Official trade deadline thread

[TylersLakers]

Really good trade for the Hornets, I wonder what else will go down before the deadline.

[davidse]

great trade for the hornets, rockets keep on being clueless.

[alfurd]

Adelman knows Bobby Jackson from Sacramento (which translates into what?) and with a headcase like Mike James playing limited minutes and shooting like trash, they strengthen their rotation by getting Jackson (do they?) and giving other players more minutes. So in that sense it's Jackson for Bonzi and they get to dump a liability.

Ok yeah I don't understand why they did this either. This is a marginal upgrade at best, which it isn't, even when you look at it in terms of chemistry, needs, and their system.

[hermes]

not good for the rockets
real good for the hornets

[alaskan34pac34]

i dont know if any has seen aaron brooks play but he looks pretty good maybe this was to free up some pt for him... still dont think this was a good move either way

[Joe Kleazy]

^ This is true but it is mostly a hard thing to deal with like you said when you have to adjust to a new system. This is offset in our case when the player coming in fits perfectly into the system, AND is extremely talented. So I still put our move above the spurs, then followed by the suns, NO, and then dallas.

[Erik Eleven]

Why did the Rockets do this?

I can only speculate, but Mike James is a self absorbed ball hog and Bonzi Wells is, well, Bonzi Wells. This trade reeks of Adelman's influence. Bobby Jackson knows his system.

Barring for chemistry issues with the Hornets down the line, this is a very good trade for them. It makes them very deep. Let's just hope that Mike James keeps that mouth going.

[Erik Eleven]

They held a team to 65 points the other day, without Thomas. I heard a rumor that, from now on, if they hold a team under 60, the fans get free Tacos.

This makes them very tough inside. If we're healthy, we're still tougher. I still like our chances.

They lost some outside shooting and will have to count on Ginobili and Horry et cetera to produce more of that. Playing those two for heavy minutes could come back to bite them in the arse in other aspects of the game.

[TommyTheCat]

This isn't going to be a popular opinion here, but I believe that the Thomas trade was the best trade of the year.

i'm taking it that you didn't hear what the lakers gave up for gasol.

i understand your points about kurt fitting in right away and it being a good trade for the spurs but gasol>>>>>thomas

[TommyTheCat]

good trade for the hornets

a salary dump for the rockets

[alfurd]

Just building on what Joe mentioned... the trades are different. The Spurs have a core that's proven to be sufficient for winning a championship, it's who they have around those key players that's their concern. Thomas provides what they want in a supporting role (and possibly one where he plays fewer minutes than predicted).

There's always a transition period when a team changes the core of their roster, but in the case with Gasol and the Lakers he doesn't necessarily provide a dominating presence and his game is naturally more accommodating than those of the other great players switching teams. The whole point was to make a change so that the team is a legitimate title contender, rather than one that is sort of in position but had some fundamental issue. Gasol is ideal in that sense, because the you can sort of choose whether you want him to be a focal point or to blend in and encourage Bynum to become the #2 option. Conversely, the Spurs were fine, they just needed to reinforce their supporting cast and they brought in a great player for a smaller but significant role.

Even if both trades took place on the same day and the playoffs started right afterwards, the Lakers' title chances for this season are still significantly more improved than Spurs' based on where the two teams started off from. When Bynum returns of course some players will have to figure things out with their adjusted roles and minutes, but I don't think the Lakers as a whole will stumble in the adjustment period and play much worse than when Odom disappeared during games or when Kwame stepped onto the court. We still have to see for the Kidd and Shaq trades.

Not sure if this post directly responds to the issues about chemistry.

[LAKESHOW]

This isn't going to be a popular opinion here, but I believe that the Thomas trade was the best trade of the year.

I know that's saying a lot considering several big name players were moved. However, I'm a big believer in logic and chemistry.

Only a fool would believe that it's easy to insert great players like Kidd, Gasol, and O'Neal into a new system. You're going to have to make some major adjustments because those players are great.

The Spurs are a step ahead with this trade because they don't have to change a thing to assimilate Thomas into their system. He's already a veteran player who understands the value of defense. He's got great fundamentals and is unselfish.

That doesn't necessarily mean that I think the Spurs are going to win the championship, but the trade does help them out a lot.

well you make some good points. and they are based on spurs need IMMEDIATELY. so i guess that would constitute a "best trade." but based on that, memphis had the "best trade". due to the fact that they acquired THE LARGEST if not one of thee largest expiring contracts out there in kwame.

but in my estimation, pau gasol is not a regular player or an over the hill player, or a journeyman. he is a lottery player IN HIS PRIME. you just dont get those types of players.

so yeah, the spurs made a good move for them. but so did memphis. but in the long haul, the LAKERs made the biggest blockbuster move that will pay bigger dividends for years to come.

[Cracked Fingers]

Wells is too much of a wildcard. He plays hard rarely and won't play at all for certain coaches. I could see him and Scott bumping heads much like Scott did with JR Smith.

[WCDYNASTY]

SOURCE:
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/insider/columns/story?columnist=ford_chad&page=TradeTalk&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fnba%2finsider%2fcolumns%2fstory%3fcolumnist%3dford_chad%26page%3dTradeTalk

The dark horse in the Artest discussions may be the Suns. According to two league sources, the Suns have some interest. The team feels like they need to replace Shawn Marion's perimeter defense, and Artest would fit the bill. His ability to guard four positions makes him coveted, despite the concerns about his personality.

The Suns have a trade exception, which they acquired in the trade of Kurt Thomas to Seattle, that would allow Phoenix to acquire Artest without including other players in the deal. To make it happen, the Suns would likely have to include the first-round pick they acquired from Atlanta.

That's a high price to pay for Artest, for several reasons.

One, he has an early-termination option at the end of this season, which allows him to become an unrestricted free agent. The Suns could lose him for nothing this summer.

Two, adding Artest to the payroll would be expensive. The Suns are already on course to pay the luxury tax -- so they'd have to pay a dollar for dollar penalty on Artest.

Three, he's extremely unpredictable. The Suns' chemistry is already a question mark with the arrival of Shaquille O'Neal. How would they work Artest into the picture?

[WCDYNASTY]

ONeal
Stoudemire
Artest
Bell
Nash

. . . at this point Id be worried, doubt the Suns will get Artest anyways.

[incontrol__]

Yeah, that'd make me more worried about the Suns, definetly.

[UThinkUrSoGood]

Who do they give up? Trade Hill for Artest strait up?

[WCDYNASTY]

Who do they give up? Trade Hill for Artest strait up?

The Suns have a trade exception, which they acquired in the trade of Kurt Thomas to Seattle, that would allow Phoenix to acquire Artest without including other players in the deal. To make it happen, the Suns would likely have to include the first-round pick they acquired from Atlanta.

[fareweatherfan]

At the risk of sounding over confident, I worry very little about the Suns, with or without Ron Artest.

He would likely take PT away from Hill, who has been playing fantastic for them. And having both Ron and Bell on the floor at the same time is just redundant.

All in all, I think the Suns' window has closed. True, they are still a great team that can beat any team in the league on any given night, but in a seven games series I just don't see them beating us, or many of the other top tier teams in the league.

[CDB]

Rockets Bring Gulf Shore's Green Back to Houston

HOUSTON -- Minnesota Timberwolves guard Gerald Green tells FOX 26 Sports he has been traded to his hometown Houston Rockets for guard Kirk Snyder and a second-round draft pick.

Green, in his third year in the NBA, went to Gulf Shores Academy High School in Houston. He was drafted in the first round out of high school by the Boston Celtics.

"It's like a dream come true. Never in my life did I think this would happen," Green said. "I am on cloud nine."

Green was traded by Boston to Minnesota in that blockbuster deal involving Kevin Garnett.

He won the Slam Dunk Title in 2007 and was runner-up in 2008.