Okay, now the Blazers have three of the better power forwards in the NBA. Now, I know that there has been talk of them rotating at the four and five spot, but I'm not convinced that all those guys will get minutes they want, which could hurt the team a little. So here's my whack idea: The Lakers need a power forward. They have great bait for a sign-and-trade with Glen Rice. So how about the Lakers pick up Shawn Kemp and the Blazers pick up Glen Rice? Now, I know most teams don't want to do deals to benefit a division rival, especially not in this case, but I think both teams stand to gain. Of course, I don't know how it could work capwise, and I know Kemp can't be traded for a certain amount of time or something. But the lineups look pretty staggering: LOS ANGELES C Shaquille O'Neal PF Shawn Kemp SF Isaiah Rider (Why the hell not?) SG Kobe Bryant PG Ron Harper PORTLAND C Arvydas Sabonis PF Rasheed Wallace (Davis on the bench) SF Scottie Quitten SG Glen Rice (Not a natural two, but could do the job adequately, IMHO.) PG Steve Smith (Not a natural point, but Quitten could bring the ball up the floor like he did in Chicago. As an added plus, didn't Smith & Rice play together in Miami way back when? Am I way off-base? Does this stand a chance? ------------------ Jazzkiller
I think the Lakers need a PF far more than the Blazers need... well, anything. That combined with the fact that I can't see the Blazers helping out the only team that stopped them from possibly winning a championship last year makes me think there's no way this trade would go down. ------------------ Falk that Mo Fo!!!
Davis would be perfect for L.A, but Portland needs Glen Rice as about as much as the Rockets need Serge Zwikker. Well, maybe not that much, but you get my point. At 6"8" and feet that make Steve Smith look like a roadrunner, Rice would get burned at SG, and the last thing the Blazers need is a guy who needs his touches. The biggest factor may be that the Blazer absolutely don't want to deal with the Lakers whatsoever. Did you see how hard they worked on keeping B.Grant out of L.A? I can assure a big incentive on loading up on all those big men is to both destroy whatever PF Phil Jackson sends out, and get able bodies to ware out Shaq. If L.A gets anyone even remotley close to Dale Davis, this will be one long season for the rest of the NBA. Azim da Dream ------------------ We don't live for the destination. We live for the journey. http://www.clutchtown.com
I agree with what Azim said earlier, Portland is for the most part preparing for a way to beat the Lakers with all this stockpiling of 4's. But I don't necessarily think that this is the smartest thing to do. Rasheed Wallace proved without a doubt that he is one of the best 4's league, he absolutely shredded the Lakers in game 7. Adding Dale Davis was a good fit because he was somewhat able to hold down Shaq, but with Kemp, Wallace, AND Davis there is no way there can be enough minutes on the floor. ------------------ I'm not clumsy, I just have to know my surroundings.
And Austin Croshere proved he was one of the best 4's in the league by shredding the Lakers in the finals - c'mon... Sure Wallace played well against the Lakers, but there wasn't really anybody guarding him - people are overhyping him somewhat based on his huge performances in the conference finals. Not saying he's not awesome, but he's NOT one of top three 4's in the league! ------------------
Wait a minute... don't the Blazers still have Pippen AND Schrempf? Why do they need another 3? ------------------ "There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and STATISTICS..." - Mark Twain -
I think the Lakes wouldn't mind getting Kelvin Cato for Rice, if Houston was willing to deal. Their salaries would match assuming Cato I believe has about a 7 mill a year contract. I'm positive LA will not sit idly by until they get a solid PF, unless of course the rumors are true that their owner Buss is limiting the teams resources so he can avoid the dreaded luxury tax. Florida Marlins part 2 maybe? ------------------
You will never see Rice in a Blazers uni. Besides, why in hell would the Blazers give Kemp to LA, the team they acquired Kemp and Davis to compete with, for an aging, whiny little b**** in Rice?? Portland may have a log jam at the PF spot, but man are they improved. I loved Brian Grant, but they got Kemp and Davis in his absence. Amazing. They will compete with LA for the West. Say goodbye to the Laker "dynasty" that was supposedly in the works. ------------------ There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness." [This message has been edited by HOOP-T (edited September 08, 2000).]
