Actually, Orlando had little choice in the matter: trade T-Mac in 2004, or let him walk away this summer for nothing. And T-Mac was completely in control of his destination: if Orlando had traded him to a team he disliked, he could have refused to sign a contract extension with them. No team would have wanted to gut their roster in order to get T-Mac, only to lose him a season later. So T-Mac would have ended up with the Wolves if he had wanted to go there, even to the extent of forcing the Magic to eat Szczerbiak's contract. So the question is, why did T-Mac prefer to play with Yao, and not with KG?
It's not that T-Mac didn't want to play with KG. That scenario was never an option. The Timberwolves did not contact the Magic regarding T-Mac. THey didn't want to mess with a team that just went to the Conference Finals and gut it out.
A good reply. Something still bothers me though. I don't remember T-Mac announcing that Minnesota was one of his preferred destinations. If true, that would have been a strange omission. It certainly wouldn't have cost T-Mac anything to add the Wolves to his list. So I think the question still needs to be answered: why Yao, not KG?
Given the choices, the Magic would have been better off risking the possibility of Mcgrady leaving after the season than taking back trash for him. Magic fans were enraged at getting only Francis, Mobley, and Cato for him. If Mcgrady were traded for 2 broken down has-beens like Cassell and Sprewell and a ridiculously overpaid primadonna like Sczerbiak, Magic fans would have broken into Weisbrod's office and hung him. There was no way Mcgrady could have ended up in Minnesota with Garnett even if he threatened to sit out the entire season.
Would you trade Hakeem for Jordan before they both got the rings? KG is better Yao. But not that much better. If it's KG for Sura, yeah sure I won't say anything. Yao is improving every year, wait until he stops improving and start the trading talks.
Serious bball minds wouldn't do that trade. KG no doubt is great, one of the top 5 players in the NBA, but he has shown that he can't carry one team even with good help. He rarely is the man at crunch time. You almost always need a dominant big man to win it all. Plain and simple, a great post player is too important at both ends of the floor. After all, the closer to the hoop, the easier you get your points. Yao has his faults that drive his fans nuts. But you have to agree he has all the tools to dominate, more so than KG, or even TD. The thing is in his mind. But you can't say he doesn't heart or is not working hard. And he has shown he could carry his team, even call out his teammates publicly, when the time calls for it. I think he just wasn't ready. But I see good signs. He has become all dominant when he was on the court during the playoffs. I'll give him one last season to prove to me.
Serious bball minds would not use their mind. It's a no brainer. Garnett is a premier player and anybody would take him over Yao. That's not the point though. Garnett is the second highest paid player in the NBA and Yao makes one third of what KG makes.
You have to consider the potential, the age difference too. KG will never dominate in O'Neal's level, while Yao can set his mind straight, he can be close to that.
Really? How about his lack of athleticism? He cant jump high and he cant jump quick. He cant move fast and he cant run long. His reflexion speed is very slow. Without these attributes, he will never be a good rebounder, he will never be an excellent shot blocker, he will never be a dominate defender. His only clear advantage is his height with various offensive moves. Unfortunately, he has zero athleticism and if u front him then he lose 60% of his offensive power. And dont forget he can play only 30-32 mins full strength basketball . And u still think "he has all the tools to dominate, more so than KG, or even TD."? Seriously I think Yao can be a much better player with Duncan's height and athleticism, which is average at best.
Steve wasn't showing yearly improvement, instead yearly boneheaded-ness. And we didn't trade him till he had his worst year ever.
I was just pointing out how keeping a player just because he's been loyal to your team is ludicrous. I can understand wanting to keep Yao for basketball related reasons, but keeping him just because he hasn't demanded a trade is just silly. Tracy Mcgrady has known to be unloyal in the past. Leaving Toronto high-and-dry and forcing a trade out of Orlando, but that doesn't mean the Rockets should have passed on him.
