NBA Offseason Update
Since my last NBA post, a few trades and signings have gone down. Some thoughts on those:
Shaq to the Cavs: This is a pretty good pick up for the Cavs. But it only becomes a really good one if the Cavs find another athletic player to play the 3 or 4 position. The Cavs got exposed against the Magic and could not match up with their big forwards. Delonte West on Hedo Turkoglu was just a terrible matchup. Delonte was giving up about 8 inches. Looks like the city of Cleveland is not an attractive place to play as so many free agents have been signing else where. The Cavs really dropped the ball on not signing Trevor Ariza. Shaq is of course an upgrade over Ben Wallace and Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Shaq isn’t very mobile and is terrible at defending the pick and roll. The Cavs brought Shaq in to deal with Dwight Howard. But against the Magic, pick and rolls with Howard are very frequent. Cavs need another athletic player to deal with teams that play at a faster pace.
Vince Carter to the Magic: The Magic get a better player in Vince. A true #2 option behind Dwight Howard. Vince can still score. I did like Hedo on the Magic, though. Having a big forward that can run an offense was a major reason why the Magic went to the Finals. Only the Lakers could match up with the Magic. Now, the Magic get smaller and will definitely need another big player inside.
Hedo Turkoglu to the Raptors: Not sure what the Raptors are thinking here. In order to sign Hedo, they are going to have to let some key players from last year walk. Their bench is going to be incredibly weak now. The deal is rumored to be for 5 years at $53 million. Hedo is 30 right now and probably has 2 good years left before he starts to decline. Also, the Raptors have given a $50 million extension to Andrea Bargnani. That’s quite a bit of money locked up for two players that aren’t even #1 options for the team. I think Hedo on the Blazers would’ve been a nice pick up for them. One that would’ve put the Blazers in the top 3 or 4 out West for sure.
Ron Artest to the Lakers: I’m a Lakers fan so I have mixed feelings about this. Artest is an upgrade over Ariza. But Ariza is younger, more athletic, and fits perfectly within the triangle. Artest’s defense has slipped a bit but is a better all around player. I never enjoyed watching Artest try and run an offense on the Rockets. Now he won’t have to do that within the Lakers offense. The Lakers can play Artest at power forward when they go small. Plus, Artest can guard the other team’s best guards and bigger forwards. Ariza was giving up a lot of weight to players like Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James. If Artest can stay under control, the Lakers should be back in the Finals to defend their title.
McDyess to the Spurs: Pretty good pick up for the Spurs. They need some big men after trading away Fabricio Oberto and Kurt Thomas a few weeks ago. McDyess will provide defense and rebounding along with a good outside jumper. Spurs probably need one more big man to match up with the Lakers size up front.
Rasheed Wallace to the Celtics: Another pretty good pick up. Wallce is definitely declining and becoming more of an outside shooter. But he gives the Celtics some more size off the bench. Big Baby Davis is probably out of the picture now. He played pretty well for the Celtics in the playoffs. But is giving up a lot of height against bigger teams. If the Celtics resign Leon Powe, they would have Kevin Garnett, Kendrick Perkins, and now Wallace as big men. Very strong up front.
Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva to the Pistons: The Pistons have fallen off very quickly these last few years. They add Gordon and now have a pretty small backcourt. I guess Richard Hamilton will come off the bench with Rodney Stuckey at the point guard position. Villanueava is a pretty good player. But right now is their starting center. Very small team. The Pistons will be lucky to make the playoffs.
Some other random thoughts:
What in the world are the Cavs doing? Every single free agent they’ve gone after they lost out on. Looks like no one wants to play in Cleveland. Along with the possibility that LeBron will leave after next season. Hardly anybody worthwhile left for them to sign now.
Brandon Bass would be a really nice signing for the Magic. They need another strong big man along side Dwight Howard.
Shawn Marion looks to be going to the Mavs. Pretty nice squad if he’s there. They’ll probably be running even more next season.
