NBA Trade Deadline: One Trade Each Team Should Make

Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol, Rajon Rondo, Deron Williams and Kevin Garnett are just a handful of the hundreds of NBA players who could pack their bags before the trade deadline on March 15. 

It's that time of year again; time for you and I to play armchair general manager.

For those of you who don't know, the picture above is of former L.A. Lakers general manager and Hall of Famer Jerry "The Logo" West—currently a consultant of sorts for the Golden State Warriors—and Boston Celtics GM Danny Ainge.

West is known for not only being the third-greatest shooting guard in NBA history but for bringing Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant together in the summer of 1996, thereby forming a new Lakers dynasty. Ainge is known for being the man who brought Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce together in Boston to return the great Celtics franchise to glory.

Do you have the basketball I.Q., the grasp of NBA finances and think-outside-the-box mentality to be the next great NBA general manager?

Don't make the mistake of thinking for one second that all NBA front offices make wise decisions or that a fan at home cannot make more intelligent decisions from time to time.

Many general managers not only have no financial background to speak of, but literally no experience with winning an NBA championship as a player or coach. What makes many of them different from you, the high-I.Q. basketball fan, is that they have connections that you don't.

In this article I am going to propose one trade for each of the 30 teams in the NBA—a trade I would make if I was each particular team's general manager. I certainly could have proposed more trades, follow-up trades or even three-team trades, but for the sake of keeping this article entertaining and unlike a basketball encyclopedia, I have limited myself to just one trade per team.

Please understand that for each and every team, the trade proposed is catered to that particular team. This is why there are very few "repeat trades" in this article.

To all the real NBA general managers out there, feel free to use my trade proposals to improve your teams...free of charge.

Here are the deals I believe should not only be proposed but approved by each respective team's general manager—or in the case of the GM-less Portland Trail Blazers, owner Paul Allen.

Let's get this party started!

Chicago Bulls

Bulls Trade: Carlos Boozer, Omer Asik, Ronnie Brewer and their 2012 No. 1 pick

Celtics Trade: Kevin Garnett, Chris Wilcox and Mickael Pietrus

The Bulls should offer this trade immediately without giving it a second thought. Many Bulls fans probably feel Boozer is better than Garnett at this point in their respective careers, and that there is no way the team should also give away Asik, Brewer and a No. 1 pick to make such a swap.

From a pure talent standpoint, they would be right. This is not an equal swap, not because Boozer is better than Garnett (which he is not, especially on the defensive end), but because Asik and Brewer make up a duo that trumps the Wilcox-Pietrus combo in spades.

However, the Bulls would make this trade mostly for financial reasons, something most fans don't understand and don't want to understand. Basketball is a business, plain and simple.

Starting next season, the Bulls will start paying Derrick Rose max money and in turn will be deep into the luxury tax, something most owners not named Mark Cuban despise with a passion. Boozer is a fine player—allergic to defense, but still a fine player—with a bad contract.

Brewer is a solid wingman with a contract that may be a bit high and a bit too lengthy for Chicago's taste, especially when compared with Pietrus' extremely cheap and expiring contract.

Asik is a wonderful young talent who will be a restricted free agent next year and is likely to receive a higher offer from another team. The Bulls would not match an offer for financial reasons, thereby losing him for nothing anyways.

This trade will not only greatly improve the Bulls' financial makeup, it will actually make them an even better defensive team—a scary thought for the rest of the NBA. This trade will also bring Kevin Garnett back to Chicago, where he played high school ball for Farragut Career Academy and won the National Player of the Year award.

It would also surprise no one if Garnett chooses to finish his career in Chicago, and sign an extension with the Bulls with a nice hometown discount.

All things considered, this is a no-brainer trade for the Bulls and a trade I believe the Celtics would accept as there are no great power forwards due to hit the free-agent market next season that are better than Boozer.

Asik would look great in Celtics green and white and is a player they would sign to an extension. Brewer would be a very solid backup to captain Paul Pierce and the No. 1 pick would certainly come in handy.     

Indiana Pacers

Pacers Trade: Danny Granger

Celtics Trade: Ray Allen, Celtics and Clippers 2012 No. 1 picks

Danny Granger is a fantastic basketball player. However, he plays the same position as soon-to-be-star Paul George and makes a great deal of money compared to the young George, making him the perfect piece to move in a trade in order to strengthen the team.

The Indiana Pacers have a very good basketball team and Larry Bird should be thrilled with the job he has done. The Pacers are the third-best team in the Eastern Conference at best, and the seventh-best at worst (providing the Hawks have Al Horford healthy, the Knicks gel, and the Celtics and Magic play the way they are capable of playing).

However, they have a chance to become the best team in the Eastern Conference relatively soon if everything aligns the right way and Mr. Bird gets creative on the trade market.

Swapping Danny Granger for Ray Allen straight up will actually improve the Pacers in the short-term, as Allen's long-distance marksmanship and ability to play without the ball is exactly what the Pacers could use. Granger has become a jump shooter despite magnificent athleticism and the simple fact is that Allen is a much, much better jump shooter.

The real reason the Pacers would propose this trade is for financial reasons and to add the two first-round draft picks in this year's insanely deep draft.

The Pacers are going to need to shell out some serious cash to sign All-Star center Roy Hibbert to a contract extension. Replacing Granger with two talented rookies (who, combined, will cost tens of millions less in salary over the length of their rookie contracts) is a no-brainer for Indiana.

As for the Celtics, I believe they agree to this trade as the draft picks they will be losing should be late first-rounders and certainly not lottery picks. Allen is only under contract for another 30 games or so anyways, and Granger is a bona fide All-Star talent that would team well with superstar point guard Rajon Rondo.

This would allow the Celtics to move the aging and extremely expensive Paul Pierce in another trade.

Milwaukee Bucks

Bucks Trade: Andrew Bogut, Stephen Jackson and Drew Gooden

Rockets Trade: Kevin Martin, Samuel Dalembert, Hasheem Thabeet and Knicks No. 1 Pick

Let me be very clear before fans from both teams start wondering how in the world this trade is realistic: This trade is a financial trade for the Bucks and a talent trade for the Rockets. Period.

The Milwaukee Bucks are going nowhere—absolutely nowhere. As is, they have a lottery-bound team with a bad financial situation, which is just about the worst position to be in as an NBA team.

Andrew Bogut is the Bucks' best player and a fantastic center in the league, perhaps the second-best center when fully healthy. He is also injury-prone. If the Bucks can dump the contracts of malcontent Stephen Jackson and Drew Gooden (who has an insanely lengthy and relatively expensive contract) for mere expiring contracts, they will be happy to include Bogut, especially if they can land a solid player or two.

Trading Bogut, Jackson and Gooden for two expiring contracts in Thabeet and Dalembert, as well as an All-Star talent in sharpshooting Kevin Martin and a first-round pick in this year's deep and talented draft, is something the Bucks would be wise to consider.

This trade would save the Bucks around $45 million in salary over the length of the contracts.

As for the Rockets, they were desperate to land Pau Gasol and would be thrilled to acquire the bigger, stronger, younger and cheaper Andrew Bogut. I do believe they would be willing to take on the salaries of Jackson and Gooden to land Bogut.

This is a trade that should happen for the sake of both teams' futures.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Cavaliers Trade: Ramon Sessions, Anthony Parker and Ryan Hollins

Lakers Trade: Luke Walton, Jason Kapono, Darius Morris, Mavericks and Lakers 2012 No. 1 Picks

The Cleveland Cavaliers have their new face-of-the-franchise star in Kyrie Irving, a solid young athletic freak in rookie power forward Tristan Thompson and a solid center in Brazilian Anderson Varejao.

Outside of that, they are talentless and need a ton of help.

Ramon Sessions is an extremely talented and solid young point guard that the Lakers covet a great deal. The Cavs should be shrewd and use the Lakers' urgent need for a stud point guard to acquire both of the Lakers' No. 1 draft picks in this year's deep draft.

I believe that these two teams may actually agree to a trade that has Sessions going to the Lakers and the Lakers sending them nothing more than their trade exception (from the Lamar Odom trade) and one of their No. 1 picks in this year's draft.

However, the Cavs can do better if they act wisely.

Luke Walton is an absolute waste of a roster spot, of that there is no doubt. However, I believe the Cavs would be wise to propose the above trade including Walton. Taking Walton will be all the reason the Lakers need to agree to this trade and send both of their No. 1 picks to the Cavs.

When this trade is completed, it will cost the Cavs about $6 million in additional salary—a bargain price to acquire two first-round picks in this year's draft. Those picks could be combined to trade up and draft a starting shooting guard such as Jeremy Lamb of UConn or to draft two quality players to improve the talent level and depth of the Cavaliers.

As for the Lakers, I do believe they would agree to this trade. Losing both No. 1 draft picks hurts, but the fact is the Lakers are in "win-now" mode and this trade gives them the best chance to do so. Sessions would instantly become their starting small forward and make them (at worst) the second-best team in the Western Conference or, at best, the team to beat.

Parker would move into the backup shooting guard spot, a spot currently occupied by Andrew Goudelock, a rookie with point guard stature. Hollins would move into the backup center spot, a spot currently occupied by a stretch power forward in Troy Murphy.

This trade is a no-brainer for both teams and should happen immediately.

Detroit Pistons

Pistons Trade: Ben Gordon and Tayshaun Prince

Cavaliers Trade: Antawn Jamison

The Detroit Pistons are one of the worst teams in the NBA with one of the worst financial situations as well. General manager Joe Dumars needs to shake things up for the good of the team, even if it means trading a lifelong Piston like Tayshaun Prince.

Tayshaun Prince and Ben Gordon are both solid players that are due $65.2 million between this year and when Prince's contract expires in 2015. Making this trade will save the Pistons around $48 million, making it a trade they simply cannot afford not to do.

As for the Cavaliers, I do indeed believe they would agree to this trade as they already have a magnificent point guard, solid center and promising young power forward. They only need a starter-quality shooting guard and small forward to be a solid playoff team.

Gordon and Prince are also dependable professionals and could be wonderful influences on the young Cavaliers, something that should not be overlooked.

Joe Dumars, make the phone call.

Miami Heat

Heat Trade: Dwyane Wade, Norris Cole and Mike Miller

Nets Trade: Deron Williams, Brook Lopez and Anthony Morrow

The Miami Heat have the third-best record in the NBA and the second-best record in the Eastern Conference. Anything less than an NBA title will be considered a failure by team president Pat Riley and two-time NBA MVP LeBron James.

As is, the Heat have a great chance of winning their conference and the NBA title. However, the Heat could increase those odds to nearly 100 percent in each case by trading superstar Dwyane Wade.

Wade is an amazing talent, but the fact is the Miami Heat have some massive team weaknesses, namely three-point shooting, floor spacing, size, length and both post offense and defense. This trade solves all of Miami's problems and makes them an almost unbeatable team—a true "super team," if you will.

As for the New Jersey (soon-to-be Brooklyn) Nets, this trade also makes a great deal of sense. The Nets may lose Deron Williams for nothing next year if he refuses to sign an extension in order to sign with a superior team, such as his hometown Dallas Mavericks.

The Nets also will most likely lose Brook Lopez in free agency to a team willing to pay much more for a player that will be Dwight Howard's backup if the latter signs with the Nets. Landing Wade will give the Nets a superstar to pair with "Superman" Howard and give them the most dominating guard-center combo since Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal terrorized the league.

It's a rare thing for a trade involving superstars to make sense, but this trade is a no-brainer for both teams.

Orlando Magic

Magic Trade: Dwight Howard and Earl Clark

Warriors Trade: Monta Ellis and David Lee

The Orlando Magic are about to lose Dwight Howard for nothing, just as they lost Shaquille O'Neal for nothing in 1996. 

The Magic might not trade Howard in hopes that they can convince him to sign an extension with them next year.

Such a plan is wishful, foolish and extremely dangerous thinking. It does nothing but set them up to watch Howard walk. This would leave the Magic hanging with the worst financial situation in the league and a team bound for the lottery and complete irrelevance.

If Orlando Magic GM Otis Smith is smart, he will trade Howard for as much as he can get, be it talent or cap relief. Talking heads such as David Aldridge and Jon Barry have recently stated on television that the Magic would rather just let Howard walk so they have the $35 million in cap space that will come with him doing so.

However, something is seriously wrong with such statements. I don't know if Aldridge and Barry simply haven't done their research and are spewing idiocy, or if they have actually heard such nonsense from the Magic front office and are just repeating it.

If it's the former, there is no need to panic for Magic fans. If it's the latter, Orlando fans should rise up en masse and demand Otis Smith be fired immediately.

If Dwight Howard walks in the offseason, the Magic will still have nearly $44 million in salary committed to just seven players: Hedo Turkoglu, Jameer Nelson, J.J. Redick, Glen Davis, Jason Richardson, Chris Duhon and Quentin Richardson.

Even if the Magic do not extend a qualifying offer to Ryan Anderson (let alone re-sign him) and fail to pick up the cheap team option on Von Wafer, the Magic would only have around $17 million in cap room. If they extend Anderson at around $7 million per season and pick up Wafer's option, the Magic will have a whopping $9 million in cap space available to spend in free agency.

That's $26 million less than what is being reported by the sport's talking heads!

The wisest thing is for the Magic to trade Howard for the best possible package. The Lakers, Knicks and Bulls do not seem truly interested due to Howard's agent reportedly saying his client will not sign an extension with anyone other than New Jersey or Dallas, while the Nets and Mavs have literally nothing of value available to offer.

That leaves the Warriors, a team willing to give up talent even for a mere half-season rental of Howard, primarily because they want the salary cap relief and the ability to start over and rebuild their roster.

The Magic can receive star shooting guard Monta Ellis and extremely solid power forward/center David Lee for nothing more than Howard and the expiring contract of little-used Earl Clark. The Magic would be insane to pass this opportunity up.

As for the Warriors, agreeing to such a trade and watching Howard leave in the offseason will still leave them with five decent young players under contract and give them around $38 million to spend in free agency. If they are wise, they could have a roster next year as follows:

PG: Stephen Curry, Nate Robinson, Charles Jenkins

SG: Wilson Chandler, Klay Thompson

SF: Nicolas Batum, Dorell Wright

PF: Antawn Jamison, Ekpe Udoh, Jeremy Tyler

C: Brook Lopez, Andris Biedrins

The Warriors fans would be thrilled with the above, and they should be.

If Otis Smith is wise, he will get on the phone with the Warriors brass ASAP and make this proposed trade happen.

Atlanta Hawks Trade: Kirk Hinrich, Radmanovic, No. 1 Pick for Steve Nash

HAWKS TRADE: Kirk Hinrich, Vladimir Radmanovic and their No. 1 Pick

SUNS TRADE: Steve Nash

The Atlanta Hawks have one of the most talented starting fives in the NBA when healthy. They also have the perfect roster to run, run and run some more. However, at present their starting point guard is better suited to coming off the bench than starting due to his shoot-first, pass-second nature.

In short, Steve Nash would be the perfect point guard for the Atlanta Hawks.

It has been reported that the Hawks are shopping star forward Josh Smith, listening to offers for star shooting guard Joe Johnson and searching for a true center so that they can move Al Horford to his more natural power forward position. However, I personally don't believe the Hawks will find another team to take back the salary of Joe Johnson, nor will they find a team to give them fair value for the insanely talented Smith and legit centers are hard to come by.

I do believe they could land Steve Nash, however, and would be disgusted with the front office if they are not at least attempting to do so.

Steve Nash, coupled with a healthy Al Horford, would transform the Hawks from a top-eight to a top-three team in the Eastern Conference and give them a legitimate shot at winning the East. The Hawks brass should do everything in their power to acquire Steve Nash while the getting is good.

As for the the Suns, they seem to be content with allowing Nash to play out his contract (which expires at the end of this season) and watch him leave for a new team, leaving them with nothing but cap space. That is nothing short of certifiable lunacy. Steve Nash is one of the greatest offensive point guards (he's not one of the top five and perhaps 10 point guards of all time due to his porous defense) in the history of basketball.

While he is closer to 50 years of age than 20, he still has solid trade value.

I believe the Suns would agree to this proposed trade, primarily because it gives them two expiring contracts—rather than a decent player who is under contract for next season—and a first-round draft pick in this year's deep and talented draft, which they could use to draft Nash's replacement such as Kendal Marshall or Scott Machado.

This is yet another realistic trade that should get done by the deadline, but probably won't.

Wizards Trade: Andray Blatche for Jermaine O'Neal & the Clips No. 1 Pick

WIZARDS TRADE: Andray Blatche

CELTICS TRADE: Jermaine O'Neal and the Clippers' No. 1 Pick

This trade is an absolute no-brainer for both teams.

The Washington Wizards are a horrible basketball team, but their problem is not a lack of talent, as they are literally one of the most talented teams in the NBA. 

Washington's problem is a lack of experience, drive and hunger to win—simply put, a lack of professionalism. The Wizards need a legitimate veteran star, and no, Rashard Lewis is not considered a "star" in any way, shape or form.

Andray Blatche is a magnificently talented young power forward. Blatche is having a down season as he has been dealing with injuries and having his playing time reduced. However, Andray is still just 25 years old and is coming off a season in which he averaged 16.8 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 rebounds per game in less than 34 minutes per game.

If given the same amount of court time Kevin Love receives, Blatche could realistically average 20 points and 10 rebounds per game, something just three players currently average: Dwight Howard, Blake Griffin and Kevin Love.

The Wizards, however, have grown tired of Blatche's apparent immaturity and would dump his lengthy contract for the expiring contract of Jermaine O'Neal. And the Clippers' first-round draft pick will allow the Wizards the ability to start over in a way and have the cap space needed to sign a solid veteran star.

In fact, if the Wizards make this proposed trade and amnesty Rashard Lewis, they would have around $36 million to spend in free agency next season.

As for the Celtics, this trade is a trade they cannot afford to pass up. The "Big 3" of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen are all aging rapidly and Andray Blatche is the sort of multi-skilled, wonderfully talented big man who could be a great running mate for all-world point guard Rajon Rondo for the next six to eight years.

Charlotte Bobcats Trade: Tyrus Thomas to Anyone for Cap Relief and a No. 1 Pick

BOBCATS TRADE: Tyrus Thomas — to ANY TEAM for ANY EXPIRING CONTRACT and a No. 1 Pick

Michael Jordan and Isiah Thomas have a lot in common, both on the court—which they can both be proud of—and off the court—which they can both be ashamed of.

Thomas destroyed the New York Knicks with financial blunders that would make any accountant scream in horror, while Jordan wasted high draft picks on players who turned out to be closer to the D-League than being named to an All-Star team. Both former greats have proven to be as inept off the court as they were magnificent on it.

However, unlike Thomas, Michael Jordan is still in a position to do great things in the greatest basketball league on earth as owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. If there is one thing all basketball fans know, it is that Jordan has a great desire to succeed.

At present, the Charlotte Bobcats are the worst team in the NBA and quite possibly the worst team in the history of the NBA. They also have the horrible contracts of players like Corey Maggette, DeSagana Diop and Matt Carroll on the books through the end of next season.

Tyrus Thomas, however, is the one player Michael Jordan and the Bobcats need to trade immediately. Thomas needs to get moved as fast as possible to any team willing to trade a player with an expiring contract, or even a contract that expires at the end of next season, along with a first-round draft pick.

There is absolutely no need for the Charlotte Bobcats to try and win this season or even next—no need at all.

Michael Jordan and the Bobcats' entire front office needs to have their sights solely set on the summer of 2013, when the contracts of the aforementioned Maggette, Diop and Carroll come off the books. They will have an enormous amount of cap space to spend on free agents to surround young stars like Kemba Walker and hopefully Anthony Davis, the Kentucky freshman phenom and shot-blocking machine, who they just might be able to draft this year if the ping-pong balls bounce their way.

The Bobcats need to trade Tyrus Thomas now for a player or players with contracts that expire at least by the end of next year, if not sooner, in order to have around $50 million dollars to spend on free agents in the summer of 2013, to add to the likes of Kemba Walker, Bismack Biyombo and whatever talented youngsters they draft this year.

That is a plan that all Bobcats fans should get behind.

As for the teams who may be open to trading for Tyrus Thomas, I believe the Celtics (for Jermaine O'Neal and the Clippers' No. 1 pick), Nuggets (for Andre Miller and their No. 1 pick) and Hawks (for Kirk Hinrich and their No. 1 pick) would be the three most likely teams to trade for Thomas.

Philadelphia 76ers Trade: Turner, Nocioni, Battie, Brackins for Al Jefferson

76ERS TRADE: Evan Turner, Andres Nocioni, Craig Brackins, Tony Battie & 2012 No. 1 Pick

JAZZ TRADE: Al Jefferson and Raja Bell

I would venture to guess neither respective teams' GM has even considered the above trade proposal to date, but they should. Evan Turner and his unique talents are being wasted in Philadelphia while Al Jefferson is a $14 million big man on a team with three other younger big men that need to, or should be, playing big minutes.

The Philadelphia 76ers are playing great basketball this year. They're on pace to win a division title, grab a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference...and then get hammered in the first round of the playoffs.

However, such does not need to be the case if only they will include the young and talented Evan Turner, a Swiss Army talent who can play three positions, along with the expiring contract of Andres Nocioni in a trade.

If the 76ers could land a star big man like Al Jefferson, they would not only have one of the best frontcourts in the Eastern Conference with Jefferson, Spencer Hawes and Elton Brand, they would have one of the best, deepest and most talented rosters in the entire league with such players as All-Star Andre Iguodala, Jrue Holiday, Lou Williams and Thad Young.

Raja Bell would also be included in the trade from the Jazz and would replace Evan Turner quite well as 76ers' fourth or fifth guard. Turner is a talented young player, but he is playing just 23 minutes per game and his shooting percentages are down across the board. He simply is nowhere near as important to the 76ers, who have four other quality guards, as a big man of Al Jefferson's stature would be.

As for the Jazz, they are not on pace to make the playoffs this season and may even start tanking games towards the end of the year to make sure they miss the playoffs so they do not lose their first-round draft pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves, which will happen if they make the playoffs.

The Jazz also have invested a lot in young bigs Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter. They also have the superb power forward Paul Millsap and talented young big Jeremy Evans. Al Jefferson is much too good to sit on the bench, but Favors and Kanter are much too important to Utah's future to leave on the bench.

I believe this is a trade that both teams should strongly consider, one which would make the 76ers a force to be reckoned with in the East and the Jazz a future perennial playoff contender in the West. 

Celtics Trade: Brandon Bass, Jermaine O'Neal, Pavlovic and (2) 2012 No. 1 Picks

CELTICS TRADE: Brandon Bass, Jermaine O'Neal, Sasha Pavlovic, Clippers & Celtics No. 1 Picks

JAZZ TRADE: Al Jefferson

The Boston Celtics, as currently constructed, are not legitimate title contenders. They still have an All-World point guard and three fantastic old-timers, but they lack size and scoring punch. Al Jefferson of the Utah Jazz solves both of those needs in a big way.

The Celtics are a good center away from being legitimate title contenders and quite possibly a dominant center away from being the best team in the league.

Al Jefferson may not be Dwight Howard, but he is a legitimate top-five center in the league. He's a guy who put up back-to-back seasons averaging at least 21 points and 11 rebounds per game, a guy who this season has averaged 22.6 points, 11.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per 40 minutes and is still just 27 years old.

Honestly, centers don't come much better than Al Jefferson in the NBA.

Both the Celtics and 76ers should be racing to acquire Al Jefferson from the Jazz before any other team does. And with the Celtics able to offer two first-round draft picks to the 76ers' one, they should be the favorites to land Jefferson if they so choose.

As for the Jazz—and I am quoting my 76ers article—they are not on pace to make the playoffs this season and may even start tanking games towards the end of the year to make sure they miss the playoff so they do not lose their first-round draft pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves, which will happen if they make the playoffs.

The Jazz also have invested a lot in young bigs Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter. They also have the superb power forward Paul Millsap and talented young big Jeremy Evans. Al Jefferson is much too good to sit on the bench, but Favors and Kanter are much too important to Utah's future to leave on the bench.

This is a no-brainer trade for both teams and should be done immediately.

New York Knicks Trade: Amar'e Stoudemire for Kevin Garnett and (2) No. 1 Picks

KNICKS TRADE: Amar'e Stoudemire

CELTICS TRADE: Kevin Garnett, Clippers & Celtics 2012 No. 1 Picks

The New York Knicks may have been struck by Jeremy Lin and "Linsanity," and their fans may have championship rings dancing in their heads when they fall asleep at night, but as the Celtics showed on Sunday, the Knicks also still have quite a ways to go before they are serious championship contenders.

The Knicks do have a chance to become a great team, thanks in large part to Jeremy "Super Lintendo" Lin, but a bit of tinkering could do wonders for the Big Apple's finest team.

Amar'e Stoudemire is a fantastic basketball player, especially on the offensive end. He is also an aging, oft-injured star who makes an enormous amount of money.

With the Knicks needing to sign Jeremy Lin and Landry Fields to new and more expensive contracts next season—thanks to their stellar play—reducing the amount of salary dedicated to the power forward position may be a wise thing to do.

It could also be said the the Knicks could indeed be better off with a different power forward, perhaps one who is a bit more of a true "stretch 4" or even one who is a bit more of a hard-nosed banger and rebounder. If the Knicks were to trade Stoudemire for Kevin Garnett's expiring contract, they could replace him next season with a young and talented stretch 4 like Michael Beasley, or a hard-nosed rebounder such as Kris Humphries.

Or both, depending on how much interest they each generate in free agency.

As for the Celtics, they may decide that now is the time to get as much as they can for the expiring contracts of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. Amar'e Stoudemire would be quite a return on their initial investment, to put it plainly.

While giving up both of their first-round picks may hurt a bit, neither pick should be anywhere near the lottery and Stoudemire is much more of a sure thing than any rookie.

Toronto Raptors Trade: Calderon for Steve Blake, Luke Walton & (2) No. 1 Picks

RAPTORS TRADE: Jose Calderon

LAKERS TRADE: Steve Blake, Luke Walton and the Lakers and Mavs' 2012 No. 1 Picks

The Toronto Raptors are a bad team, but they a bad team with some solid young talent. There is no reason that if they are wise with their assets, cap dollars and draft picks that they can't build a great team through the draft just like the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder did.

One of the Raptors' top trade chips is Spanish sensation Jose Calderon.

Jose Calderon is one of the most efficient offensive players in the NBA, one of the best passers in the league and quite possibly the best ball-handler on the planet. He turns the ball over about as many times in a game as Vince Carter receives cheers from Raptors fans when he plays in the Air Canada Center, which is almost zero.

Calderon is also on a relatively expensive contract. The Raptors could receive a great deal for him in a trade this season, something that could not be said as recently as last season. If the Raptors are wise, they will strike while the demand is high and trade Calderon immediately.

The above trade is a very solid one for both teams and while taking back the contract of Luke Walton is not ideal for the Raptors, if they can manage to pry both of the Lakers' first-round picks in this year's deep draft away from them, paying Walton would be well worth it.

The Raptors would be taking back around $3.5 million in additional salary over the length of Blake's contract, which Blake alone is worth. Throw in the two first-round draft picks and this becomes a no-brainer trade for the Raptors, as it would give them three first-round picks in this year's upcoming draft, one of which could be used on a stud small forward like North Carolina's Harrison Barnes and the other two which could perhaps be combined to trade up and draft Calderon's replacement in North Carolina point guard Kendall Marshall.

A starting five of Marshall/DeRozan/Barnes/Davis/Bargnani should thrill Raptors fans.

As for the Lakers, I believe they would jump at the opportunity to acquire Jose Calderon and team him with his Spanish Olympic team running-mate Pau Gasol. Calderon would be the missing piece to propelling the Lakers back to the NBA Finals for the fourth time in five seasons.

I believe this is a trade that should be proposed and which both teams would agree to.

N.J. Nets Trade: Brook Lopez & Okur for Josh Smith, Collins and a No. 1 Pick

NETS TRADE: Brook Lopez and Mehmet Okur

HAWKS TRADE: Josh Smith, Jason Collins and their 2012 No. 1 Pick

The New Jersey (soon to be Brooklyn) Nets should be the next great NBA dynasty. Yes, you read that right. If the Nets do not become the best team in the NBA (at least "on paper") as early as next season, their GM will have failed and should be fired, period.

Dwight Howard has made it known that he wants to play for the Brooklyn Nets next year, to be the new face of their franchise and be surrounded with enough talent to win an NBA championship immediately. The Nets have all the pieces in place to make it happen.

The Nets already have a great point guard in Deron Williams, a super-talented young shooting guard in MarShon Brooks, two draft picks, (one of which should be a high lottery pick in this year's upcoming draft) and a ton of cap space to spend on free agents.

There is no real reason why the Nets should not be able to instantly transform themselves into title contenders next season.

Brook Lopez is a fantastic, young, true center in a league where very few centers roam the courts anymore, which is a major bonus for the Nets. While speed kills in the NCAA, size kills in the NBA. Just ask the Lakers, who routinely torture teams with their size and extreme length.

Brook Lopez is also about to be made as expendable as a broken watch—as soon as the ink dries on Dwight "Superman" Howard's soon-coming contract with the Nets. The Nets would be wise to trade him now before the offseason comes and Lopez ends up receiving a monster contract offer from another team that the Nets would not be able to realistically match.

Josh Smith is one of Dwight Howard's best friends and it has been reported that the two young stars have dreamed about playing together in the NBA for years. The Nets can easily make those dreams come true.

I believe there are a number of teams the Nets could trade Lopez to, but the above proposed trade is as good an idea as any and one that would have the blessing of Dwight Howard and inspire him more than ever before to leave Orlando to become the new face of Brooklyn. The Nets cannot afford not to pull the trigger on this trade.

As for the Hawks, I do believe they would sign off on this trade in a heartbeat, regardless of Lopez's most recent injury, which should keep him out for a few weeks. Al Horford and his father have cried long and hard for the Hawks to bring in a true center so that Horford can move to his more natural power forward slot.

Brook Lopez would be the perfect center to make the Horford's wishes come true. The two young bigs could be a dominant low-post duo for the next six to eight years in Atlanta.

This trade is one that should be made, and fast.

San Antonio Spurs Trade: Parker, Ginobili, Splitter & Bonner for Dwight Howard

SPURS TRADE: Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Tiago Splitter and Matt Bonner

MAGIC TRADE: Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson and Earl Clark

The above trade is fully explained in detail in an article I already wrote, which can be found here.

Memphis Grizzlies Trade: O.J. Mayo for Morrow, Williams & the Rockets No. 1 Pick

GRIZZLIES TRADE: O.J. Mayo

NETS TRADE: Anthony Morrow, Shelden Williams and the Rockets' 2012 No. 1 Draft Pick

O.J. Mayo's magnificent talents are being wasted in Memphis, plain and simple. The Grizzlies brass would be wise to trade him before he signs a contract with another team this offseason that they can't afford to match.

After playing an average of 38 minutes per game his first and second year in the league, Mayo is getting just 26.5 minutes of court time this season, despite averaging more rebounds and steals per minute this year than in his first two seasons. In fact, Mayo is still averaging 18.2 points per 40 minutes, which is nearly identical to his second season in the league.

Despite Mayo's strong play and obvious talents, the Grizzlies have chosen to use him as a sixth man the last two seasons and greatly reduce his minutes, something that, in all likelihood, drives Mayo nuts.

The Memphis Grizzlies were just one game away from playing in the Western Conference Finals last season despite missing their best player, Rudy Gay, for their entire playoff run. Anything short of a Conference Finals appearance this season will be considered a disappointment in title-hungry Memphis.

That being the case, the Grizzlies would be wise to trade Mayo for a better fit and a future first-round draft pick if possible.

While there are many teams who may be interested in acquiring Mayo, most will probably chose to wait to make a play until the offseason, gambling that Memphis won't have the financial ability to match their offer. The Nets, however, are a team that not only has the right pieces to offer Memphis, but quite possibly the incentive do so as well.

Swapping O.J. Mayo for the Nets' Anthony Morrow is certainly not a fair trade, as Mayo is much more talented. However, with an extra big man on an expiring contract included in Shelden Williams (a player that should help bolster the Grizzlies depth at the power forward and center positions with star Zach Randolph still injured), the trade is a solid one. 

If the Grizzlies could also pry the Rockets' 2012 first-round draft pick out of the Nets, the trade is extremely solid indeed. Morrow, while not as talented as Mayo, may actually be a better fit for the Grizzlies. His outstanding marksmanship from three-point range will open the floor up and allow players like Rudy Gay, Tony Allen and Mike Conley do what they like to do best—penetrate to the basket.

As for the Nets, I do believe they would quickly agree to this trade proposal, as while they could offer Mayo a contract in the offseason, such would not be a wise signing unless they first removed Morrow from their roster. It has been reported in fact that the Nets have interest in trading Morrow, possibly for an expiring contract, simply to give themselves even more money to spend on free agents next season.

All of this said, I do believe the Nets would pull the trigger on this trade if it is offered to them by Memphis, which it should be.

Dallas Mavericks Trade: Odom, Beaubois, Jones and 2nd-Round Pick for Steve Nash

MAVERICKS TRADE: Lamar Odom, Rodrigue Beaubois, Dominique Jones & the Lakers second-round Pick

SUNS TRADE: Steve Nash and Michael Redd

The Dallas Mavericks, as a franchise, currently have a split personality. One of their personalities has its mind completely set on repeating as NBA champions.

The other has its sights set on doing whatever it takes to be able to sign "Superman" Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic and hometown hero Deron Williams this offseason when both superstars become unrestricted free agents.

The problem with having split personalities, however, is that one is a true and realistic personality, while the other is focused on fantasy.

Let me be crystal clear here: The Dallas Mavericks have no realistic shot at signing both Dwight Howard and Deron Williams next season. None.

The simple fact of the matter—or financial fact of the matter, I should say—is that even if the Dallas Mavericks do not pick up Lamar Odom's or Brandan Wright's team options and amnesty overpaid Brendan Haywood next season, they still will only have around $25 million in cap space with which to sign free agents. That is nowhere near enough to sign both Howard and Williams.

If they somehow manage to trade Shawn Marion for an expiring contract, they would up their chances, but it would still be tough, and I highly doubt there are any teams in the league lining up to take on Marion's contract or help the defending-champion Mavericks and their owner Mark Cuban land the nightmare duo of Howard and Williams.

With that said, it does seem sensible for the Mavericks to focus exclusively on Howard, the best center in the game, rather than Williams, a top-five point guard in the game. The Mavericks would therefore be wise to focus their point guard search on other players.

No one would be a better fit than former Maverick and Dirk Nowitzki's buddy, Steve Nash.

If the Mavericks are able to trade the disappointing Lamar Odom, "more-talent-than-production" Beaubois, "all-potential-and-no-production" Jones and the second-round draft pick they acquired from the Lakers in the Odom trade, it would be the best of both worlds for Dallas. The Mavericks would not only get one of the best point guards in the league in Nash, but they would reduce their salary for next season, giving them more money to offer free agents as well.

This is a complete no-brainer trade for the Mavericks.

As for the Suns, odds are they will lose Nash for nothing next season in free agency unless they trade him for as much as they can before this year's March 15 trade deadline. Receiving a promising young point guard and talented young shooting guard, both on cheap rookie contracts, along with the expiring contract of Odom and a second-round draft pick is a solid return for the rebuilding Suns.        

Houston Rockets Trade: Kevin Martin & Luis Scola for Kevin Garnett & Daniels

ROCKETS TRADE: Kevin Martin, Luis Scola and the Knicks' 2012 No. 1 Pick

CELTICS TRADE: Kevin Garnett and Marquis Daniels

The Houston Rockets have had a pleasantly surprising season so far, thanks in large part to the stellar point guard play of Kyle Lowry, a player they would like to build around and have refused to include in any trade for the coveted star forward Pau Gasol of the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Rockets know that they are, at the very least, one star player away from being a true title contending team. And since they probably cannot acquire Gasol, they need to turn their attention elsewhere.

By elsewhere, I mean free agency and not trading for another player. The Rockets already have a very solid financial roster as the only high-priced players that are under contract for next season are Martin and Scola. Combined, the pair makes less than superstars such as Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki make. However, what the Rockets really need is even more cap space.

Houston has an incredible amount of cheap young talent on their roster and if I were GM Daryl Morey, I would not hesitate to shop and ultimately trade both Kevin Martin and Luis Scola to free up even more funds to spend in free agency.

Trading Martin and Scola and even including the Knicks' first-round draft pick in such a package for the Boston Celtics' Kevin Garnett and Marquis Daniels is, in my mind, a no-brainer trade for Houston to make.

Kevin Garnett may be beloved in Boston and the Celtics certainly would not have won either of their two recent conference titles or one NBA championship without him, but he is most definitely on the downside of his career. If the Celtics could get two solid starters and a first-round pick for him, they would surely consider it.

If the Rockets are able to pull this trade off and pick up their team options on youngsters Chase Budinger, Terrence Williams, Patrick Patterson and Jordan Hill, while also re-signing Chandler Parsons to add to starter Kyle Lowry and 2011 first-round draft pick Marcus Morris, they would have seven solid players under contract next season and still around $40 million to spend in free agency.

As for the Celtics, I do believe this is a trade they would seriously consider. If they agreed they would have four solid starters ready for next season in Rondo, Martin, Pierce and Scola, as well as three first-round picks in the insanely deep 2012 draft.

Boston could possibly package all three picks to move up and grab a potential All-Star center like UConn's Andre Drummond or trade two of the picks to move up and grab a very solid center like North Carolina's Tyler Zeller. They'd have their starting five for next season all set.

This is yet another trade that probably should happen, but it probably won't.

New Orleans Hornets Trade: Gordon, Okafor & Ariza for Jamison, Parker & Hollins

HORNETS TRADE: Eric Gordon, Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza

CAVALIERS TRADE: Antawn Jamison, Anthony Parker and Ryan Hollins

Before Hornets fans start freaking out and sending me nasty messages, please allow me to explain. The Hornets have a very bright future ahead of them—if they can manage to shed salary and focus on the draft and free agency. Trading Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza, even if it means including Eric Gordon, is indeed a very wise move for New Orleans.

If the Hornets follow through on the above trade proposal, they would have just seven players under contract for next season, including their two first-round draft picks, and around $41 million in cap space to spend on free agents. With that kind of cap space, the Hornets could easily afford to sign an entire starting five of free agents.

But with their two first-round picks probably going to be the new faces of the franchise and starting guard Jarrett Jack playing well, they could spend the majority of that $41 million on two stars, such as Dwight Howard and Deron Williams.

Too bad those two probably won't even give the Hornets brass the time of day, because a starting five of Williams, Jack, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Anthony Davis and Howard would be out of this world,

While the Hornets may not have a realistic shot at landing Howard or Williams, they could certainly land a player or players like Brook Lopez, Nic Batum, Wilson Chandler, Michael Beasley, Kris Humphries and/or Spencer Hawes.

As for the Cavs, if this trade is offered to them, they would be insane to pass it up. Ever since LeBron James left frigid Cleveland for balmy Miami and Cavs owner Dan Gilbert went ballistic publicly, Cleveland has been looked at by free agents as a place to avoid.

There is little chance the Cavaliers will be able to attract free agents to sign with them. With Kyrie Irving rapidly leading them back to respectability, they also probably won't be receiving extremely high draft picks for the foreseeable future. Trading is a must for the Cavs if they want to become a perennial playoff team.

This trade will set the Cavaliers up with a starting-quality small forward, starting-quality center and a magnificent running mate for the next decade for Kyrie Irving in star shooting guard Eric Gordon.

The Cavs would be crazy to pass on this trade.

Thunder Trade: Collison, Sefolosha, Mohammed, Ivey and a 2012 No. 1 for Boozer

THUNDER TRADE: Nick Collison, Thabo Sefolosha, Nazr Mohammed, Royal Ivey and a 2012 No. 1 Pick

BULLS TRADE: Carlos Boozer and John Lucas

The Oklahoma City Thunder are the most talented team in the Western Conference and perhaps the league, but they do have some severe weaknesses, most notably post offense. Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka are fantastic defensive stalwarts, but neither is a natural scorer whatsoever—neither are backups like Collison, Mohammed or young Cole Aldrich.

The Thunder need post scoring badly. Carlos Boozer provides that without a doubt.

I will be honest, I do not personally like Carlos Boozer's game and if I was the GM for most teams in the NBA, I would not even consider trading for Boozer. However, Boozer seems to provide exactly what the Oklahoma City Thunder need.

He just seems like a perfect fit; even I cannot deny that.

The Thunder already have three defensive-minded big men in Perkins, Ibaka and Aldrich, making Nick Collison expendable. They also already have a solid backup shooting guard in Daequan Cook, as well as a point guard capable of playing the off-guard position in Russell Westbrook. Additionally, they have a shooting guard that is a bona fide star in the league and could stand to play as many minutes as he possibly can each game in the bearded James Harden.

Thabo Sefolosha is expendable as well and it goes without saying that Nazr Mohammed and Royal Ivey are nothing more than throw-ins in this trade; the Thunder won't miss them much at all.

This is a trade the Thunder's magnificent GM Sam Presti should strongly consider making.

As for the Bulls, I sincerely believe they would agree to this trade. Carlos Boozer is not a Tom Thibodeau-type of player and the defensive-minded coach seems more comfortable playing Taj Gibson in close games than Boozer.

Trading Boozer and his enormous salary for two Thibodeau-type players in Nick Collison and Thabo Sefolosha, while also receiving an additional first-round draft pick, may be to good for the Bulls to pass up. 

Denver Nuggets Trade: Andre Miller for Channing Frye & Sebastian Telfair

NUGGETS TRADE: Andre Miller

SUNS TRADE: Channing Frye and Sebastian Telfair

The Denver Nuggets are one of the deepest teams in the NBA, as well as one of the most fun teams to watch, by far. Denver does not have one legitimate superstar on their roster and yet can routinely give the league's best teams headaches.

The one thing the Denver Nuggets are missing, even with all of their depth, is a legitimate starting power forward. Nene is better suited to start at center, especially in Denver's uptempo system, Al Harrington is better suited as a sixth man (and even to the small forward position) and rookie Kenneth "The Beast" Faried is, well, a rookie.

Channing Frye seems like a great fit for George Karl's run-and-gun Nuggets.

It has been reported that Andre Miller will not re-sign with the Nuggets next season and therefore rather than lose him for nothing, Denver should look to trade him now. If the Nuggets could acquire a starting-quality power forward that fits their system perfectly, along with a decent backup point guard in Sebastian Telfair to replace Andre Miller, they should seriously consider it.

As for the Suns, it has been reported that any team that wants to trade for Steve Nash will be required to also take back the salary of either Channing Frye, Josh Childress or Hakim Warrick. Trading Frye to the Nuggets for the expiring contract of Andre Miller makes perfect financial sense for the Suns and they would be wise to consider doing so.

Wolves Trade: Beasley, Johnson, Randolph & Webster for Kevin Garnett & Ray Allen

WOLVES TRADE: Michael Beasley, Wesley Johnson, Anthony Randolph, Martell Webster, Brad Miller and Anthony Tolliver

CELTICS TRADE: Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen

Just thinking about the above trade excites me as a basketball fan.

Kevin Garnett returning to his beloved "frozen Sota" and finishing out his Hall of Fame career in Minnesota is a script fit for a Hollywood movie, and yet it is realistic enough to become a true story.

If I was the GM of the Timberwolves, I would not hesitate for one second to propose this trade to Danny Ainge.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have a dynamic young team, an All-World power forward/center in Kevin Love, a ball-handling magician at the point guard spot in Spaniard Ricky Rubio and promising youngsters in center Nikola Pekovic and forward Derrick Williams.

They also have a number of players with expiring contracts as well as a few misused youngsters with promise in Beasley, Johnson and Randolph, all of whom should be moved for an impact player or two that can help guarantee the Wolves make the playoffs and make some noise.

Trading Beasley, Johnson, Randolph, Webster, Miller and Tolliver for Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen is as close to a no-brainer as one can possibly get for the Timberwolves. Randolph, Miller and Tolliver hardly ever play and won't be missed. Beasley and Webster are considered a bunch of goof-balls and Wesley Johnson is forced to play out of position much of the time.

While the trio produces relatively well, the duo of Ray Allen and Derrick Williams (who would see increased playing time with the loss of Beasley) could exceed the trio's contribution.

Anthony Randolph is a very talented young power forward, but he is buried on the bench most of the time, partly due to Kevin Love's on-court dominance and need for major minutes, and partly due to his own lackadaisical attitude, mental mistakes and tendency to disappear in games.

Kevin Garnett may not be "The Kid" anymore, but the cagey veteran known as "The Big Ticket" is above all things a hard-working warrior who gives his all to his team and will do whatever it takes to win. Garnett would be a perfect sixth man for the Wolves or even a starting big alongside face-of-the-franchise Kevin Love.

If the Timberwolves are able to pull this trade off, I believe they would instantly become a top-four team in the Western Conference and have an outside shot at actually winning the Western Conference and advancing to the first NBA Finals in team history,

As for the Celtics, if they are open to trading Kevin Garnett—reports have stated that they are open to trading both Garnett and Ray Allen—there would not be a better team to trade him to than his former team in Minnesota. Of course, Celtics GM Danny Ainge is not in the business of trading players to make them happy—to the detriment of the Boston franchise—but with this proposed trade, that is not an issue.

Receiving a package consisting of nothing but expiring contracts and extremely talented young players would be an answer to prayer for the Celtics, and I truly believe that the Boston brass would seriously consider this trade if offered to them by Minnesota.       

Trail Blazers Trade: Ray Felton, Jamal Crawford & Kurt Thomas to the L.A. Lakers

TRAIL BLAZERS TRADE: Ray Felton, Jamal Crawford and Kurt Thomas

LAKERS TRADE: Steve Blake, Devin Ebanks, $8M Trade Exception, Mavs & Lakers' 2012 No. 1 Picks

I'm breaking my own rules set in this article a bit. This is technically two trades, as the Lakers' trade exception cannot be combined with other players. However, in all reality, it is basically a single trade between two teams.

The Lakers would trade Steve Blake and Devin Ebanks for Jamal Crawford with a follow-up trade of their trade exception and both of their first-round draft picks for Ray Felton and Kurt Thomas.

The Portland Trail Blazers are not going to win the NBA title this year, or even make the playoffs in all likelihood, and are also going to lose the trio of Felton, Crawford and Thomas to other teams in free agency this coming offseason. This being the case, the Blazers would be insane to turn down the opportunity to acquire two first-round draft picks in this year's extremely deep draft, as well as a solid veteran point guard on an inexpensive contract in former Blazer Steve Blake.

Devin Ebanks also has talent, but is little more than throw-in while the actual trade exception itself could come in handy and be quite beneficial for the Blazers to have down the line.

There have been reports that the Clippers and Timberwolves are both interested in trading for Jamal Crawford. However, neither team has a first-round draft pick in this year's draft to offer Portland. Therefore, the Lakers offer the best return on Portland's mere half-season investment in Crawford.

As for the Lakers, this is as close to a no-brainer trade as it gets and I have no doubt GM Mitch Kupchak would pull the trigger quickly if Portland offered this deal.

The Lakers are a solid team this season but nowhere near as good as they were two years ago—the last time they won the NBA title. The Lakers have three main weaknesses: point guard, small forward and frontcourt depth. This trade would solve all three problems in one fell swoop.

Ray Felton is a quality starting point guard in this league and the Lakers would be vastly improved with him running their team. Jamal Crawford is certainly better than any backup shooting guard the Lakers have on their roster, but could actually start at the shooting guard position for the Lakers, allowing Kobe Bryant to move to the small forward position, greatly upgrading that position as well. Kurt Thomas is far superior to any backup big man the Lakers currently have; his warrior mentality and professionalism would be well received by the Lakers.

This is a trade that should happen and some variation of it probably will.

Utah Jazz Trade: Jefferson & Bell for Turner, Nocioni, Brackins, Battie, No. 1

JAZZ TRADE: Al Jefferson and Raja Bell

76ers Trade: Evan Turner, Andres Nocioni, Craig Brackins, Tony Battie and 2012 No. 1 Pick

The Utah Jazz have one too many big men on their roster, period.

The Jazz are not on pace to make the playoffs this season and may even start tanking games towards the end of the year to make sure they miss the playoffs so they do not lose their first-round draft pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves, which will happen if they make the playoffs.

The Jazz also have invested a lot in young bigs Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter. They also have the superb Al Jefferson manning the pivot, as well as talented young big Jeremy Evans.

Al Jefferson is much too good to sit on the bench, but Favors and Kanter are much too important to Utah's future to leave on the bench. Therefore, Jefferson is the odd man out and the one who should be traded.

The Jazz are also just one quality shooting guard away from becoming a perennial playoff team. Evan Turner would be the perfect young, multi-skilled shooting guard to get the job done. Turner is an extremely unselfish, well-coached, professional second-year guard out of Ohio State, where he was named NCAA Player of the Year just two seasons ago.

I believe Evan Turner would be a great complement to small forward Gordon Hayward, as well as a willing post-feeder to Millsap, Favors, Kanter and all of Utah's big men.

I believe this is a trade that should be proposed and which both teams would agree to, so much so in fact that this is one of only two trades proposed in this article that I have decided to repeat in this "30 trades for 30 teams" article.

This trade is a repeat of Slide 11, which is described in detail from the perspective of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Lakers Trade: Blake, Ebanks, TPE & (2) No. 1 Picks for Felton & Crawford

TRAIL BLAZERS TRADE: Ray Felton, Jamal Crawford and Kurt Thomas

LAKERS TRADE: Steve Blake, Devin Ebanks, $8M Trade Exception, Mavs & Lakers' 2012 No. 1 Picks

I believe the above is a trade that should be proposed and which both teams would agree to, so much so in fact that this is one of only two trades proposed in this article that I have decided to repeat in this "30 trades for 30 teams" article.

What this means is that not only would I propose this trade to Portland if I was the Lakers GM, but I would also propose this trade to the Lakers if I was the Trail Blazers GM.

This trade simply needs to be made for the sake of both franchises.

As mentioned in Slide 24, I'm breaking my own rules set in this article a bit, as this is technically two trades; the Lakers' trade exception cannot be combined with other players. However, it is essentially a single trade between two teams. The Lakers would trade Steve Blake and Devin Ebanks for Jamal Crawford with a follow-up trade of their trade exception and both of their first-round draft picks for Ray Felton and Kurt Thomas.

This is as close to a no-brainer trade as it gets for the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers are a solid team this season but nowhere near as good as they were two years ago—the last time they won the NBA title. The Lakers have three main weaknesses: point guard, small forward and frontcourt depth.

This trade would solve all three problems in one fell swoop.

Ray Felton is a quality starting point guard in this league and the Lakers would be vastly improved with him running their team. Jamal Crawford is certainly better than any backup shooting guard the Lakers have on their roster and could actually start at the shooting guard position for the Lakers, allowing Kobe Bryant to move to the small forward position, greatly upgrading that position as well.

Kurt Thomas is far superior to any backup big man the Lakers currently have and his warrior mentality and professionalism would be well received by the Lakers.

As for the Portland Trail Blazers, they are not going to win the NBA title this year, or even make the playoffs, in all likelihood. They are also going to lose the trio of Felton, Crawford and Thomas other teams in free agency this coming offseason.

This being the case, the Blazers would be insane to turn down the opportunity to acquire two first-round draft picks in this year's extremely deep draft, as well as a solid veteran point guard on an inexpensive contract in former Blazer Steve Blake. Devin Ebanks also has talent, but is little more than throw-in.

The actual trade exception itself could come in handy and be quite beneficial for the Blazers down the line.

There have been reports that the Clippers and Timberwolves are both interested in trading for Jamal Crawford. However, neither team has a first-round draft pick in this year's draft to offer Portland. Therefore the Lakers offer the best return on Portland's mere half-season investment in Crawford.

This is a trade that should happen; some variation of it probably will.

L.A. Clippers Trade: Randy Foye, Eric Bledsoe & Travis Leslie for Arron Afflalo

CLIPPERS TRADE: Randy Foye, Eric Bledsoe, Travis Leslie and 2012 Second-Round Draft Pick

NUGGETS TRADE: Arron Afflalo

The Los Angeles Clippers have made a miraculous turnaround this season and were headed to their first division title in team history and quite possibly their first conference finals berth, or even the NBA Finals. Then Chauncey Billups went down with a season-ending injury.

Now, the Clippers most likely will not win their first division title, nor advance past the first round of the playoffs.

Hope is not lost in Clipperland however, as all the team needs is a starting quality shooting guard to replace the injured Billups and they should be able to get right back on track to winning their division and making a run in the playoffs this season.

It has been reported that the Clippers have interest in both Ray Allen of the Celtics and Jamal Crawford of the Trail Blazers. However, without a first-round draft pick in this year's insanely deep draft, the Clippers have little hope of landing either one of those two players.

This being the case, they should turn their attention to another, younger, much better defensive shooting guard: Los Angeles native and former UCLA Bruin, Arron Afflalo.

Afflalo is not only a fantastic defender at the shooting guard position, he is also a career 40 percent three-point shooter who just happens be averaging a career high 16.9 points per 40 minutes to boot. Arron Afflalo is the real shooting guard the Clippers should be trying to trade for.

Losing Eric Bledsoe, pine-riding rookie Travis Leslie as well as Randy Foye and his expiring contract and a second-round draft pick is not too steep a price whatsoever.

As for the Denver Nuggets, I do believe they should and would strongly consider this trade if proposed to them by Clippers GM Neil Olshey. The Nuggets most definitely want to sign Wilson Chandler to a long-term contract, but they may have a difficult time doing so financially speaking, as they already have Afflalo under contract through the 2015-16 season at over $7.5 million per season. They have sharp-shooting Rudy Fernandez at the off-guard position as well.

Trading Afflalo for the super-talented combo guard Eric Bledsoe and his extremely inexpensive rookie contract, rookie high-riser Travis Leslie and his insanely cheap contract, the expiring contract of Randy Foye and a second-round pick is a solid return on their initial investment in Afflalo.

This is a trade that has not been rumored, but as we all know, many times the trades that actually happen are those no one saw coming. This trade could indeed be one of them. 

Golden State Warriors Trade: Stephen Curry & Andris Biedrins for Rajon Rondo

WARRIORS TRADE: Stephen Curry and Andris Biedrins

CELTICS TRADE: Rajon Rondo

The Golden State Warriors have reportedly offered anyone and everyone on their roster to the Orlando Magic in hopes of acquiring superstar center Dwight Howard, even though Howard's agent has made it clear that his client will not sign an extension with the team and will leave in free agency for greener pastures.

This is the epitome of franchise insanity on Golden State's part—pure and simple insanity.

Believe me, I understand the Warriors' rationale for trying to acquire Howard. The team feels as if they do not have a legitimate playoff-contending roster and that even if Howard does leave in free agency, they would be better off with a large amount of cap space to spend on free agents than they would with the likes of Monta Ellis and David Lee on their roster.

However, such thinking is lunacy.

The Golden State Warriors are not a hotbed for free agents, not a premier destination for players and as such, they need to build a great team through the draft and via trades, as most of the teams in the league not named Lakers, Knicks, Bulls, Heat, Clippers and Mavs do.

If the Golden State Warriors were to trade Monta Ellis and David Lee for Dwight Howard and then watch Dwight Howard sign with another team this offseason, they would indeed have a huge amount of salary cap space to sign free agents. However, none of the available free agents that would seriously consider signing with the Warriors will be as good as Monta Ellis, who they would have just traded away for nothing more than a 30-game rental of Dwight Howard.

In fact, in all likelihood, the Warriors would not even be able to attract a free-agent big man as solid as David Lee, who is just a half-point or so shy of averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds per game.

The wise thing for the Warriors front office to do is to hold onto their valuable assets such as Monta Ellis and David Lee and to simply upgrade their team while shedding a large salary for a bag of chips. Trading Stephen Curry and Andris Biedrins for the Celtics' Rajon Rondo accomplishes both tasks in one simple move.

Losing Stephen Curry, a sharp-shooting combo guard with a great deal of potential, will be a tough loss for the Warriors. However, being able to dump the salary of the extremely disappointing and overpaid Latvian center Andris Biedrins makes trading Curry extremely tolerable.

Couple that with the fact that the Warriors would be receiving the best point guard on planet Earth in Rajon Rondo (Yes, I really mean this statement) and this is a trade made in heaven for the Warriors.

As for the Celtics, it was reported that they tried desperately to trade Rondo for Chris Paul and that they already have tried to acquire Curry and apparently the expiring contract of Kwame for Rondo as well, but were turned down in both cases. I believe that if the Celtics will take back the contract of Andris Biedrins, the Warriors will indeed swap Curry for Rondo without thinking twice.

Such is a trade the Celtics should agree to in a heartbeat.

Curry is more like Chris Paul than Rondo and would be a great fit in Beantown. While Biedrins may be an overpaid center with an extremely limited offensive game, he is also the same player who just three years ago averaged nearly 12 points and over 11 rebounds per game while playing just 30 minutes per game.

Biedrins is also still just 25 years of age—having entered the league as an 18-year-old—and still averages a very respectable 10.4 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 1.2 steals per 40 minutes while shooting a fantastic 60 percent from the field. It's not time to give up on the 7'0", 240 pound Biedrins just yet.

I do believe this is a trade that benefits both teams and one that may actually be made by the trading deadline this season.

Phoenix Suns Trade: Nash & Childress for Nelson, Reddick, Wafer & No. 1 Pick

SUNS TRADE: Steve Nash, Josh Childress and Hakim Warrick

MAGIC TRADE: Jameer Nelson, JJ Redick, Von Wafer, Earl Clark, Daniel Orton, Deandre Liggins and 2012 No. 1 Pick

The Phoenix Suns are headed to the lottery once again. Their roster is filled with disappointing and overpriced players and the face of their franchise is headed to retirement sooner rather than later. Such is the state of disaster the Suns find themselves in.

However, by simply trading Steve Nash they could start rebuilding again.

Honestly speaking, the above proposed trade is contingent upon Orlando Magic GM Otis Smith's continued ineptitude. That said, I am speaking of Otis Smith here, so the possibility that the Suns could pull off this trade is quite high.

If Otis Smith, who seems to be the reincarnation of Isiah Thomas, continues to be deluded enough to believe that if he can somehow just manage to acquire Steve Nash, Dwight Howard will sign an extension to stay in Orlando.

If taking back the horrid salaries of Josh Childress and Hakim Warrick are well worth such a risk, then it is the Suns' front office's duty to take advantage of such lunacy.

This trade would set the Suns on the course of rebuilding immediately and make a complete transformation possible within just one year's time. This trade would give the Suns just six players under contract for next season, a veritable starting lineup of Jameer Nelson, JJ Reddick, Jared Dudley, Channing Frye and Marcin Gortat and a talented super-sub in Markieff Morris, along with around $27 million in cap space to spend on free agents.

This trade will also give the Suns just four players under contract for the 2013-14 season in Morris, Gortat, Frye and Dudley and around $40 million in cap space if they so choose.

This is a no-brainer trade for the Phoenix Suns. If they can make this deal and do not pull the trigger, Suns owner Robert Sarver should fire the entire front office immediately.

As for the Magic, it's quite obvious to see that Otis Smith lives in his own little world, perhaps called Smithville (population: one). It is quite realistic to believe that Smith would agree to this trade if the Suns propose it to him, thinking it will help the Magic retain their "Superman," Dwight Howard, but it would ultimately end in catastrophe, as the Magic are eliminated from the first or second round of the playoffs.

This would be followed by both Howard and Nash leaving Orlando in free agency for greener pastures in Dallas or Brooklyn—anywhere but Orlando's "Magic Kingdom."

I really don't know what to say to Orlando Magic fans. I cannot possibly put even a remotely good spin on this trade and I feel sad for them due to all the heartache they have been through since the summer of 1996. There was no reason the Magic should have lost Shaquille O'Neal to the Lakers for nothing that year—no reason other than horrible front office management.

The Magic easily could have received Vlade Divac, Eddie Jones and the Lakers' first-round draft pick which turned out to be Kobe Bryant had they traded Shaquille before the deadline in '96.

Had they done so, the Magic could have had a starting five of Penny Hardaway, Eddie Jones, Dennis Scott, Horace Grant and Vlade Divac with Nick Anderson as their sixth man and a young Kobe Bryant soon to join Hardaway in the starting lineup to form the best backcourt in the NBA.

The Lakers would have happily give all of those pieces away to obtain the most dominant big man since Wilt Chamberlain, but the Magic wouldn't wake up from their deluded dreams of Shaq signing an extension with them.

On behalf of basketball fans everywhere, I apologize to you, Orlando Magic fans. I hope this time around, your front office is wise enough to trade Dwight Howard for as much as they can possibly get.

Sacramento Kings Trade: Jimmer, Hickson & Thompson for Lopez, Williams & Petro

KINGS TRADE: Jimmer Fredette, JJ Hickson and Jason Thompson 

NETS TRADE: Brook Lopez, Johan Petro and Shawne Williams

The Sacramento Kings may not have the best record in the NBA, but there is not much doubt that they seem to have one of the best futures in the league. DeMarcus "Bad Attitude" Cousins looks like he will become a bona fide super star in the league, while guards Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton look like sure things to become at least marginal stars. And second-round pick, rookie guard Isaiah Thomas, may be the steal of the 2011 draft.

Jimmer Fredette—not Isaiah Thomas—was, of course, the Kings' first-round pick. However, Fredette has found it difficult to get playing time in Sacramento and has taken a back seat to Thomas when it comes to minutes.

Jimmer still has great trade value, however, as he is a knock-down shooter on a super-cheap rookie contract and should only get better as he learns the game and adapts to NBA defenses.

The Kings' one area of weakness is their frontcourt, and trading Jimmer could be the best way turn that weakness into a strength. DeMarcus Cousins is a beast, no doubt about that, but he is more suited to playing power forward than center.

If the Kings are able to acquire a true and legit star center to pair with Cousins, their frontcourt will give defenses as many headaches as their smallish and super-fast backcourt does. The Kings will consequently be well on their way to being a playoff team.

Brook Lopez is a true, legit center that has averaged 19.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game over the past three seasons. Lopez is also a career 50.4 percent shooter who shoots just a shade under 80 percent from the foul line, which is extremely rare for a 7'0" center.

Lopez would complement DeMarcus Cousins well and the two would form a dynamic frontcourt duo in the Western Conference.

If the Kings are wise, they will make use of Jimmer Fredette's relatively high current trade value and use him to acquire Brook Lopez while he is still available. I also believe that Jimmer alone will not be enough to acquire Lopez in a trade.

However, if the Kings were willing to trade the expiring contracts of JJ Hickson and Jason Thompson—two players they may lose in free agency next year anyways—and take back the Nets' Johan Petro and Shawne Williams, such would be enough to get a deal done.

As for the Nets, if they are truly dedicated to doing whatever it takes to entice Dwight Howard to play in Brooklyn next season, this trade would be a great start. Dumping the salaries of Johan Petro and Shawne Williams while acquiring long-range marksman Jimmer Fredette for Lopez, a player they will probably lose in free agency anyway, would be a shrewd move indeed.

This is a deal that both the Nets and Kings general managers may not have even considered yet, but they should both pull the trigger on this deal.