NBA Trade Rumors: Carmelo Anthony and Each Team's Trade Chips Heading Into 2011
The Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns, Washington Wizards and Los Angeles Lakers have all made moves that they believe have and will make their team better. Their trade is just the first of many trades to come within the next few months.
With the year winding down and the days of 2010 waning, 2011 is right over the hill, and with it will come another rash of trades and player movement.
Teams will use the new year to start over in hopes of a brighter future, or push their team further in hopes for a title.
This season, there are many teams in both the Eastern and Western Conferences that have a viable chance of going deep into the playoffs, and these teams know it, so it seems that the league will see more player movement than in years past.
So, let's take a look at the best trade chip on each team and whether or not that chip will end up sliding on over to another team by the time the trade deadline rolls around in February.
Atlanta Hawks, Jamal Crawford
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The reigning Sixth Man Award winner is clamoring for a big contract extension while, with the threat of a lockout looming, the Hawks are clamoring to, well, not give him one.
He is still one of the best bench players in the league, averaging 14.7 points a game, and is still a good defender and three-point shooter.
Any team would be glad to have him to give him the extension he deserves, or to have him and his expiring contract come off their books. If the Hawks can include him in a trade for a young center with potential or an established big man, it will be an easy trade.
Boston Celtics, Kendrick Perkins
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Boston isn't a team that has a huge number of trade chips, as it seems they'll want to keep most of their team together going forward.
Their best expiring contracts are Glenn Davis, who is most likely going to be retained, and Kendrick Perkins, who would also probably be re-signed.
Perkins is the perfect guy to include in a trade-buyout scenario with a team looking to cut payroll in much the same way the Cleveland Cavaliers traded Zydrunas Ilgauskas for Antawn Jamison last season.
It is most likely, however, that if they do trade for anyone it'll be for draft picks or lesser players and cash.
Charlotte Bobcats, Gerald Wallace
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After Larry Brown stepped down, it was plainly obvious that Michael Jordan wasn't at all satisfied with the direction of the team. A possible selling off of pieces is in the books after that.
Gerald Wallace's name has been thrown around a lot since then, and it seems quite possible that he ends up being traded to a team close to excellence, and just needs a borderline star to share the spotlight.
One such team is the Portland Trail Blazers, who would benefit with the upgrade over Nicolas Batum and Luke Babbitt. With that, they would be a great team (on paper).
Chicago Bulls, Taj Gibson
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Taj Gibson could easily be a starting power forward on half the teams in the NBA. Unfortunately in Chicago, he is stuck behind Carlos Boozer, who has a contract through 2015.
Gibson is a budding All-Star who could make an immediate difference if he were to keep up his high level of play.
Taj's trade stock is as high as ever, and the Bulls could command top dollar for his services. He has already been linked to rumors for OJ Mayo.
Cleveland Cavaliers, Antawn Jamison
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This is the team it took me the longest to decide on which trade piece is the most lucrative.
Jamison's contract is quite large, and so is Anderson Varejao's. Mo Williams still has three years (two of which are player options) left on his contract and, while Jamario Moon and Anthony Parker have expiring contracts, they are not premier players.
But, Varejao is an energy player at his worst and a good big man at best, Williams is a point guard who will need to take time to work his way into an offense, and Jamison is a big man who can shoot the long ball, a player that has come at a high price in years past.
While I think all of these pieces will be on the move, Antawn Jamison will be the most lucrative on the team.
Dallas Mavericks, Caron Butler
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Dallas has two huge contracts coming off the books in 2011, and Caron's is the second biggest of the two, with over $10 million under contract.
He's a good shooting forward who would command a high price with a contract extension in mind, and a high price for his contract.
If Dallas does decide that they would like to make a move, Butler's big contract will likely be the piece that they decide to move.
Denver Nuggets, Carmelo Anthony
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Are you surprised? Didn't think so.
Whenever it is that the Nuggets trade away Carmelo Anthony, they will get a good bit of help in return, probably in the form of draft picks and young players.
Anthony will likely go to a team that thinks grabbing him for half a season could lead to a championship, regardless of how shortsighted the move might be.
Detroit Pistions, Tayshaun Prince
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Tayshaun Prince is another huge expiring contract that the league seems to be ripe with this season (probably no coincidence with the CBA expiring this summer).
He has an $11 million contract that any team would love to have come off their books in 2011, regardless of what they have to give up.
He would also still be a great player if someone would like to trade for him and give him an extension, as he probably just needs to play for a contender to get his career rejuvenated.
Golden State Warriors, Dan Gadzuric/Vladimir Radmanovic
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The Golden State Warriors are a fun, young, exciting team who have two huge expiring contracts that have very little to offer to the team.
Gadzuric is height and Radmanovic is a three-pointer every now and then. Otherwise, they offer nothing.
They are two trade pieces that could be used individually or together to get another couple of draft picks or good players to add the adjective good to the fun, young and exciting part of this team.
Houston Rockets, Yao Ming and His Expiring Contract
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Yao Ming has $17 million worth of contract that will be coming off a team's books at the end of this season.
If the Rockets decide to trade him, they could end up with a few potentially good player. All they would need to do is put on an ugly contract to match money.
The odds are, however, that the Rockets end up letting his contract expire on its own and take the money off their books.
They could end up trying to re-sign him at a discount to see if he can end up returning in an even lesser role next season.
Indiana Pacers, Danny Granger
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Darren Collison is the star of the future in Indiana. Danny Granger has fallen out of favor in Indy, and has been linked to a few trade rumors here and there.
He is a terrific scorer, an amazing athlete and a good defender when he tries, and the right buyer would be very pleased with a point-forward type player.
He has been linked to a trade for Al Jefferson in the past and the Nets have kicked his tires a few times. He could end up being on the move within the next few months.
Los Angeles Clippers, Baron Davis
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If there is a team left willing to take a gamble on Baron Davis, it could end up being a boon to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Davis arrived on bad terms in LA. His friend Elton Brand, pretty much the entire reason for joining the Clippers in the first place, bolted for Philadelphia days after he verbally committed to the team.
The time has come for the Clips and Davis to part ways, even if that means giving him away for 50 cents on the dollar.
Los Angeles Lakers, Trade Exception
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As a part of the Sasha Vujacic trade a few weeks ago, the Lakers received a $5.58 million trade exception that they can use to trade for any player (or players) whose contract is equal to that exception.
It would be the perfect piece to trade for a medium-sized expiring contract such as Anthony Parker's sharpshooting from Cleveland or Josh Howard's defense from Washington, or possibly even both.
The exception could play a crucial role in grabbing one more key role player in their quest for another three-peat.
Memphis Grizzlies, Zach Randolph
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Zach Randolph has a $17 million expiring contract (who on Earth payed him as much as Yao Ming?) this season, and the Grizzlies want to grab him at a substantially lower price.
If they can't work something out in the next month or so, odds are they will start to shop him around.
Randolph is one of the best rebounders in the league and a great inside presence. He would be a huge benefit to a team looking for an inside presence or a huge contract coming off the books.
Miami Heat, Lots of Tiny Pieces
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Aside from the big three of Udonis Haslem, Mike Miller and Joel Anthony, every contract on the Heat is tradeable, but not many are desirable.
Carlos Arroyo has been decent this season, but there are better point guards to be had, Juwan Howard is something like 79 years old, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas is moving slower than a snail in a molasses jar.
If any player on this team had both a desirable contract and good future it is Mario Chalmers, who the Heat would likely keep in order to have a young guard for the future.
Milwaukee Bucks, Michael Redd
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Michael Redd has had a disappointing past few seasons, missing something like 12,930 games in the past three years, but is still one of the most desirable trade pieces of this trading season.
He has an expiring contract, at $18 million, coming off the books that every salary-shedding team in the league would execute their mascot for.
Milwaukee is still at that point where they believe that they can get up to a point to run deep into the playoffs with the right pieces, so they are quite likely to move Redd's contract.
Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio
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A guy who has never played a game in the NBA is still widely desired throughout the league, and many teams would be willing to shell out a few players or picks for his rights.
The New York Knicks have expressed their immense desire to have the flashy Spaniard land in Manhattan and end up as their point guard next season.
Minnesota, however, is committed to keeping him and getting him stateside next season, but they would be well advised to at least hear a few teams out. They probably still won't do it.
New Jersey Nets, Devin Harris
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If the Nets are able to land Carmelo Anthony, they will likely have to center a trade around Devin Harris along with Troy Murphy's expiring contract.
New Jersey is looking to do anything to get 'Melo to come to New Jersey and attempt to sell him on Brooklyn while he is there. To get him there in the first place, Devin Harris will have to be sent to Denver.
New Orleans Honets, Chris Paul, But Really Nothing
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The NBA has taken over the New Orleans Hornets, and with that, there is likely very little to come in terms of player movement in the next few months.
The league has taken over the team to keep them afloat, and the odds that they trade the player's best team are slim and none.
They will likely entertain offers for some of their lesser players and might pull the trigger on some of them, but they won't end up trading any big-name players.
New York Knicks, Eddy Curry
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The only way the Knicks trade away Curry's expiring contract instead of letting it run out this season is if the player they get in return has the name Anthony across the back of his jersey (and we're not talking about Joel Anthony here folks).
Curry is $11 million worth of cap space for the coming free agency and will be used to woo Carmelo Anthony if they do not end up making a move for him during the season.
He is a useless player on the team at this point and there is no way those fans want to see him in orange and blue next season.
Oklahoma City Thunder, James Harden
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The Thunder are committed to starting Thabo Sefolosha despite the offensive juggernaut lurking behind him on the depth chart, mostly because Sefolosha is an amazing defender, while Harden is not.
Harden is a guy that can score from any angle with an array of shots, and many teams are clamoring for a piece of him.
Harden is not a bench player. He is a starter and many teams in the league would give him a crack at their starting lineup.
Plus he's got that beard. Oh that magnificent beard.
Orlando Magic, Jason Richardson
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Does any team want $14 million of payroll to come off of their books this offseason? Only all of them.
The Magic just traded for Richardson and he fits right into their defensive ideal of everyone being sissies save Dwight Howard, who just blocks shots out of bounds.
He is not the player to bring in and win a championship, as he doesn't have the aggressive winning mentality to win titles, so trading him would be wise.
Quick side note here, look at the picture of him just a few weeks ago on the Suns. He is starting to look like Shaq. If you're a 7'3" center, that's not a terrible thing, but if you're a 6'6" scorer, that's a definite red flag.
Philadelphia 76ers, Andre Iguodala
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The basketball world is obsessed with Andre Iguodala trade rumors, and the idea that he is the savior of some teams. I may not be of the same mindset, but I do think he is on the move.
Iggy would be an excellent number two option on any team in the league, and if New York can trade for him and still have cap room for next season to sign Carmelo Anthony, then by all means, pull the trigger.
Phoenix Suns, Steve Nash
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The Steve Nash trade rumors came on to the scene like The Beatles, but burned out faster then Hootie and the Blowfish. I have a feeling they are going to make comeback, just like Hootie's Darius Rucker.
The Suns are fading fast, and it is looking like they will not be able to cling to relevance on Nash alone, so the rumors may be on their way back soon.
If you can show me one team in the NBA who wouldn't want to have Nash as their starting point guard, then I'll sign a sworn affidavit saying I believe that Vince Carter is the toughest player in NBA history (I'm pretty sure that would make me cry for a week on end).
Portland Trail Blazers, Joel Przybilla
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Joel Przybilla is as fragile as a ceramic doll this season, but that doesn't change the fact that he has a pretty big contract expiring this season.
If he can stay healthy, teams won't lose too much production, as he showed last season that he can be a big part of a playoff team.
His contract is enough to lure some buyers, and his abilities are enough to get them to pull the trigger on a trade.
Sacramento Kings, Samuel Dalembert
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Yet another expiring contract in the NBA this season comes from Samuel Dalembert.
He has a contract of more than $12 million expiring at the end of this season, and many teams would be wiling to give a few young players and an ugly contract to better the Kings in return for his contract.
Plus he has a shiny forehead. That has to be the reason for at least a block a week.
San Antonio Spurs, Draft Picks, Cash, Nothing
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Nobody on the Spurs pops out as a guy itching to be traded, and really, that's the way the Spurs have worked over the past decade.
The last time the Spurs made a trade was in 2008 for Kurt Thomas. Not exactly a blockbuster there.
Odds are that the Spurs trade nobody, and if they do, it will be a ninth or 10th man for a role player, nothing exciting.
Toronto Raptors, Jose Calderon
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Jose Calderon was one of my favorite point guards a few seasons ago, and then the Raptors turned to Jerryd Bayless and Calderon's minutes were cut.
He is one of the better ball distributors in the league and can shoot some, but mainly he is an exciting player, although he is a defensive liability.
Utah Jazz, Andrei Kirilenko
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First of all, this picture of Kirilenko made me laugh out loud. He looks like he is an 80-year-old man and is being sucked into the Jumanji game after Robin Williams ended up winning (Jumanji reference? Hell yea!) and LeBron is getting out of the way before a stampede of rhinos gets sucked in behind him.
That alone adds some cash considerations to his trade value.
He has a $17 million contract that is expiring this season, and he is reverting back to the player he used to be, the stat stuffer who has great defense and can shoot from anywhere on the floor.
Kirilenko fits into the trade-and-extend category for teams that like his style of play, and the trade-and-expire category for teams that just want the cap space.
That spells excellent trade piece for Utah.
Washington Wizards, Andray Blatche
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The biggest thing holding back a Blatche trade is his long contract, which is through 2015. Otherwise teams seem interested.
He is having his best season ever, but many in Washington question his drive and desire to win a championship, something that could kill a young team.
Blatche has stuffed the stat sheet enough, and aside from the rumors that he and JaVale McGee got into a tussle, his hot-head issues aren't well known around the league.
