Trade Talk

The Milwaukee Bucks were involved in another trade on Wednesday, this time with the New Jersey Nets. The Bucks received Chris Douglas-Roberts, and they only had to give up a 2012 second round pick. What are the Nets thinking? Well, they're trying their hardest to be broke so that they can spend, spend, spend when July 1 comes around. For the Bucks, this is a great deal! Douglas-Roberts is young and talented, a good scorer, and has a ton of room to grow. The Nets are expecting to be able to land at least one key free agent (although they will likely pay way too much money for him), and even Douglas-Roberts' $850,000 contract was too much to keep on the books. Overall, the Bucks got the better of this trade currently. Douglas-Roberts is easily better than any second round pick in the future. However, if the Nets land LeBron James, Dirk Nowitzki, or Chris Bosh, I would change my stance on this move. So basically, I'm not ever changing my stance. Hopefully the Nets will enjoy their mediocrity with an overpaid Joe Johnson or Ray Allen if they can even obtain one of them.

In a deal that really makes sense for one team in particular, the Miami Heat traded the 18th pick in tonight's draft and Daequan Cook to the Oklahoma City Thunder for the 32nd pick in tonight's draft. The Thunder wanted a shooter that could create space on the floor, and the Heat wanted to clear contracts in order to be able to spend more in free agency. Also, the Heat will not have any guaranteed money owed to the 18th pick because of this trade. This was purely a financial move for Miami and a good one at that.

The Portland Trailblazers are reportedly shopping Rudy Fernandez. After falling out of favor in Portland, Fernandez has been requesting a trade for some time now. The Toronto Raptors, Houston Rockets, and Chicago Bulls have expressed the most interest. The Raptors offered the 13th pick in tonight's draft as a part of a package deal, and Chicago offered the 17th pick as part of their package. No deal has been accepted so far.

The Los Angeles Lakers have entered the mix of suitors for the New Orleans Hornets' Chris Paul. Andrew Bynum, Sasha Vujacic, and Lamar Odom would move to New Orleans, and Chris Paul and Emeka Okafor would join the Lakers. That would be a formidable starting lineup in Paul, Bryant, Artest, Gasol, and Okafor. Clear way for another banner. While we're on the topic of the Lakers, Gilbert Arenas has also been rumored to being traded to the champions this offseason. This deal would most likely involve Jordan Farmar or Luke Walton.

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Chris Paul On The Move?

Chris Paul was involved in trade rumors about two weeks ago with the Cleveland Cavaliers being a possible destination. Paul and LeBron James are good friends, and many teams believe that if they land Paul, James will be soon to follow. Apparently, this was a pretty good idea because now five other teams have been in the hunt for Paul. But does Paul want to leave? Sources close to the Hornets point guard have stated that he would like to remain in New Orleans if at all possible. Paul is excited for the new management that is to take over the Hornets organization, and he is hopeful that they will spend money in order to compete in a highly competitive Western Conference. Although it is unlikely that Paul will be moved before the Draft, there are several cases that the quality of the trade offers could be enough to make New Orleans pull the trigger and accept a trade offer.

The Memphis Grizzlies have reportedly offered shooting guard O.J. Mayo as part of a package deal in order to land Paul and bring him in to command the Grizzlies offense. Mike Conley would also probably be involved in this deal because the Grizzlies would no longer have a need for him at the point guard position. However, New Orleans has declined this offer, and Memphis is unlikely to make a counter offer with better players. If Memphis really wants to land Paul, their best option would be a sign and trade with Rudy Gay, Mayo, and Conley involved.

The Portland Trailblazers have also been interested in Paul for a number of years now. Although no offer has officially been made for the all star point guard, expect an offer to surface by Wednesday night if the Blazers are seriously considering Paul as an option for next year.

The Orlando Magic, much like the Trailblazers, have expressed interest in Paul but do not have a deal in place quite yet. After an embarrassing loss in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Magic are looking to upgrade their roster at almost every position. Jameer Nelson is not untouchable, and the Magic front office believe that in order to be successful, Orlando needs a point guard who can effectively distribute the ball as well as score. Nelson is more of a scorer, and he only averaged 5.6 assists last season. Paul is known as an assist man, and he would be an excellent running mate to Dwight Howard. Howard would flourish in an offense with a point guard like Paul because more often than not, the Magic do not look down low to the post as an offensive option. Howard is the best post player in the league, and he needs to be fed the pull at a constant pace. If Orlando were to land Paul, Nelson and either Rashard Lewis or Vince Carter would likely be involved.

The New York Knicks are also attempting to take Paul from the Hornets in order to land LeBron James. Although no offer is on the table yet, if the Knicks land Paul, LeBron and another top free agent would probably be soon to follow.

The last team expressing interest in Paul (so far) is the New Jersey Nets. They have made the best offer so far, too. The Nets have reportedly been willing to part with any player on their roster except for Brook Lopez. The offer included Devin Harris, another player to be named, and the third pick in this Thursday's draft. New Orleans declined the offer initially, but the Nets will likely make a counter offer in an attempt to bring in a free agent to run with Paul and Lopez this next season.

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Izzo Will Not Coach in Cleveland

Contradictory to a previous report published by many Cleveland area websites, Tom Izzo will not become the head coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers next year. Izzo has declined a five year, $30 million dollar contract which would have doubled his annual salary from what he currently earns at Michigan State.

Now that the Cavaliers have missed out on the opportunity to sign former Dallas Mavericks head coach Avery Johnson, Byron Scott will likely become the primary target for the Cavs. Scott was the coach of the year with the New Orleans Hornets. If the Cavs sign Scott, this could possibly persuade Chris Paul to join the Cavaliers via trade with New Orleans.

This decision by Izzo to return to MSU offers some valuable insight about the LeBron James sweepstakes this summer. If Izzo had known that James would return to Cleveland, my guess is that he would have taken the job. However, since LeBron has offered no hints as to where he will call home next year, the decision became more of a risk for Izzo. If the Cavaliers could land Scott though, Paul and James could be a formidable combination next year.

Chris Paul is known as a passing point guard and often is in the top three in the league with assists. However, he also is a legitimate scoring option which LeBron is in desperate need of in Cleveland. The trade would likely involve Mo Williams, Antawan Jamison, and/or Jamario Moon.

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NBA Draft Preview and Rumors

The NBA Draft is less than 10 days away, and there are multiple rumors involving this year's lottery picks and also the teams who could pick them. Here are the latest updates:

The Indiana Pacers are looking for a point guard. Although they passed up on four quality point guards last year when they chose Tyler Hansbrough, the team could be potentially looking to trade the tenth pick in the draft this year to either the Denver Nuggets for Ty Lawson or the New Orleans Hornets for Darren Collison. Both the Nuggets and Hornets are very fond of their young point guards, but the tenth pick could be enough to persuade the teams to part with their respective players. The Hornets are especially fond of Collison, and rumors have been circulating about whether or not Chris Paul is available for a trade because of Collison's success last season. If the Pacers keep the tenth pick, Eric Bledsoe from Kentucky will likely be the best point guard still available.

Georgia Tech power forward Derrick Favors is gaining momentum, and he is now projected as the second overall pick which belongs to the Philadelphia 76ers. This could be the Sixers organization's way of admitting the failure of Elton Brand while in Philadelphia. Favors will bring explosiveness to a young Philadelphia lineup. This also means that Ohio State point guard Evan Turner will likely fall to the New Jersey Nets with the third pick. He will likely be moved to shooting guard and will be a huge draw for free agents.

Lastly, DeMarcus Cousins' draft position has been fluctuating as of late. He has been projected anywhere from the fourth pick to the seventh. If he did fall to the seventh, he could be a huge boost to the Detroit Pistons who are in need of a center to replace an aging Ben Wallace.

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LeBron, DWade, Turkoglu, and CP3 on the Move?

Below are three rumors that have been recently reported. I'll assign them each a number value from 1 to 10, with 10 being the most likely to happen.

LeBron could be going to New York next year to play basketball. No it's not for the New York Knicks. The Harlem Globetrotters is the newest team that is involved in free agency rumors. In a report released earlier today, the circus like basketball team (also the winningest team in basketball history) is attempting to court both LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. How could they expect to compete with the salaries that will be upwards of $120 million that the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat can offer James and Wade respectively? The Globetrotters are willing to make James and Wade part owners of the organization. While this is certainly an attractive option to the athlete who wants to become a billionaire (James), NBA fans shouldn't worry too much about this option. Both players will be in the NBA next year.

Chance LeBron plays for the Globetrotters? 1

Chance Wade plays for the Globetrotters? 0

Hedo Turkoglu was an integral part of the Orlando Magic's run to the NBA Finals two years ago. This year in Toronto was a very different story, however. Turkoglu struggled for most of the year and never really got into any sort of rhythm on either end of the floor. His averages were down this year to a dismal 11.3 points per game, 4.6 rebounds per game, and 4.1 assists per game. His woes could be over if he is traded to a rebuilding Sacramento Kings team though. With Tyreke Evans, a lottery pick this year, Omri Casspi, and Turkoglu playing for an organization that he wants, the Kings could make progress this year. We'll have to see where this move would go, but most likely it would be Turkoglu for expiring contracts so that the Raptors can attempt to lure some free agents.

Chance Turkoglu is traded to the Kings? 7

The last rumor that is still in somewhat of a developmental stage involves New Orleans Hornets point guard Chris Paul. It's no secret that Paul was not happy with the Hornets performance this past season, and with the possibility that Peja Stojakovic will play in Greece next year, Paul would lose some of the supporting cast that he's become accustomed to. The emergence of Darren Collison isn't exactly a plus for Paul since both players are pure point guards. Chris Paul has been reportedly linked to the Cavaliers for next year. A trade that will likely involve Mo Williams and possibly Jamario Moon or Antawan Jamison could send Paul to handle the ball for the Cavaliers next year. Much like my analysis of the Tom Izzo decision, I see this trade (if it happens) as a positive for Cleveland fans that are praying that LeBron stays in Cleveland. This trade would certainly be a step in the right direction.

Chance Paul is traded to the Cavs? 5

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