Getting Battier by helping Houston get Iverson

Here's a vague thought: Houston might want to go the whole "stockpiling stars" route and get Iverson as well. I don't think Detroit really wants him, and is just waiting for his contract to expire. HOWEVER, if they do keep him, then Dumars might feel some pressure to re-sign him, so better to unload him now, just as Atlanta unloaded Sheed one game after acquiring him. Detroit would want mostly cap relief, but Houston doesn't have enough expiring contracts. We have a doozy, but don't want Iverson, but could use Battier (for whom the Rockets have less use now they have Artest). I tinkered around and this is the best I could come up with:

Houston gets Iverson and gives up:
Shane Battier
Skip to my Lou
Chuck Hayes (a very good defender at PF, but they're stockpiled there)
Luther Head and the ghost of Steve Francis (both instantly waived)

Detroit gives up Iverson and we give them:
Raef's contract
Outlaw
Steve Blake

So we end up with (essentially) Battier replacing Outlaw, Alston replacing Blake and Chuck Hayes as a useful defender at the forward spot. We get better defensively (Alston is better than Blake at that, isn't he?) and lose a player who needs shots to be effective, when those shots could be going to Rudy, Webster and possibly Bayless.

Looking at it, it doesn't look great for ANY of the teams (not sure Detroit wants Blake, although he's a better PG than Iverson, and Stuckey is more of a combo guard than a PG) which might mean it actually makes sense. Houston is the problem because they're essentially big contracts for the stars plus piddly little ones, which makes it hard to match up. I think it makes us a much better team, even if we give up individual talent, because Battier is the ideal fill-in-the-gaps player.

Just a thought that occurred when I was wondering who might actually want Iverson.

[Edit: I tinkered, and we actually have more options. The following combos work on our end:

LaFrentz, Blake, Diogu
LaFrentz, Outlaw, Diogu

With these, though, we'd need to do another trade giving up either a guard or a forward, otherwise we'd be ridiculously stacked.]

 

I like the idea of getting Battier, but I do not like giving up Raefs contract for just that. We can do better then that.

 

Agree, I would hope that Raefs contract gets us something better than Battier.

 

Battier is an offensive weak link and I would not want him here. If you need further evidence, watch last years playoffs and how when push came to shove, Houston got knocked out of the playoffs by making Battier the primary offensive option. Go back and watch the film. The ball don't lie, and it wasn't going in the bucket.