Hey Larry, you carpet bagging biatch, wanna' trade?

Since you think so highly of Mobley, I was wondering if you'd like to trade for him? Here's my proposal:

Houston sends Mobley/Moochie to Detroit.
Houston sends Cato/Rice/next year's #1 pick to Miami.

Detroit sends Billups/Hubert Davis to Houston.
Detroit sends Rebracca to Miami.

Miami sends Brian Grant/Ellis/#5 pick to Houston.
Miami sends Carter/Ken Johnson to Detroit.

We then sign Tyronn Lue with part of our mid-level exception, draft the best available player at #5 & have a revamped lineup of:

C: Yao/Griffin/#5 pick?/Collier?(IL)
PF: Grant/Taylor/Ellis (expiring contract)/Griffin
SF: Posey/Nachbar/T-Mo(IL?)
SG: Francis/Davis (expiring contract)/Hawkins(IL)
PG: Billups/Lue

It won't happen, but it would be an improvement. Okay, fire away BBS.

 

Yeah, a little. But, I think I'm going to need some more trade therapy.

 

For those that can't see why Miami would do this deal, here's an article from the Miami Herald about a week ago that should explain my thinking.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/5934553.htm

Posted on Sat, May. 24, 2003

HEAT NOTEBOOK

Heat explores trading its first-round pick
BY ISRAEL GUTIERREZ
igutierrez@herald.com

With every day comes seemingly another scenario about how the Heat could have more, or less, salary cap room with which to sign free agents this summer.

For those who are not enamored with any of the prospects that are projected to be available with the No. 5 pick next month, here is yet another scenario that could excite you.

The Heat could -- such an offer would have to be made of course -- trade its No. 5 pick for another team's future first-round pick, leaving the team with no first-round pick this year. What that would do is free up some extra cap space for the Heat that it would have had to use to sign the No. 5 pick.

The No. 5 pick is slated to make about $2.4 next year. Without being forced to allocate that money to a draft pick, the Heat could have more than the projected $6 million in space.

One NBA general manager said the projected salary cap figure is $42.3 million (the actual figure won't be announced until the summer).

The Heat has Brian Grant, Eddie Jones, Anthony Carter and Caron Butler under contract, totaling about $30 million. After accounting for the cost of ''cap holds'' and retaining a few of its younger players, the team could still have somewhere in the neighborhood of $8 or $9 million in cap space.

That amount would make the Heat legitimate contenders to sign any free agent outside of Jason Kidd, Tim Duncan and probably Jermaine O'Neal.

The other group of players available include center Michael Olowokandi, guard Gilbert Arenas and Clippers Andre Miller, Lamar Odom and Elton Brand, although those three are restricted free agents, meaning the Clippers can match any team's offer. The possibilities would also include signing two players in a lower price range.

Pat Riley could also decide against all of this and choose to re-sign Alonzo Mourning for a year, use a the mid-level salary-cap exception and wait until next year to take advantage of cap space. But Riley said he has been examining this year's free agents very closely.

''We're scouting free agents that we scout on a regular basis unlike we've ever scouted them before, to really see how good these guys are,'' Riley said. ``Sometimes you sign a free agent and they have one specific skill, but they're a nightmare in a lot of other situations. So we're doing both things. Even players on other teams that we feel might be possibilities for sign-and-trades, we're really scouting those guys.''

SETTING ROOKIE BAR

If the Heat do take a player in the first round of June's draft, he will have a lot to live up to following Butler's impressive debut season.

Butler averaged a rookie-best 15.4 points, improving as the season progressed, and finished third in Rookie of the Year balloting.

Riley figures another rookie would carry almost as much responsibility next season.

''I expected it [from Butler] because I knew we were going to force feed him, but he stepped up when he played the entire season,'' Riley said. ``We expect if we draft somebody that he's going to have an immediate impact because we're going to put him out there and play him.''

Butler recognized that he set a high standard for future Heat rookies, but said he and his teammates would support next year's rookie no matter what is asked of him.

As for who that rookie could be, Butler mentioned Georgetown forward Mike Sweetney, Georgia Tech forward Chris Bosh and Marquette's Dwayne Wade as intriguing prospects. Butler also threw out another name that isn't expected to be heard anywhere near the top of the draft.

'' `Reece Gaines is a nice prospect,'' Butler said. ``He's very versatile.''

Gaines would have to make a dramatic climb up draft charts to be an option for the Heat at No. 5.

 

I don't really care for Rasheed, but I'll see if I can throw something together for you. It'll have to be later though, I'm going to go see "The Italian Job" in a few minutes.

Ciao, baby.

 

Uhhh, okay, I'll respond to this before I go to the movie.

Of the 4 players that Miami sends out in this deal (Grant/Ellis/Carter/Johnson), only Grant's contract goes beyond this year. He makes just over $12 million this year. Of the 3 players that Miami takes back (Cato/Rice/Rebracca), only Cato's contract goes beyond this year. He makes just over $6 million this year. That means a savings of about $6 million off of next year's cap.

If, according to the article, they can move this year's pick for a future pick, that gives them about $8-9 million in cap space this year to sign a big name FA or 2 second tier FA's. Then when Rice's contract expires next year, they'll have more cap space available than the mid-level exception would give them, to go sign another FA.

As for your contention that our pick next year will be a mid-round pick, how do you know that? Anything could happen by next year, player injuries, team chemistry disruptions, new coach not working out, who knows? All you have to do, is get in the lottery to have a chance at the #1 overall pick. Do you think Memphis would've given Detroit the future #1 pick for Thorpe, if they had any belief that their team would still be where it is today? Anything can happen. Throw the proposal out there & see if they bite.