NBA Notes: Trades aplenty in the West

By Mike Walsh

FINALLY! A team made a trade that makes sense for both teams. One team gets the type of player they have been in need of for years while the other gets much needed cap relief and more direction for the future. Of course I am talking about the Jazz picking up Kyle Korver from the Sixers. What? Not the trade you thought I was talking about? With the flurry of trades and signings in the West, which one made more sense than the Jazz picking up Korver? None. None trades.
As much as I hate to admit this, the Korver trade sets the Jazz up to match up against any opponent and to cause match-up problems for all opponents. Deron Williams is an emerging star at point, Carlos Boozer is a beast down low with a soft touch from 12-15 feet, Mehmet Okur and Andrei Kirilenko can step outside or take their man off the dribble and now they have Korver, a proven shooter who can close games out from the free throw line as well. With the trade deadline coming Thursday it will be interesting to see if any other teams try to load up for what looks to be a wide open race for the Western Conference Championship. The West is going to be fun this spring.
The Lakers are disqualified from this discussion because that trade was ridiculously one sided. I have no idea how Memphis pulled the trigger on that trade. The Lakers seem to have the injury bug this year, but they have to be considered a top three team in the west for the rest of Kobe’s prime with Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum down low. I’m angry.
The Mavericks countered by acquiring Jason Kidd, who is shooting 36 percent from the floor this season. Also, he’s 35…and he isn’t nearly the defender that Devon Harris is… and Devon Harris is much quicker off the dribble and was coming into his own this season. I mean I’m glad this trade happened because I am pretty sure it made the Mavericks worse. Devon Harris frustrated opposing point guards with his quickness and flopability, which is a word I just made up. It best describes someone like Harris who has almost perfected the defensive flop and the ability to fall down just as or just before actual contact from the offensive player you are guarding and get calls when refs anticipate fouls. Flopability. Write that one down. The Mavs also sent Diop East, which gives them one less giant human to fill in the center spot. Erick Dampier is not the answer. The person this trade benefited the most is Van Horn, who stands to make about four million dollars for what will amount to playing basketball for a month.


Warrior, Suns 411: The Warriors got a gloomy prediction from Marc Stein of ESPN.com as he predicted that they would finish with 48 wins…and not make the playoffs. 48 Wins! 48!!! That would be a great accomplishment for the franchise and yet the season would have to be looked upon as a disappointment. With Baron’s impending free agency, missing the playoffs would be bad. If Baron ends up wearing purple and white next season I will quit the NBA.
(note: I will not quit the NBA. That was hyperbole. I will, however, be outraged for a long time. And if any of my friends buy me a Baron Davis Kings jersey I will light it on fire while wearing it.) My beloved Warriors signed Chris Webber who, as my friend Caroline pointed out, “Couldn’t guard a sleeping baby.” Not exactly high praise. In turn, after the Suns traded away a top 25 NBA player for Shaq I quipped that they picked him up to guard Webber in the post. No one in their right mind can think that Shaq will fit in with the Suns. If the Suns slow down to accommodate him it will hurt guys like Stoudemire and Barbosa who thrive in the open court, “don’t let the other team get set on ‘D’ ” environment. Someone tell Steve Kerr that it’s not 2002 anymore.

Dunk Contest regains momentum: After a nine-year hiatus, the Dunk Contest has returned with a vengeance. This year’s contest had creativity with Dwight Howard’s Superman costume and Gerald Green’s candle dunk, as well as controversy with Howard’s Superman dunk not really being a dunk. Although he did throw the ball down into the hoop like he was an NBA Jam character. Don’t even get me started on Howard’s “off the back of the backboard, windmill dunk-while his head was still behind the backboard” dunk. If you don’t think that was a top 10 dunk of all time, you’re crazy. We can look forward to more creativity in the years to come, as long as the league allows it. According to ESPN, Howard was denied when he requested that the hoop be raised to 12 feet for one of his dunks.

Different look in the East: The Eastern Conference will look different after the all-star break as well. The Bulls and the Hawks look poised to take the 7th and 8th playoffs spots from New Jersey and Philadelphia. The Hawks seem determined to make a playoff push as evidenced by picking up Mike Bibby. While Matt likes to joke that Bibby couldn’t guard me, he does bring leadership and crunch time scoring to a team desperately in need of both. He just might be what the ATL needed to get over the hump in the East. Meanwhile Chicago is a team that had high hopes coming into the season. I picked them to win the East! If they get hot and start playing like every analyst thought they would they will be a tough match up for one of the top three in the East.