Yes! Very nice move by Paxson. Let's hope Gooden can get back to his old, productive self here. From a pure fan's perspective, I could not stand to see Wallace play another game. Gooden is a nice young PF that is better aligned with the timeframe of our team. Let's hope he can play like he did the last couple of years. He's been a bit of a stiff this year.
We have to hope Hughes can be somewhere between his current play and his play last season in D.C. Closer to D.C. the better!
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Denny Crane @ Feb 21 2008, 04:07 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>And, I'm sorry to see Du go.</div> Hold on now! <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ESPN News - According to Brian Windhorst of the Akron Beacon-Journal, the NBA gave the Cavaliers, Bulls and Sonics an extension to finalize their deal. Windhorst reports that Chris Duhon will not be dealt to Seattle.</div> http://realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/510...luded_in_trade/ ESPN - NBA Basketball Teams, Scores, Stats, News, Standings, Rumors - Pro Basketball
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3257159 Sources: Cavs get Wallace from Bulls, Szczerbiak from Sonics The Cleveland Cavaliers appear to have beaten the NBA's annual trade buzzer to get LeBron James some of the fresh help he's been openly craving. In a three-way trade with Chicago and Seattle that has been submitted for league approval, NBA front-office sources say that Cleveland will come away with four new teammates for James, headlined by Ben Wallace from the Bulls and sharpshooter Wally Szczerbiak from the Sonics. The league office was notified of the deal before Thursday's 3 p.m. ET trading deadline, sources said, and is currently reviewing the trade details as required for formal approval. After Cleveland watched two longstanding trade targets land elsewhere -- Mike Bibby in Atlanta and Jason Kidd in Dallas -- sources say that the deal calls for the Cavaliers to receive Wallace, Szczerbiak, Seattle point guard Delonte West, Chicago's Joe Smith and a future second-round pick from the Bulls. The Bulls, apparently abandoning their gamble on Wallace less than two seasons into the lucrative four-year deal they used to sign him away from Detroit, would get Cavaliers forward Drew Gooden and swingman Larry Hughes along with Cavs reserves Cedric Simmons and Shannon Brown. The Sonics, shedding Szczerbiak in the name of additional payroll flexibility, come away with the expiring contracts of Cleveland's Ira Newble and Chicago's Adrian Griffin as well as Cavs veteran Donyell Marshall. Marc Stein is the senior NBA writer for ESPN.com.
This must have been Pax's masterplan. He could have had Kobe, but passed to get Lebron. After Lebron has to play with Ben Wallace, he will have no choice, but to bolt for the MLE.
Smilies fail me. I'm ****ing thrilled Wallace is gone. Remember when the rumor was Hinrich + Wallace for Hughes + Gooden? This is a lot better.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (BG7 Lavigne @ Feb 21 2008, 04:21 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>After Lebron has to play with Ben Wallace, he will have no choice, but to bolt for the MLE.</div> a hee hee
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Point Blank @ Feb 21 2008, 01:22 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Is Duhon the Bulls 6th man?</div> Duhon's been starting.
So how is this going to end up rotation wise? PG-Kirk Hinrich/Chris Duhon SG-Larry Hughes/Ben Gordon SF-Luol Deng/Thabo Sefolosha PF-Drew Gooden/Andres Nocioini C- Joakim Noah/Tyrus Thomas/Aaron Gray
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (BG7 Lavigne @ Feb 21 2008, 04:26 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>So how is this going to end up rotation wise? PG-Kirk Hinrich/Chris Duhon SG-Larry Hughes/Ben Gordon SF-Luol Deng/Thabo Sefolosha PF-Drew Gooden/Andres Nocioini C- Joakim Noah/Tyrus Thomas/Aaron Gray</div> This is a pretty neat lineup. Hughes/Gooden/Noc are the oldest players?
That's 3 tall, ball-handling guards who are good on defense and bad on offense that the Bulls have to pair with Gordon. I think he's staying.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (rwj @ Feb 21 2008, 04:32 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>That's 3 tall, ball-handling guards who are good on defense and bad on offense that the Bulls have to pair with Gordon. I think he's staying.</div> I could see it work out like that too... I spose it could really work out either way. I spose the Bulls have their bases covered if he leaves.
I wonder how Ben Wallace is going to handle coming off the bench. Joe Smith is a much better fit next to Ilgauskas.
I feel like I should give Paxson/Boylan kudos for thinking semi-long term and sticking with Ben Wallace this season. Maybe I'm giving them too much credit, but giving him entitlement minutes really boosted his trade value and let them dump him in a fairly decent deal. Not bad.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (rwj @ Feb 21 2008, 04:41 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I wonder how Ben Wallace is going to handle coming off the bench. Joe Smith is a much better fit next to Ilgauskas.</div> I kind of doubt he will. Z is the sort of big tall guy who stays at home that will (theoretically, if there's anything left in the tank) let Wallace be more effective. I've got my doubts about that, but that's the thinking, I guess.
144 minutes at SF/PF/C Z 30 minutes Lebron 40 minutes Varajao 30 minutes Leaves 44 minutes for Wallace and Smith.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Point Blank @ Feb 21 2008, 04:05 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I love the day of the trade deadline. Welp, time to update my rosters on NBA 2k8.</div> Haha, I'm the same way. I'm gonna do my 2k8 rosters tonight too. I love this for Cleveland, despite the putridity of the short-term contractual situation. Big Ben is making $15.5 million this year with two years following worth a total of $28.5 million. Wally is making $13 million next season, but it is also an expiring $13 million. Wally can help Cleveland from the perimeter for the rest of this season and the playoffs, if he can stay healthy that long, but can be a major asset next season. They can package Wally with Gibson, a pick, and another expiring deal (Snow or Jones) and possibly get a real sidekick for LeBron. Great deal for Cleveland, and I think Delonte West will do well down there. They adressed some real weaknesses with this deal - depth, interior defense, and shooting. LeBron should be happy. I'm not overly thrilled about this deal for Chicago, although it's much better now than it was before, since they get to keep Duhon. It isn't a horrible move, though. Gooden is a solid pickup and this gives Joakim a big opportunity to play a significant role right away (and more minutes for Gray), and it does get rid of Wallace... but Larry Hughes is on the major decline, can't stay healthy, and is a terrible decision maker. I'm just not a big fan of Larry Hughes, and I'm not sure adding another guard was what the Bulls needed to do. I like Shannon Brown a bit, though. Too bad he won't get an opportunity here either. For Seattle, this is outstanding. They get Newble's expiring deal this year and also virtually cut Wally's salary in half for next year. That's beautiful, great work by Presti. Solid, and surprising, deal all around.
I'm loving this deal for the Bulls. We got rid of the uselessness that is Wallace, which thrills me. We also got a guy in Gooden who is much younger and more productive offensively, while being solid defensively as well. We also landed a big guard in Hughes that we've been lacking. Hopefully he can play well for us, maybe a change of scenery will be good for him. If he's anything close to his Washington days, I'll be freaking thrilled.
