Bill Simmons campaigns to be Bucks GM

[paulpressey25]

Here's his trade deadline column and what he suggests for us. I give it a big thumbs up for both moves.....

Cleveland trades Drew Gooden, Shannon Brown and Ira Newble for Charlie Villanueva and Bobby Simmons.

"....Why Cleveland does it: Because the Cavs need to do something and don't have any trade pieces that anyone really wants. They wouldn't miss anyone but Gooden, and he's replaceable because of Anderson Varejao. I also like the thought of Villanueva playing with LeBron because he can shoot 3-pointers and needs the kick-in-the-ass of playing with a great player like LeBron. And Simmons has a gawd-awful contract, but you know what? He's a physical defensive player, a tough dude who could make an impact on a playoff team. I watched him up close for an entire Clippers season -- he definitely has it in him. His contract sucks, but the good thing here is that it expires in 2010 right as do the contracts of Larry Hughes, Zydrunas Ilgauskas and ... (gulp) ... LeBron James, which means they could spend the 2009-2010 season either turning expiring contracts into quality guys, or waiting until the summer to splurge on free agency and make LeBron happy.

Why Milwaukee does it: The Bucks save some money after this season, dump Simmons' deal and turn their umpteenth perimeter guy (Villanueva) into a much-needed banger (Gooden). A no-brainer for them.

(By the way, I'd like to officially apply for Larry Harris' job -- a job we knew would be open three years ago after his deer-in-the-headlights performance after winning the 2005 lottery. Bucks fans, lemme remind you that I pushed long and hard for Chris Paul as the No. 1 pick of that draft. Do you think you'd enjoy rooting for Chris Paul right now? I bet you would. I love the good city of Milwaukee, I'd love to live there, and I'd love to run the Bucks. Come on, you couldn't do worse! Start bugging Herb Kohl right now and vote Simmons for Bucks GM in 2008! YES WE CAN! YES WE CAN! YES WE CAN!)..."

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/bl ... e=20080220

[paulpressey25]

Here is his second suggested Bucks trade:

Chicago trades Ben Wallace, Luol Deng, Chris Duhon and Adrian Griffin to Milwaukee for Michael Redd, Dan Gadzuric, Charlie Bell and Desmond Mason.

Why Chicago does it: Hey, the Bulls have to take a chance at some point, don't they? Redd gives them a crunch-time guy; Wallace is expendable because of the way Joakim Noah has been playing; they avoid paying Deng $70 million this summer when his ceiling is slightly lower than "All-Star"; and most important, they shake things up and finally bring in an All-Star guy. If you're John Paxson, the other option is to do nothing and get fired this summer. I don't know, I think I'd roll the dice over getting canned. That's just me.

Why Milwaukee does it: The Bucks chop $4 million off this year's payroll, dump the lousy Bell/Gadzuric contracts, import a veteran rebounder/defender in Wallace, and land a quality young player in Deng. Now, would it be worth it to re-sign him for big bucks? I say no. But they could match any offer, and he'd have significant sign-and-trade value for the simple reason that everyone overrates Luol Deng. Also, if you combine this deal with Trade 2A (above), suddenly the Bucks have a foundation going of Mo Williams, Yi Jianlian, Andrew Bogut, Deng, Gooden, Wallace, 2008 Lottery Pick X and no killer contracts after the 2009-10 season. Combined, those two trades would put them in a better place than their current place with their fans, which could best be described as "A Cross Between Indifference And Hell."

(Note: Did you notice how my case for replacing Larry Harris just became a little stronger with another logical fake trade? People of Milwaukee, it's time for a change! Vote Simmons for GM in 2008! YES WE CAN! YES WE CAN! YES WE CAN!)

[bigkurty]

Simmons obviously doesn't understand that he wouldn't be allowed to make any decisions on his own without the inner circle's approval. And his mad love for anything Boston has me scared he would pull off something like Bogut for Scalabrine or something along those lines. As far as the trades go, the Cleveland one is fine by me. But the Chicago one I am not a fan of.

[LISTEN2JAZZ]

I say let him be our GM. We may or may not get any better, but there would be a lot more entertainment. And yes, I say this knowing how highly he touted Adam Morrison.

[trwi7]

Redd gives them a crunch-time guy

[blkout]

I don't understand why Cleveland would do the first one and the second one just confuses me. I guess I'd do it but Chicago would be (Please Use More Appropriate Word) if they did.

[crkone]

At least we know that he will trade for players with high PERs.

[paulpressey25]

I agree...I'm not sure why the Cavs or Bulls would do those...but hey, I like them.

Chad Ford weighed in on the Bucks in his chat today:

Will (Milwaukee, WI): Chad- The Bucks badly need to make a trade. Do you seem them making any moves before tomorrow?

Chad Ford: They're another team that seems paralyzed ... Charlie Villanueva, Michael Redd ... they have some pieces to move ... but what direction is this franchise going? If Herb Kohl isn't going to let Larry Harris do his job (and by the way, I think Harris is a good GM) then he needs to hire someone who he will let work ... the limbo isn't working for anyone.

[THE DINJ]

If the Bucks trade Redd for Ben Wallace (the most overrated center in the league) I will officially quit being a fan of this team.

[jeremyd236]

The first trade is a steal for us. Gooden and Yi are complementary players at the 4 position that would really thrive with Bogut alongside them.

I don't know what to say about the second trade. With such a bad record, we can't really be picky on deals.

I just question if Chicago would really want to have Gordon and Redd on the same team.

[paulpressey25]

If the Bucks trade Redd for Ben Wallace (the most overrated center in the league) I will officially quit being a fan of this team.

So you wouldn't also want Luol Deng and Chris Duhon who Simmons also has coming back in that trade? I can't see Chicago doing this deal, but I'd be all over it.

[Licensed to Il]

the first trade idea is actually one that makes a lot of sense for both teams. sure gooden is as dumb as a rock, but he would fit in to our front court mix a lot better than CV, and of course the real motivation is to be rid of Bobby. the deal would help the cavs improve too on a couple levels (a versatile offensive big in cv and a defender and shooter in simmons) without altering their financial picture (they already have no manueverability till lebron's free agent summer anyway...

the second trade is silly in that paxson wouldn't part with deng for gasol or kobe, he sure as heck will not do so for redd. even if it meant dumping wallce... a player who is even more overrated and cancerous than simmons.

[ReasonablySober]

I'd do both deals, though I can't see Chicago doing the second. As Will Perdude said, if Chicago wouldn't include Deng in a deal for Garnett, Kobe or Gasol, why the hell do it for Redd?

Simmons also makes a good point about resigning Deng. I think he's overrated in that his trade value seems to be huge, but he's not a franchise type player. What he does seem to be is the guy you love to have if you've already got a legit superstar. He's unselfish to a fault and a team guy. If the Bucks got did this trade then got a high lotto pick and the chance to land a franchise changing talent, I'd pay whatever Deng wanted. If they ended up with a 6 pick or lower, I'd S/T him for a '09 expiring contract and a lotto pick (New York, New York...).

[El Duderino]

Here is his second suggested Bucks trade:
[i]
Chicago trades Ben Wallace, Luol Deng, Chris Duhon and Adrian Griffin to Milwaukee for Michael Redd, Dan Gadzuric, Charlie Bell and Desmond Mason.

Why Chicago does it: Hey, the Bulls have to take a chance at some point, don't they? Redd gives them a crunch-time guy; Wallace is expendable because of the way Joakim Noah has been playing; they avoid paying Deng $70 million this summer when his ceiling is slightly lower than "All-Star"; and most important, they shake things up and finally bring in an All-Star guy. If you're John Paxson, the other option is to do nothing and get fired this summer. I don't know, I think I'd roll the dice over getting canned. That's just me.

I'm a fan of Simmons in most cases, but that Redd is a crunch time player had me cracking up.


I'm also trying to figure out how adding Redd to a team with zero post scoring helps them at all and they already have Gordon, for now at least. Besides as others said, they turn down Deng in Garnett talks, but think Michael Redd is the missing piece. Earth to Bill.

It will be interesting to see what the happens with Deng and Gordon after they turned down those contract offers. Most thought the Bulls would be a 45-50 game winner, now it wouldn't shock me if their roster is blown up.

[skones]

I LOVE that Chicago deal.

[blkout]

I just read the whole article, and oh my god. People pay him to write this? Half of the trades are absolutely horrific. Good thing he's reasonably funny, stick to draft diaries and GM summits please.

[Nowak008]

I would give Bill a life time deal if he tricked the Bulls into that deal.

[GrandAdmiralDan]

I also like the thought of Villanueva playing with LeBron because he can shoot 3-pointers and needs the kick-in-the-ass of playing with a great player like LeBron.

If Bill Simmons can convince the Cavs that Charlie Villanueva is even a decent 3-point shooter, I think he'd be the unanimous choice for Executive of the Year.

[AussieBuck]

Redd and Yi and our 2009 1st for Brand.
CV plus Jake, Ivey, Storey for Mike Miller.
Mo, Noel and Ruffin for Battier, Novak and Landry.

Play out the year with Gadz and Novak getting big minutes (tanking basically) then draft a Stud PG.

Rookie/Bell/Sessions
Miller/Bell/Simmons
Battier/Simmons
Brand/??/Novak
Bogut/Gadz

We make the playoffs next season, how far we go depends on how good our PG is. ( I haven't really followed this draft yet but I've heard it's deep at PG)
The following season Simmons becomes a fat expiring and our team are roughly at their peak and ready to win.

Make me GM.

[ReasonablySober]

I honestly don't laugh out loud much when I read something online, but

Redd gives them a crunch-time guy

had me rolling.