| "A Big Week..." (February 18, 1998)
It's been a busy week in the NBA, hasn't it? A bunch of big trades, a franchise purchased, a coach resigns and the end of the Spreewell arbitration hearing. But do you what the biggest news of the week was? Lloyd Daniels getting cut. Ok, here's the deal. Sweat Pea was playing for the Atlanta Hawks. He was supposed to go to practice. Greg Anderson was supposed to pick him up. Anderson called in sick and couldn't go, and didn't tell ol' Pea. Well, Daniels never did wake up and slept in, missing the practice. Not a good way to endear yourself to the franchise. He was cut and replaced by local Georgia Tech legend, and former member of Lethal Weapon 3, Brian Oliver. Oliver was the washout of L3, behind Kenny Anderson and Dennis Scott. Oliver was drafted by the 76ers in 1990 but never did make it. He was cut the next year. But I digress. Enough about this. Now onto lesser news.
Where to start? I usually rant on the Raptors, so I'll save that until later. How about the most recent deal. Joe Smith and Brian Shaw for Jimmy Jackson and Clarence Weatherspoon. Can you explain this deal to me? I can't figure out this one. The 76ers must want to cut Derrick Coleman or unload him in someway. Now they have four power forwards in Coleman, Smith, Theo Ratliff and Terry Cummings. I assume we'll see a starting front court of Coleman, Smith and Ratliff. It's big and talented and athletic. But unless Coleman regains his outside shot, no one can hit the outside jumper. Ratliff is a banger. Smith stops at about 15. Coleman has a lot of range, but is hugely talented but streaky. I guess Tim Thomas goes from the bench, to starting three to starting off guard in less than a couple of months. He's a talented player. Doesn't Denver feel stupid for not taking him instead of Tony Battie? Brian Shaw is well, just another warm body. He's been traded enough times. Let's see if I can remember where he's gone. Starting in Boston, traded for Sherman Douglas to Miami. From Miami to Orlando? Then to Golden State with Rony Seikley. I may have missed a stop, but you get the idea. He can play a bit of point and 2 guard. He'll just warm the 2 guard spot and leave the scoring for Allen Iverson. My guess is, this will allow, Iverson to play some 2 guard so he can just score instead of trying to run the offense as well. Shaw is a decent 4th guard at this stage in his career. If you read into this trade from the Philly point of view, Coleman will be gone, the Sixers will attempt to resign Smith and play him at power forward and they will try to sign via free agency (possibly Brent Barry) or draft a shooting guard in the draft. Remember, the 76ers had two shooting guards before the season, now they have none. Maybe the Sixers will start playing Anthony Parker from Bradley. He's supposedly a good shooter. In late breaking news, Dickey Simpkins has been cut by Golden State. I guess that Simpkins for Scott Burrell trade was a bit one-sided.
On the Warriors, side, it's nice to see them making a deal to fill some serious holes. This does make them better, I have to admit. The Warriors had been collecting useless big men (Felton Spencer, Todd Fuller, Adonal Foyle, Dickey Simpkins) but this is a nice change. First and foremost, they have a true shooting guard to replace Latrell Spreewell. I like this for JJ. He is a good player. Sure he doesn't have the explosiveness of yester-year from his days in Dallas when he averaged almost 26 points per game, before he busted his ankle. He's more of a scorer than a shooter, but on this team, it doesn't matter. Besides, he's a good passer and on a team without a great point guard (or for that matter a decent point guard. See Bimbo Coles and/or Mugsy Bogues) he should help there. Clarence Weatherspoon is finally free. Ok, it's like sending a prisoner at San Quenten to Alcatraz (see the irony. Alcatraz is in San Francisco Bay. Golden State plays in Oakland which shares the bay with S.F. I liked it at least), but at least he can play his only good position, power forward and not relegated to backup minutes. He's a proven NBA player and before this season, has averaged some good numbers. I except him up to 15 points per game and 8 boards, soon enough. With a front court of Spoon and the newly improved Donyell Marshall, the team has definitely upgraded. Personally, I think Joe Smith was a cancer on the Warriors, similar to Spreewell, I think Spoon will bring his strength to the boards, scoring to the table and professionalism to the team. The Warriors weren't going to resign Smith, so this is a good deal for the Warriors. They fill two holes with one trade and get two proven NBA veterans, who can really play. Sure they are not potential all-stars, like Smith is touted to be, but they do add some scoring to a team that desperately needs it.
Now onto the next trade. When I heard about this one, I was, well, dumb founded. I could not believe Orlando was that stupid, until I read between the lines. Before I commend Utah on this trade, let me try to explain Orlando's thinking. Orlando is a losing team. They have committed a lot of money to some bad players, and are trying to clear up some cap space to make a move to get some free agents this off-season. Nick Anderson might well be the worst NBA shooting guard. He is awful. He lost his stroke, his confidence and his game. Let's face it, his game is more down than Monica Lewinsky on Bill Clinton. They need a lot of things and money to do it. The rumor is Penny Hardaway is asking for $20 million a season for 7 years. That's a lot of scratch for a player who has been injured. I doubt Orlando will sign him for that. They can extend his contract during this off season, but if he starts next season he can't talk to the Magic about his contract until the next off season (similar to the Damon Stoudamire situation) but the Magic have learned from this and their lessons from the Shaquille O'Neal debacle, so expect him traded in the off season in a huge deal for some high picks and players. Back to Seikley. I've heard he wants to play in Greece next year. Don't ask me why, but maybe he has a house there. I know he'd make more money there than in the NBA. He's a free agent after the 1999-2000 season, I think. But like Dino Radja, when a player expressed his desire to leave and go to Europe, it's best to let him go, otherwise you're stuck with true malcontent which no one wants and no one wants to trade for. The Magic get two bench players. Chris Morris, talented but troubled, and Greg Foster. They also get a 1st round pick, but since it'll be a low 20s, it's more or less the quality of a Keith Booth, John Thomas or Chris Antsley (or worse, since this is a weak draft). The Magic can unload Morris and Foster in the off season to clear some cap space and use the pick for a young player who'll be cheap. Add this to the likely trade of Hardaway in the off season, and Seikley's departure in the off season to Greece and you can understand the deal. I'm not saying I agree with it, but I understand it. Personally, I though Orlando could have received more, but I think everyone in the NBA also knew Seikley wants out of the NBA. I wonder who also inquired about Seikley. There are a lot of teams who need a quality center, like New York, New Jersey, Detroit, etc. New Jersey has a lot to offer, but I guess they didn't want to pick up a long-term contract. They wanted cap space. This may turn out as planned, but only if Orlando signs some free agents. Morris is a decent player, and will get some playing time, but will be cut. Greg Foster is a pretty useless guy. He's tall and can shoot a decent 15 footer. That's about it. He'll be gone. So the deal is for a late first round pick and cap space.
And now Utah. How do you improve, let me count the ways. Chris Morris, the only cancer on a truly happy team, is now gone. This means when Shandon Anderson and Bryon Rusell play instead of him, there will be no bitching by Morris. Greg Foster is replaced by Rony Seikley. Not a bad swap. There was also a 1st rounder involved, but if anyone knows Utah well, it's their second round picks which are valuable (Howard Eisley, Bryon Russell and Shandon Anderson). Their first round picks (Greg Ostertag, Jacques Vaughan, Luther Wright) have not set the world on fire. With Seikley on the team, and when Ostertag comes back from injury, everything changes for Utah. Antoine Carr becomes Karl Malone's backup. Not a small center, not a small forward, just the Mailman's backup. Ostertag will move to the bench, which will strengthen the bench, and Seikley will likely get 30-35 minutes a game beside Malone. What makes this acquisition even better is the matchup possibilities. Seikley can move to power forward and let Malone sit, which still leaves an able scorer and rebounder out there. Malone could even move to the three spot on occasion to take advantage of their superior size. Most importantly, it means Malone will not have to guard the oppositions' center, namely O'Neal, Olajuwon, Robinson, etc. Now Malone can stick to playing his game. Seikley is a decent passing big man and will work well with Malone. Seikley will also love the Utah transition game. He's an excellent athlete and can run as well as any center who is not named Robinson. On a Malone rebound, Seikley can run the court waiting for a patented John Stockton perfect pass. Let's face it, this trade has made Utah the team to beat in the west. No longer can anyone say, I wonder what Utah would be like with a legitimate center. Now they have one. No more will Malone have to share the lane with offensive oafs like Mark Eaton, Luther Wright, Felton Spencer, and Greg Ostertag. He now has a superbly talented center.
In my next report, I'll talk about the tumultuous times and the uncertainty surrounding the Toronto Raptors. Stay tuned, same Hoop-LA time, same Hoop-LA home page.
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