Sunday Trade Update Notebook: The Cavs are All-In, Ray is Still Here, the Back-up PG Remains in Play
Posted by Zach Lowe on Feb 14, 2010
• It looks like the media reports are coming to a consensus about the Wizards/Celtics talk: The Celtics wanted Caron Butler, not Antawn Jamison, and the main offer, not surprisingly, was a deal of Ray Allen for Butler and Brendan Haywood, according to the Herald’s Steve Bulpett.
You can see why Washington went with the Dallas offer (Josh Howard, Drew Gooden and spare parts) over the C’s offer for Butler and Haywood. The Celtics were offering only cap relief in Allen’s expiring deal; the Wiz get the same cap relief from Dallas, since Gooden’s deal is expiring and the Wiz will now hold a team option (for $11.8 million) on Howard for next season.
If the Wiz manage to unload Jamison and rid themselves, somehow, of Gil Arenas, they’ll need players for next season and they may like the idea of taking a look at Howard.
• But Washington’s hopes of unloading Jamison are about to take a big hit: Phoenix and Cleveland are on the verge of a deal that would send Amare Stoudemire to the Cavs for J.J. Hickson and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, according to Chris Broussard at ESPN.com.
Holy crap.
This is a fascinating move, and possibly a panic move, for Cleveland. A LeBron/Stoudemire screen/roll will be terrifying on offense, as John Krolik noted at Cavs the Blog three weeks ago. LeBron has basically never played with an accomplished screen/roll big man, and Stoudemire has spent the last half-dozen seasons running the NBA’s mainstay play with the best screen/roll point guard on earth.
On the other hand, Stoudemire is an awful and often unmotivated defensive player. His adjusted plus/minus numbers over the past two seasons are the worst among all Phoenix players, though his raw plus/minus stats (via 82games.com) aren’t as bad.
It will be interesting (if this deal goes through) to see how the Cavs sort out front court minutes. A Shaq-Amare back line would be vulnerable against any offense that forces big men to move around the court. Anderson Varejao is a great defensive player, but beyond him, the Cavs big man rotation would consist only of the as-yet-to-return Leon Powe.
Of course, the Suns could waive Ilgauskas, allowing the Cavs to re-sign him after a month, just as the Pistons re-signed Antonio McDyess after dealing him to Denver last season in the Billups/Iverson trade disaster.
Either way: An Amare deal represents a gamble for a team that has more or less made its bones on defense over the past three seasons (though they have steadily improved on offense and now rank 5th in offensive efficiency).
• Back to the C’s: Marc Spears reports the following in Yahoo!:
The Celtics also have inquired about the availability of Golden State Warriors guardMonta Ellis, Sacramento Kings guard Kevin Martin and Philadelphia 76ers swingman Andre Iguodala. None of the talks have become substantive.
And:
The Celtics also reached out to the Phoenix Suns aboutAmar’e Stoudemire, but don’t have the means to get a deal done.
So, basically, the C’s have inquired about a bunch of young guys with proven NBA resumés and deals expensive or long enough that their teams might drop them in exchange for Ray’s expiring deal. (Side note: I wonder if during these inquiries, Danny Ainge is careful not to mention Ray Allen’s name, so that he can turn around and tell Ray—honestly—that he hasn’t initiated trade talks for Allen).
It’s not hard to see why none of these deals got serious. The Kings have very little incentive to trade Martin before they see how he fits with Tyreke Evans, and his deal (escalating from $9.7M this season to $12.5 in 2013, according to ShamSports.com) isn’t outrageous. Ellis is a questionable fit in Boston, and Iguodala’s deal could end up being the worst contract in the NBA if the owners get their way in collective bargaining talks this summer or next summer.
Bottom line: With talks for these players stalling out and the Butler deal done, the C’s are running out of ways to use Ray Allen’s deal in any trade. I’ve said from the beginning that he would almost certainly stay here, and I stand by that.
• That’s not to say Boston isn’t looking to tweak, but they aren’t necessarily focusing on the position we all had in mind (small forward/swing man). Instead, they seem to be looking for a back-up point guard as well, according to Bulpett:
The Celtics are said to be focusing on getting a backup point guard (there will be more talk with Charlotte about D.J. Augustin). The team still believes Marquis Daniels can bring the ball up the floor, but is looking more at the problems at the other end of the court.
Eddie House has struggled with his shot at times, but the Celts believe that will come around. They know, however, he will never be a defensive stopper, and it is more than likely that issue will push them toward a move.
Said one league source, “I think it’s pretty clear they have some concerns about House. They like what he can do, and I think they like Tony Allen, too. But from what they’re talking about with teams, it looks like they’re trying to make an upgrade.”
Interesting: Defense is the main motivation here, huh? Daniels can bring the ball up on offense but he can’t guard the Darren Collisons of the world on defense. When the Big Baby/D.J. Augustin trade talks became public a few days ago (though Ainge denied them), my immediate reaction was that the C’s would not trade an asset from their front court for an asset that would join their back court.
I still believe that; the front court is just too old and too fragile to deal a young, healthy piece like Davis. Any deal for a back-up PG will likely involve minor expirings (the Scal/Giddens/etc. crew) and/or back-up guards (Eddie House or TA).
That’s it for now…more as it comes in.
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