TrueHoop round-table on four-team blockbuster
Aug 12, 2010 2010 Offseason, Courtney Lee, Trades, Troy Murphy
On Wednesday afternoon, the Houston Rockets, New Orleans Hornets, Indiana Pacers, and New Jersey Nets pulled off a four-team blockbuster, swapping several key contributors.Rahat Huq of Red94, Ryan Schwan of Hornets247, Tim Donahue of 8 points, 9 seconds, and Sebastian Pruiti of Nets are Scorching got together to provide assessments of the outgoing players from their respective ballclubs.
Rahat Huq (Red94) on Trevor Ariza: I’ve written a comprehensive series of essays on Trevor Ariza entitled ‘Assessing Ariza,’ evaluating his strengths, weaknesses, and player potential. (Parts 1, 2, and 3)
In short, he’s an ideal role-player who thrives off the ball, spotting up or using his superior athleticism to slash to the basket. Now having the benefit of playing next to Chris Paul, I expect Ariza to return to form from his playoff run with the Lakers – he really took off after the acquisition of Kevin Martin; Ariza is at his best playing next to dominant players.
If you’re hoping Trevor will grow into his physical gifts and emerge as a primary option, you’re going to be disappointed. While a capable ball-handler against light pressure, he doesn’t have the handles to create for himself off the dribble. He also has extremely poor footwork and body control. Even worse, Ariza has an oddly inflated sense of entitlement–possibly due to his Lakers pedigree–leading him to force bad shots and make poor decisions; Ariza struggles when needing to think on the basketball court.
The issue of Ariza’s defense is a contentious one. His reputation precedes him, but his is a reckless, instinctual approach, garnering him gaudy steals totals but often leaving his teammates scrambling to rotate after blown coverage. Still, this manner can be conducive to forcing tempo if that’s your cup of tea.
All in all, assuming expectations remain reasonable, I think the Hornets will be very pleased next year with Trevor Ariza. While his struggles with the Rockets are well documented, playing next to Chris Paul is a situation tailor-made for a player of Trevor’s skillset and abilities – in returning to his former role with the Lakers (next to a superstar guard), I think Trevor will really thrive.
Ryan Schwan (Hornets247) on Darren Collison: After watching him for a season, I’m comfortable claiming that Darren Collison is the proud owner of the “fastest man in the NBA” title. When he played, the Hornets pace increased by five posessions, as he exploded up court every chance he could. Considering the heavy-footed players he was dragging with him up the court, it is a pretty amazing feat.
Collison started off his rookie season pretty rough, shooting poorly from deep, and struggling valiantly to figure out how to score over the faster, taller atheletes he met in the paint. In fact, for the first month, a pick and roll run by Collison typically had very little going for it. That all changed, however, when Chris Paul went down. Given long minutes, constant coaching by Paul, and confidence that never seemed to waver, Collison started deploying a stutter step and mid-range pull up jumper that made him deadly on the pick and roll by the end of February. His long-range shot, which was amazing in college, began to settle in, and soon he was deadly from three, both as a spot-up shooter, and as a guy who could pull up off the dribble and knock it down.
As a passer, Collison is excellent in the open court, solid at the pick and roll, but tends to struggle in the pick and pop. He’s great at driving into the paint and laying the ball off to a big man for a dunk or finding the roller, but when he has to find the open men on the perimeter, he still struggles. As a result, though he gets a lot of assists, he also gets a lot of turnovers. He also has the tendency to be called for a carry once or twice a game, though that was fading by the end of last season.
Defensively is where Collison has his biggest problems. He makes Allen Iverson look fat – and unlike mighty mouse Chris Paul, he’s also not physically strong at all. That leaves him to be exploited terribly in post ups last year, and because of his lightness, a good screen or series of screens can take him out the picture on defense despite his recovery speed.
As a team leader, Collison was remarkable. He was barking commands to veterans like Okafor and David West from the start of the season. On more than one occassion I saw him get on teammates for not being where they were supposed to be. He’s intelligent, knows how to get a team into its offense, and it shows. He’s also cold-blooded. He had two game-winning shots last season, and another three that put a nail in a run the other team was making to come back. He doesn’t shy from that big shot – and he has a decent track record of making it.
In the end, I feel Collison will be an exciting-as-hell, explosive scorer in the mold of Tony Parker, and most nights will outscore his opponent. At the same time, I’d also expect his opponent to regularly score more than is usual.
Tim Donahue (8 points, 9 seconds) on Troy Murphy:
Offensively – The short answer is that Murph is a 6?11? Steve Kerr. He is an extremely efficient scorer, and serves as a safety valve for the offense. I can see him being a very nice player with your personnel, offensively, as he is a low-usage guy. The Pacers use him to float at the top of the key, and he took all but like 10 of his three’s from the arc (very few corner threes). He has no post game to speak of, and he’s a solid passer, but not a great high post guy. He does a good job of reading his defender, and is very good at reading the closeout, putting the ball on the floor and finishing at the rim. He doesn’t get many offensive rebounds because of (a) where he plays and (b) his lack of footspeed, but could get more if he played closer to the basket. However, I think you’d be an absolute fool to play him – offensively – in any other way than the way O’Brien used him. Look at his eFG and TS numbers the last three years under Obie vs. his time in GS. He plays completely within his skill set (almost to a fault), and I have never – never – seen a guy with better shot selection than Troy. Very, very nice complementary shooter to have on your team.
Defensively – He is definitely a liability, and that is because he’s slow and physically weak. He gets lots of defensive rebounds, but he doesn’t really control the glass the way most guys who pull down the volume of boards he gets. He is not a block out guy, but has a good nose for the ball. One-on-one he will never be better than, well, bad, but he can learn and will follow team defensive concepts. In other words, if the opponent decides to target him, then he’ll get beaten, but he won’t blow defensive team schemes. Overall, your team’s defensive performance will drag when he’s on the floor.
Lockerroom & Fit – He appears likable enough, but not really a presence. Seems to get along with everybody well enough. There were rumors last year that he wasn’t happy about Hansbrough eating into his playing time, but they were way external to the organization and I never believed them. As far as fitting with your big guys, he should be a great fit with both Lopez and Favors offensively, and probaly a poor fit defensively with Lopez, but pretty good with Favors – assuming I’ve got a reasonable handle on their respective games.
Here’s the most important part – you can’t look at the 14 & 11 and think he’s that traditional double-double guy. He is very much someone who accentuates his positives, but doesn’t improve on his negatives. He is not a physical player, at all. He is who he is, but that can be a good thing. Assuming Avery doesn’t choke on his defense, I suspect he’ll love the guy because he is perhaps the most reliably consistent player I’ve seen in three+ decades of watching the NBA. He will hit shots, he will get some boards, and he will suck on defense. He will score, but he is a safety valve – not a primary or secondary option. It sounds strange, but I think coaches like that because it’s something they don’t have to worry about. They put him out there, and work on everything else. This is why he can have some big games and not really make a difference. He’s kind of a like an offensive lineman. He can have a great individual game, but if the rest of the line sucks, it won’t matter. At the same time, if he’s great and the rest of the line is great, nobody will notice him.
Sebastian Pruiti (Nets are Scorching) on Courtney Lee:Courtney Lee is a guy I like and with Avery Johnson coming to New Jersey, I thought he was the perfect Avery Johnson guy. He shoots the three ok (last years numbers are too low for his shooting ability in my honest opinion), he can penetrate and get out and run, but where he is most valuable is on the defensive end. Courtney is both a very good one on one and team defender, and he works very hard on that end. Lee doesn’t have a high ceiling (and that is why I suspect that the Nets held onto Terrence Williams), and the player he is now is the player he will be years from now. That’s not a bad thing, but there is very little room for him to grow.
Trading For A Core Player: Chris Paul
Aug 4, 2010 2010 Offseason, Devin Kharpertian, Trade Ideas, Trades, Truehoop Network
For a while now, Hornets point guard Chris Paul has reportedly wanted out of New Orleans. There have been at least a half-dozen rumors connecting him to different teams, including the Knicks, Lakers, Magic, Trail Blazers, Mavericks, Bobcats, and the Nets. Ryan Schwan of Hornets 24/7 played GM for a recent article, one in which he took offers from other TrueHoop team writers for Chris Paul and sorted through the potential options from worst to best. I had an opportunity to construct an offer for him, but I decided against it for a reason that may actually shock you: I don’t think the Nets should seriously pursue him.
Trading for a Core Player: Andre Iguodala
Aug 3, 2010 Trade Ideas, Trades
Dennis kicked things off yesterday with some Danny Granger talk, so today, let’s continue our trading for a core player series by looking at a guy who has seemingly been on the trading block for years: Andre Iguodala.
For starters, I’m sure some of you are going to bristle at the idea that we’re including A.I. in a series about “core players.” By most definitions, Iduodala is not a core player – he’s never made an All-Star team, and despite showing flashes of great talent, he’s never been able to consistently get to that “next level” in the NBA, especially after the other A.I., Allen Iverson, left Philadelphia. But for the sake of argument, let’s consider a couple of things that should at least put Iguodala on our collective radars: with the drafting of Evan Turner, A.I. is certainly expendable for Philadelphia, especially if they can get in return young talent and/or salary cap relief; new Nets GM Billy King, drafted Iguodala, which gives him a peripheral connection to the player that could pique his interest if the stars aligned; despite Iduodala’s shortcomings, if he was added to the Nets roster, he would instantly become their number one offensive option on the wing. He’s demonstrated durability and a versatile offensive game.
A Chris Douglas-Roberts Trade & Greg Monroe Adds More Crazy To The Past 12 Hours
Jun 22, 2010 2010 Draft, 2010 Offseason, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Rumors, Trades
At around noon today, I was on The Basketball Jones’ live mock draft (yeah, I am still bragging about that) talking about how Derrick Favors to the Nets was pretty much a sure thing. After that, the crazy started. First, there were multiple reports that the Nets were leaning towards drafting Syracuse SF Wesley Johnson. That has now seemed to settle down, with some reports saying that Johnson is simply just in the conversation with Derrick Favors.
With things starting to become relatively calm once again, Dave D’Alessandro decided to shake things up again with his report that he put out tonight around 10. Apparently Cousins is now out of the conversation:
“Cousins has great hands and great feet, and he knows how to play,” Thorn said. “But you know, it’s a leap of faith there to suggest that he can play the 4. He can shoot the ball well, and he can face the basket. But I don’t think he’ll take it from 20 feet and go by people, and defensively it could be even more of a problem.”
In their internal discussions, the Nets have concluded that in spite of Cousins’ great talent, it would be very hard for him to complement Brook Lopez as the full-time power forward unless he trimmed down to 265 pounds — and he might have enough trouble getting down to 275.
So things simplified? Not so fast, there is now a new big man that the Nets are considering. His name is Greg Monroe:
It just means Thorn is in the mood to confuse everybody by suggesting that Greg Monroe of Georgetown is now also in the mix.
“We like Monroe a lot,” Thorn said, when reviewing his short list today. “He’s a lot different than Derrick Favors. He has an all-around game — left hand, right hand, great size. So I don’t think you (eliminate him) by any stretch. Monroe’s looking very good to us.”
That’s not the only news made tonight either. Chad Ford is reporting in his newest post to the TrueHoop blog that the Nets have dealt Chris Douglas-Roberts to the Bucks for a second round pick:
Finally, it looks like the Bucks aren’t done dealing. This afternoon they traded Dan Gadzuric and Charlie Bell to the Warriors for Corey Maggette. Now sources say that the Bucks and Nets are in serious negotiations on a deal that would send Chris Douglas-Roberts to the Bucks for a second round pick. With the addition of Maggette and Douglas-Roberts, you have to wonder if the Bucks may look at something other than a wing with the No. 15 pick in the draft.
That puts this CDR tweet in perspective now. 10 hours ago, he tweeted:
Got news for yall later! Yall ready for this??? Ahhahaaahaha. I jus can’t hide it. FTD. Yes yess! FTD yes yess!
FTD meaning Fear The Deer. Well then. I have never denied Chris Douglas-Roberts talents, and I think when he wants to be, he is one of the better pure scorers in the NBA. To me, it just seems that the Nets were fed up with his off the court issues and were getting rid of him anyway (the Nets had until late in the month to decide whether or not they wanted to pick up his option) and they took what they could get for him, and that was a second round pick. The Nets now have four picks in this draft (two first rounders and two second rounders).
There has been a lot of action over in Nets-land, and the draft isn’t even until Thursday, so don’t expect for everything to be over and done with (especially with the four picks the Nets have). Hold on guys, this is going to be a wild ride…
Trade-Deadline Aftermath In Regards To The Nets
Feb 19, 2010 Analysis, Opinion, Trades
The Nets decided to stand pat at the trading deadline this year, but it seems like they were the only ones. There were a lot of teams clearing space at the deadline, and now the Nets aren’t the only ones with a lot of cap space available going into this offseason. Now that the dust has settled, I think it is important to look at the teams with newly discovered capspace and compare their situations to the Nets.All numbers moving forward are based on an estimated salary cap of $53 million next year.
Sacramento Kings
Breakdown
By shipping Kevin Martin out, the Kings have freed up slightly less than $19 million (before taking into consideration the contract of a lottery pick). This can make them a player for a a real good second tier guy. It has long been a plan that if the Nets can’t get a max contract guy (Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh), the Nets would end up “settling” for a second tier guy like Joe Jonson, Rudy Gay, or Carlos Boozer (this is if any of them are willing to take less than the max). The Kings can now sneak in and take away one of these guys.
Advantage
So why would a player go to Sacramento over New Jersey? There is a pretty special player named Tyreke Evans over there. There has to be a shooting guard out there just salivating about the chance to play with him, plus they have another lottery pick coming this year. A nice little core building in Sacramento.
Caron Butler Isn’t the Answer
Jan 21, 2010 Devin Harris, Trades
While I understand a growing contingent of Nets fans would be willing to personally drive Devin Harris to the airport if he were to be traded in the near future, I can only plead to those fans to please think about what you’re possibly getting in return. Because when it comes to the recent Devo for Caron Butler rumors that are making their rounds, I really don’t think this is the kind of the deal Nets fans should be looking to make.
In 07-08 and 08-09, Butler averaged more than 20 points per game on about 46 percent shooting, including 35 percent on threes two seasons ago. In 07-08 he put up a fantastic 20.59 Player Efficiency Rating (PER) and last season, he put up a respectable 18.84 on a depleted Wizards team.
The problem is, Butler’s 2009-10 numbers come nowhere close to what he put up the past two seasons. With a True Shooting percentage of 51.4 and a PER of 13.67, these are Butler’s worst numbers since 2003-04, his second season in the NBA. He is the epitome of a below average offensive player at the SF right now, averaging 16.9 points on 43 percent shooting, including 29 percent from three.
And while the Wizards play better D with Butler on the floor than off (defensive efficiency of 110.2 per 100 possession on the floor vs. 111.1 per 100 off) Butler has been called out by some as being a bit lazy on defense. ESPN’s John Hollinger said he easily lost focus once Washington’s season went in the tank last season. Basketball Prospectus said in its preseason preview that Butler “gives back some of that value at the defensive end.”
So we have a player posting near career-low numbers who’s inconsistent on defense. Sounds like he’ll fit right in around here, right?
While I’m not opposed of acquiring a player like Butler before the trade deadline, it can’t be at the expense of Devin Harris. While Harris has struggled mightily, he proved last year with Vince Carter that he can be productive with an offensive-minded running mate. Plus, who’s your point guard after this season? As we already know, John Wall is no guarantee.
I still think Devin Harris needs the benefit of the doubt here. I’m as unhappy with him as the next guy, but I only think you’re in a position to move him if you get the number one pick in June. Until then, Harris is an average player at a tough position to fill, who has shown the ability to raise his offensive game when he has other players around him who can take some of the scoring burden off his shoulders. While I can’t imagine they have a terrible amount of value, the Nets would be better served looking to package Courtney Lee, Chris Douglas-Roberts or Yi Jianlian with some of their expiring contracts if they’re trying to acquire a “core” piece. I was semi-satisfied to read this morning that the Nets might back down from their Devin trade talk, but with the way this organization is being run, anything can happen it seems.
Is Devin Harris On the Block?
Jan 11, 2010 Devin Harris, Trades
While most of the trade talk has focused on the Nets’ expiring contracts, the ESPN’s Chad Ford, over at the TrueHoop mothership introduces a brand new scenario where the Nets could potentially move Devin Harris and an expiring contract or two for an impact player that would help the Nets win now:
The thinking is that if the Nets can land two good players now, that might be better than having to overpay to good players this summer out of desperation.
This tidbit comes on the heels of reports that the Lakers and Rockets had both shown interest in Toronto’s Chris Bosh – one of the big free agents to-be this summer. Such a trade could dramatically alter the free agent landscape this summer because of the “Bird Rights” which allows a player’s current team to offer them the most money in free agency. By moving Bosh (or Wade or LeBron hypothetically) to another team, it lessens the Nets (and Knicks) ability to sign one of these marquee names, leaving those two teams with secondary players to spend their valuable cap space on.
According to the Ford report, only Brook Lopez is “untouchable” on the Nets.
I have to admit, I’m a bit surprised by this report. Not because I think Devin Harris is necessarily untouchable, but because I really didn’t think the Nets would be willing to move one of their “core” guys and abandon their 2010 summer plans.
Total speculation here, but here are my two theories why the Nets would move Devin Harris now:
1. The Nets braintrust believe that his struggles are not linked to injury and that he’s simply not a cornerstone player and that last season (where Devin was really only dominant through the first half) was a fluke.
2. The Nets are really, really panicked that they won’t be able to land a free agent this summer because of the current trade market, and their current record. Remember, Bosh, Joe Johnson, and LeBron all indicated that a team’s record matters. I also think money talks, but we’ll see.
Still, trade talk around the Nets just got a lot more interesting.
Nets Send Najera to Dallas for Humphries, to Cut Sean Williams
Jan 9, 2010 Eduardo Najera, Kris Humphries, Trades
Dave D’Alessandro wasn’t kidding when he said a deal between the Nets and the Dallas Mavericks was imminent. Overnight, the Nets and Mavs agreed to swap Eduardo Najera and PF Kris Humphries, according to Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Nets also received Shawne Williams in the trade, who hasn’t played this season, and is expected to be bought out of his contract. To make room on the roster, the Nets will formally end the Sean Williams era, cutting the troubled F/C. Wojnarowski expects the deal to be formalized by the league on Monday morning.
Beat writer Al Iannazzone, picking up on the report, makes the deal sound a little more tentative, but agrees that it should all come together on Monday. Iannazzone also thinks the Nets could send a trade exception over to Dallas.
Let’s take a tale of the tape here regarding the two main pieces in this deal, Humphries and Najera. Humphries is going to add anywhere between $200K and $700K to the salary cap next season and is 10 years younger than Najera.
Humphries doesn’t get a lot of minutes in Dallas, but he’s fairly efficient when he plays. He’s currently averaging 17.2 points and 10.6 rebounds per 40 minutes, good for a Player Efficiency Rating of 15.25, which is slightly above average. According to his 82games profile, he takes about 54 percent of his shots close to the rim or at the rim, good for a 54 percent effective field goal percentage. His eFG is about 37 percent on his jump shots.
Here’s ESPN’s John Hollinger scouting report on Humphries, before the season started:
Humphries has two major weaknesses. First, he’s a selfish offensive player who forces shots. Even though he can score, he too often flings quick jumpers and breaks plays, especially when he catches in the high post area. He shoots the ball like it’s contagious, flicking it from in front of his face within nanoseconds of picking up his dribble. The result is usually a low liner into the front rim. He can finish and draw fouls around the basket and is an impressive offensive rebounder, but he doesn’t earn brownie points with the coaches when he lets it rip off the dribble from 15. Also, he needs to improve his foul shooting (58.5 percent career).
The other weakness is his defense. Humphries has a strong build but is undersized for a 4 at 6-foot-8, and his effort is inconsistent. He keeps gambling by trying to steal post entry passes instead of playing solid D behind his man, and with his quickness he should be a better pick-and-roll defender.
As for Najera, the man was never healthy enough in his tenure with the Nets to make an impact, only playing in 27 games last year and 13 this year. Many thought the Nets were insane for giving him a four-year deal before last year, and those critics were proven correct. Najera was supposed to bring leadership and toughness on the defensive end to the Nets, but did neither. When the Nets were showcasing him Tuesday night against the Bucks, he looked slow and out of shape, so we’ll see if he even plays with Dallas.
Sean Williams was probably an even bigger enigma. Swat looked like he had potential his rookie year, starting 29 games and averaging 5.6 points and 1.5 blocks. But he continually did things on and off the court to play himself out of the rotation. Last season, the Nets sent him down the the D-League where he was ejected from a game, and he was also arrested in Denver for throwing a monitor at a store clerk. The guy probably needs help in a venue away from basketball, and from one human to another, I hope he finds it.
Could We Have Hump Day in Jersey?
Jan 8, 2010 Eduardo Najera, Terrence Williams, Trades
In his mailbag over at the Star-Ledger web site, Dave D’Alessandro speculates that talks between the Nets and the Dallas Mavs regarding a Eduardo Najera for Kris Humphries swap are heating up and a deal is “imminent.”
There was a little confusion about this when we posted about it earlier in the week so let me source Dave D. here. He believes adding Humphries for Najera would add about $700K to the payroll, not a significant amount.
Humphries, a PF, is averaging 5.2 points and 3.8 rebounds in about 13 minutes of play this season.
In another nugget from the mailbag, Terrence Williams’ playing time has been reduced recently because he slept through the team’s shootaround before the Bucks game on Tuesday. Maybe if more Nets players overslept, they wouldn’t look like they were sleepwalking out there, right?
Nets on the Net: 1/5/10 Edition
Jan 5, 2010 Brooklyn, Courtney Lee, Jarvis Hayes, Nets on the Net, Trades
Al Iannazzone talks about the Nets rebounding woes over at Nets Insider. NAS will also be taking a look at this later today so stay tuned: “Personally, I think it’s one, getting a body on everybody, but then it’s pursuing the ball,” Vandeweghe said. “To me, it’s a matter of desire, and you’ve got to want the ball and realize that rebounding is part of defense. The only way you get the ball back is either you get a rebound, you get a steal or the other team scores – and the last one’s not so good. So you’ve got to get rebounds.”
Talking about Courtney Lee and his shooting issues: “He’s got to become a better isolation player,” Nets president Rod Thorn said. “He has to get his shot off quicker, and there’s an adjustment there. And he needs to continue to work on his dribble-drive move. He’s good all the way to the basket, but his intermediate range is what he has to get better at — the one- or two-dribble pull-up.
Expect Jarvis Hayes back for real tonight: “He’s such a big part of our team,” center Brook Lopez said. “He’s definitely one of the leaders on our team. We have been missing that leadership on the floor. Just basketball-wise, he’s a guy who can stretch the floor, really open things for us.”
Marc Spears of Yahoo has some trade talk involving the Nets. First a proposed trade with Dallas offering Eduardo Najera for Kris Humphries and Shawne Williams are on “life support.” It also looks like a trade deal dried up between the Nets and Denver that would have sent Josh Boone for Joey Graham. More on Nets trade talk in a few hours.
The Empire State Development Corporation talks eminent domain in Harlem today. No word on whether there will be any questions about their activity in Brooklyn.