Why Hast Thou Forsaken Us, Danny Ferry?

(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

So, apparently Danny Ferry thinks that trading for Shaq puts the Cavs in position to win a title.

Sadly, he seems to have forgotten that at the time of the trade, his championship caliber team was still lacking a backup shooting guard and a backup small forward and at least one rotation big.

If Ferry remembered that you need more than five guys for a championship team, he might not have wasted his first round pick on a project that will most likely never come to fruition. 

He might have considered that two guys were no less than three guys available at the 30 spot that meet at least one of the teams needs and are projected to make immediate impacts as rookies.

DeJuan Summers is an athletic 6'9" player who plays both forward spots and can shoot the ball. Sam Young is a prototype at the two or three spot and known for his tenacity on defense and his ability to hit the open shot. DeJuan Blair is a rebounding machine at 6'7" with a 7'2" wingspan in the mold of Paul Milsap.

They were all projected to go in or just outside of the lottery.

I kind of understand not going for Blair because it's always taking a chance with big men—that is if you're talking about taking Summer or Young over him because they fulfill a need and will have an easier transition playing on the wings.

What I don't understand is not even picking up a guy to contribute.

Oh, you say it's for financial reasons?

I ask you, are the Cavs not going to have to go out and spend money on a backup swingman anyway?  If you pick one up in the draft, there's no hassle negotiating with them, it's probably cheaper than getting one off the FA market and you won't have to use part of your MLE.

By the way, Brian Windhorst reports that the Cavs are saving a total of $800K by paying their second round pick instead of paying a would-be first rounder.  That's $800K total I believe, not even per year.

And I know Danny Ferry said they wanted to draft a guy with a high ceiling for the future, but guess what—this Christian Eyenga does not have a high ceiling.  He is 19, plays in a Spanish B League, DraftExpress rates him 68th with a low basketball IQ and little or no actual basketball skills.  His highest ceiling is basically Mikael Pietrus, but more likely a poor man's version. 

Don't insult us Ferry.

How is it that even when the draft conspires to giftwrap a successful draft for the Cavs, they find a way—in this case the most ridiculous way possible—to screw it up?

The answer lies in the answer to another question.

Just how many crack rocks did Danny Ferry smoke to celebrate the Shaq trade?

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