Sheridan On Gasol, Bulls
Since the moment he was actually traded–only to later have it rescinded by David Stern–there have been many rumors on possible destinations for Los Angeles Lakers big man Pau Gasol.
Over at Sheridan Hoops, Chris Sheridan reports that Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose has let his front office know that he would like to play with Gasol should the Bulls be able to build a package around Carlos Boozer and another player.
The Bulls have enviable front court depth and team chemistry, though Gasol might just be the type of player worth the risk of breaking that up. Gasol has a very versatile skill set and off the charts basketball IQ, though is being underutilized in the Lakers offense as almost exclusively a high post option when paired with Andrew Bynum and release valve for Bryant.
On paper Gasol would seem to be a perfect pairing with Joakim Noah. Unlike Bynum, Noah does not need touches to affect a game. This cedes the low block to Gasol to fully utilize his game. The intelligence and passing of both players should make for some interesting high-low passing.
Rose and Gasol would be a dynamic and intelligent pick and roll pairing, and Gasol's ability to draw and pass out of double teams would open up driving lanes for Rose.
The tandem of Gasol and Noah would upgrade an already stingy Bulls defense, consolidating Boozer's offensive game with a quality defender.
The question is why the Lakers would want to trade Gasol for a similar but lesser offensive skill set that diminishes their greatest strength, defense. The Lakers need a point guard, and while steady this season, backup C.J. Watson probably is not a significant enough upgrade at the position to warrant downgrading to Boozer.
A possibility that checks out on the ESPN Trade Machine that makes some sense is a deal sending forwards Boozer and Luol Deng for Gasol and Matt Barnes.
Assessing Stocks: Denver Nuggets
Portfolio Review: Where you value the Denver Nuggets assets and roster depends on how much value you place in superstars. On paper, the Nuggets are stocked two deep at every position and feature almost every desirable skill set a coach could want to plug into any given situation.
In Ty Lawson and Nene Hilario, the Nuggets have two offensive threats to occupy multiple defenders and a number of other players on the wings who can create off of their primary action. They have solid defenders and energetic athleticism. And yet, head coach George Karl is faced with the lingering question, “can you win without superstars?”
“There are only two or three superstars in the league anyways,” Karl said early in the season.
There is some truth to that. On any given night the Nuggets have everything Karl needs at his disposal to compete with the best teams in the NBA. The depth and versatility of the roster can in fact replicate most of the value of an elite player.
The issue is consistency and health. Over the course of a season there will be injuries (like the one Danilo Gallinari suffered) and inconsistent play, and the value of an elite player like LeBron James or Dwight Howard, is they have the ability to patch holes for stretches of time. Those players bring the same level of play every night and are able to take on more without losing efficiency.
Prime Assets: The Nuggets are in an interesting position. Because each player is above average to good, virtually everyone on the team is in play for the right price. And because their depth, the Nuggets have the luxury of upgrading talent at any position by combining multiple players without a drastic drop in quality.
Even in the era of point guards, possessing two starting quality point guards would seem superfluous. Andre Miller on his own would probably fetch a rotation player, but the Nuggets already have their fair share of those. Intrigue picks up, however, if the Nuggets were able to combine Miller with another starting quality player, a young prospect, and draft pick.
Worthless Stock: Ty Lawson. But only because the return on him would likely never exceed the value of his contract or the value of the player. So perhaps the word here shouldn’t be worthless, but priceless.
The Rest: The rest of the roster is simply intriguing filler to place a bigger trade. The Nuggets do not need to build around the fringes. Improvement will either come from within, or converting multiple assets into a blockbuster deal.
Hoops Rumors Originals: 2/12/12 – 2/18/12
A look into some original content our writer's produced last week:
- We provided a full list of outstanding traded player exceptions and took a look at the trade exceptions which will expire this coming week.
- Luke Adams writes about Leandro Barbosa as a possible trade candidate.
- Zach Links believes that due to his poor situation, Deron Williams might be a possible trade candidate.
- Luke also made note of the league's top unsigned free agents and examined Antawn Jamison as a possible trade candidate.
- Ryan Raroque questions whether a new location might be enough to invigorate Devin Harris' career.
- Daniel Seco looked at the trade candidacy of Ray Allen, while I did the same for Ryan Anderson.
- Here's a rundown of our entire Trade Candidate series.
- Jesse Blanchard continued to assess teams' stocks as we approach the trade deadline, examining the Bulls, Cavaliers, and Mavericks.
- Chuck Myron analyzed all the major free agent acquisitions from the offseason, including David West, Tyson Chandler, and Jamal Crawford.
Week In Review: 2/12/12 – 2/18/12
Here's a look back at some important stories from last week:
- After being released from the Knicks to make room for J.R. Smith, Renaldo Balkman has drawn interest from the Nets.
- The uncertainty surrounding the Kings' tenure in Sacramento seems to be increasing by the week.
- With Drew Gooden's recent injury combining with Andrew Bogut's, the Bucks are incredibly thin in the front court right now. In an effort to help stop the bleeding, the team is looking at Kyrylo Fesenko and D.J. Mbenga to come aboard.
- Allen Iverson declined an offer to play professional basketball in Venezuela.
- As mentioned earlier, the Knicks signed the much sought-after J.R. Smith.
- Wilson Chandler will join former teammates Kenyon Martin and J.R. Smith by returning to the United States as early as this week. He's expected to return to Denver, although it hasn't been confirmed whether it'll be on a short or long-term contract.
- On Thursday, the Hornets re-signed Lance Thomas to a second 10-day contract.
- Lakers forward Devin Ebanks was assigned to the D-league's Los Angeles Defenders.
- After being cut by the Clippers, Solomon Jones was signed to a 10-day contract by the Hornets.
- Knowing they'd be without the reigning MVP for the immediate future, the Bulls signed 36-year-old guard Mike James to a 10-day contract.
Odds & Ends: Martin, Hickson, Ginobili
Yesterday’s game between the Clippers and Spurs was one of the most exciting endings we’ve seen this season. Here’s a bit of news regarding some of the players involved in that exciting finish, as well as some others notes from around the league.
- Clippers forward Kenyon Martin told SI.com’s Sam Amick that upon his return, Carmelo Anthony will be more than helpful in making the Knicks an even more potent team than they already are. Martin also said that he doesn’t appreciate George Karl’s remarks regarding Anthony as a selfish player.
- Even though Omri Casspi hasn’t played lights out basketball since joining the Cavaliers, FoxSportsOhio.com’s Sam Amico says the team was right to acquire him in exchange for J.J. Hickson. In Amico’s story, one Western Conference general manager said if the Kings knew exactly what they were getting with Hickson, they never would’ve made the deal.
- After suffering an oblique injury in yesterday’s win against the Clippers, Spurs guard Manu Ginobili will head back to San Antonio for treatment as his team continues on their west coast road trip, according to the San Antonio Express’ Mike Monroe. Ginobili said the injury wasn’t as bad as he originally thought, and that his anti-inflammatory medicine is already working.
Odds & Ends: Heat, Thornton, Gordon, Gasol, Lin
With 10 games on the schedule for Sunday, let's take a quick look around the league to see what's happening:
- Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel responds to a reader's question wondering if the Heat are setting themselves up for NBA Finals failure by not beefing up their post play. Winderman points to LeBron James as a player who could utilize his unique size to provide the Heat with an option to slow down the game in fourth quarter by getting the ball in the paint.
- Former Warriors forward Al Thornton has signed to play with Puerto Rico's Brujos de Guayama according to Sportando. The former Seminoles star averaged 7.4 PPG and 3.0 RPG during the 2010/2011 season with time split between Golden State and Washington.
- The Hornets are playing a waiting game with injured guard Eric Gordon, writes John Reid of The Times-Picayune. The former Indiana star was acquired prior to the start of the season in the Chris Paul blockbuster but has only played in two games thus far. He'll become a restricted free agent this summer with the Hornets holding hope that they can re-sign him for a manageable price.
- Brian Kamenetzky of ESPN.com says it's been an unique season for Pau Gasol as he awaits his fate amidst trade rumors that he'll be moved prior to the trade deadline. Kamenetzky concedes his affection for the Barcelona native but would trade him to the Nets in exchange for Deron Williams in a heartbeat.
- According to Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter), Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is currently searching for Jeremy Lin's 2010 Mavericks summer league jersey so he can sell it on eBay. No word yet on the reserve price.
Atlantic Notes: 76ers, Pietrus, Lin
The rare feat of attending two games in one day has been made possible today thanks to bizarre scheduling by the NBA. With the Knicks taking on the Mavericks in one of the early games (1:00 PM EST), a die-hard fan with deep pockets could easily make it across the Hudson in time see the Nets battle the Bucks at 7:00 PM EST. Let's take a look around the Atlantic Division to see what else is going on before the Jeremy Lin versus Jason Kidd showdown occupies the early afternoon.
- The 76ers need to find some offense if they want to continue their early season success, writes John N. Mitchell of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Mitchell points to the absence of injured 76ers center Spencer Hawes as a major reason why the team has struggled to score points as of late. While the team is balanced in featuring six players averaging double figures in scoring, the team's schedule becomes more difficult as they hit the road more frequently in the second half of the season.
- A late pre-season acquisition by the Celtics has proved to be an excellent move by their front office, says ESPNBoston.com's Chris Forsberg. Mickael Pietrus, 30, has enjoyed success on the court, but his true value to the team may be his affable personality and his ability to mesh well within the organization. As the replacement for the now-departed Glen Davis, Pietrus is averaging 7.1 PPG and 2.8 RPG on the season.
- Chris Bernucca of SheridanHoops.com wonders if NBA commissioner David Stern played a role in steering Lin to the friendly confines of Madison Square Garden.
Pacific Notes: Nash, Blake, Hickson
With much of today's attention focused on the Eastern Conference, the Lakers will take on the Suns for the second time in three days later this afternoon. Known to elevate his level of play against the Suns, Kobe Bryant has led the Lakers to three straight victories after putting up 36 points and six assists in Friday night's 111-99 victory in Phoenix. Let's take a look around the rest of the Pacific Division to see what else is going on:
- Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic says Suns star point guard Steve Nash isn't going anywhere prior to the trade deadline. It's a catch-22 situation where sending Nash to a contender wouldn't net the team fair compensation whereas sending the future HOFer to a middling squad who could send an attractive draft pick to the Suns would be doing a disservice to Nash. Coro expects Nash, 38, to stay with the Suns through the rest of the season and attempt to re-sign the former Santa Clara star to a new contract come June.
- While there has been heavy speculation that the Lakers are plotting to make a move in order to make a playoff run, the return of one injured player has given the squad a much needed spark. Since rejoining the Lakers five game ago, the team has gone 4-1 with former Terrapins guard Steve Blake manning the point, says Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. The ninth-year player is currently averaging 6.8 PPG and 3.1 APG on the season.
- After arriving in Sacramento last June via trade, life for Kings forward J.J. Hickson has been a series of adjustments, writes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. Hickson, 23, spent the first three years of his career with the Cavaliers and benefited from two years of tutelage under LeBron James. Now in Sacramento, he's had to deal with an early season coaching change and an overall different way of doing things which has led to the former N.C. State star's career-low FG% (.382) on the season.
Reed On Sessions, Jamison, Mayo
In his latest edition of "Hey Tom!", Tom Reed of the Cleveland Plain Dealer assesses what he believes the Cavs will do prior to the trade deadline. Let's take a look at some of his musings:
- Reed expects the Cavs to make a concerted effort in trading point guard Ramon Sessions before the deadline. Sessions, 25, is in his second season with Cleveland and is currently averaging 10.4 PPG and 5.6 APG in 25.1 MPG. Earlier rumors linked the former Nevada star with the Lakers and Knicks, but the rise of Jeremy Lin and signing of J.R. Smith would seem to signal that New York is no longer interested in Sessions.
- The Cavs are also looking to move Antawn Jamison whether that means trading him or buying him out. What makes Jamison difficult to trade, as also pointed out by Hoops Rumors writer Luke Adams, is the fact the Cavs would have to take back salary in any trade situation. The 35-year-old former Tar Heel is enjoying another solid season as he's averaging 16.6 PPG and 6.1 RPG in his third year with the team.
- Grizzlies guard O.J. Mayo would be a great piece to pair with the team's foundation of Tristan Thompson and Kyrie Irving. In responding to a proposed package of Omri Casspi and Daniel Gibson, Reed believes the Cavs would need to include more on their end in order for the trade to actually come to fruition. The 24-year-old former USC guard has been struggling this season as all of his minutes for the Grizzlies have come off the bench.
Nets Interested In Renaldo Balkman
Released on Friday by the Knicks after the signing of former Nuggets shooting guard J.R. Smith, Renaldo Balkman may find himself on another NBA roster before the week is up.
According to Fred Kerber of the New York Post, the Nets are looking to upgrade their depth at small forward and have turned their attention to the 27-year-old sixth-year player out of South Carolina. The Nets have been outscored 500-188 at the small forward position on the season heading into Saturday's game against the Bulls. The Nets current starting small forward, DeShawn Stevenson, is known for his defense rather than his scoring ability, which is also true of Balkman.
The former first-round pick by the Knicks was averaging 3.0 PPG and 1.9 RPG on the season in limited action.