Ok let me start by saying that I absolutely love where we are at with an 11-4 record. I think we are playing great and its great to finally be back to this point of being a legitimate team in this league. After saying that however, we still have some definite weaknesses that have been evident in some of our losses. These being, a true scoring guard in the 2nd unit as well as a legit backup big with size. Honestly there aren't a lot of guys who fit the bill that would fit in with our team. For the scoring guard spot the 2 guys that really come to mind for me are O.J. Mayo and MarShon Brooks. Mayo has obviously been shopped and my infatuation with Brooks isn't a secret. From what I can see these are really the only 2 guys in the league that could be somewhat available to us that fit the mold. Here are possible ways to acquire them.
Indiana:
1 - O.J. Mayo
2 - Future 2nd Pick
Memphis
1 - Lou Amundson
2 - Future 1st rd pick
Memphis reportedly wants salary cap relief and a pick this gives them both.
We send them a future 1st that has to be honored in the next 3 seasons of our choice and is lottery protected. Realistically I dont see us in the lottery anytime soon and this likely becomes a pick in the low to mid 20's and being that we can choose which season they get it we can still be involved in the upcoming draft that is considered to be so deep….this is a great deal for us and also gives Memphis what it reportedly is after.
There are 2 possible scenarios I can see us getting Brooks. Both revolve around how NJ can obtain Howard, either A - Through a trade, or B - Making NJ look good enough to sign through FAgency to leave all that $ on the table.
Indiana
1 - MarShon Brooks
2 - Jordan Farmar
3 - Hedo Turk
New Jersey
1 -Dwight Howard
2 - Chris Duhon
3 - Dahntay Jones
4 - Future 2nd (IND)
Orlando
1 - Brook Lopez
2 - Damion James
3 - Mehmet Okur
4 - Johan Petro
5 - Lou Amundson
6 - 2x 1st Rd Picks (NJ)
Ive posted a similar trade to this one before but I think this one is more realistic.
Indiana gets Brooks who obviously is the centerpiece for us. I think MarShon has the upside to be VERY special…..superstar special…..I realize the sample we have available is small for him still…..but watching him play you see a lot of what scouts were talking about when comparing his style of play to Kobe……dont get be wrong Brooks wont be Kobe…..those kinds of guys only come around 1 or 2 times a generation but Brooks will be a top 10 player in this league during his career…believe it. Farmar gives us a legitimate backup PG and at a pretty cheap price…not to mention his play-off experience…..dont underestimate his impact in this deal (also a decent trade chip) Now for the downer…..Hedo Turk…..His deal goes for 2 more seasons after this one and isn't small…..but I think he still has something left in the tank and will be a good expiring when his deal is on its last year…..not too bad when you consider we get 2 good players without giving up a pick….
New Jersey gets Howard…..period
Orlando move all bad contracts, gets 2 lottery picks in arguably the best draft in years to add to what will be a 3rd when they tank the season……3 lottos plus Lopez and clearing the cap is not a bad way to start over…..they wont do better.
If Orlando is stupid about it and lets Howard become a FA we could approach it like this.
Indiana gets
1 - MarShon Brooks
2 - Damion James
3 - Mehmet Okur
4 - Jordan Farmar
5 - 2012 1st Rd pick (higher of the 2)
New Jersey gets
1 - DANNY GRANGER !!!
2 - Dahntay Jones
3 - Lou Amundson
4 - A.J. Price
Ok….I love Granger….but George could move over to the 3, Brooks or Hill at the 2, we get a legit backup Center…James is still a good Prospect….and our salary cap worries with extensions etc is completely in the clear now…..it would be drastic to lose Granger….but this could be a shrewd move by management to really have some great talent as well as be set for the future…..when you throw in the possibility of a top 5 pick as well as out 20-something……not too shabby.
For New Jersey it makes them VERY attractive to Howard to play with not only Williams…..but also Granger……Williams, Stevenson, Granger, Lopez, Howard…with Morrow, and Humphries and a lotto rookie off the bench = scary Nets team…
This ended up a lot longer than I planned so I will revisit the trades for an inside presence later...
Indiana:
1 - O.J. Mayo
2 - Future 2nd Pick
Memphis
1 - Lou Amundson
2 - Future 1st rd pick
Memphis reportedly wants salary cap relief and a pick this gives them both.
We send them a future 1st that has to be honored in the next 3 seasons of our choice and is lottery protected. Realistically I dont see us in the lottery anytime soon and this likely becomes a pick in the low to mid 20's and being that we can choose which season they get it we can still be involved in the upcoming draft that is considered to be so deep….this is a great deal for us and also gives Memphis what it reportedly is after.
There are 2 possible scenarios I can see us getting Brooks. Both revolve around how NJ can obtain Howard, either A - Through a trade, or B - Making NJ look good enough to sign through FAgency to leave all that $ on the table.
Indiana
1 - MarShon Brooks
2 - Jordan Farmar
3 - Hedo Turk
New Jersey
1 -Dwight Howard
2 - Chris Duhon
3 - Dahntay Jones
4 - Future 2nd (IND)
Orlando
1 - Brook Lopez
2 - Damion James
3 - Mehmet Okur
4 - Johan Petro
5 - Lou Amundson
6 - 2x 1st Rd Picks (NJ)
Ive posted a similar trade to this one before but I think this one is more realistic.
Indiana gets Brooks who obviously is the centerpiece for us. I think MarShon has the upside to be VERY special…..superstar special…..I realize the sample we have available is small for him still…..but watching him play you see a lot of what scouts were talking about when comparing his style of play to Kobe……dont get be wrong Brooks wont be Kobe…..those kinds of guys only come around 1 or 2 times a generation but Brooks will be a top 10 player in this league during his career…believe it. Farmar gives us a legitimate backup PG and at a pretty cheap price…not to mention his play-off experience…..dont underestimate his impact in this deal (also a decent trade chip) Now for the downer…..Hedo Turk…..His deal goes for 2 more seasons after this one and isn't small…..but I think he still has something left in the tank and will be a good expiring when his deal is on its last year…..not too bad when you consider we get 2 good players without giving up a pick….
New Jersey gets Howard…..period
Orlando move all bad contracts, gets 2 lottery picks in arguably the best draft in years to add to what will be a 3rd when they tank the season……3 lottos plus Lopez and clearing the cap is not a bad way to start over…..they wont do better.
If Orlando is stupid about it and lets Howard become a FA we could approach it like this.
Indiana gets
1 - MarShon Brooks
2 - Damion James
3 - Mehmet Okur
4 - Jordan Farmar
5 - 2012 1st Rd pick (higher of the 2)
New Jersey gets
1 - DANNY GRANGER !!!
2 - Dahntay Jones
3 - Lou Amundson
4 - A.J. Price
Ok….I love Granger….but George could move over to the 3, Brooks or Hill at the 2, we get a legit backup Center…James is still a good Prospect….and our salary cap worries with extensions etc is completely in the clear now…..it would be drastic to lose Granger….but this could be a shrewd move by management to really have some great talent as well as be set for the future…..when you throw in the possibility of a top 5 pick as well as out 20-something……not too shabby.
For New Jersey it makes them VERY attractive to Howard to play with not only Williams…..but also Granger……Williams, Stevenson, Granger, Lopez, Howard…with Morrow, and Humphries and a lotto rookie off the bench = scary Nets team…
This ended up a lot longer than I planned so I will revisit the trades for an inside presence later...