I doubt oshley will make a deal. I think he's gonna wait this season out. I suspect he wants as much flexibility possible. This is the year he makes his true mark.
IIRC people ("insiders") were saying this tough road trip will determine if this team is a playoff or lotto team. I think Neil makes more than one deal.
A box of half-eaten fried rice from Lucky Dragon, a mismatched pair of sweaty gym socks and Luke Babbitt.
I think he will make one, or more, small trades to acquire future assets and keep/improve our cap flexibility. Trades similar, in principal, to the Jefferies and Pavlovic deals - as a facilitator to help other teams get a deal done that lands us future draft picks maybe a little more cap space. I don't think there is any way he trades Hickson, but not necessarily for lack of trying. Hickson wants to take full advantage of free agency and get a big contract. He has the right to veto any trade, and I think he'd do exactly that. He's in a great situation right now. He's starting and averaging a double-double. if his goal is a big contract, why would he want to go to a contender where he'd be a back-up getting 10 - 12 minutes a night? I just don't see any possible trade scenario that would benefit the Blazers, their trading partner and Hickson. The Blazers will do exactly what they did last summer, they will renounce Hickson, make a serious run at someone better, and if that falls through see if they can get Hickson on a cheap contract. If not, they let him walk - and since they gain cap space, it's not really letting him go for nothing. We may not be able to land a big time free agent, but worst case, I think we'll be able to get two very solid, mid-career veterans with our cap space. One of them may be Hickson, or maybe not. It will be interesting to see how Olshey uses that cap space he is so intent on preserving. BNM
He was being funny. Read it again, how it bounces off the quote he gives. Denny has announced I'm the board comedy cop. I enforce people's attempts at being funny.
Considering we have very little in the way of pieces to be traded, I don't think anything will happen.
http://www.blazersedge.com/2013/2/11/3978930/broussard-blazers-interested-in-spurs-f-dejuan-blair Let's all argue about this the rest of the day
I'm fine with adding him if it doesn't cost us much. Of course, with this team, his legs will probably explode (literally).
You are probably right. But your scenario does point to one reason Hickson agrees to a trade. He got nowhere last year in free agency and re-signed here. Maybe if there's a willing trade suitor out there he'd be willing to take the bird in the hand right now rather than risk having the same thing happen to him again this summer. I'm sure his agent will want him to hold tight and wait for the bigger contract, but if I'm Hickson I might go off emotion and say, "Hey, I've been busting my tail and there are no guarantees. I could get injured. The Blazers could go into tank mode and bench me for the rest of the year. I might not look so shiny this summer compared to what else is out there. I'll take the sure $7 mil now and play on a relevant team rather than risk waiting for more later."
I think teams would have been wary of signing Hickson last summer after he was cut from Sac for nothign. I think if he continues to average almost a double/double for the entire season, he'll see much more interest this summer.
