There's good Sam Smith and then there's bad Sam Smith and this seems to be squarely in the latter. The column reads to me like something you would expect to see in the Orlando Sentinel or the Miami Herald; one of those papers that has constituencies that is looking for someone to tell them they can get all stars for nothing. I would hope we can expect better. The idea that the Rockets are looking to trade Martin is inane. He's all they have in terms of a star attraction. Unless McHale actively wants the Rockets to tank, which they actually still would have too much talent for, there's no way you're getting Martin. His contract is a good contract, at least for the Rockets, given his level of production. Houston is not a small market. There's no reason to go there. I feel the same way with Joe Johnson and the Hawks. I'm not sure he's a great pickup with his salary, but even if he was, there's no way you're getting him. Atlanta looks to Joe Johnson to sell tickets. It's a non-starter.
How is it inane to think Noah might get you Martin? I think Rockets would think long and hard about that deal. Does Martin really help you sell tickets?
I'm with SST on this. Sam's throwing some stuff against the wall to see if any of it'll stick. As veteran posters, we've all seen lots of "trade idea" threads. Against this standard, Sam's article is OK, but I think it's reasonable to expect more when a guy's getting paid very good money for it. The Joe Johnson thing is just goofy. That contract was major scary when signed and now appears to already be a baby albatross that is going to grow up to be a monster. Sorry, but the Hawks made that bed and they can sleep in it. We've talked some about Ellis. Seems that Sam has a bit of a woody over Monta. If it lasts longer than 4 hours he should probably get it looked at. For pure speculaltion, Sam's Martin thing isn't all that bad. He worked the McHale thing in nicely. Disagree with SST that Martin is some sort of ticket-selling stud. He's a nice player, but no Blake Griffin. If the Rockets have given up on Yao, they need a real live center so that part makes sense. The part that doesn't work for me is that Martin is only marginally better defensively than Korver at SG. If Thibs was willing to make that sort of trade-off for added scoring punch, he'd've started Korver for Bogans. If I'm trading small for big (which I hate to do), I need a more complete player than Martin. Anyway, nice post, Sam.
At the end of the day trading Noah for a SG is probably going to be a lateral move. He's one of the best centers in the league. Replacing him will be just as hard, if not more, than finding a competent SG. Jay, don't you live in the Bay area? I've seen Monta play like 4 times. You don't like trading for him, right? He puts up decent stats, but GS is a basketball mecca for short guys with mad skillz and no defense. It's hard to separate the wheat from the chaff.
I live in Austin now and haven't seen Ellis play much. His +/- doesn't scream this is a guy we need. You would have to think about Martin for Noah if you thought Noah is reached a plateau and Asik can improve on O. Martin and Korver are not in the same league. I like Martin a lot better than Ellis.
I've been told that I can be difficult...particularly by my wife. She's a good judge of character. Martin for Noah leaves another shoe that must drop unless you believe that Asik is ready to take on a 30+ minute load. Personally, I like Asik, but I'm not there yet. A lot depends on how much you feel that the Bulls depth can come up front and center. Personally, I'm not inclined to take heavy risks here...Love Omer for 12 mpg, but am shaky at 30mpg. This is the nature of the Bulls 'offseason. You've got a great team but not a championship team. What next?
You go the Bears route and add more coaches. Oh, and pray for Derrick Rose to take the next "next" step.
Or if you think that a rotation of 3-4 Kurt Thomas types can get you the same production and guard opposing bigs.
The Bulls have to do something. If you think Martin is the guy we should be getting, I'm down with it.
Kevin Martin would fit great on this team. At the expense of Noah? That's a tough one. But, after several years in the league, Noah is oft-injured and off the floor down the stretch. I love the guy, but don't trust him yet. He has so many ups and downs. The Bulls have to decide if they are "WIN NOW" or "WIN LATER." Rose is very young. Deng and Noah are both 26. Moving Noah for Martin is an attempt to "WIN NOW" without an established center. I'm with transplant on Asik at 30 minutes a night. I don't think that puts us over the top, unless Asik is the truth. I say hold on to that Rose-Deng-Noah core and try to add a Crawford type for the MLE. We need a real home run to overtake the Heat IMO (especially when they have more depth next year). This core should be productive and contending for the next 4 years.
I think one of the only truities of preaching patience that I accept is that it takes a long time for big men to develop. Noah showed us stuff at the beginning of this season that we haven't seen from him prior or since. You have to temper patience with the knowledge that Big men often stop developing, which is why there are so few good ones. Trading Noah for Martin strikes me as one of those win now moves where the younger player is actually more win now than the player acquired (Wallace for Chandler.)
The only one who prepared for this season like it was going to be a championship season was Derrick. It was almost enough. You give these guys one more chance, with some sort of upgrade at SG. Let Joakim prepare like its a championship season looming. Let Boozer do the same, and Deng. Go get Jamal (sure, K4E, let's do it! -- maybe even Kirk, too!), and see what comes of it. No to trading Joakim. No way is Asik ready. The guy is hurt for goodness sake. Go Bulls!
In general, I don't think trading Joakim for a SG is going to be the answer. Fills one hole, opens up another. I like Asik, but no way do I think he's ready to take Joakim's place. Replacing Noah is probably going to be harder than upgrading the SG position.
Or they're equally impossible, right? There are almost no good centers in this league and no good shooting guards. I think Noah fits are style of play better than Asik, so even if Asik we're ready to start, which is a hell of an if, you'd still have to think long and hard about making a move.
Here is a question : What is the better team? Keeping Noah and Deng and no direct swap for Martin or Ellis respectively ( as has been speculated ) and losing Korver, Watson, Bogans, the Charlotte pick and our 2 1st round picks this year, but adding Stephen Jackson, OJ Mayo, and JR Smith So we would be adding Jackson, Mayo and Smith to Deng and Brewer on the wings with Rose at point and keeping our front line in tact. OR...... Losing our starting Center or a top 5 two way SF in the league for a singular 20ppg scorer at the 2 and keeping Korver , Watson , Bogans and our picks ? Another way of looking at it ...... Noah, Jackson, Mayo , Smith ? OR Martin, Korver, Watson , Bogans and picks ? Thanks for playing
And fwiw In 2 seasons, assuming we keep our front line , I see Asik and Noah starting with Jo at the 4. This puts Boozer as a 6th man big to beat up on tired defenses or inferior 2nd units - where I think is where his future lies with us within 1 to 2 seasons assuming Asik continues to develop ( which I reckon he will in a way that will surprise more than is commonly expected )
I think they are both exceptionally good players but one isn't appreciably better than the other. Wallace is the better athlete but Deng is deceptively quick and has better length. But are great rebounders for their position , Lu has a better mid range game ...it really comes down to chemistry and fits and given how superb Lu is for this Bulls team , I believe it would be a monumental clusterfuck to deal him for an Ellis or a neutral nothing type move where there is nothing to gain but everything to lose.
