http://www.nba.com/preview/2013/ATL/index.html December 15th, Millsap eligible to be traded. Brand, too.
Yep. I'm pretty much convinced that Millsap was only signed, and only signed himself to get a secure deal now that can be moved during the season to a playoff team. Most of the teams that Millsap would want to have signed with were the same teams going after Howard(cough, cough Rockets) which had to hold onto their capspace in that pursuit at the same time that Millsap was seeking a deal. If the Asik/Howard marriage doesn't work out, one of the young bigs doesn't grow up overnight, and Asik isn't playing enough minutes to justify it, there is no question in my mind that an Asik for Millsap deal will be available Dec. 15th. The only question is... will the Rocket hold off on that deal for a better player like LaMarcus Aldridge, Kevin Love, or Horford himself??? However, Millsap should be available in 50 or so days IMO.
Asik and Terence Jones for Horford would be a steal for houston. Atlanta gets a young center to pair with millsap and we get a true otis thorpe type PF. What a pipe dream
Asik for Milsap is a match made in heaven. The offense would flow so much smoother with Paul in the starting lineup.
What Asik gave us last year as a starting 5 is without question. But what he can give us as strictly a backup 5 maybe less than what Milsap can give us as a starting 4. I am hesitant to make the necessary roster changes to fit another max contract unless that person is CP3, Lebron or Durant.
The whole Millsap to Houston for Asik thing just seems to make so much sense that a conspiracy theorist might even think that Ferry and Morey were working together on a "delayed sign and trade" where ATL signed Millsap with the intention of trading him to Houston. Heck, Ferry was nice enough to also sign Elton Brand, who would be nice to have to fill a backup-center role if Asik is gone. As for Aldridge or Love: Given that they each have 2 years left under contract, I don't think they'll be traded until summer 2014 at the earliest-- and if they do get traded this season like Utah did to Deron Williams, it's gonna be for a king's ransom like Utah got (#3 pick Favors, another top pick that turned into Kanter, and Devin Harris). Not sure Houston has the assets (that they are willing to expend) to match this kind of offer from another team. Besides, the advanced stats crowd (RAPM, at least: http://stats-for-the-nba.appspot.com/ratings/2013.html) loves Paul Millsap. He would be a nice fit for the team-- just a versatile player who does a little of everything on the court.
Dwight will play 33+ mins per night....so we're talking about finding someone that can fill in for the other 15 mins. I don't mind Smith playing those minutes.
I agree about Milsap. If this were to go down, we need to turn 2 of Dmo, Jones, Smith plus picks if necessary into a reliable backup 5. I don't have much confidence in Camby's health.
Not having a good backup to Howard is a concern. So, I'd imagine that Houston would try to bring back a decent reliable backup C if they do trade Asik for someone like Millsap (if they can land Aldridge it's less of an issue since Aldridge would be fine at C). A good center isn't just about height, though. I think guys like Chuck Hayes or Elton Brand would do just fine in that spot.
Give me a name of what you would consider a reliable backup 5 that you would trade two of the players you listed. Too much young talent you're giving up for a player that doesn't exist.
Whoa whoa whoa, hoss....I need to go check the Random Trade thread and see who came up with the idea first. I want the rep points when it happens. I think I proposed something like Asik + Jones or Dmo for Millsap + draft rights to Lucas Nogueira. 'T'would be fair, and we'd be pretty damn set, as long as the backup center position is held down okay with Smith and/or Dmo and/or Camby (and then Nogueira when he comes over).
I'll rep you just cause I'm a nice guy either way, but yeah its a fair trade, and improves their starting lineup tremendously. However, I do worry a bit about the bench in the short term... especially on the defensive end. For that reason alone, I'd prefer this trade to happen in February instead of December to help the Rockets win games early on in the season. D-Mo, Smith, and Jones need as much time as they can to develop before one of them is asked to be the primary backup to Dwight. My only question is will the Rockets hold off for a bigger name player they THINK might drop later on.... like Carl said earlier, its difficult to see Portland and Minny trading either player before February of 2015.... not 14. Still.... if there is a team out there with the patience to wait... its the Rockets. That being said... Millsap's deal is very, very flexible if they wanted to say we are going with Millsap now for this year and next, and then in the Summer of 2015, they will have Lin's contract and Millsaps coming off the books, and Parsons' ridiculously small cap hold.... they can make a huge splash in free agency that year... which is a year before Dwight's player option comes into play. -As a note- I do like what I have seen thus far in the preseason with D-Mo as a backup 5, and I think he's closer to being ready physically than people might think. Its obvious to me that his strengths on both ends are at the 5 spot. I'm not sure he's ever going to be the stretch 4 player they had hoped he would be, but I love how he works as both a pick and roll big, and a post up big. On the defensive end, I've really liked him more at the 5 spot this year because he has the size to clog up the driving lanes, and he isn't responsible for so many rotations on that end. If they have to trade away Asik, I think he's my long-term guy I look to give me 10 to 15 minutes a night right now.
Al Horford would be great on this team. Millsap would be pretty good too, especially on that contract. I'm actually pretty high on Greg Smith's ability to be a backup center @ around 15-20 minutes per game by the way. People keep talking like we'd need a new backup center if we traded Asik, but Smith was only 22 last season... I bet he makes a big jump on defense over the next year or two.
Hawks look like a 7-8 seed possibility. With no injuries as their depth ain't there. I've been saying all summer this is a roster built to bring pieces back for the rebuild Ferry could not effect in the off season. I'd probably prefer Brand to Milsap. I'd take them both for Asik and some (unimportant) filler. Will it happen? First, Atlanta cannot be too good early (it happens). Second, the decision to jettison Asik must be considered at the deepest of DM the GM's reasoning abilities.
