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Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 8:23 pm
by It_Was_Typed
From Chad Ford's Insider today:
Chad Ford: The big trade rumor flying around (if you're already tired of the Shaq-to-Cleveland talk) centers on the Hawks' Josh Smith. Several league sources told ESPN.com that the Hawks have been working hard the past few weeks to see whether they can find a taker for Smith.
The Hawks have some financial issues coming into the summer. Two key players, Mike Bibby and Marvin Williams, are free agents. So are a few others on the roster -- Josh Childress, Zaza Pachulia and Ronald Murray. Although the Hawks would like to keep those players, they can't afford to pay all of them. That has opened the door to the possibility of trading Smith, who, although talented, has a reputation as a difficult player to coach.
The Hawks have had no problem finding teams interested in Smith. The issue is the whopping $6 million trade kicker attached to his contract. The trade kicker essentially would require the team that trades for Smith to pay him the $6 million immediately. In this economic climate, many owners will balk at the payment.
"You are going to see very few owners willing to do things like that anymore," one GM said. "I'm not saying he's impossible to trade. There are a few owners like Paul Allen, James Dolan, Mark Cuban and maybe Daniel Gilbert who would pay the money. But there aren't many.
Interesting.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 8:44 pm
by jtmoney
This article suggests we would get very little in return so that we could resign all our FA, in which case I am against it. Trade Joe...not Josh
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 9:06 pm
by HoopsGuru25
ESPN(Ford in particular)has been so wildly inaccurate about their "inside" info about the Hawks that it's hard to take them seriously...but maybe that's changed since we have a new GM.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 9:41 pm
by geeman
correct me but is't Chad Ford the same guy who said that ZaZa had Josh pinned up in the locker room wall after a bad loss?
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:06 pm
by pja123
C'mon, it's Chad Ford.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:11 pm
by jagstang76
Positionally, Smoove causes the most problems on our roster. He's a great player for bringing passion and energy, but he's been unable to put it all together to the degree that we all know he should. If we hold onto Marvin and move Al to PF where he is better suited, Smoove would be an expensive option to bring off the bench. He could very well bring us a C though that would better help our lineup and give us flexibility to resign other players. I know that I'd miss what he brings to this team, but it could be for the best. However, I don't want to dump him for nothing because we can't progress without getting someone back who will help us. Resigning Bibby and Marvin at the expense of Smoove is just criminal.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:12 pm
by JoshB914
Jesus I hate Chad Ford. ESPN should be barred from reporting inside info about the Hawks, it's quite clear that no one has any meaningful contacts within the organization.
Let's review here. This "insider" has "knowledge" from "league sources" about Josh Smith being traded. However, he is unable to offer anything substantial regarding said rumors such as what teams are interested, what types of players we are looking for etc. Instead he rattles off some crap about his trade kicker that you can find on a google search.
Oh yeah, that sounds reliable.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:17 pm
by JoshB914
jagstang76 wrote:Positionally, Smoove causes the most problems on our roster. He's a great player for bringing passion and energy, but he's been unable to put it all together to the degree that we all know he should. If we hold onto Marvin and move Al to PF where he is better suited, Smoove would be an expensive option to bring off the bench. He could very well bring us a C though that would better help our lineup and give us flexibility to resign other players. I know that I'd miss what he brings to this team, but it could be for the best. However, I don't want to dump him for nothing because we can't progress without getting someone back who will help us. Resigning Bibby and Marvin at the expense of Smoove is just criminal.
In principle, I think the idea of trading Josh for a good center and moving Al to the PF would be nice. But honestly, how many realistic options are out there that would actually make us better? I'm not interested in Chris Kaman, Marcus Camby etc.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:22 pm
by raleigh
Bynum is the only one that makes any real sense for the Hawks, and I'm not sure the Lakers would be interested.
(And it would be a major risk for Atlanta).
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:32 pm
by jagstang76
I don't doubt that it will be a challenge to find a decent option at C. Perhaps it makes more sense to get more quality depth. Resigning Zaza and picking up a Wilcox-type player would go a long way towards making this team better in the middle. Branden Wright would a nice addition, but I'd want him coming off the bench not replacing Smoove in the lineup. Adding those guys would help us stay athletic while improving depth. If managed to get Ellis too (I think it's been discussed in other threads), we would be in a much better situation all around.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:02 pm
by Crossova21
Pacers Fan Here,
What would it take for us to snag Smith? (outside of Granger) I know we would probably have to trade our whole team
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:03 pm
by rsavaj
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:20 pm
by JoshB914
rsavaj wrote:
Not too interested in a one-year $20M+ rental that doesn't make us a title contender. Especially if we have to give up one of our best long-term pieces to get him.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:21 pm
by raleigh
Crossova21 wrote:Pacers Fan Here,
What would it take for us to snag Smith? (outside of Granger) I know we would probably have to trade our whole team
There's no one on the Pacers that would make sense other than Granger, who is better than Smith.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:29 pm
by azballer53
JoshB914 wrote:rsavaj wrote:
Not too interested in a one-year $20M+ rental that doesn't make us a title contender. Especially if we have to give up one of our best long-term pieces to get him.
it would also give you money in a year to sign a elite player like wade/lbj/bosh/amare/etc.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:39 pm
by Skar
Why would they trade one of their best players for nothing?
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:42 pm
by raleigh
Skar wrote:Why would they trade one of their best players for nothing?
They wouldn't. It's just Chad Ford's BS.
But, I do think there may be some "smoke" around the idea of trading Smith for a player that fits better (i.e., a CR or PG).
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:48 pm
by evildallas
On the Shaq subject, I prefer not to delude ourselves into a bad move on the theory that it would give us cap space to pursue elite players in free agency. The truth is that we aren't that attractive to the top tier free agents and if we did land one it would most likely have to a sign and trade rather than an outright signing. Josh Smith is more valuable in that scenario than the cap space.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 12:40 am
by dms269
The good news about this wiretap is that we get more Atl trades on the trade board. The bad news is that they are mostly "smith and speedy for maggette" type deals.
Re: Josh Smith on the move?
Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 1:14 am
by dsorc
mrhonline wrote:Skar wrote:Why would they trade one of their best players for nothing?
They wouldn't. It's just Chad Ford's BS.
But, I do think there may be some "smoke" around the idea of trading Smith for a player that fits better (i.e., a CR or PG).
Probably a non-starter since I don't think a trade is that likely to begin with. But would you be interested in Rondo or Perkins from Boston? Just gauging value.