Kobe. O'Neal. Garnett. Stoudemire. Marion. Carter. Jefferson. Many big names have been thrown out this week amidst the tirade of annual trade rumors that surround the NBA Draft, but no one envisioned this shocker:
Boston gets:
Ray Allen
Glen Davis (Drafted No.35)
Seattle gets:
Wally Szczerbiak
Delonte West
Jeff Green (Drafted No.5)
Celtics' 2008 2nd round pick
Boston gets:
Ray Allen
Glen Davis (Drafted No.35)
Seattle gets:
Wally Szczerbiak
Delonte West
Jeff Green (Drafted No.5)
Celtics' 2008 2nd round pick
Note that Wally's contract expires in two years. That is, his contract is what made him attractive to new 30-year old general manager Sam Presti as opposed to talent. Speaking of Presti, he must have balls of steel to come into an already skeptical fan base and trade the best player within the same month of taking the job. Note that the likely Oklahoma bound Sonics are the only NBA team that went through the draft without a head coach.
The Rashard Lewis situation keeps on getting more interesting. With Kevin Durant and Jeff Green, that would make three very similar players on the same team. Throw in Ray's departure and the uncertainty surrounding the new ownership and arena situation, and Seattle is not an attractive team for a free agent. Unfortunately, Orlando is the only sensible option for Lewis, and they would have to give up Darko to do so. Chances are that Seattle low balls Rashard and forces him to stay as there are no better options, or signs and trades him, completely revamping the team.
Note that Boston fans are not too happy about the trade either, despite the dangerous combination of Allen, Paul Pierce, and Al Jefferson. After all, the big chips here were the No.5 pick for an aging 32-year old.
Portland and New York made some great moves, highlighted by a trade with each other:
Portland gets:
Channing Frye
Steve Francis
New York gets:
Zach Randolph
Big contracts in exchange here, but this frees up room in the middle for Greg Oden and LaMarcus Alridge to flourish. Francis and Frye join Brandom Frye to form a deep and promising young team that will be well guided by Nate McMillian.
Hey, Paul Allen, think you can move your team back home to Seattle? Just a wishful thought...
Oh yeah, a boatload of good players were taken in what is expected to be the deepest draft since the 2003 Lebron/Melo/Wade/Bosh combination, but ESPN and company have them covered well enough, and we have the next two decades to discuss top selections Greg Oden and Kevin Durant.
