New Orleans Hornets: Post Trade Effects and Power Rankings
When ESPN reported that the New Orleans Hornets had traded Darren Collison to the Indiana Pacers in a four-team, five-player deal, I started smiling from ear to ear.
Why is this?
Because I totally called it. In an article I wrote on July 24, I suggested that New Orleans' best interest was, in fact, to trade Darren Collison to the Indiana Pacers. Now, I will give you that I did not predict the right player, or foresee a four-team deal, but in principle, I completely called this. I'm done bragging for now, but the article has 1,980 reads at the time I am revising this article, so could you please click on this link to get me to 2,000? With only 20 reads to go, it would be very much appreciated. Thank you.
Anyhow, now that we're done with that, let me get back to my article.
Instead of writing out who went where, which could get confusing, I'll simply list the teams and their incoming players.
Indiana Pacers
- Darren Collison (from New Orleans)
- James Posey (from New Orleans)
Houston Rockets
- Courtney Lee (from New Jersey)
New Jersey Nets
- Troy Murphy (from Indiana)
New Orleans Hornets
- Trevor Ariza (from Houston)
Where New Orleans Stands
Other writers have written overviews of the trade, either briefly explaining what each team received, or why the trade was bad for everyone involved, but I'm here to focus solely on the New Orleans Hornets, and where they stand after the dust settled.
Losing Darren Collison certainly hurts. He showed that he was extremely capable of running an NBA offense well, and also provided a spark off the bench. However, what New Orleans gains from this significantly outweighs the losses of Collison and Posey.
Trevor Ariza, a hustling slasher who provides energy, defense, and playmaking at the 3 spot, averaged 14.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game during the 2009-2010 season. Yes, he is still developing as a three-point shooter, but now he is in a city where there is a lot of talent to take the attention off of him.
Ariza may not be a superstar, but strangely enough, he may be what keeps Chris Paul in New Orleans. The small forward position just got younger, faster, and scrappier—attributes Paul loves to work with. Now Paul can run and gun with Thornton and Ariza, giving him more options on a fast break, causing defenses to throw more fits, and tiring other teams out.
In a flurry of events, New Orleans also sent Julian Wright to Toronto, netting the 24 year old, 6'5" shooting guard Marco Belinelli. Averaging only 17 minutes a game, Belinelli put up 7.1 points and 1.3 assists, impressive numbers for such limited time. Yet another toy for Paul to play with...
After these trades, New Orleans' roster shakes out like this (I have Pondexter at both the 2 and the 3 because of the uncertainty as to where he will play):
- PG: Chris Paul
- SG: Marcus Thornton, Marco Belinelli, Quincy Pondexter
- SF: Trevor Ariza, Peja Stojakovic, Quincy Pondexter
- PF: David West, Darius Songalia, Craig Brackins
- C: Emeka Okafor, Aaron Gray
The starting five is very impressive, to say the least. However, the Hornets are left without a backup point guard. Taking salary into consideration, Rafer Alston would clearly be the most qualified to back Paul up, if New Orleans wanted to go with an experienced backup point guard.
If New Orleans wanted to go with a youthful point guard, Marcus Williams certainly fits the bill for an unrestricted free agent, but the way to go would either be restricted free agent Patty Mills, who averaged 18.4 points and 3.9 assists per game in his senior season at St. Mary's, or free-agent rookie Ishmael Smith out of Wake Forest, who has uncanny passing ability, incredible quickness, and can facilitate an offense to a high level. Rajon Rondo, anyone?
Allen Iverson is also looking for a home...but I'll stick with the lower risk options here.
So in a nutshell, New Orleans is best served to go out and get either Patty Mills or Ishmael Smith to back Paul up. Either one would be just fine, for they would be learning from the best.
Before I start comparing New Orleans to their competitors in the West, let's look at the center position. If New Orleans is not happy with Aaron Gray backing up Okafor, then 7'0" center Earl Barron should be making his way to New Orleans, because he will not only stabilize the New Orleans frontcourt, but also could very well compete for the starting gig.
So how does New Orleans stack up against the rest of the West? While Barron would be a great fit, I'll go with the worst-case scenario here and say they don't get him and bring in Patty Mills/Ishmael Smith.
Just to show you I am unbiased about this situation, I am a Charlotte Bobcats fan. Yeah...I'm sorry too.
10. Golden State Warriors
This is probably a little controversial, seeing as Houston could be put here as well because its bench is clearly superior to Golden State. However, it simply came down to Golden State's dominant trio of Stephen curry, Monta Ellis, and David Lee, and their ability to take over a game.
9. Phoenix Suns
I've been singing the praises of Phoenix for awhile now, but when I really sat down and took a hard look at every team in the West, they fell just short. Everything has to fall into place for Phoenix to return to dominance: Steve Nash has to continue dominating everyone, Jason Richardson has to put up another dynamic year, Hedo Turkoglu or Earl Clark will have to hold down the fort at power forward, Robin Lopez will have to be ready to take over at center, and Jared Dudley and Josh Childress will have to provide sparks off the bench. Now, there is a chance that all of these variables come through, and if that happens, Phoenix could win the finals.
8. Utah Jazz
I tried to give these guys more slack because of Deron Williams and his new big man Al Jefferson, but I just don't see Raja Bell, Andrei Kirilenko, Paul Millsap, and CJ Miles all coming through and having good years. For Utah to move up, at least two of the aforementioned players will have to step up.
7. Denver Nuggets
Surprised New Orleans hasn't been mentioned yet? Me too. Chauncey Billups and Carmelo Anthony will once again have huge years, but their frontcourt isn't as strong as most of the teams ahead of them. Al Harrington will need to grab close to eight boards a game for Denver to keep up on the glass.
6. Portland Trail Blazers
If they only had a point guard...say, Darren Collison? Andre Miller is decent, but he is clearly behind every other point guard on this list. Nevertheless, Brandon Roy and Lamarcus Aldridge will take Portland very far on their own, and if Greg Oden can stay healthy, they could be a good three spots ahead of where they are now.
5. New Orleans Hornets
Alright, alright, I have to put the Hornets down before I get into even bigger trouble than I already am. However, that shows you just how much one acquisition helps a franchise, even one player like Ariza. Chris Paul is the best point guard in the game, and Thornton, Ariza, and West combined to average about 50 points per game. Stojakovic and Belinelli are shooters off the bench, and Emeka Okafor is a defensive presence in the frontcourt, which helps ease the pain of his offensive struggles. New Orleans is very dangerous, and if they add a Patty Mills/Ishmael Smith, and maybe an Earl Borran, they could be a title-contending team.
4. Dallas Mavericks
Even as Jason Kidd slows down, he remains a great point guard because of his sheer basketball intelligence. Jason Terry and Caron Butler are great complementary scorers for superstar Dirk Nowitzki, and the Tyson Chandler acquisition helps solidify their frontcourt. Rodrigue Beaubois and Shawn Marion will be great off the bench, and Dallas could go very far. However, this has more downside than upside, as they have an aged roster.
3. San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio, like Dallas, is running out of time, as their roster is also filled with veterans. Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and Tim Duncan will continue to be superstars, and George Hill is a great asset off the bench, but there are three players that are essential for San Antonio next year. James Anderson needs to provide a spark off the bench, Richard Jefferson needs to return to form, and Dejuan Blair needs to step into the power forward position and fill it nicely.
2. Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City also has its version of the big three, with Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, and Jeff Green all developing into elite players at their respective positions. Westbrook and Durant are already elite, and Green is very close to breaking through. James Harden is expected to win the 2 guard job, and he will remind everyone why he was selected third overall last year, scoring from anywhere on the floor, and being a lockdown defender. Between Nenad Krstic, Cole Aldrich, and Nick Collison, the center spot will be taken care of, and Morris Peterson, Eric Maynor, and Thabo Selfolosha will make a decent second team.
1. Los Angeles Lakers
Do I have to say anything here? Derek Fisher, Shannon Brown, Steve Blake, Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom, Ron Artest, Matt Barnes, Sasha Vujacic, Theo Ratliff, and Luke Walton would make a decent team on their own, and then you throw in Pau Gasol, and the best player in basketball, Kobe Bryant. I'm hoping Oklahoma City, San Antonio, or New Orleans overthrow Los Angeles, but I'm not overly delusional—I know how good Los Angeles is.
So with that, you have it. With the simple acquisition of Trevor Ariza, New Orleans becomes a very, very dangerous team. The starting lineup averages almost 70 points! Everyone seems to forget that New Orleans is one year removed from a playoff berth, and just two years removed from a conference final, and to me, this year's team is actually improved from the team that won 56 games.
In regards to the power rankings, Memphis and Houston were nipping at Golden State's heels for the last spot. I'll write a prediction article when it comes time, but I believe Golden State, Phoenix, Utah, Memphis, and Houston will all be in for a dogfight for the last seed. My power rankings do not reflect my predictions though, and I believe Memphis will get that last seed, as long as Mike Conley takes a step up and cuts down on his turnovers.
So maybe I'm crazy...
...but Chris Paul can make it happen. He just needs a little help from Marcus Thornton, David West, Emeka Okafor, and Peja Stojakovic.
Oh, and Trevor Ariza.
