NBA WEEK 15

Hey freaks!



With the trade winds swirling around feverishly in Toronto, I figured I’d write a special limited edition “Raptor Trade Rumour” blog for all the dedicated Raps fans out there.



Amongst all of the trade rumours, the most prominent one revolves around Raps center Jermaine O’Neal. Although the rumour mill has been working overtime for awhile now (with no results), the possibility of J.O being moved is still very realistic and I think it’d be huge for Toronto to get his $44 mill off the books (21.3 this year, 22.9 next). As has been well-documented throughout the NBA blogosphere, the front-runner in the O’Neal sweepstakes are the Miami Heat who are looking to unload Shawn Marion and probably Marcus Banks (to get rid of his contract). If Colangelo were considering this deal, the free cap space is probably what he would see as the biggest asset coming back.



Another shot in the dark could be moving O’Neal to Washington along with an extra body (maybe Moon?) or a future draft pick in exchange for Caron Butler. The Wizards aren’t shopping Butler around but have made it known that he is definitely available and they are willing to listen to offers. I think this deal works for both squads as Butler provides the Raptors with the athletic and aggressive swingman they need, and the Wiz get a true center. For years now, the Wiz and their fans have been subjected to the inconsistencies and often lackluster productivity from guys like Brendan Haywood and Etan Thomas, and even though Andray Blatche is developing into a solid player, he’s really more of a 4. If the Wiz hold on to Antawn Jameson and Arenas gets healthy, they could have a pretty sick starting 5. Ditto for the Raps who would go with Bargnani, Bosh, Butler, Parker and Calderon. I don’t think the Wiz would do a deal straight up because of the age difference between O’Neal and Butler, which is why I think the Wiz would seek out an additional draft pick as well.



Now coming off the heels of Stephen A. Smith’s comments regarding Chris Bosh wanting out of Toronto, I feel it’s a possibility that he could jet town, but I wouldn’t bet the house quite yet. That said, it may be worthwhile to move him now when you can still get the utmost value for him…but that doesn’t mean I would be proactively shopping the all-star power forward around. The Heat are once again one of the teams that are supposedly interested in Bosh, but it’s up to Pat Riley to come to the table with the right deal and I’m sure everybody knows it’s not going to come cheap. Shawn Marion isn’t enough. I personally wouldn’t accept a deal without Beasley being included.



Another place Bosh could end up is in New York, where the Knicks hope to lure Lebron on 2010. The Knicks are clearly gunning for multiple superstars come 2010 so I think they’d be willing to give up some key chips in the process. I think a deal that is feasible would be Bosh for Chandler/Lee/Gallinari and Roberson. As I said a couple weeks ago, Chandler is going to be an all-star in the next couple of years and the same goes for David Lee (who narrowly missed out on being an all-star THIS year). Gallinari would be with his pal Bargnani and the addition of Roberson would allow the Raps to put Will Solomon on waivers and allow Roko Ukic to develop quicker. Oh, and the Raps would also receive a fuckload of cap relief (around $17M over the next 2 years…more than enough to bring in another quality player). If this deal were to go through, the Raps would be looking at a starting 5 of Bargnani, Lee, Chandler, Parker and Calderon with J.O, Moon and Kapono coming off the bench.



Now of course, some of these trades have just been imaginatively fabricated and more than likely will not happen, but while everyone is focused on the blockbuster deals, sometimes the smaller ones are just as important.



One player I would absolutely love to see moved is Jason Kapono (and not just so I wouldn’t have to hear Matt Devlin refer to him as “J-Killa” anymore). Kapono is set to earn an average of $6M/year over the next 3 years which I think is too hefty a price-tag for a guy averaging 7, 2 and 2. Factor in his lack of lateral quickness, the inability to create his own shot as well as his sub-par D, and there isn’t much upside to his potential. What you see is what you get. Sure he’s a threat on the perimeter and can stretch the D if opposing teams go zone, but is that worth $6M a year? Not by my estimation. So why would other teams want him then? Well, like I just mentioned, he’s a threat on the perimeter, can stretch the D and guys will be hesitant to leave him to double-team. I think the issue is that Kapono should be a guy who just plays spot minutes, not a guy who is in the regular rotation like he is in Toronto. He’s a 15 mpg type guy…not 25 mpg. I think a lot of teams gunning for a playoff run will see the value of Kapono as a spot minute guy, and just may be baited into making a trade.



One team I think that may be interested in a guy like Kapono is the Denver Nuggets. Bracing for a deep playoff run, Kapono could be an asset when guys go to double ‘Melo in the post or go to help on Chauncey when he drives. Kapono would be much more efficient behind the arc than say, Dahntay Jones. In return, it would be nice to grab J.R Smith, who would be that slashing athletic swingman that the Raps need. J.R is putting up 14/4/3 at only $4M for the year, and although his attitude has come into question on several occasions, his contract expires at the end of the year anyways…which means more cap room! Now I’m pretty sure the Nuggs/Raps have already discussed this deal and since it never happened the first time, I doubt it will happen before the deadline…HOWEVER…what about Lenias Kleiza and a future 2nd rounder for Kapono? I’ve always been a big fan of Kleiza, who’s young, tough, rugged and doesn’t shy away from physical play. He’s also putting up 10 chips, 4 boards and a dime a game for only $2M/year over the next 2 years so this would be a great deal for the Raps if they could get it done.



Another team that I could see as being interested are the Houston Rockets, who could use some outside shooting since Luther Head just never developed into the player they thought he’d be (at least not yet) and Chuck Hayes is airballing free-throws. In return for Kapono, I think the best choice would be Carl Landry, although I’m not sure the Rockets would be willing to part with the 2nd year forward. Landry has a tremendous upside and is putting up 9 chips, 5 boards and a dime a game for only 3M/year over the next 3. If J.O or Bosh get dealt, Landry would be a great addition as he adds some interior toughness and rebounding. One thing that could prevent this deal from happening however is the fact that the Rockets basically already have a much cheaper version of Kapono in Brent Barry. Damn…



In the end, the onus is on Bryan Colangelo to improve this team and he’s the one holding the chips. I’ll try and hit you guys with a special remix later this week, speaking about Colangelo and how his next move could be his defining one…



Peace.



-Gliz