Baseless (it has to be), but interesting nonetheless. http://www.journaltimes.com/nucleus/index.php?itemid=4215 02/22: NBA trade rumors running rampant Category: General Posted by: Gery BY GERY WOELFEL Will it be all talk and no action? Not likely. With the NBA's trading deadline on the horizon - 2 o'clock Central time on Thursday - GMs around the NBA are frantically trying to consummate a deal. Based on conservations with several league execs Tuesday, the mid-season trading deadline - usually a ho-hum affair - could be entertaining. One NBA front office official told me late Tuesday "things were starting to heat up.'' More intriguing though, he claimed some certifiable stars are having their names bandied about in trade discussions. One of them, I was told, was Houston Rockets star Tracy McGrady. There is also chatter that Boston and Minnesota may be "re-evaluating'' their publicly-stated positions of not trading their superstars Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, respectively. However, one GM told me he believed Garnett and Pierce would more likely be traded this summer - and perhaps for each other in a multi-player blockbuster deal. But the most likely trade scenarios being chatted about Tuesday involved Orlando guard Steve Francis and Denver power forward Kenyon Martin. Francis has been linked to possible deals with New York and the Los Angeles Lakers, while several teams have more than a passing interest in Martin. Some teams are reluctant to pull the trigger for Martin for two reasons: his long and expensive contract (he has five more years for about $70M) and a bad knee. A trade that seems on the verge of going down involves the Knicks and Portland Trail Blazers. The trade would center around the Knicks sending Penny Hardaway and his soon-to-be-expiring contract of $15.6 million, along with a future first-round pick, to the Portland Trail Blazers for veteran center Theo Ratliff and swingman Darius Miles. The Blazers then would use some of that cash to re-sign center Joel Przybilla, who will become a free agent this summer. Bucks veteran center Jamaal Magloire also continues to have his name tossed around in trade rumors, although Bucks GM Larry Harris has said he doesn't intend to move any of stable of big men. Magloire, who has one season remaining on his contract, at $8.3M, has piqued the interest of several teams. It's no secret Magloire would love to play in his hometown of Toronto, and it's hardly a secret Raptors officials would love to accommodate him. Some other names floating around Tuesday in trade conversations included Golden State's youg swingman Mickael Pietrus, the Lakers Devean George and Atlanta's Al Harrington, whom the Chicago Bulls apparently had some interest in. However, the Bulls aren't willing to depart with either of their two best players - Ben Gordon and Kirk Hinrich - and are likely to stand pat and be active participants in free agency this summer.
Unless we get KG and the wolves 2 picks, forget it . tracy is the most exposive guard/forward in the league. these silly notions are rumors are nothing but mere hot air.
Walsh called CD, I was told, inquiring about a JO/TMac (++) deal (likely Howard/DA ... Jackson/Johnson). I was told it was a 'cold' call.
there is no way in crap tmac is getting traded during the season. i can believe off season but a rushed deal before the deadline for a player like him? please.
no way tmac gets traded during the season. if we want to move in another direction because of his back problems and his emotional problems, i would agree 100% as long as we braught in a SF/SG who can dominate a game, is fairly young, and has a history of great health.
Ric Bucher on ESPN yesterday said he heard T-Mac's name as well in trade rumors. Stranger things have happen.
But doesnt all it takes is some GM calling CD saying "I'll offer you blah blah blah and blah for Tmac?" and CD goes "HELL NO!" but Tmac's name is OUT THERE??
Yeah...that's basically it. People want to go after T-Mac because of his performance in the ASG and they feel we're vulnerable right now. But CD isn't that stupid.
omg, he's throwing out big names like TMac, KG, Pierce, and Devan George!!!!! Wow, what I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall and be privy to some of those conservations!!!
This is silly...Although, Rumors will continue to happen...I just hope if something does go down, we get something good in return..
If you think Yao + KG >= Duncan + aged Robinson, and Alston will be as good as Parker, and add some good role players offseason, the Rockets will be as good as Spurs few years ago. Plus the risk of the Tmac's back, Why not do a TMac - KG?
KG for Tmac should be done in a heartbeat IMO. There's a big risk Tmac is slightly passed the peak of his career. KG might be in the same boat, but he doesn't have any of the lingering injuries that we know of. With these two guys, any number of wing players with some confidence can fill in the role of finisher. That would be awesome.
while we dont want to see go, lets deal with some facts: first, TMac's back issue is a chronic problem, meaning it will never go away and will hinder him the rest of his career...that means he's only going to be 75-80% the rest of the way... As he gets older, he'll become more "normal", meaning more of the 21 pt nights on 5-17 shooting instead of 39 points on 13-26...that means his trade value has gone down, which it already had significantly this season, but may be back up after his performance in the AllStar game... I dont want TMac gone and neither does anyone else, but if this means that we get someone like Garnett + a PG and plus a few draft picks for, say, McGrady and Swift, then of course CD would atleast entertain the offer...
