Imagine If…
Posted by Brendan Jackson on Jun 26, 2009
Now that Draft Day has come and gone without the seemingly annual “big splash” made by the Celtics, fans can now shift their focus to potential trades and free agency. Danny Ainge has said numerous times that moves need to and will be made this off season to make the team better. This becomes even more necessary with the shift of power in the East I quickly touched on yesterday.
So without further adieu I ask you all to bear with me for a few hundred words while I explain that what I am about to write is not as crazy as it first reads:
(Celtics send J.R. Giddens, Brian Scalabrine, Glen Davis/ Mikki Moore, and Tony Allen to the Clippers; Clippers send Marcus Camby and Mike Taylor to the Celtics)
I know what you’re thinking: Why would the Clippers ever do this? but please don’t stop reading; hear me out.
The reasons for the Celtics to pull the trigger are obvious. He has the ability the ability to play both the four and the five, thus more than adequately spelling KG and Perk. He’s an excellent defender (Defensive POY in 2006-2007) and can hit mid range jump shots. Oh and by the way, he comes off the books in 2010-2011 thus not interfering with the supposed max contract the C’s are prepared to offer. Also, if the Celtics win the Championship next year, Camby might be persuaded to resign for much less money. Not to mention for all those UMASS fans that feel disenfranchised, this could be his road to redemption.
There is one caveat to this trade. Mikki Moore would have to be a sign-and-trade and by Mikki Moore, I really mean it would be Glen Davis as no one is planning on paying that much money to Mikki Moore (I used Moore because the trade machine wouldn’t let me use Davis as he’s currently a free agent). I love Big Baby (as shown by previous posts here, here, and here) but this would be too good to pass up. Oh and Mike Taylor is too similar to Lester Hudson so one of them would probably have to go. Again, I love both of them as players (small school, unheralded, late second rounders who work hard- seriously what’s not to like?) but I would still pull the trigger (or genetically engineer them into the perfect tenth man: Lester Taylor).
So now, why the Clippers would do this:
More PT for BG
The Clipper front court is loaded and now even more so with the addition of number one overall pick Blake Griffin. It’s widely assumed that the Clippers will try to deal one of their three high profile big men in order to open up some room for Griffin to grow. This is most likely going to end up being Marcus Camby because his contract is the only one that’s expiring after next season and the Clippers would be hard pressed to find a team committing to not being a player in the infamous 2010-2011 NBA free agent class right now.
Only Expiring Contracts Need Apply
Expiring contracts are extremely valuable in the NBA. They can be used as trade bait or just come off the books after the season. The Celtics happen to have a lot of them, or at least enough for GM’s to entertain a trade like this. Assuming in the sign-and-trade, Glen Davis does not sign a one year deal, his would be the only contract involved in the trade not to come off the books after next season. And even if he signs a multi-year deal, he’s proven to be a very good player and a highly sought after player- just not so much by the Clippers considering their already stacked front court. Could be a nice player to trade before the season starts of midseason.
If that deal seemed too plausible, then feast your eyes on this beauty:
(Celtics send J.R. Giddens, Brian Scalabrine, Glen Davis/ Mikki Moore to LA, and Tony Allen to the Knicks; Clippers send Marcus Camby to the Celtics; Knicks send Wilson Chandler and M. Sene to the Celtics)
Not only do the Celtics get their backup center question answered with Camby, but they also kiss their backup small forward need goodbye. Wilson Chandler has become a nice player for the Knicks. He’s young, athletic, tall (6’8″), and can shoot the ball pretty well. He is also strong enough to defend stronger small forwards. Oh and the Knicks could be looking to get rid of him as his contract goes through the 2010-2011 season. Sene is awful, and I can quite confidently say, will never be good, but his deal does expire after next season and hey, if Denver can sign Johan Petro for the playoffs and get away with it, than we can take Sene.
Why The Knicks Would Do It
The Knicks have not minced words about being very active in next season’s huge free agent market and would love to trade an non-expiring contract (Chandler) for an expiring one (Tony Allen). Also, if TA comes back from injury, he’s actually a good fit for the run-and-gun Knicks with his speed, athleticism, and slashing ability.
See one more proposal after the jump.
This last proposal might be the only possible trade, again with Baby replacing Mikki Moore and then being shipped out in a separate deal as the Clips don’t need him at all:
(Celtics send J.R. Giddens, Brian Scalabrine and Glen Davis/ Mikki Moore to the Clippers; Clippers send Marcus Camby to the Celtics)
So any of these deals would be a dream come true- emphasis on dream. I really don’t think either of these would happen but then again worse trades have happened:
- Kevin Garnett to the Celtics for young, unproven players
- Randy Foye and Mike Miller to the Wizards for a draft pick and players the T-Wolves don’t need/ want*
- Pau Gasol GIVEN to the Lakers for NOTHING
So there you have it. Three trades that really won’t happen but work using ESPN’s NBA Trade Machine. Feel free to check my math using these teams salary information (thanks HoopsHype: Boston, LA Clippers, New York) and the trade machine. See what you can come up with on a slow Celtics news day.
*I do see how this deal makes sense for both teams but from a talent perspective it’s way unbalanced.
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