Does anyone want someone from the Heat? They need a center since Zo is out, and this would be a good chance to dump that contract. Other than Eddie Jones, I can't think of anyone (talent-wise) that would suit the Rox. Although Eddie's contract is probably just as bad as Cato's.... Any takers?
If Eddie House were a couple of inches taller, maybe I'd think about it. The Heat have very little talent, especially cheap talent so I don't think a trade w/ the Heat will fly.
Eddie Jones for Cato wouldn't work straight up because Jones makes too much money (Miami would be dumb to do that trade anyways) BUT Cato and Taylor for Eddie Jones and LaPhonso Ellis is a VERY interesting proposition, however...
ATrain, you are bang on - that is a VERY interesting trade. Ricerocket - that would make me laugh my ass off. Good one.
Or maybe Cato and Rice for some combination of players from Miami. Rice lives in Miami, doesn't he? Plus, NY is paying part of his contract, and the contract is up in a couple of years, so it would provide some cap relief to Miami. The flip side is, however, such a trade could put the Rockets in luxury tax land down the road.
Actually, if I'm the Heat, I'm going after Olowakandi, not Cato. Just wishful thinking on my part to get rid of Cato...
The Heat have no intention to have Cato on board, as they are looking to clear cap space for next summer. However, they would trade for him, if the Rockets took on Brian Grant. Cato + junk for Grant might work.
This is not intended as Collier bashing but trading Kelvin Cato to the Heat leaves the Rockets exposed to Yao's political situation and Colliers inexperience (although he put together some big SCPL games this summer). IMO, the Heat would pass on MoT since they already have Brian Grant. The problem in dealing directly with the Heat is that their two best players (Grant & Jones) both will make over $11m this year and neither contract ends until after the 2007 season.
As for Eddie Jones, the Heat aren't really actively looking to shop him from what I've read. At least, compared to Brian Grant. They would give up Grant for anything. Right now, the Heat will have like 5-10 mill in cap space next summer, by virtue of Zo's contract expiring. Jones, Grant, and Butler are really the only somewhat large to huge contracts that are on the books.
How long does Mo's contract last? The Heat would consider Mo + expiring contracts, for Grant, if Mo's contract expires before Grant's. That's my opinion at least.
The Heat should trade Eddie Jones for picks and expiring contracts. With Zo's 25M off the cap, and if they can find 11M more to shave off, they can sign not one but two big FA's next year. Who are the takers for Eddie Jones? I'm sure the Bulls would KILL for him. Would the Heat be willing to take a combination of something like Jamaal Crawford, Marcus Fizer, and Trenton Hassell. That's a bunch of EXCELLENT pieces to start building around. The building blocks: Fizer Butler Hassell Crawford LOTS of Cap space in the BEST FA year probably in history No long contracts Plus, their draft pick would be pretty damn good without Zo and Jones. OF COURSE, they also have Brian Grant that they can trade. Maybe for PJ Brown and George Lynch? Allen/Marks PJ Brown/Fizer Butler/Lynch Hassell/Rasual Butler Crawford/Best That's their team next year. Very weak at C though. But that might be their draft pick. Throw in a major FA, and you're back in business.
Dream on,,,,,,, Cato isn't going anywhere until Yao proves he can play big time minutes and for a whole season. It just isn't going to happen. When does this offseason end??????????????
Argh. I know Cato is fun to hate, but I'm with Gater. Think about it: even if we get Yao on schedule, he'll get winded, get in foul trouble, get *schooled* on the court on bad nights. Cato is still better than a bunch of stiffs other teams put up with (see: Golden State Warriors). And I think he's better than Collier. So please bring back a big if you hypothetically trade Ca-d'oh! Thanks! Geez. You should rename the BBS in honor of Cato the pinata. Cato Liquidation United Trade Committee of Houston (CLUTCH city).
I'm with ya Gater. Trading Cato for anything less than another starting quality center is a bad idea. Yao will not be depended on to play big minutes for a few months and Collier simply sucks in the NBA. Cato provides a nice cushion behind Ming. Deal with it people, Cato is not going anywhere this year.
If it worked with the salary cap, I would trade Cato,Thomas, and Rice for Grant and Caron Butler. Both Cato and Rice's contracts end b/f Grant's. I would put Grant at backup center. Although Grant isn't much of a shot blocker, I'm beginning to think neither is Cato since he falls for too many fakes and is way too foul prone. Grant would provide more physical play down low and help out on defense and rebounding which is foreign to Cato. He could play back up Center and PF and won't demand the ball too much. I don't really need to explain the benefits of Butler. I think it would be a win/win situation, unless Miami really thinks it can dump all their salary to go after some high profile free agents who aren't guaranteed to leave anyways.
