It’s been quiet. Too quiet.
Serious trade chatter is down around the league. People are talking but there is less meaningful dialogue going on than in an Adam Sandler movie. Maybe it’s fear of the new CBA. Maybe it’s Carmelo Anthony creating a bottleneck. Maybe people are too busy playing Angry Birds.
Well, we are not a patient people. We want action, not empty words. So we’re just going to throw some trades out there. What follows are trades that work under the cap but are not things we’ve heard or things likely to happen. In fact, we’d be shocked if any did happen. Just consider this a list of things we’d like to see.
Knicks get Steve Nash; Suns get Raymond Felton and Danilo Gallinari. I know the Suns are not going to trade Nash until this summer, if ever. I know Nash doesn’t want to be traded. But by not moving him the Suns are only admitting going to be mediocre until they start the rebuilding process when he leaves. The window has closed, time to move on. Yes Knicks fans, Felton has been good, but he is no Nash and Chris Paul (more than ‘Melo or Dwight Howard) should be the ultimate target. Nash is the two-year stopover. The city loves him and he the city. The Knicks become much more of a threat (not a contender, a threat). The Suns get a good young point guard and a guy who can knock down the outside shot, guys that don’t fit the system. They don’t get much worse. Both Felton and Gallo have two-year deals so the Suns can move them again next season depending on their direction.
Orlando gets Troy Murphy and Johan Petro; New Jersey gets Jason Richardson. This works for both teams on some level. For the Nets they get more money off the books this summer to help with rebuilding and don’t give up any talent that is not replaceable in Petro. For Orlando, if Murphy is healthy and can play he is the kind of stretch four they miss along the front line. And his help defense rotations can’t be worse than Hedo Turkoglu, can they?
Chicago gets Anthony Parker; Cleveland get Omer Asik. I know, trading a young promising big for a steady but not spectacular wing is not usually a good move. But the Bulls are a threat this season and they need better play at the two spot, Parker will give them that. He is a veteran steady hand. The Cavs should not turn down anyone young with potential.
New York gets Joel Pryzbilla and Greg Oden; Portland gets Eddy Curry and Kelenna Azubuike. This has no chance of happening, but it’s a relatively harmless move for both sides because every deal is expiring. The Knicks need some more steady play in the paint without screwing up their cap, they get that with Pryzbilla. The Blazers certainly will try and may be ale to get more for Pryzbilla. But this gives them the chance to try out Azubuike and still clear out cap space at the end of the season. And they can still re-sign Oden. If they really want to.
New Orleans gets Chris Kaman; Los Angeles Clippers get Trevor Ariza, Marucs Banks, Marcus Thornton. We’re throwing this out there but frankly we’re not convinced we’d do it if we were the Hornets. New Orleans GM Dell Demps is working it hard right now to find some more help along the front line. Chris Kaman, when healthy, is a good NBA center. He can score, defend, makes smart plays. Chris Paul would like him. For the Clippers, they need to go with DeAndre Jordan at Center and this gives them some guys on the wing that would be a good fit with the current roster.
Okay, none of those are happening. But hopefully soon we can see something real to talk about.
