<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Gary Payton is rumored to be joining the Miami Heat as a backup to Jason "White Chocolate" Williams in hopes of riding the Shaq/Wade/Walker train to that elusive championship ring. I can't help but think of what happened the last time GP tried riding Shaq's coattails to an NBA title. Let's hope Payton has better luck this time. The Vlad-man will likely resign with the Seattle Sonics for way too much money and will have every opportunity to prove that he is, as some people claim, the next Peja Stojakovic. Before I'm ready to bestow that title on Radmanovic, I need to see him knock down shots in March, after the increase in playing time has started turning his legs to jello. Flip Murray might be returning to the Sonics, as well, since most of his potential suitors have locked up their rosters. At this point, you know what you're getting from Murray: explosive scoring ability, horrendous shot selection, and an occasional, "why doesn't he play more?" comment from the TV color commentator. Gerald Wallace should've signed somewhere by now. He's young (23-years-old), athletic, and consistently improving. There are at least a half-dozen teams that could use Wallace's services. The best part is he's available on the cheap. I'm not saying Gerald Wallace will shift the balance of power in the NBA depending on where he signs, but he's a good player who'll strengthen the bench of any team who signs him. Someone give this man a contract! Reggie Evans is another man who should've been signed by now. His hideous offensive game is covered up by his outstanding rebounding ability. After a semi-serious courtship by the Minnesota Timberwolves, he's back on the market and will likely rejoin the Sonics.</div> Source
I'd like to see GP get a ring, but let's be honest here, if he does even he'll know it's a cheap one. I wonder if it will still feel that good for him. Agree on Wallace too, I thought he showed some good signs in Charlotte last season - Bogans too.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Almost a year later, Dwyane was again with us in New York City, this time for Dime No. 13 ? his first magazine cover shoot. He had just come off a Rookie of the Year-caliber season where he dominated in his first playoff run, coming painfully close to leading his eighth-seeded Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals all by himself. He was just learning how to deal with NBA celebrity after spending almost an entire season lost in the long shadow cast by fellow rookies LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. "It's like that 50 Cent song says," he said. "?I can't even walk through the mall no more.'" The world around him was speeding up, and he could feel it. Despite the LeBron mania that swept the NBA that season, by the end of the year, the league was on to Dwyane. Miami knew what they had; everyone else was just trying to catch up. "We actually offered Ray Allen for him," an official from the Seattle Supersonics told us the summer after Wade's rookie year. "But when we called (Pat) Riley, he basically said, ?Thanks, but no thanks.'" Following a disappointing run in the Olympics, Dwyane returned from Greece looking to regain his momentum. "Because of the Olympics, I came right into the season with a competitive basketball mind frame," Dwyane says now. "And I was mad after the Olympics. Actually, you could say that it was disappointment more than anything. And I was itching to get playing again." </div> Source
Just goes to prove how good the foresight of our management is I remember when, at 12, we seemed a pretty fair shot at drafting Wade out of Marquette, given teams seemed to be worried about him being a combo guard and not good enough for either backcourt spot specifically.
