Around the League
If Miles still has so much potential, why did Paxson swap him for McInnis? Blame LeBron James. James didn't ask the Cavs to trade away his closest friend, but he did confide in Paxson and coach Paul Silas recently that he'd grown weary of running the point for the team.
After watching James play point forward for 40 games, Paxson, Silas and numerous NBA scouts all came to the conclusion that James would be better off playing the wing. His ability to handle the ball is special and his unselfishness is one of his greatest assets, but the Cavs were asking the 19-year-old to do too much.
"We felt it was important to add a point guard that would give us an upgrade and get LeBron off the ball full-time," Paxson said. "For this team to grow, we feel we need to get [LeBron] at his natural position out on the wing."
Paxson had been working the phones for weeks trying to find a legit point guard to come in and take some of that pressure off of Miles. Apparently, Paxson felt that his two prize offseason acquisitions the past two seasons -- Dajuan Wagner and Kevin Ollie -- weren't cutting it.
Jeff McInnis
Shooting Guard
Cleveland Cavaliers
Profile
2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS
GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%
39 11.9 2.4 5.0 .471 .763
McInnis was an interesting choice. He put up good numbers in L.A. for two seasons (13.8 ppg, 5.9 apg) and decent numbers in Portland this season (11.9 ppg, 5 apg). His reputation as a locker room lawyer didn't seem to dissuade Paxson that McInnis could help the team now. Paxson claims that the team won't be inclined to let McInnis go in free agency this summer.
"This is not a short-term fix," Paxson said. "He'll help us now and in the future. He was as good a point guard as we were going to get. He's one of those guys where you look at his stats and you're surprised how productive he's been in his career."
Fair enough, but despite what Paxson claims, the fact that the team ended up shipping Miles off for a journeyman is just another in a long line of missteps for the Cavs GM. Several other GMs were incredulous that Paxson waited so long to trade Miles.
"He could've gotten much, much more for him a month or two ago," one GM said. "He waited until the guy's value was at rock bottom."
In essence, Paxson ended up swapping Andre Miller for Jeff McInnis and Boumtje Boumtje. While the folks in Cleveland like to point out that Miller bombed in Los Angles too, his stellar season with the Nuggets this year has redeemed Miller as one of the best young point guards in the league.
Under Paxson's watch the team has screwed up a number of drafts (drafting Dajuan Wagner over Amare Stoudemire and Caron Butler; taking DeSagana Diop over Richard Jefferson, Zach Randolph, Vladimir Radmanovic and Joe Johnson; swapping the draft rights of Jamal Crawford for Chris Mihm; taking Trajan Langdon over Corey Maggette and Ron Artest) and seriously overpaid for middling talent like Ollie and Ira Newble.
Paxson has somewhat redeemed himself lately. The Cavs clearly tanked last season to have a chance at James and it's paid off big time. Paxson also found Carlos Boozer in the second round in what had to be the steal of 2002 Draft. Boozer has emerged as the team's second-best player and is a very solid building block for the future. And, it's hard to argue with the trade that sent Ricky Davis packing to Boston for Eric Williams and Tony Battie. Both Williams and Battie have given the Cavs a work ethic that the team had lacked in the past.
What's next for Cleveland? The team has quietly put together a nice array of veterans to surround LeBron and Boozer. Rumors that Zydrunas Ilgauskas is also on the block continue to run rampant through the league, though Paxson insists that he wants to keep Z. Regardless, Ilgauskas isn't part of the long-term plan. His contract expires after next season and there's little chance of the Cavs keeping him around after that.
Expect Paxson to turn his focus on three young players -- Wagner, Kedrick Brown and Diop. The team needs at least one of them to play up to their potential. Wagner was considered one of the most lethal scorers in the 2002 Draft, but injuries have limited his effectiveness so far. Brown is an amazing athlete and a good on the ball defender whose offensive game is still emerging. Diop has the size and athleticism to be a dominant center, but he's struggled to pick up the basic fundamentals of the game. If one more young player can emerge as a star, the Cavs will be a formidable force in the future. If all three bomb (the jury's still out on all of them) the Cavs will struggle to get out of the lottery anytime soon.
Darius Miles for Jeff McInnis is one thing. But what inquiring minds around the league really want to know is whether Blazers GM John Nash is still trying to trade Rasheed Wallace. Conflicting reports out of Portland over the last week have put Wallace's future with the Blazers in doubt.
Nash isn't saying much.
"I was quoted once as saying that a trade was 'likely' . . . well this is the extent of that," Nash told the Oregonian. "Whether there are any further trades, that remains to be seen. I will continue to work the phones and see what is happening."
There is a huge amount of trade talk going on right now, but that doesn't mean every GM has the cell phone super glued to his head. Nuggets GM Kiki Vandeweghe told Insider on Wednesday that it's been very quiet in Denver.
"We really aren't looking to do anything," Vandeweghe told Insider. "I think if you look at our team, we really like the mix that we have. We have a lot of promising young guys that we still want to get a closer look at, and our veterans have really helped us mature as a team this year."
Trade speculation in Denver has centered on Marcus Camby and Rodney White. Vandeweghe said he's not inclined to trade either guy right now.
"You hear those names because they can be free agents this summer, but we really like both of them. Marcus has been a big part of what we're doing here. I don't think it's easy to replace a guy like that. Rodney's really done a great job for us off the bench since Jon's been injured. We have some decisions to make this summer, but we really are happy with how things are going right now."
It's tough to argue with success. The Nuggets are winning, have no egregious contracts they want to move, already have plenty of cap room this summer (between $15 and $23 million depending on whether Camby opts out), have stockpiled several good first-round picks for the future, and have a number of young players on the team who are still developing. Most GMs would kill to be in Vandeweghe's place at the moment.
"It would really take a team calling us up and offering us a blockbuster deal we just couldn't refuse," Vandeweghe said, adding that he's received no such offers. "I just think we're on the right path now and I don't want to deviate from it."
Since Insider's report on the Bulls exploring trade options for Eddy Curry on Tuesday, Bulls GM John Paxson's phone has been ringing off the hook. "I don't think there's a GM in the league that didn't make a courtesy call," one GM told Insider with a chuckle. "I don't think he's inclined to make a move on either of the two big kids (Curry or Tyson Chandler) but the fact that they're listening means they'll be getting a ton of offers."
Eddy Curry
Center
Chicago Bulls
Profile
2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS
GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%
35 12.5 6.0 0.8 .491 .709
One team that has a lot of interest in Curry and some tradable assets is the Grizzlies. Jerry West has been looking for a young, mobile center all year and Curry figures to be a nice fit. "If Hubie can't motivate him," another GM told Insider "I don't know who could. The fact that Hubie plays such a deep rotation should also help him. I'm not sure Curry can play 40 minutes a game. In Memphis he'll be asked to go 30 a night. That would be good for him."
What can the Grizzlies offer? Paxson will surely want Pau Gasol to be part of the deal. Though Jerry West isn't as high on Gasol as you'd think, he won't be willing to trade Gasol for Curry. Everyone else on their roster, however, is up for grabs. The Grizzlies might even be willing to swallow one of the Bulls bad contracts in return. Would a combo of Stromile Swift, Shane Battier and Dahntay Jones for Curry and Eddie Robinson or Jerome Williams be enough to pry away Curry?
Swift is the type of athletic four that the Bulls need running the floor, blocking shots and crashing the boards. His numbers in Memphis aren't great, but he's only getting 20 mpg behind Gasol. His per 48 minute statistics are off the charts. The fact that he's a restricted free agent this summer means the risk is minimal. Battier would be a perfect fit at small forward and Jones is a good, young athletic two. That's a lot to give up for Curry, but given the dearth of good young big men in the league, the Grizzlies would probably have to at least consider it.
Sonics GM Rick Sund is remaining true to his preseason promise not to sacrifice the future of the Sonics for a playoff run this season. The team has been deluged with offers from other teams for the likes of Ronald Murray, Vladimir Radmanovic and Brent Barry, but Sund is sticking to his guns.
He's told Insider since training camp that he wanted to use the year to play his young players and get a good handle on what they might become. With a chance at the playoffs within reach, he isn't wavering from that position.
Sonics coach Nate McMillan reiterated the stance after a 40 minute meeting with Sund on Tuesday.
"Do you fix something to get in the playoffs? Or do you fix something for the future of this franchise?" McMillan told the Seattle Post Intelligencer. "And I think that's what the organization has made a decision on. We knew that this was going to be a year where we want to try and make the playoffs, but we are also experimenting and developing and giving guys an opportunity to play."
"So to make a decision to patch something up, to win now, and it doesn't help you later, doesn't make any sense. . .We are who we are, and we're a young group with some talent that has shown we can win some games," McMillan said. "And we've been up and down, which we kind of expected, and have lost some games we felt like we should have won. But with all that said, you don't just go out and make a trade to patch something up."
The Sonics have an obvious hole at the four that needs fixing and several interesting big men are available. However, with just a month left before the NBA trade deadline, it looks like the Sonics are going to stick to their guns.
If Miles still has so much potential, why did Paxson swap him for McInnis? Blame LeBron James. James didn't ask the Cavs to trade away his closest friend, but he did confide in Paxson and coach Paul Silas recently that he'd grown weary of running the point for the team.
After watching James play point forward for 40 games, Paxson, Silas and numerous NBA scouts all came to the conclusion that James would be better off playing the wing. His ability to handle the ball is special and his unselfishness is one of his greatest assets, but the Cavs were asking the 19-year-old to do too much.
"We felt it was important to add a point guard that would give us an upgrade and get LeBron off the ball full-time," Paxson said. "For this team to grow, we feel we need to get [LeBron] at his natural position out on the wing."
Paxson had been working the phones for weeks trying to find a legit point guard to come in and take some of that pressure off of Miles. Apparently, Paxson felt that his two prize offseason acquisitions the past two seasons -- Dajuan Wagner and Kevin Ollie -- weren't cutting it.
Jeff McInnis
Shooting Guard
Cleveland Cavaliers
Profile
2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS
GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%
39 11.9 2.4 5.0 .471 .763
McInnis was an interesting choice. He put up good numbers in L.A. for two seasons (13.8 ppg, 5.9 apg) and decent numbers in Portland this season (11.9 ppg, 5 apg). His reputation as a locker room lawyer didn't seem to dissuade Paxson that McInnis could help the team now. Paxson claims that the team won't be inclined to let McInnis go in free agency this summer.
"This is not a short-term fix," Paxson said. "He'll help us now and in the future. He was as good a point guard as we were going to get. He's one of those guys where you look at his stats and you're surprised how productive he's been in his career."
Fair enough, but despite what Paxson claims, the fact that the team ended up shipping Miles off for a journeyman is just another in a long line of missteps for the Cavs GM. Several other GMs were incredulous that Paxson waited so long to trade Miles.
"He could've gotten much, much more for him a month or two ago," one GM said. "He waited until the guy's value was at rock bottom."
In essence, Paxson ended up swapping Andre Miller for Jeff McInnis and Boumtje Boumtje. While the folks in Cleveland like to point out that Miller bombed in Los Angles too, his stellar season with the Nuggets this year has redeemed Miller as one of the best young point guards in the league.
Under Paxson's watch the team has screwed up a number of drafts (drafting Dajuan Wagner over Amare Stoudemire and Caron Butler; taking DeSagana Diop over Richard Jefferson, Zach Randolph, Vladimir Radmanovic and Joe Johnson; swapping the draft rights of Jamal Crawford for Chris Mihm; taking Trajan Langdon over Corey Maggette and Ron Artest) and seriously overpaid for middling talent like Ollie and Ira Newble.
Paxson has somewhat redeemed himself lately. The Cavs clearly tanked last season to have a chance at James and it's paid off big time. Paxson also found Carlos Boozer in the second round in what had to be the steal of 2002 Draft. Boozer has emerged as the team's second-best player and is a very solid building block for the future. And, it's hard to argue with the trade that sent Ricky Davis packing to Boston for Eric Williams and Tony Battie. Both Williams and Battie have given the Cavs a work ethic that the team had lacked in the past.
What's next for Cleveland? The team has quietly put together a nice array of veterans to surround LeBron and Boozer. Rumors that Zydrunas Ilgauskas is also on the block continue to run rampant through the league, though Paxson insists that he wants to keep Z. Regardless, Ilgauskas isn't part of the long-term plan. His contract expires after next season and there's little chance of the Cavs keeping him around after that.
Expect Paxson to turn his focus on three young players -- Wagner, Kedrick Brown and Diop. The team needs at least one of them to play up to their potential. Wagner was considered one of the most lethal scorers in the 2002 Draft, but injuries have limited his effectiveness so far. Brown is an amazing athlete and a good on the ball defender whose offensive game is still emerging. Diop has the size and athleticism to be a dominant center, but he's struggled to pick up the basic fundamentals of the game. If one more young player can emerge as a star, the Cavs will be a formidable force in the future. If all three bomb (the jury's still out on all of them) the Cavs will struggle to get out of the lottery anytime soon.
Darius Miles for Jeff McInnis is one thing. But what inquiring minds around the league really want to know is whether Blazers GM John Nash is still trying to trade Rasheed Wallace. Conflicting reports out of Portland over the last week have put Wallace's future with the Blazers in doubt.
Nash isn't saying much.
"I was quoted once as saying that a trade was 'likely' . . . well this is the extent of that," Nash told the Oregonian. "Whether there are any further trades, that remains to be seen. I will continue to work the phones and see what is happening."
There is a huge amount of trade talk going on right now, but that doesn't mean every GM has the cell phone super glued to his head. Nuggets GM Kiki Vandeweghe told Insider on Wednesday that it's been very quiet in Denver.
"We really aren't looking to do anything," Vandeweghe told Insider. "I think if you look at our team, we really like the mix that we have. We have a lot of promising young guys that we still want to get a closer look at, and our veterans have really helped us mature as a team this year."
Trade speculation in Denver has centered on Marcus Camby and Rodney White. Vandeweghe said he's not inclined to trade either guy right now.
"You hear those names because they can be free agents this summer, but we really like both of them. Marcus has been a big part of what we're doing here. I don't think it's easy to replace a guy like that. Rodney's really done a great job for us off the bench since Jon's been injured. We have some decisions to make this summer, but we really are happy with how things are going right now."
It's tough to argue with success. The Nuggets are winning, have no egregious contracts they want to move, already have plenty of cap room this summer (between $15 and $23 million depending on whether Camby opts out), have stockpiled several good first-round picks for the future, and have a number of young players on the team who are still developing. Most GMs would kill to be in Vandeweghe's place at the moment.
"It would really take a team calling us up and offering us a blockbuster deal we just couldn't refuse," Vandeweghe said, adding that he's received no such offers. "I just think we're on the right path now and I don't want to deviate from it."
Since Insider's report on the Bulls exploring trade options for Eddy Curry on Tuesday, Bulls GM John Paxson's phone has been ringing off the hook. "I don't think there's a GM in the league that didn't make a courtesy call," one GM told Insider with a chuckle. "I don't think he's inclined to make a move on either of the two big kids (Curry or Tyson Chandler) but the fact that they're listening means they'll be getting a ton of offers."
Eddy Curry
Center
Chicago Bulls
Profile
2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS
GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%
35 12.5 6.0 0.8 .491 .709
One team that has a lot of interest in Curry and some tradable assets is the Grizzlies. Jerry West has been looking for a young, mobile center all year and Curry figures to be a nice fit. "If Hubie can't motivate him," another GM told Insider "I don't know who could. The fact that Hubie plays such a deep rotation should also help him. I'm not sure Curry can play 40 minutes a game. In Memphis he'll be asked to go 30 a night. That would be good for him."
What can the Grizzlies offer? Paxson will surely want Pau Gasol to be part of the deal. Though Jerry West isn't as high on Gasol as you'd think, he won't be willing to trade Gasol for Curry. Everyone else on their roster, however, is up for grabs. The Grizzlies might even be willing to swallow one of the Bulls bad contracts in return. Would a combo of Stromile Swift, Shane Battier and Dahntay Jones for Curry and Eddie Robinson or Jerome Williams be enough to pry away Curry?
Swift is the type of athletic four that the Bulls need running the floor, blocking shots and crashing the boards. His numbers in Memphis aren't great, but he's only getting 20 mpg behind Gasol. His per 48 minute statistics are off the charts. The fact that he's a restricted free agent this summer means the risk is minimal. Battier would be a perfect fit at small forward and Jones is a good, young athletic two. That's a lot to give up for Curry, but given the dearth of good young big men in the league, the Grizzlies would probably have to at least consider it.
Sonics GM Rick Sund is remaining true to his preseason promise not to sacrifice the future of the Sonics for a playoff run this season. The team has been deluged with offers from other teams for the likes of Ronald Murray, Vladimir Radmanovic and Brent Barry, but Sund is sticking to his guns.
He's told Insider since training camp that he wanted to use the year to play his young players and get a good handle on what they might become. With a chance at the playoffs within reach, he isn't wavering from that position.
Sonics coach Nate McMillan reiterated the stance after a 40 minute meeting with Sund on Tuesday.
"Do you fix something to get in the playoffs? Or do you fix something for the future of this franchise?" McMillan told the Seattle Post Intelligencer. "And I think that's what the organization has made a decision on. We knew that this was going to be a year where we want to try and make the playoffs, but we are also experimenting and developing and giving guys an opportunity to play."
"So to make a decision to patch something up, to win now, and it doesn't help you later, doesn't make any sense. . .We are who we are, and we're a young group with some talent that has shown we can win some games," McMillan said. "And we've been up and down, which we kind of expected, and have lost some games we felt like we should have won. But with all that said, you don't just go out and make a trade to patch something up."
The Sonics have an obvious hole at the four that needs fixing and several interesting big men are available. However, with just a month left before the NBA trade deadline, it looks like the Sonics are going to stick to their guns.
