Can't we just trade Griff (+?) for Brand? They don't want to pay him anyway. And they get Griff on the cheap for 2 and half years.
SA Rocket- I agree fully. All the naysayers that think the Clipps would never do it do not fully realize how Cheap and Downright Stupid Donald Sterling and Elgin Baylor are. The Clipps would do that trade it an LA heartbeat. They already do not plan on resigning him- Why else would they have drafted two PF's in this last years draft. I live out here in LA- The Clips #1 guy is Odom. Sterling and Baylor have made that clear. There next concern is Kandi. After that, they'll resign Miller before they sign Brand, that's why they made those draft picks. The realized they wewren't going to even make the effort to resign Brand. And to all fans riding the Eddie G bandwagon, consider this: Best case scenario, what do you see from Eddie? Hey, I love the guy and I think he will has the potential to be a great player in this league. But, Elton Brand he will never be. Elton is an 20-10 guy and is one of the most consistent PF in the league. He's a great clubhouse guy, he doesn't require a lot of touches, he creates for himself by crashing the offensive glass, he always hustles, plays great D, and he's friends w/ Franchise. I keep hearing EG will be a great shotblocker. Well, NEWSFLASH, Brand is leading the League in blocks right now. You can say all you want about EG having the POTENTIAL to be one of the top PF's in this game, but Elton has already established himself as one of the top PF's in this game. Plus, Brand fits much better into our team than Eddie and would be a great complement to Yao. EG looks to shoot too many jumpers and has very little offensive game. Even if he works on that and improves, we simply don't need what he brings- we already have Franchise, Cat, Yao, and by the time he does find his offensive game, Boki will already be lightyears ahead of him. Having Brand would also free up MoT for another possible trade (Brent Barry?). If there was any way the Rox could make this happen, they by all means should! Sorry to on about it, but I really do think Brand would be a PERFECT fit for this team.
So do I. Plus I think Brand slides right in and just keeps doing his job. Hakeem had Otis Thorpe (an awesome sidekick) and I see Brand filling the same role for Yao (and Steve). Only Brand brings MUCH more offense than Thorpe ever could, plus the muscle. I really think the Clips would go for it. Eddie may surpass him someday, but for right now, Brand is already developed and gives exactly what the Rockets need.
Don't know how to use Virtual GM, but if possible, I would like to swing the proposed Seattle trade as part of a three-way with New Orleans to also get P.J. Brown. If we could come away with Brown and Barry, I'd be willing to part with any combo of KT, MoT, Rice, or Moochie. Ideally, this would be our rotation: Yao Brown Rice Mobley Francis Cato Griffin Barry
Blocks per 48 minutes: Brand - 3.80 Griffin - 3.52 Rebounds per 48 minutes: Brand - 14.09 Griffin - 10.73 Brand is 3 years older than Eddie and was averaging WAY fewer blocks at the same age. Brand's numbers in that category have exploded this year while Eddie has always shown the talent to be a great shot blocker. Lets see if that lasts. Also, I think Eddie's offensive game is going to mature a lot. It isn't like you can't see the potential and growth already. Eddie's offensive game is already more versatile than Brand's as far as inside/outside skills are concerned. As far as the compatibility problem goes, I don't know where that assessment came from. How many low block guys do you want clogging up the lane? Eddie will be shooting jumpers over Brand while taking weaker guys to school in the post soon.
Dr. Rocket- While I won't argue w/ the #'s you've shown, the compatibility issue is this: Just like you said Eddie is going to want to stand around the 3-point line and shoot jumpers. But, just curious, how many guys can one team have around the 3 pt. line? Franchise, Cat, and (Rice or Boki) and Eddie??? You can't have 4 guys trying to hover arounf the perimeter. Elton would be a perfect player to have on the opposite block while Yao shoots to hit the offensive glass. Plus, he tougher and more physical than Eddie on the stronget PF's of the league. But, even with the strong case I (try to) make for Brand, I do see where you're coming from. The #'s speak for themselves. I love Eddie and I think he will be great. And as long as the Rox are winning with him, I won't complain. I just see the logjam they have right now evetually blowing up on them, and I could easily see EG splitting when the Rookie contract expires to a place he could get more minutes and be the go-to guy at the PF spot. Something has to be done at that spot and someone has to go.
This is how the Clippers organization is run. Keep drafting good to great young talents. Use them cheaply for the duration of their rookie contracts. Then let them go when they demand big money. Since they keep having great young players, they keep people interested to watch. Since they never keep any established stars on the team, they never get into the playoffs. Hence, they always get lottery picks to feed the cycle. I won't be surprised if they don't keep Brand. But those of you who think it's easy for us to get him is dreaming. 27 other NBA teams are dreaming up ways to get Brand too. The most enticing player we can offer is Griffin. He is promising. He is still cheap. He fits the Clippers' profile. But there are plenty of promising cheap players out there. Why do you think they want another PF when they already have 2 young ones?
And just who are these great players of whom you speak? Danny Manning? They offered him a great contract but he had problems with LB and didn't want to stay. Mo Taylor? Please. You guys are trying to unload him too. Kandi? LOL! The GM that pays him the 80 million he demanded is going to be hearing it from the fans of his team for years. He's an athletic, somewhat talented 7-footer with no love for the game. Benoit Benjamin, anyone? Fact: The Clippers had one of the higher payrolls in the NBA in the early 90s, on a team that included Manning, Harper, and Smith. It still wasn't talented enough to go anywhere. Fact: The Clippers traded the longer contracts of Chandler and Miles for expiring contracts of Brand and Miller. Why would Sterling OK this if it was only about saving bucks? Most casual Clipper fans (the ones filling the seats) even preferred Miles to Miller, because he was exciting. Clearly this was about building a better team. Not a fact, but close enough: The Clippers have never had a team nearly as talented as the current one. They've never had a player as good as Brand, not to mention Odom (who is far more talented). Neither of these guys has expressed dissatisfaction with the organization, and there is no way they will be "unloaded" this year. Look elsewhere.
