For those wondering how the Lakers keep getting the best team in the league despite not rebuilding...well this is the reason. They always get some dumb **** to keep at the tires and take a peek at the engine. Shaq: Traded the big Shaqtus, and used the goodies on that trade to get Kwame Brown. Brown (crazily enough) turned out the biggest reason they got Gasol. Bynum: Traded Bynum (young but crazy with injures) for DH thanks to Philly willing to give up AI. Gasol: Will be traded for disgruntled Kevin Love (???) Anyway, let's not get rejects from the Lakers please. Miami traded perfectly fine sidekicks for Shaq and it was the worst move Pat Riley ever made. Shaq played a minor role in Dwade's ring, but him arriving cut all of their chances to get good talent on the squad via drafts or trades. If Dwade didn't manage to recruit James and Bosh they would be nowhere today. Our team is the youngest in the league, the average age is 23 years old. We need a max guy, but he needs to be close to Harden's age, 28 at the most. This guy is almost 10 years older than Harden, why would you want him on the team?
I agree with your overall point (i.e. that the Lakers make it a habit of ripping off other teams in trades), but with respect, may I just point out some things that aren't correct about what you said about the Heat? - For staters, Shaq was still in his prime and dragged a mediocre Heat team into the playoffs in 2006. He was still putting up 24 points and 11 boards a game, and continued to be a powerhouse in the playoffs as well. - Dwyane Wade's own "contributions" to that NBA finals series against the Mavericks are a big reason why NBA fans are now familiar with the phrase "phantom foul" and why we now have anti-flopping rules in place. - The Miami Heat have been a joke of a franchise ever since the Rony Seikaly days, and dealing or not dealing with the Lakers has had no net effect on that, fortunately for them. In fact, dealing for Shaq, milking his talent for a ring, and then cutting him loose shortly thereafter might have been one of their most prudent personnel decisions ever. - The Heat are a team that tanked so that they could draft Michael Freaking Beasley second overall ahead of Russell Westbrook -AND- Kevin Love. They're a terrible franchise that can't scout talent, can't retain talent, and have no real basketball culture to speak of. The -ONLY- reason they are in the national spotlight at this point is because LeBron James and Chris Bosh decided a few Olympics ago that the NBA's tampering and collusion rules didn't apply to them or their old teams. That's it. That's all. Again, I agree with your overall point 100%--teams do get boned when dealing with the Lakers--but I think in this case, the Heat were such a poor franchise anyway, and they actually made the right call when it came to using Shaq and then trading him away when he wore out his welcome.
Well...CP3 is on the market soon, Milsap is the most underrated PF in the game, Cousins-none of these players make us Chip contenders immediately, but the pieces will come, A NO TO PAU...that ship sailed "Thank Stern" Those are just a few names coming up, and you never know Kevin Love may get on the block....We didn't know Asik would be a double double machine so putting him with a stretch PF who can shoot the 3 would be ideal...Also Chandler should be our sixth man bc he has the scoring potential, and then be in at end of games for D, since he can play the best D, next to Harden.... For us to be a championship team we need a Parsons, a "Lee" type back up as well-people who come off the bench and score, and go on runs.... They are yes capable starters but...they aren't exactly championship material unless you have say Harden, and Durant....then you could put them out there, and let things flow, but until we build the young team we have with more talent, it'll be a work in progress ....Pau is not the answer he is too old, and then we get nothing for our assets....Also Zbo is a nice PF I'd take, or the other Gasol (which aren't on the block)...but no to Pau
I'd love Favors....but the Jazz won't get rid of him....Favors, and Cousins...man that's be sick...then a sign and trade for CP3 for cough cough Lin.....Hey it could happen... Dream
So Gasol's knees are breaking down and getting arthritic now. Pau, you had a good run. Time to retire with dignity after next year, buddy. Your brother Marc is now the alpha, and I hear you guys even have a younger Gasol brother who plays, because your parents are evidently in the business of creating 7 foot giants with nice touch around the rim. It's alright man, you'll be fine. You'll somehow have to struggle to get by on the 19 million dollars you're earning this season and the next as compensation for...whatever it is you think you're doing out on that court these days. It'll be rough but somehow I think you'll manage!
Nene Hilsorrio only played in one game bro...move on from this loser...why did you think denver traded him.....HHHEEHEEEEEEEHEEE ISSSSSSSS GARRRRRRBBAAGGGGEEE:grin:
Looks good v. Dallas. The guy just wants more touches in the post, something D'antoni knows nothing about.
I was thinking of the rule for restricted free agents: "If the team matches an offer sheet and retains their free agent, then for one year they cannot trade him without his consent, and cannot trade him at all to the team that signed him to an offer sheet. They also can't trade the player in a sign-and-trade transaction." http://www.cbafaq.com/salarycap.htm#Q43 That rule would apply if NY had matched the offer. I was mistaken in thinking it applies to the current situation with Houston. The relevant rule, as you mentioned, is: "Generally a team only has to keep a player for three months after signing a contract or December 15 of that season, whichever is later." http://www.cbafaq.com/salarycap.htm#Q92
Yes, he has mileage on his knees, but so does everyone over 25 that has been playing basketball since they were kids. Any big man over 7 feet that gets to around 27 or 28 years old has to be handled differently than a normal human being as far as their mileage is concerned. If you trade for Gasol, you are going to have to take a page out of Greg Pop's handbook. Doesn't mean you should be 100% scared of trading for him. There just needs to be a sense of responsibility in taking care of that player's body. That means holding him out of back to backs, and limiting minutes to 25 to 30 per game. If the Rockets get in trade talks with LA, they will most likely get access to Gasol's medical records beforehand, and make the trade conditional on passing the full physical. When the whole Amare trade almost went down, this is one thing that was reported the next day, that there wasn't enough time left on the clock for the Rockets to secure the physical requirements they needed to get the deal done. Maybe someone can find the quotes from Feigan that day, but Im pretty sure that was the main deal breaker in that deal. Im not a doctor by any stretch, and Im certainly not Gasol's doctor, but if the Rockets or any team trading for Gasol follow protocol, they should be able to get quite a few more good years out of Pau unless his knees are so bad that he requires surgery immediately. If that's the case, I know for a fact that the Rockets wont trade for him.
knowing LA gets away with a lot of uneven trades. Gasol for Love is very likely or gasol for younger Marc Gasol might happen bc LA once again gets away with uneven trades they somehow do it
Kevin Love is going nowhere. Kevin Love is locked up for another two seasons after this season. By the time Minnesota is in a position where they have to look at possibly moving a disgruntled Love for fear of him leaving in free agency, they could have acquired Gasol in free agency instead. After next season, Minnesota will have enough cap space to sign Gasol to a max contract and play alongside Rubio/Love. If LA moves Gasol to Minnesota you are probably looking at draft picks, Pekovic, and Williams being the main pieces moved in the deal from Minnesota. Most likely a 3 team trade since alot of teams would love to get their hands on Pekovic to facilitate the deal. Here's a deal that seems to work for all 3 teams involved just to give you an idea of what can happen in a Gasol deal- http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=czm83zc If Minnesota wants Gasol that bad, it shouldn't be that hard to get Gasol as long as Pekovic keeps improving as a solid big man alot of teams are going to want him.
Cleverly disguised Kings fan trade Seriously, that's a bad deal for the Lakers. I'm not opposed to trading for Pau myself. I just wouldn't give up a whole lot.
Possibly he is, but wouldn't swelling and tenderness in the knees be pretty easy to detect? So if he were malingering to try to stay in L.A., then he probably would have picked something different. Compare that to something that is impossible to objectively and medically quantify like, for instance, the "pain" Eric Gordon feels even though at least 2 doctors now have said there is nothing wrong with him. I feel it's far more likely that Pau Gasol's body really is going to hell. It would certainly explain why he's looked so bad for his third season in a row. He's played like an end-of-life Antonio McDyess with the ill-advised long 2's he cranks than like a Gasol brother.
hah... Ive been called alot of things before in my life but.... No, its just an example of how a third team could get involved. You take a team with assets, and a need for a solid big man, and there you have the perfect third team in a Gasol deal. I thought of Sacramento as a team that would really think highly of Pek as someone who could allow Cousins to be a much more offensive minded player and slide of to the 4 spot where he's probably better suited. It also would improve them drastically on the defensive end. Anyways, its just an example of a 3rd team trade that Minnesota could swing if they chose to move Pek. For the Lakers, they are shedding salary, adding 3 point shooting, adding 3 point shooting, and two major offensive threats to come off the bench. Add 2 or 3 drafts to the deal and I personally dont think that's a bad trade at all.
