- Boston ships Perkins.... what a crazy deal here... Boston sends Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson to OKC for Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic... so many angles... we'll go Boston first... I honestly don't like it at all for the Cs... I had them as my favorite to win the title as previously constructed, and they've traded what many consider the best post defender on Earth in Kendrick Perkins in exchange for versatile forward Jeff Green... player for player? It's not a bad deal... but when you consider fit? eh.... This leaves Boston with just Shaq and Jermaine at center (yikes), and while Boston desperately needed a backup swingman, they didn't necessarily need someone of Green's stature when he's clearly not taking minutes from Pierce or KG... I'm not sure I can be convinced that Shaq can stay healthy while playing starter minutes, and that's a big question mark now... Overall, I think it takes them down a notch pending any buyout candidates signing there... for OKC? I love it... they weren't going to be able to re-up Green simply because they have to sign Westbrook, AND this gives them the inside banger they've always needed... Perk has some injury issues, but this is pretty great value... Perk/Ibaka/Durant/Harden/Westbrook is pretty darn strong... not sure it vaults them past LA and San Antonio or anything, but they're a more credible threat now IMO...
- Gerald Wallace to Portland... the Blazers acquire the versatile forward from Charlotte for Joel Pryzbilla, Dante Cunningham, Sean Marks (Kiwi!), and 2 first-rounders.... straight salary dump for Charlotte who rid themselves of 2+ years of Wallace's deal, and allow for the rebuild with additional picks... meh... for Portland? It's interesting... from a roster standpoint, this deal helps simply because they didn't trade anything of real value... but with the 2 most valuable assets on Portland right now (Aldridge and Batum) being forwards... adding a highly-paid forward seems semi-redundant? Fortunately for them, Aldridge can play center, and I think with a healthy Camby, that frontline is scary nice... the fit will be key....
- Aaron Brooks to Phoenix.... Interesting move here... last year's MIP is headed from Houston to Phoenix in exchange for Goran Dragic and a #1... on the PHX end, Brooks is an upgrade from Dragic from a basketball standpoint, and could possibly take over for Nash down the road if they re-up him... for Houston, I like this move... it was clear Brooks wasn't going to be retained (he's expiring), and they get another asset with a #1 pick... once Kyle Lowry unseated Brooks in the lineup, the writing was on the wall...
- Memphis throws the white flag... on Hasheem Thabeet at least... overshadowed by a potential OJ Mayo that fell through at the last moment (hahaha), the Grizz shipped Thabeet, Demarre Carroll, and a #1 to Houston for Shane Battier and Ish Smith... similar to the Brooks deal for Houston... Battier was apparently the odd man out going forward in a logjam on the wing, and they had been in the market for another center, and additional assets... even if Thabeet doesn't pan out (and it's almost universal that he won't), that should be a pretty good pick, and it's worth the flier on Thabeet if he hits it big.... on Memphis end, they make the playoff push for this year (something they've made clear is a priority) bringing in a vet in Battier and losing nothing from this year's current rotation... but the white flag on Thabeet this early is a damning indictment of the Grizz front office....
I won't breakdown the minute deals... but I do want to say that I also enjoyed the OKC acquisition of Nazr Mohammed... it's another body that they could use up front, and they rid themselves of Mo Pete... now, to the other action....
- Adam Wainwright out for the year for St. Louis... crushing loss for the Cards... I've been talked into not burying them completely (thanks Dome) but it can't be understated how big of a blow this is for them... paging Jaime Garcia... they're going to need you...
- Tim Tebow isn't the starter in Denver... I know it's February, but this was interesting for me... John Fox already named Kyle Orton the starter for the Broncos... umm..... that seems premature?... Just an FYI for everyone...
- NBA Check - Chris Bosh... What do you say about someone who shoots 1 for 18 in an NBA game? It's the worst FG% in a game (15 attempt min.) in the NBA since 1991... and it's worse when considering that he's the 3rd option on that team... 18 attempts?... yikes... anyway, the Bulls get a 93-89 win over Miami led by 26 from Rose, and 20/10 from Deng... LBJ and Wade were masterful with 63 and 18 between them, but you can't overcome 1 of 18.... and Denver gets a win over Boston... the new-look Nuggets were sparked by a Lawson/Felton/Afflalo lineup in the 4th quarter, and put away the Cs late... they legitimately go 10-deep now, and the depth showed... just interesting to see how the minutes shake out...
- College Hoops - Pitt rolls on... 71-58 over West Virginia and they just continue to operate business-like... beating up on teams they should take care of... USC knocks off Arizona by 8... Derrick Williams was held to 8 points on 3 of 11... Marquette upsets #15 UConn in OT... Kemba had 27 for the Huskies, but they were held under 40% shooting on the night... and the WCC Game of the Year goes to... Gonzaga... the Zags keep their conference title hopes alive with an 89-85 OT win on the road... Sam Dower (Osseo High School shout-out!) led the way with 21 points...
What to watch for on Friday...
- Thunder @ Magic - ESPN 8:00 - I'm not sure if Perkins will be in Orlando, but either way, he likely won't play (sprained MCL)... this is the type of game they need him in (lol), and Dwight could have a field day...
- Hawks @ Warriors - SportSouth 10:30 - Well, this is what they got you for Kirk Hinrich... go out and guard somebody...
- Nuggets @ Blazers - ESPN 10:30 - Lots of Denver in our lives lately, huh?... They looked pretty good against Boston, and this is also a chance to see the new-look Blazers with Gerald Wallace provided he arrives in time...
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