RealGM

They say he's available. Would it be worth it?
I say it's worth the chance he goes back to the old Elton Brand. With Diop and Diaw that would be a decent frontcourt and we need a real scorer unlike Mek. They don't they need a Mek. We might even be able to get them to throw in something else.




http://hoopshype.com/rumors.htm

man the reason brand is available is he is used goods...one he is completely the wrong player for there style even when he was healthy and he just signed a new contract i would avoid him l

I hear you but what is his worst case scenerio once he gets healthier?
16-18 points 10 rebounds and 1.5 blocks.
What does Mek average? 14 points 11 rebounds and 1.8 blocks.

So if Brand goes back to the old Brand we get a 20-25 points guy with 10 boards and 2 blocks and if he doesn't he is still about Mek.
Is it a big risk?

Brand collects a lot of empty stats. Mek's defensive presence makes up for whatever minor statistical advantage Brand has over him, plus he's younger. If we shopped Okafor I think we could come away with a something a bit better, not that I would even consider trading him unless an incredible offer came our way.

Brand has just signed that massive new deal, is a little on the old size and is coming off two pretty bad injuries.

EO50 has been showing the ability to hit that baseline mid range J.

I'd keep our boy.

Nope.

The closest thing we have to an identity right now is based around our defense, and Okafor is probably the most important part of that.

Maybe in the past, but now that we have turned into a pretty good defensive team, you can't go away trading your defensive anchor. Given the other questions surrounding Brand, it's just not worth pursuing.

Brand collects empty stats? That's a bizarre thing to say, he was a legitimately great player in LA. I don't know why he's sucked in Philly, though I suspect he never really recovered from the injury. It's not worth the risk, but if he reverts to old Brand, he would certainly be a more than worthy swap.

He has had a rough start but averaged 25 points a few years back.
If Elton goes back to Elton then this was a missed opp but I wouldn't take the risk either. I would keep Mek as well.

Paydro70 wrote:Brand collects empty stats? That's a bizarre thing to say, he was a legitimately great player in LA. I don't know why he's sucked in Philly, though I suspect he never really recovered from the injury. It's not worth the risk, but if he reverts to old Brand, he would certainly be a more than worthy swap.

With the exception of 2006 I can't recall a season where his production ever amounted to anything. Even then that was Cassell's team during crunch time. On the other hand that may not be entirely fair, discounting someone's production just because they aren't contending gets most of our guys severely undervalued as well.

I don't have anything against Brand but if you're trading great defense for great offense (which is how I would view a Mek/Brand swap) the offense you're getting back had better be a go-to player. I'm just not sure that Brand can be a go-to player on a great team, I feel a lot more confident that Mek can contribute to a great team if only for his impact on the defensive end.

It would be something to consider if Brand were younger but I get the feeling he's peaked and it's only going downhill from here.