This is not a rumor, nor is it in talks(that I know of), or anything of that like. Portland Trades: Rasheed Wallace Total Salaries: $16,985,000 Cleveland Trades: Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Kevin Ollie Total Salaries: $15,958,500 New York Trades: Charlie Ward, Kurt Thomas, Travis Knight, and a 1st rounder(protected) Total Salaries: $15,824,125 Now, at first glance, NY gets the best of this. But let me explain why it may be in the best interest of all the teams. NY- McDyess is back, making a crowded frontcourt. Thomas has been benched, and has stated he wants to be traded. This offers NY a chance to obtain a good player in Rasheed to form a good frontcourt of Van Horn/McDyess/Wallace. They get more talent, and pushes them into the playoff picture fast. Portland- They are undergoing a change of identity. Wells is gone. Patterson will be looked to move before the trade deadline, or in the offseason. Portland is trying to shed its bad image. You do that by getting rid of the players who protray that image. Wallace will not be resigned in the offseason, IMO. Which means Portland should look to move Wallace while they can get something for him. Ilgauskas is a legit center with size, something Portland needs. Not only that, but it forces teams to guard him(where as with Davis, teams can slide off for help defense). It also addresses the need for a center right now, rather than waiting for the offseason. Ilgauskas is coming off an All Star year, and his offense could give the push the Blazers need. Plus, he has a good reputation, which the Blazers consider a plus. Cleveland- Again, at first glance, it looks like they got the worst of it. But not really. Kurt Thomas is something the Cavs need. A rugged, veteran, tough defensive presence in the frontcourt. He can play both frontcourt spots, and would form a good frontcourt quadret with Boozer, Diop, Battie, and himself. It gives the Cavs some much needed defensive presence, and leadership. Ward gives the Cavs a veteran backup PG to fill the slot left by Ollie. And Knight is merely a cap filler. But what it really does is clear cap room for Cleveland. Knight(4.4 million) and Ward(6 million) come off the books this summer, freeing up just a shade under $10.5 million in cap space. Kurt Thomas has a player option, so if he opts out, and Cleveland renounces his rights(5.8 million), Cleveland could end up with roughly $16 million off the cap, putting Cleveland's cap total somwhere in the $28 million range(after the draft) heading into Free Agency. Like I said, this trade could fill the other team's needs rather well
Very feasible. The only hangup I have is whether Cleveland wants to give up that much front-court scoring. But from Portland and New York's standpoints, it seems good. I think the Knicks would continue to start Deke, and bring Wallace off the bench like they did Thomas.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting starman85:</div><div class="quote_post">Very feasible. The only hangup I have is whether Cleveland wants to give up that much front-court scoring. But from Portland and New York's standpoints, it seems good. I think the Knicks would continue to start Deke, and bring Wallace off the bench like they did Thomas.</div> Ilgauskas isn't the Cavs long term answer at center. You don't spend a #8 pick on a center, without having the intentions of him being your future center. There is only a 4.3 ppg diference between Thomas and Ilgauskas. Last year, when Thomas started, he averaged 14 ppg. So there isn't too much of a difference.
I would do this deal. The Cavs are already the best rebounding team in the NBA, and they did get stronger after the Boston trade, this deal would only strengthen that more. The Cavs needed to get tough, we had too many finesse players (Davis, Ilgauskas, Miles) and that killed us on the defensive end. This team has a chance to win now, this year, which is why Paxon has been bruning up the phone lines trying to bring is tough, aggressive, defensive minded players that are not afraid to attack the basket and finish strong. The Blazers need to shed this image yes, the nickname "Jailblazers" has stuck with this team for far too long. It's a shame too because it's a great city with great fans, they don't deserve this.
Doesn't sound too bad, but Thomas is not a center. He was playing reluctantly out of position for the Knicks last season, he's really much more comfortable at the power forward. Wallace causes trouble right now while logging 35 plus mpg, I don't think he would be very happy about backing up anybody in New York. Maybe he could start at the three in NY as well, that would be a daunting front line with Deke and Dice. KVH will have to come off the bench, which is probably the role he's best suited for.
I hadn't thought about that, but you're right, Sheed is better suited to starting while bringing Van Horn off the pine. Good point.
