Success Of Mid-Season Trades

    The Suns, Mavericks and Lakers all made trades that were supposed to take them to the next level.  All of three of these teams were good teams, but lacked something that would take them to the NBA Finals.

    Now that the Suns have been eliminated in rapid fashion by the San Antonio Spurs, Suns GM Kerr will be criticized for okaying the trade that brought the Big Cactus to Phoenix.  In a complete contrast to the Sun's uptempo game, the Suns brought in Shaq to help deal with defensive woes (ie. Tim Duncan).  Shaq himself claimed that he would fit in with the Sun's offense by being the spark plug for fast breaks.

    The reality was that Shaq could not contain Duncan in the playoffs.  Shaq's presence in the paint also limited Steve Nash's offensive creativity.  Steve Nash's assists per game dropped from 11.7 pre-All-Star game to 9.9 post-All-Star game.  The Sun's had to change their style too much to incorporate Shaq and they were never able to get in- sync.

    The Mavericks trade that brought Jason Kidd to Dallas resulted in similar problems.  Jason Kidd was supposed to provide leadership and reduce the pressure on a less confident Dirk Nowitzki.  Jason Kidd soon clashed with Mavericks coach Avery Johnson.  Johnson prefers to dominate his point guards with instructions from the sidelines.  This limited Kidd's natural style of play.  Kidd also became a defensive liability when matched up against younger and quicker point guards.

      The one blockbuster trade that has been fruitful has been the Laker's swindling of the Memphis Grizzlies.  The deal brought Pau Gasol to the Lakers for practically nothing.  Unlike the other two major mid-season trades, bringing Gasol to L.A. made sense.  A versatile big man fit perfectly with Phil Jackson's triangle offense.  Gasol's finesse complimented the Laker's athletic center Andrew Bynum perfectly.

    Unlike the 35 year-old Jason Kidd and the 36 year-old Shaquille O'Neal, Pau Gasol is only 27 years-old.  The Lakers trade allows them to remain competitive for years to come as Kobe Bryant enters his prime the same time Gasol does.

    The Mavericks and the Suns have made the terrible mistake of gambling away their future for the present.