's a throw-in to some trade.  Nothing
more.  And I didn't consider Wally because in reality
we'd have to take on something even more onerous than
Wally's contract to get rid of him and I don't think
that's the kind of trade anyone's anticipating this
summer.  And, if healthy, he'd be a really great guy
off the bench so there's no point in attempting to
move him this summer with his value so low and his
contract so high (if he has a great bounce back season
next year, then we can start talking Wally trades
again).  I also didn't consider Theo because he's just
a number anyway.  How can you miss a number?

Ryan



 
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