And what, pray tell, makes this trade one that would be attractive to the Magic, especially in light of what other teams would offer?
If we trade SF3 for T-mac we will have three top 15 player from the 1997 draft. Maybe that will make up for our pick that year...the great Rodrick Rhodes !! http://www.usatoday.com/sports/nba/00draft/97draft.htm actaully I posted this because I was amazed at the players that when BEFORE McGrady
Totally agree. If JVG still can't find a way to put points on the board w/ T-Mac and Yao, he will be gone. I'm afraid that JVG will still try to be a defensive minded team, which isn't bad, but its not the right personel. I know this is an OLD topic, but IF we can land T-Mac, Rudy would be perfect for the job. Rudy could just let the offense flow w/ T-Mac and Yao. Plus, he's a players coach and I think the team would be a lot happier=better play. Maybe I'm getting a little ahead of myself, I blame it on the offseason.
wow Rudy.....i didn't think of that (him being the new coach IF we did get TMac). That would be ideal i think, b/c rudy would just let them play. Thats what he is good at. Getting the inside out going. I mean when he had Yao, yao was no where near where he is and is potentially going. I think Rudy would be a real good fit for the Yao Tmac combo
I disagree with that theory. The way to beat the Lakers right now is to force them into an up and down high scoring game, simply because with Shaq and Kobe along with Payton and Malone, they can outplay anyone in the halfcourt. I'd be just fine seeing us with an iron clamp defense, and come down on the otherside and force them to stop both Yao and TMac. Of course, that doesn't mean pull back on fastbreaks, and I think TMac would be a better finisher than anyone else on this team. With two guys who are going to dominate their matchups 99% of the time (Yao/TMac), I'd take my chances shutting down the other team, and hoping those two carry the load. PS- Happy belated (yesterday) 25th birthday to TMac!
For one thing , I do not believe that Rudy will ever coach for another team including the Rockets. Secondly , I feel that he is going to take over for CD very soon. As for the thread topic... TMac is the only player outside of Brand that I would trade SF for. I would have no problem having SF here next year. We simply need 2 stars on this team to be successful. If you don't get a star back in return for SF, you are just shooting yourself in the foot
I agree with your second statement (you do need atleast two stars). In regards to your first, i think Rudy still wants to coach. I think he just needed time off, and doesn't really want to go out of coaching like he did. I mean wasn't he interested (or reportedly linked to) coaching another team, or was it just speculation...i don't recall. I really believe that he would want to coach again. But hey if he took over CD's job then I'd be for it too.....I'm just saying that i think he still has the desire to coach in him.
This is the most recent info I could find on Grant Hill from ESPN: Hill admitted that he could play this season if he wanted to, and the reason that he won't was not as the result of a medical setback after meeting with Dr. James Nunley at Duke University, the Orlando Sentinel reports. SPIN: When the announcement was made that Hill would not attempt a return this year, it was implied that a medical setback was the reason behind the decision. Says Hill: "There was no setback and there are no problems, but I asked him [the doctor], 'Will it [the ankle] look better in four or five months?' And when he said, 'Yes,' I'm thinking to myself that it makes more sense to wait." Just to get a little excited here... what if Hill were including in a trade with Houston and we ended up with a lineup like this: PG Barry/Cat SG TMac/Cat SF JJ/Hill PF Taylor/Spoon C Yao Even if Hill could only play 10 - 15 minutes a night! We need to pick up some PG and PF depth... but wow!
I have to admit it, that line up would have me drooling but I think I would put JJ at the 2 with TMac at the 3 and Cat as the back up guard.
McG was coming out of HS when it was still a dodgy proposition. Oh, except for LaBron, when has it not been? That is at the time of HS grad not 3-7 years later. BTW - what a lousy draft after #1. BTWII - what a great job IT did in developing, nurturing, and retaining TMac for the Raps.
Such a good post. T-MAC! The guy is going to be MVP material once he gets into the real playoffs out west. The prime matchup I'm wetting myself over is Kobe/T-Mac (Kobe backing up T-Mac in the All-Star game and Shaq backing up Yao). We saw the play where Kobe drives, attracts defenders and feeds it nice and easy midair to a wide open Shaq. That could be us. We could be the walrus. We already know what we're getting defensively with JVG but I really think offensively we'd be set for ages. Tracy is so much taller than Francis, the west is bigger, so I'd think our "go to" guy's moves would be much more effective. If you aquire him, they will come. "Them"= championships, free-agents, whatever. Never in the history of the nba has a trade been so clearly right for both parties.
Grant Hill's situation is very dicey. If he can't play next season, it'll be his last on the books. But, if he does play and is not effective, or continues to be in and out of the lineup, he might tie up $15 million in salary through the '06/'07 season. Of course, if he comes back and his injuries are behind him, he's worth his $15 million. However, the way it is going, it looks like he'll try to play, assuring that he's a cap albatross for years to come and will continue to be sufficiently injury-prone that he won't be able to contribute much to the bottom-line. So, I wouldn't get too hopeful over Grant Hill, except that we'd probably have a great record over our first 10 games. Honestly, I don't think McGrady is compensation enough to justify taking on Hill's burden if we're giving up Francis.
While Orlando would doubtless like to be over the Hill (contract), GH's abilities and capability of playing 75 games + play offs, IF HEALTHY, are unknown. I am wishful, hopeful that TMac says he wants the freedom to roam under JVG and pushes to come to Rocketland with Orlando feeling that SF and CM = TMac + JuHo with Orlando feeling that SF and CM = TMac + JuHo (and the 3 mil they'd save next year).
Probably the best trade for Orlando would be Steve + Cat + Cato + future pick for T-Mac + Howard + DeClerq.
Well, it’s not like the Rockets are going to be under the cap anytime soon anyway. The only thing they will be able to offer free agents is the Mid-Level Exception, and the MLE would look a lot more attractive to free agents with Yao+Mcgrady on the team, then this current group. Plus, the only way the Rockets would be able to trade for Mcgrady AND Hill is if they included a combination of Cato, Taylor, Cat, and Weatherspoon. ALL of which have contracts that also run through the 06/07 season. So the Rockets would not be gaining much salary anyway.
Why would this be the best trade for Orlando? The one thing about trading T-Mac is that teams will be willing to take on Hill's contract just for him. Orlando will include Hill in any T-Mac trade just because they know teams will take him. SF/Cat/Cato/TE for T-Mac/Hill/Declerq is a much better deal for them.
I'd be happier with SF3 + Cat + Cato + future pick for T-Mac + Gooden + Reece Gaines + Zaur Pachulia + their #31 this year. Oh, and with this I'd even take the Grant Hill risk. DeClerq is a total stiff -- I'd rather have Pachulia, and Gaines gives us a tall PG possibility. Obviously the #31 pick gives us a good backup without having to pay a first round guarantee.
pg - moochie norris sg - tmac sf - vernon maxwell pf - otis thorpe c - yao ming get this muthafuca done now. dang it
