2021-22 Pointless NBA Rebuild Idea

Yeah, couldn't help myself...here's the case for the rebuild no one saw coming: 

Nets get Karl-Anthony Towns, Jake Layman; Wolves get Pascal Siakam, Raptors 1st rd pick (#4); Raptors get Kyrie Irving

Nets get Chris Paul (sign & trade); Suns get James Harden

Nets get #7 pick, #14 pick, James Wiseman, Warriors 2023 1st rd pick, Warriors 2027 1st rd pick; Warriors get Kevin Durant

The Nets would shed their high profile talent and end up with: Chris Paul (fresh 3yr deal, I'd say something in the 3yr/$150m range(*)), Karl-Anthony Towns (3yr/$100m left on his contract), James Wiseman (still on rookie contract), #7 (I'd take Davion Mitchell (Baylor)), #14 (I'd aim for Josh Giddey (Australia)) and they'd still have Joe Harris (3yr), Deandre Jordan (2yr), Landry Shamet (expiring), Nicholas Claxton and Alize Johnson.  (Jake Layman gets bought out instantly) And I'd bring back Luwawu and Bruce Brown and--why the hell not?--Blake Griffin. And then they should go get JJ Reddick (run back the Clip show in NYC). They go from a veteran squad (full of grumpy show-offs) to a young squad (led by CP and KAT) over night but it would be much more stable and fun and they'd be building some real basketball culture instead of just being a bunch of media whores. And what's the point of indulging the Kyrie and Harden circus if they're not gonna show up in the playoffs? (**) 

Does this make the Nets more likely to win the 2021-22 championship? Well, I don't suppose it does--though if CP wins this year maybe you can talk yourself into it. But it does make them a more consistent and viable franchise going forward. Will they make any of these moves? Oh, good lord, of course not! They've got three huge stars, which is what we have told ourselves all teams need to win the Championship (of course, they....didn't win the....championship...but you know what I mean). For the Nets, these moves are designed to bolster the franchise for years to come rather than leaving it the hostage of self-absorbed media whores. But, then again, it is NYC--and the 2nd place team in NYC, at that!--all they know is media whores and making themselves available to that probably looks pretty good to the Nets. 

Would the Wolves be better off with Siakam and #4 instead of Towns? Well...no. But how about also sending D'angelo Russell (***) to the Pacers for Myles Turner and TJ Warren (Russell made an Eastern All-Star squad and he's a Big-10 guy from Louisville, is that enough cache for Indiana?). And how about shopping #4 to OKC for #6 and a future pick (of which OKC has a fistful); Jalen Suggs (Gonzaga) probably isn't the right fit with Edwards, they may well be better off moving back in the draft and trying to find more assets. Look, this is Edwards' team now and if they can move D'angelo Russell for anything, then at least they'd be fun to watch (and they wouldn't take the blame for Towns' lack of success any more). 

Would the Raptors swap Siakam and #4 for Kyrie Irving? My guess is fuck yeah they would! In a heartbeat! He's not Kawhi but the Raptor supporting cast is still really good and we all still believe in Coach Nurse (right?), I think the Raptors go as far as Kyrie's health carries them. Also, this pushes Van Vleet back into super-sub guy again, which is probably a more realistic fit (he'd be odds on for 6th Man, no?). 

Would the Suns trade CP for Harden? I bet they wouldn't want to but CP has a player option this summer, which I assume he'll decline, and if he'd rather be shipped to NYC then re-up in Phoenix than getting James Harden (Arizona State product) is certainly not a bad deal. Do Harden and Booker fit together? Sure, why not? 

The Warriors would be reunited with Durant, which would be massively expensive in the short term and kinda kills their rebuilding going forward. But unlike Brooklyn, Golden State has had massive success with their veteran lineup and if it costs a gajillion dollars and murders their future prospects, well....what do I care? (I feel like I speak for all Warrior fans when I ask that question)

Yeah, no way any of these moves happen, but wouldn't it be a fascinating curveball if the Nets suddenly went into a garage sale mode? They could if they wanted to.

(*) If I'm Chris Paul (or any aging but still solid badass) I would insist on a declining contract. Pay me big up front and I'll take less on the back side. So CP has a player option for $44.2m this summer in Phoenix. I assume he will opt out with the intention of going for more years. He'll probably want something like $150m over 3 years. In order to stay in Phoenix, he can't decline an option and then sign with the same team for less money and he wouldn't with a new team either, so he'll have to make north of $44.2m next year. Rather than go to $45, $50, $55, say, to hit $150, I think a $55, $55, $40 would be better. If in three years CP is no longer any good, then just give him his paycheck and let him move on because your team's gonna suck anyway. But if he can still play and your team sucks, they he has a better chance of getting to a better team. The declining contract promotes player movement, which isn't for everybody, but for a badass like Chris Paul, the playoffs are where you get the attention, the opportunity and the big big money. CP needn't give his heart to the team, he should give his heart to go deep in the playoffs e'ry year, no matter what team it ends up being with. 

(**) Is anyone in NYC impressed that Kyrie, Harden and Durant lasted a whole extra round longer than Julius Randle and the fightin' Thibodeaus? I doubt it. I'm not and I'm not even from NYC.

(***) How on fuckin' earth is Russell making $30m this season? How...how....does that happen? That dude has never done anything in the NBA and he's mostly been injured....how does he get a $30m deal?

Pointless NBA Trade Idea

Heat get: Derrick Rose (2yr/$15m), Christian Wood (1yr/$1.6m), Markieff Morris (2yr/$6.5m, player option next season); Pistons get: Meyers Leonard (1yr/$11.2), KZ Okpala (3yr/$4.1m)

I kinda think D-Rose can be great with this fast-moving, no-position Heat team that are well-positioned for the playoffs and Morris should fit, too (though the Heat would probably rather have Marcus Morris, but, hey, they look alike...that's worth something, right?). As for Wood, I've always kinda liked him but it doesn't seem like he's really ever gonna play in this league, so I'm assuming he'd get cut (unless the Heat can make room for him by finally getting rid of Dion Waiters...?). Leonard gives the Heat minutes but...nothing else. I don't know what's up with Okpala, I haven't noticed him getting any playing time or any time in the G-League, so not sure what the Heat think of him.

As for the Pistons...ehhh....man, it doesn't matter what they do. Leonard would give them minutes for the rest of the year and then cap space in the summer. If Okpala is a keeper, then great, they'd keep him. Getting off Rose (Reggie Jax should be on his way back) and Morris would at least give them a little more flexibility in the summer. But...ehhh...it doesn't matter. If Blake Griffin can't play then this squad has absolutely nowhere to go and no money to spend, so....it doesn't matter, nothing matters. That Chicago and Cleveland are both somehow even worse is the only thing that even makes it look like Detroit is competing. Are they better off with Rose and Morris? It doesn't matter.

This isn't exactly the master stroke that puts the Heat over the top (that would have to involve getting rid of James Johnson and/or Waiters), but Rose off the bench and Morris in the rotation just makes them thicker and an even tougher out in the post-season. I don't see this team coming out of the East but I could see them beating somebody they're not supposed to beat. As for the Pistons, it doesn't matter, nothing matters.

Pointless NBA Trade Idea

Okay, right off the bat: last summer's whirlwind of trades and signings may have felt like the way of things to come, but I'd say quite the opposite. The players that moved were generally so high profile, so expensive that it more or less calcified the labor market probably through next summer. I'd be pretty surprised if we see many moves at this year's trade deadline because the buyers and sellers just aren't in sync at the moment. The teams that want to dump salary don't want to take salary back and the teams that want to thicken their rotations don't have the cap space or trade assets to make moves. In short, no one's got much room to move this season.

But it seems to me there is a potential method that could emerge: teams with lots of cap space could take on long-term salary instead of waiting for the summer to dig into the free agent class, which doesn't look so strong this year. So with that in mind:

Hawks get
Andrew Wiggins (4yr/$121m), Gorgui Dieng (2yr/$33.5m), Wolves 2020 and 2021 2nd rd picks; Wolves get Chandler Parsons (1yr/$25.1m), Allen Crabbe (1yr/$18.5m)

This is a long-term vs. short-term deal. This gets the Wolves off two big contracts and allows them to start rebuilding around a core of Towns, Culver, Okogie and Covington (who I would hold on to even though he'll likely be one of the hottest rumors out there). Obviously getting off Wiggins would be divisive but it'd save them a ton of money and giving up on a playoff run (eh, is there really any value in being 8th in the West?) would push them up toward a top five pick (is Daniel Oturu (Minnesota) a good fit?). So how do they re-build this summer? Well, the free agency market looks pretty skimpy, but Mike Conley has an ETO in Utah (where he hasn't been a good fit), which feels like a great vet to pair with Town for a year or two and if they could lure Evan Fournier to decline his option in Orlando, then right away they'd have something seemingly more reliable than what they've had with Wiggins and Teague (whom I'd trade for anything resembling a 2020 1st rd pick). Make no mistake: for Minnesota this is purely a salary dump but it would dump an awful lot of salary!

The thing about the Hawks is that their cap for next year is so small that they kinda have to spend money. So even if you think Wiggins is a bust and 4 years at that price is a boondoggle, that don't matter to the Hawks, they just need to lay some money out there. And personally I think Wiggins is actually a pretty good fit for them: he's been through the media ringer already and though his production leaves a lot to be desired, he's gonna play a ton of minutes in the next four years and the Hawks needs minutes.  Going forward he slides right into the Vince Carter slot. As for Dieng, he's another player that I find criminally underrated (I think Coach Thibodeau pretty much knee-capped his career) and that deal is not as bad as it looks--and, again, the Hawks got money to burn so who cares? Bring back Alex Len and that becomes the Hawks platoon at PF/C to back Collins and Fernando. As for the two 2nd rd picks, the Hawks need everything they can get and the Wolves get so much cap relief that it's worth it.

Obviously the Wolves don't do this is they truly love Wiggins (and I suspect they do) and even still it leaves them a lot of holes to plug in the off-season. But at least it gives them some money to make moves and clears out room for vets that like the look of Towns. As for the Hawks, they need everything and Wiggins, expensive as he is, will at least check SF off their list for the foreseeable future and adds reliable athleticism to an exciting but young team and I think Dieng (more of a baseline shooter type) meshes well with Collins and platoons nicely with Fernando. And it gets the Hawks up off the salary floor (oh yeah, they'd still have a shit ton of money to spend).

The idea here is for the Hawks to use their expiring contracts to get long-term depth and for the Wolves to get off their long-term commitments to get a new crew around Towns. I dunno, seems like it could work.

2017-17 Pointless NBA Trade Idea

Mavs get: Carmelo Anthony (1yr/$26.2m with player option for 1yr/$27.9), Terrence Ferguson (1st year of rookie contract, $1.7m this year); Thunder get: Harrison Barnes (3yr/ $23.1m this year), Nerlens Noel (1 yr/$4.1m)

Look, OKC is not as good as they ought to be and (I told you!) it is because Carmelo is such a poor fit with Westbrook. Paul George isn't looking that good either but I think if Carmelo was out of the way, PG would be a good fit with Westbrook. As for the Carmelo trade I make the homeowner analogy: a salesman shows up with a garage door, its a great garage door, a Hall of Fame garage door, you'd have the best garage door on the block and all he wants in return is your gutters, perfectly ordinary gutters. Sounds like a good deal, right? Well, no. Because you've already got a serviceable garage door and if you make this deal you won't have the wherewithal to replace the gutters so you'll have two garage doors and no gutters and how is that useful? It's not. I said it then and I'll say it again: I'd rather have McDermott and Kanter alongside Westbrook and PG than Carmelo. There was a period earlier in the season when Carmelo was leading the league in Field Goal Attempts--exactly what OKC did not need from him! Carmelo is a great garage door but a house with no gutters and too many garage doors is not a good house.

You may think Barnes and Nerlans are a coupla gutters and you'd be right. But that's what OKC needs: bodies to complement the Westbrook/PG duo, not another star to demand the ball. Barnes has been an up and down kinda player the entire time he's been in the league, the buzz is he's a hard worker that really wants to succeed but that he just doesn't have the confidence necessary to be a big star. In a rotation where he's the 4th or 5th most important contributor, Barnes has room to shine, make plays on defense, go for assists, be in position for 3's, etc. He doesn't need the ball in his hand but he'll give maximum effort in support every night. Nerlens (yeah, I've already traded him twice this year) needs an opportunity to play, to get some rhythm in his game, in his life, and I'm not sure OKC is the best fit for him, but Coach Donovan remembers him from Kentucky, he'll know what to do with him and in the OKC locker room, ain't nobody living or dying with Nerlens, which perhaps would suit him. If they can figure out how to use Nerlens to replace Adams at times and Roberson at other times, that'd be the best use of his athleticism (and the fact that he can't score at all is not a problem). This is Russell Westbrook's team, get everyone out of the way, let PG be the general of the rest of the team and OKC goes back to be the deadly 1-2 combo I thought they'd be before they picked up Carmelo. And they'd slightly save on salary this year and, depending if they bring back Nerlens, they'd save $5m next year. Even if they do like Nerlens, I doubt they'd pay him next summer under any circumstances. And while giving up Ferguson could look like a mistake in the long run, what are the chances he takes playing time from Russell Westbrook in the next  5 years? (And when/if PG leaves next summer, I'd suggest taking runs at Marcus Smart and Kentavius Caldwell-Pope to go with Westbrook and Barnes)

The Mavs get another free-shooting Hall of Famer to put opposite Dirk and possibly to carry on after Dirk moves on (1 more year of Dirk, just in time for a Melo extension). And I threw in Ferguson as a tantalizing prospect to pair with Dennis Smith. Ferguson was one of my favorite flyers in the 2017 draft, the Mavs could use a flyer as they play their way to another top ten pick. Don't get me wrong, this doesn't make the Mavs any better but I don't think it makes them worse. I don't think Harrison Barnes is the best player for their future (I'd rather have Ferguson at one quarter the price), Nerlens Noel is clearly not working for them and building around Melo for the next 3-5 years continues the framework they've got in place around Dirk. I think Melo fits and he makes them fun (if not good).
The Mavs are taking back a little bit of salary but not enough to need throw-ins (and Dallas wouldn't want to throw in draft picks for this deal anyway).

Melo isn't working in OKC and Ferguson's probably never gonna get his shot there; Nerlens is not working in Dallas and Barnes is nice but not the cornerstone of the future. For OKC this is addition by subtraction, for Dallas it's another big time scorer to anchor them for a coupla more years while Smith, Ferguson and their 2018 top ten pick mature.

Pointless Trade Idea

Bucks get Ricky Rubio, Nikola Pekovic, #5 pick; Wolves get John Henson, #36 pick

The Wolves are apparently eager to part ways with Rubio as long as someone takes Pekovic with him (which is the player they're really eager to move on from). Obviously they'd rather deal them both without giving up #5 but by including that pick, they'll get something back and save a ton of money. Henson is a criminally underappreciated player on a favorable contract (4yrs/$45m) who gives them a nice veteran presence off the bench (assuming they start Garnett again this season). Also he becomes insurance for Adrien Payne (great depth if he develops, a fungible commodity if he doesn't). At #36 they've got a shot at a PG (perhaps Demtrius Jackson, Micheal Gbinje or Tyler Ulis (whom Towns recently said is the best PG he's ever played with)) or any bit of depth really because by giving up Rubio and Pekovic, they'll have a ton of money to lure Mike Conley to be their new PG.

The Bucks get themselves a 2nd top ten pick (I'd recommend Dragan Bender if he's still there), a veteran PG (MCW becomes more attractive as a 2nd string PG) and a big man who gives them a better chance to move on from Greg Monroe. Rubio is a non-scoring ballhandling option to Antetokounpo, Pekovic comes off the bench for Monroe (off whoever they get to replace Monroe) and #5 gives them...welll, whatever they get. Their starting five becomes PG Rubio, SG Middleton, SF Antetokounpo, PF Parker, C Monroe with MCW, Ennis, #5 (Bender?), #10 (Deyonta Davis?), Vaughn, Pekovic off the bench. They'll be taking back a lot of salary but Rubio is worth it and Pekovic's deal gets less onerous each year.

For the Bucks its a good mix of youth and vets (admittedly with health concerns) that gives them room to make more moves throughout the summer. For the Wolves they move on from their worst contract and a PG they're probably ready to move on from; they'll be giving up their top pick but taking back a lot less salary giving them a ton of money to lure free agents.

Pointless Trade Idea

Celtics get Enes Kanter; Thunder get Amir Johnson, James Young, the #16 pick.

Yes, Kanter is absolutely atrocious on defense but he's a top notch scorer around the basket and really good rebounder. If anyone can get something out of Kanter on the defensive end, it's Coach Stevens. If it works they've got 3 more years of a solid low post scorer and they're rolling into next year with a for real vet instead of another rookie. (This'll sound weird but hear me out: Kanter's comparable game is Shaq. Within three feet of the basket Kanter is a great (yeah, I said it, GREAT) but farther than that, he becomes more and more useless. He needs to be playing at the Center spot, keep him close to the basket, give up on him guarding the perimeter. Yeah, he still kinda sucks on defense even there, but he's a good rebounder and he's got a good shot at outscoring his opponent, so he should be a plus performer at the position)

The Thunder get a decent veteran center for a year, a young shooting prospect and a shot at a decent draft pick (Denzel Valentine could be waiting there or Brice Johnson). Johnson is a so-so center but they'll be looking for reliable defense without any need of offense from him. Young can shoot 3's, I'm kinda convinced he can't do anything else but a corner shooting threat is all OKC needs and he's still on his rookie contract. Though this draft is thought to be kinda soft, I'm convinced there will still be plenty of worthwhile players at #16. The real upside here is this: next summer OKC will be desperately scraping together every penny to re-sign Westbrook, Ibaka, Adams and (presumably) Durant. By jettisoning Kanter's long range money, OKC will have the maximum flexibility to hold together this core....or start over from scratch.

I like Kanter, I think he fits well with Durant and Westbrook but OKC needs money for next summer more than anything right now. And if the core does fall apart, Kanter is not the guy they're gonna wanna rebuild around anyway. Johnson is a serviceable player underneath. If Young's talents are maximized, he can still become the deadly scorer OKC needs and for now he's still cheap enough to experiment with. Brice Johnson, for example, can be a productive player in the right environment and a team with clear leaders and championship asirations could unlock the best of his game.

If the Celtics take on Kanter the danger is that Stevens is unable to make him useful (I don't think that's a real danger, honestly, Stevens is an umitigated genius of basketball) and he wallows at the end of the bench and the Celtics are stuck with him. Young is deep down the depth chart and likely won't get a chance to play in Boston. Johnson is a serviceable player underneath but the Celtics are really looking for scoring down there and with only a year left on his deal, Johnson is not their center of the future. The #16 pick is just trade bait anyway (or a backup if #3 pick becomes trade bait). And Kanter would just be one of the moves the Celtics are going to make this summer so its not like they're living and dying on this move. But I think its good start for their shopping spree.

Seems weird at first but I think this is a good deal for both teams. OKC needs to have a big season next year and as much money as they can horde next summer, this deal doesn't diminish the former and greatly enhances the latter.

Pointless Trade Idea

Pelicans get Carmelo Anthony ($24.6 next year); Suns get Tyreke Evans (1yr/$11.6m), the #6 pick; Knicks get Eric Bledsoe ($14m next year), Jrue Holiday (1yr/$11.2m), the #13 pick

With the emergence of Devin Booker at the end of last year, the Suns are back in the PG logjam they had with Dragic and Isiah, which means they're gonna trade either Bledsoe or Knight. Packaging him with the #13 pick gives them a chance to move up in the draft and take a flyer on the last year of Tyreke's contract. If Tyreke works, bonus, but realistically they're just trying to move on from Bledsoe's big contract. They already have #4, #28 and #34 in this draft, they're invested, might as well try to redeem Bledsoe for the #6, as well. This would give them a lineup of Knight, Booker, Tucker, Warren and Chandler with Evans, Len, Goodwin, #4 and #6 off the bench. That team is likely to scuffle but by next summer they'd be able to move on from Tucker, Goodwin, perhaps Chandler's deal becomes more trade-able and they'd be able to make moves in free agency. (Moving #28 for a 2017 1st rounder is something that might consider as well)

The Knicks move on from their biggest contract and most famous player, it'd be a media maelstrom. But with the hiring of Jeff Hornacek, Bledsoe and Holiday would give them two guards to try their new two-guard offense. If it works, it could be electric and if Porzingas continues to grow, the insufferable Knick fans will at least have something to cheer about. Bledsoe is signed and becomes their guy of the future to go with Porzingas, while Holiday is in a contract year and should be looking to have a career year. Throwing in the #13 pick gets them back in the draft (last year's #13 was Devin Booker, so good things can happen). They'd have a starting five of Holiday, Bledsoe, Williams, Porzingas and Lopez with Grant, Wroten, O'Quinn, and #13 off the bench. Yeah, they still need to make moves this summer but bringing back Bledsoe, Holiday and #13 for Melo re-shapes the team for the next coupla years.

The Pelicans would buy in long term with the Melo-AD tandem. Can they play together? Yeah, I think they'd be just fine. This move would give them each the best player they've ever played with, that's got to be exciting, right? Getting rid of Evans is worth losing the #6 pick and they'd be looking to build around free agency rather than the draft anyway. Salary wise they'd be bringing back a coupla million but they'd still have plenty to go forth into the free agency market (hey, Mike Conley, wanna play with Davis and Melo?). As of now their guard situation is simply untenable, so projecting a starting five for the Pelicans is an unnecessary task--if they bring back what they've got now, then poor Anthony Davis ain't ever making the playoffs again! Giving Evans is a gift, giving up Holiday and #6 for three more years of Carmelo is an exciting prospect.

Pointless Trade Idea

Clippers get Kevin Love ($21.5m next year); Heat get Blake Griffin ($20.1m next year); Cavs gets Chris Bosh ($23.7m next year)

Cavs have never seemed happy with Love and they've never really played him in his correct position, it just feels like this is not a perfect match. Bosh is Lebron's close friend and long time teammate, surely the Cavs could figure out how to play Bosh in a way that never matched Love's style. The Cavs would lose Love's rebounding but they'd gain Bosh's defense. Also, Bosh's long range shooting fits better with how Kyrie and Lebron play. Obviously the Cavs would need certain health assurances that Bosh is ready to go but if Lebron is satisfied, that should be good enough. (Yes, Bosh is older, not exactly a cornerstone of the post-Lebron years...but why would Lebron care about that?)

Clippers are at that point where they need to make changes for the sheer sake of making changes and Griffin's recent bad blood (and health concerns) make him more likely to be moved than Chris Paul or Deandre Jordan. Love would give the Clippers a formidable rebounding tandem with Jordan and his 3 point shooting could alleviate their long term inability to find a proper SF. I don't mean to say that Love is a better player but I think he'd fit just fine with the Clippers' needs on both ends of the court.

The Heat need to get younger and more athletic especially down low. Griffin's rebounding and D should fit with Whiteside (aka Deandre 2.0) just fine and his inside scoring would mesh well with Dragic and Wade. Also, he is the cornerstone of the future in a way that Bosh isn't. The only snag: Griffin has only 1 more year with a player option left on his deal, the Heat would want to re-sign him long term as soon as possible. This would give the Heat a long term core of Dragic, Richardson, Winslow, Griffin, Whiteside with room for DWade for as long as he feels like hanging around and an assortment of free agent veterans.

With the rising salary cap, this summer is like a refresh button for many teams in the league: everyone has more money to spend and the excess eliminates (I think) some of the restrictions that keep big deals from taking place. Some big names/contracts that I can see getting traded this summer: Griffin (Clippers), Love (Cavs), Serge Ibaka (Thunder), Jimmy Butler (Bulls), Zach Randolph (Grizzlies), Nerlens Noel (Sixers), Carmelo Anthony (Knicks), Demarcus Cousins (Kings), Eric Bledsoe (Suns), Greg Monroe (Bucks). There are also some player options that might not get exercised, too, just to add to the imminent player movement: Dwight Howard (Rockets), Deron Williams (Mavs), Demar Derozan (Raptors), Jeremy Lin (Hornets), Chandler Parsons (Mavs), Aron Afflalo (Knicks), Pau Gasol (Bulls), Seth Curry (Kings), Austin Rivers (Clippers). A lot of teams will look totally different by the start of next year's training camp.

Pointless Trade Idea

Hornets get Serge Ibaka (1yr/$12.3m); Thunder get Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (4yrs/$13m per (4th year player option)).

The Thunder are Durant/Westbrook's team now and it feels like they're well past the days of relying on vets (Kendrick Perkins, Derek Fisher, etc) to take the heat off the court or be leaders in the locker room. Quite the opposite: it is time to openly acknowledge they are the undisputed co-alpha dogs and surround them with young sycophants will do as they are told. And since it feels like Kanter and Adams have basically usurped Ibaka's contribution, why not move him in his last year and bring back a young buck signed long term? MKG would give OKC wing defense without needing the ball on offense and without upsetting the vibe in the locker room. So far the knock on MKG is his lack of offensive prowess, but on OKC that is plus, not a minus (and I think he would score in a Kanter-like way around the basket).

For the Hornets, Ibaka fits everything that GM Michael Jordan loves in a player: tall guy that can handle the ball and shoot the 3 (well...he's not white, but he does satisfy all of Jordan's other fetishes). It would be foolish for the Hornets to give up a young signed talent unless they could be sure that Ibaka would sign a 2-4 year deal after this year. But if Ibaka was game for it, he'd be a good fit for the Hornets in a way that he isn't any longer on OKC.

The salaries don't perfectly match but in an expanded salary cap summer, I don't think that would present a problem for either team. I think this deal makes both teams better next year and beyond. I like this deal and it is extremely do-able.

Pointless Trade Idea

Wolves hire Tom Thibodeau as Coach; then trade him to Sixers for Coach Brett Brown and 2 1st round picks.

The Wolves are looking for a coach and I think they will have their pick of the litter with that sexy sexy roster they have. The Coach of choice right now is probably Thibodeau and I don't want to cast aspersions but I don't think he's the right fit for the Wolves. The Wolves have a real family atmosphere, a fun vibe that has one more year of low expectations where the young talent can incubate. Sam Mitchell has a good rapport with the youth but would probably fit better as a Player Development guy rather than as head coach and with one more year of Kevin Garnett at the end of the bench, the cult of steady progress in a fun vibe should continue. Does that sound like Thibodeau's method? No. He may be a good coach but his blood-from-stone mentality might damage those tender tulips.

A team that could use Thibs' brand of tough love is Philly. The Sixers have slowly built themselves around Nerlens (sloppy renter apparently), Jahlil Okafor (not popular at night clubs) and Joel Embiid (who seems to take a relaxed attitude towards rehab), three guys that could use a solid kick in the pants. They'll be adding in Dario Saric and 2 (or more) new 1st rounders this summer, that is a team that needs a brutal dictatorial iron hand. Brett Brown has experience with developing youth and seems like a smart tactician, but he doesn't appear to be a brutal dictator. Thibs, on the other hand, wouldn't tolerate back sliding or halfhearted effort.

Brett Brown seems like a fun loving basketball teacher, the kind of guy the Wolves could really use. Brown is familiar with a youth movement and molding that Wolves roster into a basketball force could be right up his alley. Garnett to keep the kids in line, Mitchell to watch over them from above, Brown to teach them how to ball sounds like a good combo to me. While a ruthless taskmaster fits the Sixers needs. There are a lot of moving parts in the plan I just described, which makes it virtually impossible to actually take place...but think about it. It works.

Pointless Trade Idea

Kings get Love (4yrs/$114m); Cavs get Gay (3yrs/$40m; player option third year) and Belinelli (3 yrs/$19m).

Sacramento replaces Gay's scoring production within Belineli's style. Love can score at a high level but he'll get further from the basket, thus keeping the lane open for Cousins and giving Rondo a perimeter target.

Cleveland gets a scorer who likes to play closer to the basket than Love thus he won't overlap with Lebron the way Love does and he offers an offensive counterpoint to Kyrie. Gay is arguably a better wing defender than Love, certainly no drop off on that end. Belinelli brings nice wing scoring off the bench (can never have enough of that these days) and over the next three years is reasonably priced.

Getting Love out of Cleveland seems to be the thing to do, hard to imagine that only one sacrificial lamb will be enough to appease the basketball gods. Love has a big contract and hasn't exactly dominated anything since he left Minnesota but I think there's still plenty of GMs and coaches out there that believe in him. Gay gives the Cavs another crafty veteran scorer that has played with both Lebron and Kyrie for USA. Not sure Gay is an upgrade necessarily but this is addition by subtraction: getting ride of Love's expectations, demands and paycheck give the Cavs a leaner, more aggressive gameplan. And for the Kings a Rondo-Love-Cousins lineup is kinda sexy. If I were the Cavs I'd try to make it work with Love but if they're truly looking to get out, Rudy Gay isn't a bad replacement.  

(I had a thought earlier about Love and Mozgov to Denver for Faried, Arthur and Chandler which I kinda liked because for the Cavs it would split Love into 2 players (Faried the rebounder, Chandler the wing scorer) and for the Nuggets it would consolidate 2 nice players into 1 reliable star. Then I remembered Chandler is out for the season, which nullifies the whole thing. Dang. But, hey, nothing can beat that 'Gay Love Swap' headline that I proposed above)

Pointless Trade Idea

OKC signs Enes Kanter (something like 4 yrs/$52m, backloaded so the 1st year is around $10m).  They trade Kanter and Waiters (team option 1yr/$5m) to the Suns for the Morris twins ($8m + $5m next year) and Danny Granger (1 yr/$2.1m).

The Suns then flip Waiters, their 2015 1st rounder and 2016 1st rounder (top 10 protected) to the Hornets to move up in the draft and get Willie Cauley-Stein.

The Suns swap out the Morris twins for Kanter (better offensive player) and Cauley-Stein (better defensive player).  Bringing in Kanter and re-signing Knight would leave a little bit of cap room (could bring back Green or Wright or move on from both) and a core (Bledsoe, Knight, Tucker, Kanter, Len with Warren, Goodwin, Cauley-Stein off the bench) that would be set for a few years.  Not sure they'd win in the West but they'd be fun to watch.

OKC brings in stability in the rotation for the next coupla years in two swing forwards that should fit well with Durant, Westbrook, Ibaka and Adams.  They don't have to worry about overpaying Kanter and while Kanter is a superior offensive player, the Morris twins are better defenders and reasonable offensive replacements.  As for Danny Granger, Durant likes his veterans, maybe there's a place for him off the bench (or they could buy him out).  And they get to shed Dion Waiters, which is just a beautiful thing.

The Hornets move down in the draft but they pick up a scoring wing and a mid-teen pick in next year's draft.  Not great but not bad.  They could use Willie Cauley too but the Hornets need a new identity more than just another rookie.  (Also, not convinced that the Hornets know how to evaluate draft picks, their chances at #14 may be just as good as their chances at #8)  And, man, Waiters and Lance Stephenson on the same team?  Must-watch train wreck reality show, right there.

Pointless Trade Idea

Knicks get Demarcus Cousins
Lakers get David Lee
Kings get Jordan Hill, Knicks 2015 1st round pick, Knicks 2015 2nd round pick
Warriors get 2015 2nd round pick from Lakers, 2016 2nd round pick from Knicks.

Would the Knicks give up their 1st round pick (potentially #1) and their 2nd round pick (#32) for Demarcus Cousins?  Fuck yeah, they would!  Everybody loves high 1st round picks but as much as I like the college talent this year, none of these guys are can't miss guys.  Cousins is already the most underappreciated player in the league and New York is exactly where he wants to be.  Would he thrive in the triangle offense?  I doubt it.  Would he thrive next to Melo?  Probably not.  Doesn't matter, Cousins can be the best player in the league and he's worth way more than that (but the Knicks don't have any more than that).

Would the Lakers give up 1yr/$9m Jordan Hill and a 2nd round pick for 1yr/$15.4m David Lee?  Sure, why not?  Lee is a better player, either way its only a one year commitment, and even if the Lakers can get Kevin Love, Lee is a better bench player than Hill.  They'd be taking more salary but the Lakers don't care about money.  I think Lee whether starting or not is a better asset for next year than Jordan Hill and a 2nd round pick doesn't seem like much to pay.

Would the Kings prefer Jordan Hill and the #1 pick to Cousins?  No but it seems like everything they've ever done for Cousins has failed.  The Kings are a natural born bunch of bunglers and having Cousins (the BEST contract in the league right now) is a waste of a good talent.  Would Hill and Okafor be better than Cousins?  Almost certainly not but it gives the Kings something to hold on to.

Would the Warriors be willing to give David Lee for a coupla 2nd round picks?  Yes.  They've got to re-sign Draymond Green and that means either Lee or Iguodala HAS to go.  They're not looking to get anything back, indeed, those 2nd round picks can be protected to amazing limits, the Warriors don't need anything back.

(Normally the contracts have to match to make a trade in the NBA but since draft picks are involved, because the Warriors want to subtract without adding back and because the Knicks have nothing beyond their #1 pick to offer, this deal could still work)

The Knicks would probably do that deal (Phil Jax wants veterans not rookies) but that #1 pick is pretty much their only movable asset, they need more than just Cousins and a #1 pick can maybe bring back two or three bodies rather than just one.  They might need volume to fill out their roster.

The Warriors would be more than happy to send Cousins to the East, pad the Laker salary and watch the Kings flounder with another heralded rookie.  They don't even need the picks back to make this work for them!

The Lakers....eh, this doesn't really solve any of their problems but its not a terrible move.  And getting Cousins shipped out of their division is probably worth it.

Looking back over this the Kings don't get nearly enough for Cousins but if Cousins really wants out, the team will probably have to eat some value to make it work.  Honestly for the next 2 years I'd rather Cousins on his current deal than just about anyone else in the league (including Okafor, Towns, or whoever) so the Kings are pretty much guaranteed to come up short in any deal for Cousins.  But if they can shake out the #1 pick and a good 2nd round pick and a nice young veteran, that's not a bad haul (though they can probably do better).