NBA Blog

I must admit, I was furious when I heard about the Spurs-Rockets trade.  Jackie Butler and Luis Scola for a European player that does not want to return to the U.S. and a future 2nd round pick?  That is terrible.  Today, the real reason for the deal will become evident.  Spanoulis does not want to return to the U.S. and the Spurs expect him to make a formal request to have his contract removed from the books.  He is in the final year of his rookie contract, and because the Spurs are over the luxury tax threshold, this would save them close to $4 million.  Butler was not going to get minutes this year for the Spurs, because he is too big, too out of shape and too weak defensively.  However, I am still not a fan of this trade.  I really like Luis Scola’s toughness, rebounding, and ability to do the little things on both ends of the floor.  He is also a better scorer than Fabulous Fabrico Oberto. 

Butler for Spanoulis is something of a wash because it saved the Spurs money and Butler may not even get much time for the Rockets this season.  But, I still do not like the deal.  The Rockets needed some help in the post, specifically at power forward, and the Spurs gave two post players away for a 2nd round pick.  They should have held out for more.  There is speculation that several other teams showed plenty of interest in Scola.  If that were the case, I am sure the Spurs could have at least pried one or two more 2nd round selections from some teams.  Many teams just throw their 2nd round picks around freely without ever considering the possibility of landing a talented player. 

For those of you that want to do a little more learning about front-loaded or back-loaded player contracts, and why they are used, take a look at this article from realgm.com

I took some time this weekend to watch some NBA Summer League Games, which was quite enjoyable.  True, these games are guard-dominated, and 95% of the players will be playing in Europe or the D-League, but I just enjoy watching basketball.  Here are some thoughts:

• Kevin Durant’s silky-smooth offensive game looks just as good when he shoots 5-17 as it does when he shoots 12-17.
• Rudy Gay may be poised to make the leap this year, because all the skills are there.  He doesn’t show much intensity, he just makes everything look easy and fun.  His demeanor reminds me of Carmello Anthony when ‘Melo flicks the switch on.
• The Memphis Grizzlies are going to shock some teams early by running and gunning. 
• The Celtics may actually have been lucky to trade for Ray Allen instead of Shawn Marion, because it looks like they found the bootleg version of Marion in Brandon Wallace.  Wallace is 6′10″ and oozes super-athlete out of his pores.  His body size and length even closely resembles Marion.  If he can play solid ball for the Celtics in his limited minutes this year, he could be a dominant rebounder at the small forward/power forward positions. 
• Gerald Green, on the other hand, still takes too many TERRIBLE shots.
• I really hope that Daniel Gibson did not seriously injure his ankle against Team China.  Gibson looked extremely confident in the first half of that game, and should be ready to start at the point for the Cavs next season.
• Shannon Brown is an athletic freak.  I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do when Larry Hughes goes down for an extended stretch of time this season.
• I would like to apologize to Team China for saying that the Houston Rockets’ uniforms look like theirs.  That was just wrong, the Rockets’ uniforms look MUCH worse.
• Speaking of Team China, Yi Jianlian looks pretty darn good against D-Leaguers.  He’s not dominating them like 5′6″ trainers or folding chairs, but Yi is definetly putting up a pretty good showing thus far.
• Trying to be a defensive force in a Summer League game while D-League-in-training officials are calling the game has not helped Greg Oden.  However, there have been faint glimpses of his monstrous ability, like his three point play on an offensive rebound in his first game.
• If I’m a Portland Trailblazers fan right now, I’m giddy.  The twosome of LaMarcus Aldridge and Greg Oden looks really impressive.  That team is loaded with young talent at every position.  At point guard, they have Sergio Rodriguez and Jarret Jack.  At shooting guard they have Brandon Roy.  At small forward, they have Martell Webster and Travis Outlaw.  At power forward, they have LaMarcus Aldridge and Josh McRoberts, and they’ve got Greg Oden at center.  Then they have five other players developing overseas.  In the words of my old friend Mox, ouches.

In other news, fairwell to Dan Patrick.  Patrick will be leaving ESPN Radio, and his final broadcast will be August 17.