Rockets, Blazers discussed a Mo Taylor-for-Derek Anderson swap?

Would anyone consider trading Mo-T, David Wesley, Reece Gaines for Darius Miles and Derek Anderson?

Reasons: Portland wants to rid themselves of DM and his contract. DA and Mo-T are really a wash.

 

At this point, no. The chemistry is working and I see no reason to bring in two malcontents in and get rid of Wesley, who has been a great contributor to our recent success. If we can dump MoT's contract fine, but unless we're bringin in Kidd, B. Wallace or the like I vote against moving any of the starting five and Barry, Padgett & Deke. Package the others in any shape or form and ship 'em off if you like, but it's our longest winning streak in 5+- years so let's not mess with the top 8.

 

We can't trade Wesley in a multi-player deal

The Blazers could consider sending SAR to Milwaukee for KVH, who has a player option for '05. This would benefit both parties, and would allow the DA for MoT (that's a lot of acronyms) trade to go down.

 

I don't want anything to do with a bad apple like Darius Miles.

 

Nor do I want him near my dogs.

 

Wrong guy

 

Who am I thinking of then? I thought that is why they suspended him.

 

Qyntel Woods is the Ex-Jailblazer you are thinking of.

 

Why is that? Isn't KVH a SF/PF? How does getting a SF/PF help them with moving a SG (DA)?

 

Qyntel Woods. And they released him- he was recently picked up by Miami, don't think he's played though.

 

Log jam at the 4 by aquiring MoT w/o gettig rid of a 4.

 

THNX - why is DM in the doghouse?

 

He's not a very coachable player. Maurice Cheeks considered resigning after their recent incident.

 

Darius Miles? Before the season started, I would have said yes without a doubt. With his long arms and athleticism, I figured he could be a beast on defense at the 3. And if there's anyone that can bring out the defensive potential out of a player, it's JVG. Combine him with T-Mac and I figured we'd have 2 shutdown defenders at the swing positions.

But as the season has progressed, it's become apparent that T-Mac is better at the SF than the SG position. Defensively having him chase around 2-guards for 48 minutes wasn't working out. Hence the JJ for Wesley trade. T-Mac can still come out and take the hard assignments on crucial possessions. But if you have someone else that can take the quick little guards on the perimeter, it's a big help.

So instead of trying to aquire a swingman in the SG/SF mold, the blueprint for the future calls for either a traditional SG or a PG/SG combo guard that can shoot or pass and defend the guard positions. That's why I've cooled off on trying to sign Bobby Simmons. He defends 3s better than 2s, and if we're going to pay him starting money, we need him to be able to defend SGs.

In terms of Miles with his attitude and contract coupled with our needs, he would look to be a bad fit.

 

Interesting. And we would want him, why?

 

Exactly.

We don't need him and more importantly, we don't want him.

 

Is Miles more:

(a) Overpaid
(b) Immature
(c) Without an NBA 'shot'

Only for a Mo (or even Spoon) would I take him to D an Odom or a pierce or whomever? Yeah, I think I would.

 

Could you clarify, please? I'm not following....

 

I listed three of DM's qualities, asked -- which is the most 'Miles-like'?

I waiver between immature and overpaid, but he can't shoot worth a lick, either.

He can run and jump and throw tantrums, tho.

 

But I don't really buy this argument. In playoffs guys with major flaws get really exposed. MoT has flaws, but not to the degree the others do and can hang a lot better against legit NBA 4s by doing some damage in his own right. Howard IMO is going to need more help than Spoon or Padget can provide and we will be screwed if he gets in foul trouble (likely against TD or Amare) or worn out.

But DA doesn't really provide a 1 option, all he does is free another player to play kinda out of position too. Someone like Stoudamire or Van Exel would address far more of the Rocket back court weaknesses and provide a lot more flexibility.

Again, IMO MoT is not worth giving up for what DA adds to the team. Now a legit 1 who can go on a tear and shoot lights out (Van Exel, Damon) or a forward to give us a different look (Eric Williams, Kurt Thomas)--that would be a much bigger asset.

How about MoT + Ward + Gaines or Bowen (their choice) to rent Damon for the rest of the year? We could then try to sign him for a few years at just over the MLE--either would be a nice compliment to Sura. Portland is going to lose him anyway, I'd probably be willing to swap their #2 for our #1 for the above deal, that would sweeten it a little.

Alternatively, we could do the same above move for Nick, except no draft picks included (or make them switch 2nd rounders). They should be really motivated to rid Nick's contract for next year b/c then they could resign Damon for much cheaper.