Trade ideas, predictions, fantasies

[oilfieldtrash]

So what trades do you see for the mavs on the horizon? Or trades you'd like to see?

Me personally I'd like to see them add a point guard and a PF/C that rebounds and defends. It was really quiet at the AAC last night from what I heard on the TV. I don't really see Cuban just standing back while the team falls apart and the arena as lively as a funeral. So I imagine a trade is inevitable.

[markus1234]

Without Melo, NY lost to SAC and without Nash LAL looked like crap. Shows you how important one guy (Dirk) can be sometimes.

This is what makes me optimistic.

But on the other hand the west is SO brutally good this year, that maybe we should wait till next season with trades and stuff any not try to force anything. Let em play with no pressure and try to make the playoffs...

[spreedom]

What I'd really like to see is a trade thread in the Trade Forum.

http://dallas-mavs.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=12

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by markus1234

Without Melo, NY lost to SAC and without Nash LAL looked like crap. Shows you how important one guy (Dirk) can be sometimes.

This is what makes me optimistic.

But on the other hand the west is SO brutally good this year, that maybe we should wait till next season with trades and stuff any not try to force anything. Let em play with no pressure and try to make the playoffs...

What gets me is that our "spares" and "one-year-deals" played as well as Kobe, Artest, Howard, Jamison, and Gasol until Nash played.

[LonghornDub]

BG alerted me to this proposal. I'm not opposed to it, even though the guy is a basket case:

http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/maver...marcus-cousins

[some1nw]

send collinson and kaman for a true pg and c

[adonis]

Get Jose Calderon.

[grndmstr_c]

Originally Posted by LonghornDub

BG alerted me to this proposal. I'm not opposed to it, even though the guy is a basket case:

http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/maver...marcus-cousins

I'm torn on Cousins. The talent is undeniable, but even under a best-case scenario he's probably a year or two away from actually working his way to being a good NBA player. I can imagine two sticking points in a Cousins deal from Dallas perspective: 1) I can't believe they'd take on an major salary commitments beyond the end of Dirk's current deal, and 2) I'd think in any deal for Cousins that Dallas would want to maintain enough cap space next offseason to either re-sign Mayo if he starts to click with Dirk, or to sign another $8-10 million per year player if they decide Mayo's not a long-term fit. I haven't tried to run the numbers on the specific swap that MacDouche mentioned, but just at a glance it looks like it might run into trouble with the second criterion even if it Dallas felt like it could stomach Hayes' 14/15 cap figure.

As to other targets, for most of the season our backcourt IQ has looked to easily be the lowest it's been in the Dirk era, and for that reason I find myself hard-pressed to recognize a better (possibly realistic) target than Calderon. Of course, you probably have to part with Kaman to get him, which would create a hole in the center rotation; but since, in contrast to Calderon, I don't see Chris as a long-term fit, and because I wouldn't be offended by the increased development/evaluation opportunities it'd open up for Brandan and Sarge, I'd consider it a worthwhile short-term risk sacrifice.

[j0Shi]

I'm still a no on Cousins, but you definitely would buy low right now. But sounds like ownership won't part with him anyway.

All for Calderon, but any deal with the Raptors will include Bargnani as well.

[grndmstr_c]

Originally Posted by j0Shi

I'm still a no on Cousins, but you definitely would buy low right now. But sounds like ownership won't part with him anyway.

All for Calderon, but any deal with the Raptors will include Bargnani as well.

It wouldn't surprise me if taking Bargnani is the price the Raptors are currently demanding in order to part with Calderon. It would surprise me quite a bit if anyone swallowed that hook, though.

[Bayliss]

Like the idea of getting Calderon because not only is he a good passer. He is a good/great shooter. And with Dirk in the mid post, he needs guys who can knock down the 3.

IMO that is why Carlisle has been pairing Carter and Dirk a lot instead of Marion and Dirk, because Carter can hit the 3.

[oilfieldtrash]

The mavs have always been mentioned in the Calderon trade scenarios for years now. They obviously have shown interest in getting him for a while now. He fits into the mavs prototypical player. Some teams just build differently and from what I've seen the mavs are not big on youth or athleticism. They prefer high basketball IQ, shoot well, and typically not the greatest athletes. Sure they'd take a freak athlete but they really want the other parts first then the athleticism is a plus.

[j0Shi]

Ya, but I don't see us taking on Bargnani. That doesn't make sense for so many reasons.

Missing the playoffs is quite realistic right now so Mavs might even be looking to move Marion for extending contracts / talent ?

[jamaljasonandjimmy]

vince carter needs to be traded or just waived

[jamaljasonandjimmy]

nicolas batum would be a nice move. if atall possible

[MavsFTR]

It seems Demarcus Cousins has some interest in Dallas. And maybe vice versa.

http://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2012/12...stinations-for

[markus1234]

.409 shooting
.06 blocks
14.6 FG-A

And this guy will help us ? how ?

[Aggie E]

Dallas should just trade a lot of the players they have to interested teams for draft picks and other expiring contracts. Sooner or later you have to build via the draft unless your the Lakers or the Spurs...

[dude1394]

Originally Posted by markus1234

.409 shooting
.06 blocks
14.6 FG-A

And this guy will help us ? how ?

kaman, brandon wright, elton brand.. any questions.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

Originally Posted by markus1234

.409 shooting
.06 blocks
14.6 FG-A

And this guy will help us ? how ?

He gets to the FT line, has a good efficiency rating, and can actually rebound the basketball. And he's actually a decent passer for his positon. Centers with his talent don't come along very often. I'm not saying I'd be dying to get him, but the Mavs need to start searching for more talent. Talent is the problem more than anything.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart

He gets to the FT line, has a good efficiency rating, and can actually rebound the basketball. And he's actually a decent passer for his positon. Centers with his talent don't come along very often. I'm not saying I'd be dying to get him, but the Mavs need to start searching for more talent. Talent is the problem more than anything.

His offensive efficiency is god-awful, even when you consider his FTs. 47th at his position in TS%. His rebounding stats bring up an otherwise underwhelming PER where he sits at 14th-- which is basically average for centers.

Rebound rating
33.1 Cousins
27.7 Brand
25.5 Kaman

Shotblocking
7.7 Brand
6.4 Wright
5.7 Kaman
3.1 Cousins

TS%
64.8% - 4th - Wright
54.0% - 30th - Kaman
47.9% - 47th - Cousins
47.8% - (PF) - Brand

Pass rating
+2.1 Cousins
+1.9 Brand
+1.4 Wright
-0.2 Kaman

PER at C
21.4 Wright
19.4 Brand
18.7 Cousins
15.9 Kaman

Net PER at C
+6.9 Wright
+4.4 Brand
+0.3 Kaman
-0.5 Cousins

Clutch eFG%
80.0% Brand
66.7% Wright
50.0% Kaman
21.1% Cousins

[Dirkadirkastan]

Originally Posted by markus1234

.409 shooting
.06 blocks
14.6 FG-A

And this guy will help us ? how ?

.06 or 0.6?

[Simple_Like_That]

http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=aulpmtq

Throught a 1st round pick unprotecd and hope the Knicks grab this by deadline time to have a chance this year.

Kidd/Collison/Jones
OJ/Jones
Marion/CDR/Crowder
Dirk/Wright
Chandler/Brand/Sarge

[Kante]

Good god, one of the worst trade ideas i have seen.

The Knicks won't do that, never ever!

[NorwegianMavsFan]

Can anyone tell me when the trade "window" opens?

[Kante]

It is!

[NorwegianMavsFan]

Aha. Good to know.

[Eman]

Erica,

He's 22 and one of the most TALENTED big men in the league! How could we not try to trade for him. Sure he needs to pick his shots better, Carlile will let him know that. But he's a BEAST and great rebounder, and can put points on the board and pass.

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

His offensive efficiency is god-awful, even when you consider his FTs. 47th at his position in TS%. His rebounding stats bring up an otherwise underwhelming PER where he sits at 14th-- which is basically average for centers.

Rebound rating
33.1 Cousins
27.7 Brand
25.5 Kaman

Shotblocking
7.7 Brand
6.4 Wright
5.7 Kaman
3.1 Cousins

TS%
64.8% - 4th - Wright
54.0% - 30th - Kaman
47.9% - 47th - Cousins
47.8% - (PF) - Brand

Pass rating
+2.1 Cousins
+1.9 Brand
+1.4 Wright
-0.2 Kaman

PER at C
21.4 Wright
19.4 Brand
18.7 Cousins
15.9 Kaman

Net PER at C
+6.9 Wright
+4.4 Brand
+0.3 Kaman
-0.5 Cousins

Clutch eFG%
80.0% Brand
66.7% Wright
50.0% Kaman
21.1% Cousins

[j0Shi]

Pelton has Dallas as best trade partner for Sactown, sends Wright, Collison and Crowder over there for Cousins (+ picks you would assume).

The more I think about it the more I'm in a 'why not' mood, but Cousins isn't quite what the Mavs are at this point (or what they want to become).

I think FO has been very good over the last couple years in picking up talent with reasonable contracts, so this one would fit the bill. On the other hand: They also had difficulties finding playing time for these type of players because they heavily relied on veterans and always had that 'zero margin for error'-philosophy, which doesn't mesh with young players too well. Fisher-move showed they still like this approach.

Always have to think about Brewer. I really liked the acquisition back then and was baffled when the Mavs traded him and Rudy away for nothing. It was logic at that point to clear out some cap space for 2012 FA, but the Mavs still made a decision against talent and for veterans (Carter, Odom both also had guaranteed money in their contracts for 2012/13). Brewer (as expected) has grown into a reliable role in Denver and I'm pretty sure he could have done this here as well, if the Mavs would've let him.

I think trading for Cousins would be a 180 for us, give him minutes through all his struggles and stuff. Not what we've done in recent years. As long as Cuban insists that rebuilding hasn't started, I don't see it. I mean: If Fisher wouldn't have pulled a Fisher, he would still be starting in front of upside. And then you go out and get Cousins? That's simply out of place.

[SMC0007]

So we get a headcase (who can play some) and lose our only PG that can do some things... sign me up.

[Budapest Maverick]

I would do it, if it's not working, it's not like Collison is gonna take us to places. The worst can happen we get a better lottery position.

[mac222b]

No to Cousins. Not for what it would cost. Im all for giving Collison every
opportunity to continue to grow. I mean we've hardly seen the guy with Dirk
on the floor yet. Collison was really good to start the season. Maybe he recaptures some inspiration and consistency.

Not to mention SAC is going to want at least one or two other good young players and a 1st for Cousins. That pick could land in the lottery. Cousins is pretty inefficient, immature and still learning the game. He's talented, but it isnt like he's the second coming of Moses Malone or something. Not worth the trouble and 3-4 assets we'd have to surrender.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally Posted by Eman

Erica,

He's 22 and one of the most TALENTED big men in the league! How could we not try to trade for him. Sure he needs to pick his shots better, Carlile will let him know that. But he's a BEAST and great rebounder, and can put points on the board and pass.

He's terrible at blocking shots, he's terrible at defense and he's terrible offensively. We don't need a one-dimensional player, particularly because he's being shopped because he fought with teammates and shoved his coach.

[GermanStandard]

I dont know if its possible but i would like them to make a move for Vucevic (Magic). That kid is young and extremely talented. He is putting up monster stats (especially Rebounding -> what the Mavs need) and is young and seems to be a nice guy. Reminds me a little bit of Kevin Love (without the 3P shot)

[sike]

Originally Posted by LonghornDub

BG alerted me to this proposal. I'm not opposed to it, even though the guy is a basket case:

http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/maver...marcus-cousins

Would Rick not Butt Heads in a monumental way with that Knucklehead?

The Talent is SO tempting though.

[dude1394]

Originally Posted by sike

Would Rick not Butt Heads in a monumental way with that Knucklehead?

The Talent is SO tempting though.

Probably so....but I think I put my money on an established coach versus a journeyman.

[spreedom]

Originally Posted by EricaLubarsky

He's terrible at blocking shots, he's terrible at defense and he's terrible offensively. We don't need a one-dimensional player, particularly because he's being shopped because he fought with teammates and shoved his coach.

Yeah, he's the worst player in the NBA. Right?

Has anyone ever played for Keith Smart that has been anything close to well-rounded or even consistently productive? Who's been the best Sacramento King since they blew up Adelman's squad almost a decade ago?

Hand an unmolded, potential-laden prospect like Cousins to Carlisle and he could be All-NBA by the time his rookie contract is up. Unless you're in love with the current roster. There isn't a guy (or a trio of guys) on this team not named Dirk that I wouldn't trade for Cousins.

With the current CBA and especially with the current state of our roster, there is absolutely no reason that we shouldn't be hounding Sacramento to gift Cousins to us. Seriously, what is the worst case scenario here? We lose Collison and Crowder?

[jthig32]

Based on a few comments I've seen/heard this season, it sure seems to be that the Mavs are done with knuckleheads for a while. Rick's MO is only going to work with a player that truly wants to get better, and I just don't see that in Boogie.

[spreedom]

Full article from Stein below, but the long and short of it is that there are execs that currently have the Mavs as the second-most likely destination for Dwight this summer (after returning to the Lakers, which has to be the overwhelming favorite). Also, it is believed that Dallas and Boston are the two teams most willing to swing a big trade to get Cousins.

http://espn.go.com/dallas/notebook/_...an-anniversary

Mavs At Crossroads At Cuban Anniversary

The 13th anniversary of Mark Cuban's ownership reign in Dallas will not be remembered as the luckiest.

Not when the Mavericks are under .500 at the turn of the year for the first time since Cuban emerged from the tech world, without warning, to buy the franchise from Ross Perot Jr. on Jan. 4, 2000.

Not when the ever-durable Dirk Nowitzki, after missing just 45 games in his first 14 seasons, had to sit out this season's first 27 games after knee surgery.

Not when Cuban is still smarting from his own painfully public battle with kidney stones that sent him to the hospital.

On this particular Jan. 4, reminded of his team's wholly unrecognizable 13-20 record on what is typically regarded as a holiday in Mavs land, Cuban needed no such reminders.

"It's killing me," he says.

"The good news is that, with Dirk back, it really feels like we are getting better and making progress, but it doesn't change our record," Cuban continued. "We put together this team with Dirk as the centerpiece. I'm just hoping we can hang in there 'til he gets up to speed, so we can see what kind of team we truly have and then compete for a playoff spot."

The reality is that a playoff berth, after 12 consecutive trips to the postseason, is already seriously slipping away. If you buy 45 wins as the minimum to snag a top-eight spot, as it's been out West for the past half-decade, Dallas needs a 32-17 rush starting with Saturday's home game against New Orleans to avoid its first lottery season since the season Cuban took charge, when a post-New Year's Day surge under the new billionaire's watch left the Mavs just out of the playoffs at 40-42 in 1999-2000.

That was Nowitzki's second season. Dirk and Cuban would need more than a decade together after that promising start before Dallas broke through to win its first championship in 2011, only to discover almost immediately that the challenge of "rebuilding a championship team," as Mavs coach Rick Carlisle recently described it, isn't any easier.

Compared to where Cuban started 13 years ago with the unproven trio of Nowitzki, Steve Nash and Michael Finley ... and a houseguest named Dennis Rodman?

"Night and day," Cuban told ESPN.com this week. "The league was completely different back then. There were so many teams that did things the way they always have done things. They were so old-school, and the way I did things was so different that I felt like I had an advantage. Now the rules are different and teams across the board are smarter. So it's much more difficult to have an edge.

"Today the draft is far more important than it has ever been, as is being smart about how you spend money. It used to be I could spend as much as I could and there were no consequences. Those days are gone. Now being over the [luxury] tax impacts your ability to improve your team. Hopefully, we will be smart enough to draft well, sign the right players, make the right trades and get things going."

In line with that hint, rival executives describe the Mavericks as one of the teams most eager to do business between now and the Feb. 21 trade deadline. As much as the Mavs believe that Nowitzki's gradual return to normalcy is going to open up the game for at least a few of the nine newcomers on this roster in transition, Cuban expected a playoff team at the minimum and wants every option explored to keep that target in play.

What he won't do, though, is lament or apologize for the controversial decision to let several key members of Nowitzki's title-winning supporting cast scatter. Cuban and president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson remain convinced that the only way to reload around Dirk -- to find the younger studs good enough to gradually allow the 34-year-old face of the franchise to slide into a co-starring role -- was to pass on matching the four-year, $55 million offer culture-changing center Tyson Chandler got from the New York Knicks in exchange for the most salary-cap flexibility in Cuban-era history.

The Mavericks finished a frustrating second last offseason in the two-team race for free agent and Dallas-area native Deron Williams. Combined with the recent nosedive, the whiff on Williams has only given local second-guessers who pine for Chandler more reasons to question the decision. Yet there's no shortage of executives in other cities who believe the Mavs are at the front of the line for Dwight Howard -- one of their two original main targets, along with Chris Paul, when they dissolved the championship team before both players unexpectedly removed themselves from the 2012 free-agent class -- if Howard decides that Laker land isn't for him.

"I have it as Lakers, Dallas or Atlanta for Dwight," said one Western Conference GM.

The Hawks are the only team currently on course to have the requisite cap space to be able to try to recruit both Howard and Paul as a package in July 2013. The realistic view, regardless, is to assume neither is actually leaving L.A., with nothing but pro-Clipper whispers in circulation about how much CP3 likes the long-suffering Clips' long-term outlook ... and common sense reminding you that the Lakers aren't in the habit of losing their own marquee free agents. To anyone.

The Mavs nonetheless contend that the ability to absorb a potential star's contract in trades, if they whiff again in free agency for the second straight summer, had to take priority over retaining the likes of Chandler and J.J. Barea. Not surprisingly, according to the GM grapevine, Dallas is right there with the Boston Celtics in terms of its willingness to take the DeMarcus Cousins gamble if Sacramento decides to make him available.

The Kings, of course, continue to say that Cousins is untouchable, but you get the point. Although Cuban understandably refused to address Cousins or any other player he intends to chase, the owner doesn't deny that the Mavs are looking.

"I'm always cautiously optimistic," Cuban said. " The one thing that has never changed is that the Mavericks will be opportunistic. We are not afraid to pull the trigger on deals. We went all-in to win a ring knowing we would have to regroup because of the age of our team, which is why we had so many of our contracts expire over two years.

"We wanted to create flexibility so that we could pull the trigger when the right deals came along. We can now go back to taking back money if we have to in order to get a star player. The challenge, of course, is having the right deal come along and drafting well along the way."

As for what happened last July and Williams' subsequent struggles in Brooklyn, Cuban said: "Not going to comment on other teams' players or this summer. What I will say is that it's difficult to build around two players that take about 70 percent of your cap unless you have a boatload of draft picks to build or trade with, or an established core of young players to grow with them. Something we didn't have.

"Time will tell if my assessment of the new CBA was right or wrong. Obviously, I hope I was right."

In the interim, Dallas will try to hang on in the West, riding the only mainstays left from their championship group (Shawn Marion, Nowitzki and star coach Rick Carlisle) and hoping that the last-year-contract newcomers surrounding them (O.J. Mayo, Darren Collison, Chris Kaman and Elton Brand) still have time to come together.

Cuban took to his Twitter feed Friday to thank Mavs fans for their patience, trotting out a #weneverquit hashtag. He also revealed in our chat that he can't help but get swept up in what Jan. 4 represents, remembering how bleak things were for the 9-22 Mavs at the time he assumed operational control from Perot ... and the streak Cuban inherited of nine straight seasons out of the playoffs.

Insisting that Friday could thus have never been an unhappy anniversary, in spite of the Mavs' current plight, Cuban said: "I actually do get nostalgic every year around this time. It amazes me that I've owned this team for so long. It amazes me that it's a never-ending battle to try to be smart and make the right decisions. And it amazes me that it still hurts so much every time we lose a game."

[Kante]

No Howard please!