Phoenix Suns and Orlando Magic Make Headlines with Monster Trade
Breaking News: The Phoenix Suns have agreed in principle to trade Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson and Earl Clark to the Orlando Magic in return for Vince Carter, Marcin Gortat, Mickael Pietrus, a 2011 First Rounder and cash considerations.
Who's the winner of the trade? And is there a clear loser? Read on to find out.
What the Magic Get: Jason Richardson
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The Magic's main prize is the high-flying sharpshooter Jason Richardson. He is averaging 19.3 points per game and should help the magic shoot more from long range. The Magic now have one of the top three-point shooters in the game at their disposal with J-Rich.
What the Magic Get: Hedo Turkoglu
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The Magic have reunited with the versatile 6'10" forward who, in 2009, was a major part of the Orlando team. Turkoglu has had two off years since leaving the Magic, maybe this return will inspire him to step it up a notch. Along with Richardson, Turkoglu will be a big part of the team.
What the Magic Get: Earl Clark
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The Magic also get 6'10" former first rounder Earl Clark as a throw in. He still has potential to be a solid role player for the Magic, but he is now behind Dwight Howard, Brandon Bass, Ryan Anderson and rookie Daniel Orton.
If he couldn't find playing time in Phoenix, which could use the help of a big, then he is going to have trouble for playing time in Orlando.
What the Suns Get: Vince Carter
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The Suns will get former slam dunk champion Vince Carter as the headliner. Carter is averaging 15.1 per game and really doesn't give the Suns a noticeable upgrade. He plays very similarly to Jason Richardson except he doesn't shoot as well. Overall, he is better than a bench player, but he isn't even the main piece of this trade for the Suns.
What the Suns Get: Marcin Gortat
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Marcin Gortat is exactly the kind of player the Suns needed and should step in and play immediately. The 6'11" center from Poland will help clog up the middle and is one of the best back-ups in the league. This is easily the main piece in the trade for the Suns.
What the Suns Get: Mickael Pietrus
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People seem to forget that when Pietrus was healthy, he was starting on a very good Orlando Magic team in 2007. He is a solid shooter and should give the Suns even more depth on the wing position and gives the Suns more veteran leadership. Pietrus is currently averaging almost seven points per game and almost three rebounds per game.
What the Suns Get: 2011 First Round Draft Pick
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This is a solid pick-up since the Suns could use it to draft another point guard or another power forward. Also a possibility is this pick could maybe be included in another trade, you never know.
What the Suns Get: Cash Considerations
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The Phoenix Suns organization is famous for not spending, and the cash they acquire from this trade should help loosen the load on their wallets. This cash coupled with the 2011 first rounder and the Amare Stoudemire trade exception could lead to a nice trade.
Winner: Suns
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Overall, this was a solid trade for the Suns and not so good for the Magic. The Suns got the big they needed (Gortat) and traded away two players who were not contributing in Turkoglu and Clark.
Even though they did trade away Richardson (who was my second favorite player on the team) it's not like they didn't get anything in return—they got a solid player in Vince Carter. And they even got a solid role player in Pietrus and a first round draft pick and cash.
Loser: Magic
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While the Magic did get Jason Richardson, they also lost a solid bench player in Pietrus and arguably the best back-up center in the league in Gortat. Losing Vince Carter doesn't really matter since they got Richardson, but this team is going to be hurting. Since they also traded away the first rounder, they are going to have to do what the Lakers did and get solid second rounders.
Also, the inclusion of Turkoglu could be make or break for the Magic. Will he return to his former form or will he be as mediocre as he has been?
