ESPN Insider rumors/speculation

[wichmae]

FYI the other speculation was:
Gortat for Avery Bradley and Courtney Lee
Gortat for Kendrick Perkins, Jeremy Lamb and a first-round pick in 2013
Gortat for Meyers Leonard, J.J. Hickson and a first-round pick in 2013 (no lottery protection)
Gortat for Austin Rivers and Al-Farouq Aminu

Some of you guys are really under-valuing Gortat.

[Max Green]

No way I'm giving up Tobes & Henson for Gortat & Marshall. I don't care if they would also take on Gooden, Skiles has finally found a place where he can contribute to the team by making him the inactivated Head Cheerleader.

I've never been sold on Marshall and we already have someone who is matching Gortat's production in less minutes off the bench.

[The Wet Whistle]

I think Gortat is a very good player and have wanted him in the past. However, I don't know if he currently fits with what we have going on right now and I don't really want to mortgage our future (I realize Henson and Harris havent shown much yet but theyve shown enough to keep me optimistic) for two years of him.

Imo the timing just isn't right for this type of trade.

[AussieBuck]

Pass.

[JayMKE]

No. No interest in Gortat especially for two of youngest prospects.

[vlietinho]

No! I'd rather keep our young guys and see how they develop. Furthermore our centre position is just fine at the moment

[afroblackarican]

No way should we use our young talent to dump Gooden. The only way I'd attempt to dump Gooden is along with some of the expiring veterans. Otherwise I'll stick with Gooden's deal especially because he's inactive and isn't ruining anything as of now.

[MilBucksBackOnTop06]

I probably wouldnt do it either but some of you are really undervaluing how good Gortat is.

We dont need Gortat....I don't care how good one think he is. He is no better then Delembert or Sanders. We don't need a Center. That is not the Bucks glaring need.

Especially not for Tobias Harris and John Henson. I might be interested in Michael Beasley here for offense but even that would be worse.

I would trade Ersan for Gortat in a second and maybe package him with Mbah a Moute for Gortat and Beasley and or Wesley Johnson but other then that.

No. They can't have Gortat and Ersan making the most money on this team. You don't tie up all that money and those two scrubs. That is Madness. Gortat is not a difference maker or he would still be in Orlando.

All the teams in the NBA who can use a Center and he picks the Bucks!? Miami could use him...so could the Bulls or Cleveland more then us.

So could Boston. There are plenty teams that need a Center like that more then we do. He needs to do his homework. Why the hell would the Bucks tie their money up with him with Jennings and Monta expiring?

And Delembert and Sanders are doing great for a fraction of what Gortat would make. This is MADNESS.

[MilBucksBackOnTop06]

Suns could do a lot better.

If their goal is to get young talent for Gortat, then I highly doubt it.

Dude, I like both Henson and Tobes, but let's look at this without the Bucks covered glasses.

Kendall Marshall was taken #13, Henson was taken #14. Neither has done anything. At best they're a wash.

So now you're talking Harris and Gooden (a huge negative) for a guy who's been one of the best centers in the entire league for the last three years and is still two years shy of 30.

I like Tobes, but the fact is he's a SF that has never been known for defense and still hasn't proven anything on offense.

And that's the package for a bargain productive center for the next two years? If Hammond could get that he'd make the deal yesterday.

For the record, I don't really care either way. We're not beating the Heat with Gortat so why not stick with Tobes and Henson?

On the other hand, Gortat is easily the best trade chip among Henson, Tobes and whoever else you want to throw into the mix and if the Bucks wanted to move him on draft night or a year and a half from now they may be able to get a better player than Tobes or Henson.

Basically I'm saying unless Tobes or Henson become really good this would be a steal for Milwaukee.

DrugBust stop....

I read one sentence and stopped reading. Don't try to justify this it makes you look bad. Just stop. Don't try to spin this just because everyone rejects it...even I am not that silly.

This team does not need a Center and Point guard at the expense of two players like Henson and Harris. Come on now. Don't lose all credibility...you can't spin the rationale for a deal like this. You trying to spin a debate that is not there...let it go.

Now if it was for Beasley or Wes Johnson or Shannon Brown then you think about it. Not Gortat. Why would you go out and get Pryzbilla and Delembert and bring along Sanders a fan favorite then a month later go out and get Gortat in a lateral move?

Much less Kendall Marshall when you have Udrih expiring as a 8 mil dollar PG and a promising player in Doron Lamb who might be better then Marshall anyways ?

[jr lucosa]

Kendall Marshall will probably be out of the league before he gets a 2nd contract and we don't need help at the Center position surely not at the expense of Tobias AND John Henson.

[Treebeard]

No thanks. There's a bit of a homer in most fans, so we tend to overvalue some of the players from the teams we follow. However, right now, I think Gortat is overvalued; primarily because he so greatly benefited from the presence of Nash. No Nash and Gortat is just good....

A thousand years ago, Dean Garret, a journeyman center for the Wolves had a similar big time lift from playing with Stephon Marbury. Marbury would drive the lane and dump off to Garret for the flush. Garret parlayed the boost from playing along side Marbury into a big contract. Marbury had his hissy-fit and left the Wolves. With no one to spoon feed him, Garret returned to his former self and his many limitations, and was gone from the league after his contract expired. Gortat is certainly a far better player than Dean Garret, but I think there's a similar pattern.

[paulpressey25]

Some of you guys are really under-valuing Gortat.

I'm not sure that entirely is the problem. We just don't need Gortat at all. We just switched over to a high speed shotblocking frontcourt that is playing great.

The fact that the ESPN writer has no clue about our players, our roster or the success the revamped roster has had tells me that he's a bleacher report guy writing under the banner of ESPN, which you usually don't see.

Given the fact that his first trade has the Suns giving Gorat to the Celtics tells me that he's likely a Celtic's fan trying to get traction on a trade idea.

[Thunder Muscle]

I would not do the original trade, mainly b/c I like our current center combo and like the upside of Henson & Harris. I'd rather see how they play out than trade for Gortat and Marshall. Just a personal preference.

And I also feel Gooden may just amnestied this summer. This next year it will be 12M instead of 18M, and I think someone could put a claim in for him since his stat sheet isn't awful in the past. Just need a GM that doesn't watch his defense. But it also may depend on the Owner situation. Kohl probably isn't going to pay 12M to make him go away if he intends on selling soon. If Kohl sticks around, then he might.

[LUKE23]

I'm going to go on history here as opposed to less than ten games.

Ersan isn't the NBA's worst player. Dalembert isn't going to put up All-NBA production the way he has so far. Gortat is closer to a well above average player than an average player he's been so far. I have absolutely no idea what Harris or Henson are going to provide, but I'm guessing it's not top 10 production at their position. Hoping I'm wrong.

I'm going on history too. Gortat's history without Nash, which is solid, but by no means what I'd consider a stud starting C. I'm evaluating Sanders and Udoh for what I see as well. Both are great defenders. It's pretty easy to see that. The only way there is a "significant" upgrade from those two guys getting minutes is if you have a guy that is good on D and great on offense, because both Udoh and Sanders impact the game HEAVILY on defense. And there is nothing to say that isn't going to continue for many years.

The trade wouldn't make us much better, if at all, and it certainly isn't worth giving up two young players with promise to do so, nor is it a steal for the Bucks.

And again, how has Harris shown "nothing"? It's odd that you talk about Gortat's per minute production in Orlando at age 23 playing 6.8 minutes per game, but then ignore where Harris is at age 20 as a scorer, which is 16 ppg @ .567 TS per 36. He was the second youngest player in the NBA last season. I see very little way to argue he hasn't shown a lot of offensive potential, especially given the fact that he has an A+ work ethic.

Henson we don't really know on, but the only games he has played he's looked pretty good. It seems like the Bucks young guys get held to different standards than other young guys of comparable or worse talent that are supposedly coveted around the league. Makes very little sense.

[LUKE23]

I'm not sure that entirely is the problem. We just don't need Gortat at all. We just switched over to a high speed shotblocking frontcourt that is playing great.

The fact that the ESPN writer has no clue about our players, our roster or the success the revamped roster has had tells me that he's a bleacher report guy writing under the banner of ESPN, which you usually don't see.

Given the fact that his first trade has the Suns giving Gorat to the Celtics tells me that he's likely a Celtic's fan trying to get traction on a trade idea.

Yep.

[Lippo]

FYI the other speculation was:
Gortat for Avery Bradley and Courtney Lee
Gortat for Kendrick Perkins, Jeremy Lamb and a first-round pick in 2013
Gortat for Meyers Leonard, J.J. Hickson and a first-round pick in 2013 (no lottery protection)
Gortat for Austin Rivers and Al-Farouq Aminu

Some of you guys are really under-valuing Gortat.

Lets get in on a 3 way

Bucks:
in : Lamb/Perkins
out : Gooden/2013 1st(prot)

Suns
in : Gooden/Bucks 1st/Thunder 1st
out : Gorat

Thunder
in : Gorat
out : Lamb/Perkins/1st(prot)

[Licensed to Il]

On one hand, I don't think the Bucks are for any reason a finished product or that the roster is locked and set for a deep playoff run. So I definitely think that Hammond should be looking for anything that makes us better.

I also think that Gortat is a really valuable player. He could even be a "Jamal MaGloire All Star" in that he gets attention and stats for being one of the best bigs in a conference without many. I would not trade Tobias though. I would trade Dalembert and one of: Udoh, Ersan, Henson. I'm to lazy to play around with trade checker. I'm sure they could come up with something.

With Phoenix missing out on that big contract to Eric Gordon, I have always pegged them as a team likely interested in Ellis. They aren't really going anywhere anytime soon. And they are going to need someone to score and create highlights. Monta would be a fit for them. That is kind of an intriguing idea, a deal with those two as the principles.

[LUKE23]

I have no idea why anyone would want to trade any long-term assets for Gortat given that he's only signed through next year, is nearly 29, and the fact that our frontcourt defense right now is one of the best in the NBA (in addition to being the top defensive rebounding team), with a ton of that due to our youth.

Are you planning on giving Gortat a large extension in a year and a half when he's 30?

Save the money. Amnesty Gooden this offseason. Give yourself a lot of financial/trade options this summer.

Ilyasova, Sanders, Udoh, and Henson all have a place on this roster moving forward. None is over 25 years old. Stay the course.

[A Diddy2231]

People want Gortat just because they recognize the name

[Licensed to Il]

I think it is weak to say that people want to trade for Gortat because of name recognition. I doubt he is in the top 50 most recognizable NBA players. Phoenix isnt exactly burning it up on league pass or sportscenter highlights. I imagine a more likely scenario for people wanting to acquire him is that he is a legit big body NBA center. In a playoff series he could bully Noah, Hibbert, Bynum, Garnett, etc.

I think we are set at center with Larry and Epke. But I still think there are nights when we could really use a heavier bruiser like Gortat.