Wiz trade Shard and 2nd rounder for Okafor and Ariza

[Jimmy Recard]

Don't love the trade, don't hate it though. I might cry if MJ takes Beal at #3 though.

Consider for a moment how much our front-court has changed in less that a year. McGee and Blatche were supposed to be our frontline of the future. Athleticism, scoring, length - only problem was these two were tossed around like rag dolls on a nightly basis. They were out-rebounded, couldn't hold position on either end and constantly were pushed off the block. Teams won't be pushing around Nene/Seraphin/Okafor.

Length at the SF with Ariza and Singleton. Ariza is a damn good defender, just can't shoot.

Add Beal at the 2 and we have a pretty decent squad next year. Definitely think we can make a push for the playoffs next year while the East is in shambles.

Orlando will have to deal with Dwight Howard fiasco all over again. Boston will rebuild. Chicago are reportedly going to tank without Rose. New Jersey are f*cked. Atlanta is stuck in mediocrity until Smith demands another trade. The rest don't impress me much. Indiana is the only team who made the playoffs that might get better next year.

Look at the teams who didn't make the playoffs but finished above us; Milwaukee, Detroit, Toronto, New Jersey, Cleveland.

Surely, with this line-up, we can leapfrog these team next year.

[Dat2U]

The problem with our big man rotation pre-trade was that nene was the only reliable rebounder and vesely and booker are undersized. I dont doubt that Seraphin can become a decent rebounder, but until then for the next year, we needed another big man. Vesely/Seraphin most likely would have got stomped on as would Booker/Seraphin. Now, at least, they can have Nene or Okafor in at all times so we dont get walked all over in the rebounding dept, then play one of Vesely, Booker, Seraphin alongside them. If you think ALL THREE of those guys will continue their progression enough to force Nene and Okafor out of the rotation then you're delusional.

We were 25th in team rebounding and our SFs were ranked the worst in the league. Okafor and Ariza are overpaid, but they help a lot if you value aspects of the game like rebounding and playing with a wing on the court, over other "aspects of the game" like pinching salary cap pennies. We filled two big holes in our team with this trade, and we'll fill another with Beal or MKG (shooting or a 2nd wing). I like the team for next yaer. Ariza and Okafor are tradable pieces if someone steps up, and they can be replaced.

You make it sound we've made a clear upgrade??? Is Okafor a better rebounder? Sure, but there are other aspects of the game too, lol. Nene & Seraphin are better players at this stage regardless of the rebounding numbers. Is Okafor even a significant upgrade over Booker as 3rd big???

And with Ariza, It's a marginal upgrade which is really damning indictment of Ariza considering how bad we were at the 3. We can dream about him being some magical 3 & D guy but that fact is he's been an abominable shooter with miserable shot selection. He's not the type of player that's going to help you win games.

[WashWiz54]

I'll try to stay positive but by no means do that mean I love the trade. We got rid of a guy who was never going to play another possession for the Wizards and got two very serviceable rotation players. Obviously this came at the expense of flexibility cap-wise but they aren't killer contracts. I would of loved (and expected) NOLA to add more but this is our hand.

Big men who can play are pretty rare and Okafor can still play at a pretty effective level. He rebounds, defends, has an adequate offensive game, and I have never heard a bad word about him. Sure, he is overpaid but look around the league... almost all PF/C's are. He isn't going to be on our roster if we don't want him to be, there is a market. However, if we decide to keep him, it won't be the worst thing in the world. Cut from a good cloth and does things we need in rebounding and defense. A lot of people love Chicago's front-court and they have four solid bigs who all get minutes. Their lineup is a little more diverse but the point stands. Front court depth is beautiful thing and I won't complain a bit about it.

As for Ariza, I believe he is still a good role player. Over the last few years he has been expected to be a big contributor on offense and he could not handle it. If we redefine his role as a 3&D player (like he was in LA and partially in Houston), he'll go back to performing. We just cannot expect him to be volume scorer and his percentages should go back up. Once again a bit overpaid but its the nature of the beast. Nobody is coming here at or below market value.

[mhd]

John Hollinger rated Joe Alexander above Derrick Rose. Think about that for a second. He's got Lilliard rated criminally low. Seriously, why does ANYONE take what this guy writes seriously? He also had Demar Derozen as the 57th best player in his draft, and Kenneth Faried as the 29th best player last year.

[Rafael122]

Article on Ariza:

http://www.hornets247.com/blog/2012/03/ ... out-again/

[tontoz]

John Hollinger rated Joe Alexander above Derrick Rose. Think about that for a second. He's got Lilliard rated criminally low. Seriously, why does ANYONE take what this guy writes seriously? He also had Demar Derozen as the 57th best player in his draft, and Kenneth Faried as the 29th best player last year.

If you can refute any of the points he made in his article feel free.

[AWIZZINGBULLET]

If both players opted out of their contracts would that not create cap room for the team once again? They both have early termination options after this season I believe I read.

[Illuminaire]

Yes, if any of the two highly overpaid players decided to make less money, they could do that.

Or would you prefer a more bitterly sarcastic answer?

[Dat2U]

John Hollinger rated Joe Alexander above Derrick Rose. Think about that for a second. He's got Lilliard rated criminally low. Seriously, why does ANYONE take what this guy writes seriously? He also had Demar Derozen as the 57th best player in his draft, and Kenneth Faried as the 29th best player last year.

You can kill the messenger but that doesn't make the deal anymore palatable.

[Jimmy Recard]

So it's blatantly obvious that we're taking Beal now. What happens if Jordan takes Beal at 2 and tries to milk something out of us? God you better hope MJ isn't that smart Ernie, for your sake.

[Rafael122]

If both players opted out of their contracts would that not create cap room for the team once again? They both have early termination options after this season I believe I read.

Okafor won't opt out. He's not leaving $14 million on the table.

Ariza on the other hand will be 28 by next offseason. Chances are the Wizards aren't going to sign him long term, so I wouldn't be surprised if Ariza opted out for a longer term deal somewhere else if he can get it. I'm sure he could, especially if he has a good year.

[Dat2U]

John Hollinger rated Joe Alexander above Derrick Rose. Think about that for a second. He's got Lilliard rated criminally low. Seriously, why does ANYONE take what this guy writes seriously? He also had Demar Derozen as the 57th best player in his draft, and Kenneth Faried as the 29th best player last year.

If you can refute any of the points he made in his article feel free.

Grunfeld said the Wizards are better than they were yesterday, and in a very narrow sense he's correct: This deal does incrementally improve his roster. But there are far more efficient ways to produce the same improvement, and instead Grunfeld has essentially handcuffed the franchise to two more years of mediocrity so he could win a news conference.

Yeah, please refute this...

[Upper Decker]

John Hollinger rated Joe Alexander above Derrick Rose. Think about that for a second. He's got Lilliard rated criminally low. Seriously, why does ANYONE take what this guy writes seriously? He also had Demar Derozen as the 57th best player in his draft, and Kenneth Faried as the 29th best player last year.

If you can refute any of the points he made in his article feel free.

Grunfeld said the Wizards are better than they were yesterday, and in a very narrow sense he's correct: This deal does incrementally improve his roster. But there are far more efficient ways to produce the same improvement, and instead Grunfeld has essentially handcuffed the franchise to two more years of mediocrity so he could win a news conference.

Yeah, please refute this...

Actually, I think they're worse. Ariza is the Jordan Crawford of SF's and I wanted Crawford out of DC yesterday. Also, Okafor will take PT from Booker/Seraphin/Vesely who are all better than Okafor.

[hands11]

You know-what fella's? It's because Ted/Ernie would rather have Okafor and Ariza rather than pay Shard to walk. Blatche isn't going anywhere either.

I figured Ted was going to try to do something with Lewis's contract. I wasn't a fan of the idea. I would have rather he just bought him out instead of using the cap space this way.

But am I shocked. Nope. Ted is so far proving to be a little bit of a cheapo.

As of right now. Not liking this one bit. I liked the team I composed better with just using the picks, adding Kirk and paying Lewis to leave.

[7-Day Dray]

just got to keep reminding myself drummond or barnes will be there at 3.

Seriously WizD? Even after this trade, your still onboard for picking Drummond?

It's not like Okafor should impact our draft pick in any way. If EG think Drummond is BPA, you take him.

[Rafael122]

You know-what fella's? It's because Ted/Ernie would rather have Okafor and Ariza rather than pay Shard to walk. Blatche isn't going anywhere either.

I figured Ted was going to try to do something with Lewis's contract. I wasn't a fan of the idea. I would have rather he just bought him out instead of using the cap space this way.

But am I shocked. Nope. Ted is so far proving to be a little bit of a cheapo.

As of right now. Not liking this one bit. I liked the team I composed better with just using the picks, adding Kirk and paying Lewis to leave.

How is he being cheap if he's adding salary?

[DCZards]

Article on Ariza:

http://www.hornets247.com/blog/2012/03/ ... out-again/

Maybe those having a sissy fit about Ariza's shot selection should read this article. They might find it enlightening. I'd also refer them to the comments about Ariza by Hornet fans that follows the article.

[VictorPage44]

The problem with our big man rotation pre-trade was that nene was the only reliable rebounder and vesely and booker are undersized. I dont doubt that Seraphin can become a decent rebounder, but until then for the next year, we needed another big man. Vesely/Seraphin most likely would have got stomped on as would Booker/Seraphin. Now, at least, they can have Nene or Okafor in at all times so we dont get walked all over in the rebounding dept, then play one of Vesely, Booker, Seraphin alongside them. If you think ALL THREE of those guys will continue their progression enough to force Nene and Okafor out of the rotation then you're delusional.

We were 25th in team rebounding and our SFs were ranked the worst in the league. Okafor and Ariza are overpaid, but they help a lot if you value aspects of the game like rebounding and playing with a wing on the court, over other "aspects of the game" like pinching salary cap pennies. We filled two big holes in our team with this trade, and we'll fill another with Beal or MKG (shooting or a 2nd wing). I like the team for next yaer. Ariza and Okafor are tradable pieces if someone steps up, and they can be replaced.

You make it sound we've made a clear upgrade??? Is Okafor a better rebounder? Sure, but there are other aspects of the game too, lol. Nene & Seraphin are better players at this stage regardless of the rebounding numbers. Is Okafor even a significant upgrade over Booker as 3rd big???

And with Ariza, It's a marginal upgrade which is really damning indictment of Ariza considering how bad we were at the 3. We can dream about him being some magical 3 & D guy but that fact is he's been an abominable shooter with miserable shot selection. He's not the type of player that's going to help you win games.

yes, okafor is a better 3rd big than booker because #1 and #2 bigs are not good rebounders and neither is booker so that doesnt make Booker as good a fit for our team as Okafor because we can actually play okafor on the court at the same time as seraphin/nene and not get rebounded all over. Who's better overall is pretty arbitrary if you're 25th in rebounding. Saying that Ariza is only a minor upgrade is a clear example of overvalueing our players. You're saying Ariza is only marginally better than Singleton? please. Ariza also averaged 5 boards and over 3 assists per game. He shot the ball less than once every three minutes. Crawford shoots it more than once every two minutes, on fewer pts per shot attempt. That's a significant difference, you cant campare the two.

[Rafael122]

Also from Hollinger on Twitter:

@JohnHollinger: I'll note that @GerrityJoe watches more Hornets than anybody &insists Ariza improved shot selection substantially last yr

[closg00]

I haven't been this depressed since Ernie got his contract extension.