Ok... So lets see the 1 deal...

[Telfaire]

Hinrich: is he really that much better then blake to deserve that ridiculous contract? He's more physical, and he'd probably help team speed a little, but I can't see that he's that great at creating offense.

As much as I like Blake, Hinrich is at another level. He's one of the league best perimeter defenders, a very good playmaker who can also play off the ball and shoot.

[tucson]

I'm not fond of Hinrich either, but I wonder if KP might be. I seem to recall last June when KP and Chicago were talking that it was rumored that Hinrich would not be included in any trade with the Blazers. That seems to imply we must have inquired about him when we looking to move Zach.

Role players who play defense and can hit the outside shot will always be needed to round out the big three. Whatever cap space we have in 2009 might more likely be used to sign 1 or 2 role players rather than an impact player. Perhaps we'll be looking at upgrades to Blake, Pryzbilla, and Jones whom are unheralded and not a lot of demand for. KP finds these diamonds in the rough and signs them to small to reasonable contracts.

Once this team achieves success, then former star veterans will want to come here willing to take the minimum to be a role player on a perennial title contender but that may take a while.

In the mean time, we will have to bide our time and wait for KP to pull off some draft day surprise.

[Spykes]

The issue I see with Darko potentially was his comments following a loss in some tourney last summer. It wasn't a pretty diatribe.

Nice catch! I totally forgot about that.

Here's the question, if you are going to spend 16 MIL per season on Miller and Darko for the next two years after this, would you rather have them or a Wallace/Hinrich or Gordon combo? I think I'd prefer the Wallace/Hinrich or Gordo combo.

It's no gonna be 16 a mil per season on either Wallace and Hinrich or Gordon though. It would be closer to 25-30 mil. Off the top of my head, I think Wallace makes around 13 mil and Hinrich is close to 10 or 11 mil. With Gordon, it would be a little cheaper for a little longer, but he'll need to be extended this summer, so you're still looking in 20's. That's not really a huge deal with Paul Allen as owner, but it's still a fairly larger commitment to take on Wallace and Hinrich or Gordon than it would be to take on Miller and Darko. However, I do think Gordon would be a fantastic fit next to Roy, so I'd definitely be in favor of a deal with the Bulls over a deal with the Grizz.

[Wizenheimer]

Hinrich: is he really that much better then blake to deserve that ridiculous contract? He's more physical, and he'd probably help team speed a little, but I can't see that he's that great at creating offense.

As much as I like Blake, Hinrich is at another level. He's one of the league best perimeter defenders, a very good playmaker who can also play off the ball and shoot.

you'll notice that is didn't seperate Hinrich from his contract...I believe that's part of the equation.

as to Hinrich being a "very good playmaker", I'll point out that Blake has a higher assist rate based on a usage basis. And Hinrich averges 8.5 ast/per48 compared to blake's 8.0. Blake has a much higher ast/turnover ratio as well. As a 'playmaker', I'd say blake is better because he protects the ball better.

As far as playing off the ball to shoot...I'm thinking portland has enough players like that unless they add one who's a dynamite shooter. Well, since Hinrich's career fg number is 41%, he's not a great shooter.

As far as defense, he has a reputation as a defender, and some of it is deserved. But the Bull's fans don't rate his defense that highly, most likely because he's better at defending SG's then PG's. He doesn't do that well against PG's and that's what portland would need him for.

He may be on 'another level' then blake, but it's not that far above, and in my view isn't worth anything close to his big contract

[tucson]

Ben Gordon has been a statistically below average shooting guard for every year of his career but last year. He doesn't do enough to make for his low shooting percentage. I don't see him as a lock down defender either. I wouldn't offer him a MLE contract.

We would win more games with Blake and Roy in the back court than Gordon and Roy.

[Mr Odd]

there's that saying: "don't shop for groceries when you're hungry"...you'll fill your cart up with stuff you don't really need and spend too much money.

Maybe that applies to this situation a little, and before going after specific players portland needs to identify what their actual weaknesses are (IMHO):

1) portland is not a physical team, inside or on the perimeter. Oden will go a long way to solving it on the inside, but at the other 4 positions, portland is overstocked with skinny finesse players.

2) portland's team speed is average at best. Oden and LMA up front will give portland an advantage there most nights, but perimeter speed is crucial and portland is weak in that area.

3) and Odd's favorite point, which is true, is that portland only has 1.5 players that can create offense. Roy can for himself and others. Travis only can for himself (thus the 1/2)

Adding Rudy won't make the team more physical, that's for sure. And considering whose minutes he'll take, I doubt he'll improve team speed. He may be able to create some offense though.

So...about the proposed additions...

Mike Miller: it would make some sense to 'trade' him for Jones in the roster. He's about the same age and may be more durable. He's a great outside shooter and he's certainly a better ball-handler then Jones or Webster. He's not that good defensively, but portland needs offense and Miller would help

Hinrich: is he really that much better then blake to deserve that ridiculous contract? He's more physical, and he'd probably help team speed a little, but I can't see that he's that great at creating offense.

Gordon: he'd help team speed, at least on the offensive end. And he does bring the dimension of being a somewhat prolific scorer to the blazer's backcourt, and they could use that. But a 6'2 SG could hardly be considered physical.

If the choice was between those 3 players, I'd rate Miller as the best, followed by Gordon, and then I guess Hinrich although his contract is just too big.

Personally, at this time of year, I don't think portland is going to land anybody who could help by just sending out the likes of frye, jack, and sergio. Portland will have to add in a more valuable player. I'd say the ones with the most value league-wide would be Outlaw, Pryzbilla, Blake, and Webster...in that order, although that may change a little depending on the other team's needs.

Portland would be best served to wait and see where they can end up in the draft before making a move.

I agree pretty much with all of that.

Yea, it might be safer to wait & let Pritchard try
to do some deals around/on draft day/night.. .

Its tough to say if the Blazers will be gunning for
that 8th spot right now, but it kind of looks like
theyre not. So if a deal doesnt come around that
can help the Blazers get to the playoffs then its
probably best to trade that 11-14th pick & player(s)
for a vet that can help the team get to the playoffs
next season. Either way the Blazers need to make
some moves. Phys, Speed, Scoring, the team has
some holes, but theyre getting there!!!!!!!!

[Spykes]

For what it's worth, here is what ESPN has to say about the Bulls trading possibilities...

* The Chicago Bulls are being described as "all over the map" in their trade talks. In addition to trying to move Ben Wallace, one source said the Bulls are now "as open as they've ever been" to trading Ben Gordon. Discussions recently broke down between the Bulls and Hornets over a deal that would have sent shooter Rasual Butler to Chicago.

[mojomarc]

Adding Rudy won't make the team more physical, that's for sure. And considering whose minutes he'll take, I doubt he'll improve team speed. He may be able to create some offense though.

Rudy is one of the quickest players in Europe, and he has a real knack for creating seperation on anyone he's playing with. I think he'll easily improve the average speed of the team. The issue is more how you want to use the speed. I don't think Nate will accept us being a five man running team like the 80s Showtime Lakers. He wants controll to much to accept the inevitable turnovers that sort of style results in. Instead, he will shoot for controlled breaks, and for that you only need one or two players that have that kind of open court speed. Adding Rudy to Roy, Martell and Outlaw should be sufficient as long as Jack isn't the ball handler.

[Wizenheimer]

-= original quote snipped =-



Rudy is one of the quickest players in Europe, and he has a real knack for creating seperation on anyone he's playing with. I think he'll easily improve the average speed of the team. The issue is more how you want to use the speed. I don't think Nate will accept us being a five man running team like the 80s Showtime Lakers. He wants controll to much to accept the inevitable turnovers that sort of style results in. Instead, he will shoot for controlled breaks, and for that you only need one or two players that have that kind of open court speed. Adding Rudy to Roy, Martell and Outlaw should be sufficient as long as Jack isn't the ball handler.

the reason I said "considering whose minutes he'll take" was because I do recognize he's quick, but his playing time will come from blake, sergio, and jack. Rudy may be fast, but I'm not convinced he's faster then those guys. And even if he is a bit faster on offense, I seriously doubt he will be on defense. I made a point of watching Rudy on defense in those video links that were posted...he wasn't that good. Of course it's also true that just about nobody in those videos looked that good on defense. But that just might be the nature of offensive highlight videos.

This all doesn't mean that Blake or Jack could have been named MVP of that tournament Rudy just played in. No way. Rudy should end up being a definite upgrade after he adjusts to the NBA. He's just unlikely to make portland much faster overall, and he sure won't make portland more physical.