The Ultimate in Pipe Dream Trades

dr chapstick — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 20:02:13 -0000

Everybody has been so prolific with their trade suggestions, I figured I'd better get one in too. Looking forward to people pointing out what are probably innumerable flaws- I confess I haven't completely thought this one through (though I have included many links). Try to come with me on this:

Move 1: Trade Jerryd Bayless, Sergio Rodriguez, #24 to the Wizards for #5, Etan Thomas.

I don't want to see Rex go any more than the rest of you, but Washington would have to strongly consider taking a hypothetical top-5 draft pick in Bayless (if he were drafted this year, as a sophomore) AND around 3 million in salary relief. They want to dump the Thomas contract, and we could conceivably shove his big body into a back-up PF spot (plus Etan is just generally rad- poet, political activist, etc.). They likely wouldn't be crazy about taking Sergio, but his inclusion and reasonable salary would be a small price to pay for this deal.

Move 2: Trade #5, Travis Outlaw to the Grizzlies for #2, Marko Jaric.

Can you see where I'm going with this? Memphis would have to strongly consider giving up their #2 for a quality player (and Grizzly killer) like Trout, so long as they retain a top-5 pick (still better than #6, where they had been projected to fall in the draft!). Jaric is overpaid, but the 3 million dollar discrepancy between his contract and Outlaw's would provide more salary relief for Memphis, which they always welcome, not to mention the financial difference between the #2 and #5 picks. With this extra relief plus their already sizable cap space, they could have a fortune to spend in the near future, maybe 2010... In turn, we'd get Adriana Lima and yes, Senor Rubio. Memphis wouldn't have to lose sleep over whether or not Ricky would want to play there, and there'd still be comparable (albeit shorter) talent in the top 5 without selecting Thabeet (who may or may not be NBA-ready). The Grizz could have their top-5 pick and still go shopping for somebody more established. And you know Trout would be stoked living so close to home.

So now we have Ricky Rubio, Etan Thomas, Adriana Lima, Marko Jaric, and about 6-7 million less cap space.

Move 3: Trade Steve Blake, Channing Frye (sign-&-trade, 5 million) to the Bulls for Kirk Hinrich, Lindsey Hunter.

-or-

Trade Frye (sign-&-trade, 6 million), rights to Petko/Freeland to Bulls for Hinrich, Hunter.

Now this is a bit trickier. Chicago would really have to view this as salary help, knowing that Hinrich probably has to go anyway. If we could somehow get Noah here, you'd have to do it- but Chicago surely doesn't want to jettison his big presence/ponytail. HIs ability to bang and emotional fire would be huge, but then again so would the added defensive intensity of bringing Hinrich and Hunter into the fold. By now we all know the merits of Hinrich's game, and there are many, but Hunter's veteran leadership and (once) reputation as a defensive specialist could be a steal as a throw-in. If we can pull this off, we've given away another 3-4 million in salary relief, but that was ours to spend. If not, we still have Blake.

So exhale. Now our line-up looks like this, and it's totally nasty:

PG: Hinrich, Rubio, Hunter (possibly Blake, sometimes Roy)

SG: Roy, Rudy, Lima/Jaric

SF: Batum, Webster (sometimes Roy)

PF: Aldridge, Thomas

C: Pryzbilla, Oden (or vice-versa)

We'd give Rubio about 3 years solid back-up play under the tutelage of Hinrich & Hunter (incidentally, both great defenders) before beginning to give him the reins at around age 21. We'd have a vastly improved perimeter defense without really sacrificing any offense, assuming Webster or Rudy can fill Outlaw's hole as 6th man, which they likely can. Our playmaking abilities and ability to run the break have improved exponentially, catering to the (largely unseen, at this point) strengths of LA, Nic, Rudy in the open court. The talent of our bench is staggering. We would probably need to upgrade our 'banger' at some point, but that seems a relatively easy future tweak. I'd be especially excited to see what Rubio, Rudy, and Webster could do together against other teams' second units, though that'd probably be almost too brutal to watch.

I'm just a dreamer! Tell me I'm crazy.

Absentee Blazers Fan- PLEASE ADVISE!

dr chapstick — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 03:40:55 -0000

The end of next week will find me in Europe until May 23rd... How do I keep up with the playoff run of my favorite precocious NBA team? Anybody know if there is a way to download complete games? (i.e. bittorrent) I can't imagine the NBA licensing the games out, but perhaps there is some magical clandestine alternative for desperate fans like me.

As a somewhat obsessive fan (and Bedger, if mostly in silence), I really really want to part of this! Wouldn't be satisfied to just watch the games after my return, though I should be so lucky to even get that far... Of course, I know I can watch highlights and stream the video, but I'd kill to watch every moment and doubt I can handle the 5AM European tip-off with my tour schedule...

Any way to download games? Would be sooo amazing.

P. S. Many thanks to Dave & Ben for the hard work- I've loved reading your posts all season (and those previous).

P. P. S. Greg's nickname should be Ole Babyface.

P. P. P. S. Cheers to all the Blazer fans that stood and started flapping their 'wings' and cawing when Birdman had to sit the other night... even had Melo laughing. Hilarious. Keep Portland weird.

SB Nation User Blog: dr chapstick

The Ultimate in Pipe Dream Trades

Absentee Blazers Fan- PLEASE ADVISE!