Making slam-dunk sense
Jazz's Kirilenko for Suns' Marion would benefit all involved
October 15, 2007
Finally, an exhibition game to get excited about. Is it possible
Shawn Marion and
Andrei Kirilenko will be traded for one another at halftime Monday when the Jazz plays the Suns? Could Kirilenko and Marion play against their former teams in the second half? They'd have to pass physicals quickly.
Hard to figure why this deal hasn't happened yet. Here are the NBA's two unhappiest stars this side of
Kobe Bryant, and there's good reason for each team to make the deal.
Both teams say there's nothing going on. You have to wonder why.
To digress, Kirilenko and Marion both said they wanted to be traded before training camp began. Kirilenko went so far as to offer to let the Jazz out of the four years and $63 million remaining on his contract if he could return to Russia.
Marion came to training camp and said nothing had changed and he wouldn't discuss it anymore, prompting coach
Mike D'Antoni to say: "This is a great time of anyone's life. We've got a great team. Phoenix is probably the best place to live. You make a lot of money (a team-high $16.4 million). I have a hard time getting my mind wrapped around [what's wrong]." Kirilenko also declined to elaborate on why he was unhappy once camp began.
But the Suns were downright complimentary compared with the virtually unprecedented attack on Kirilenko by teammate
Deron Williams. He made Bryant's disparaging comments about his Lakers teammates seem like greeting-card sentiments.
Williams ended last season with a barrage that seemed aimed at European teammates Kirilenko,
Mehmet Okur and
Gordon Giricek. He told a Salt Lake City radio station: "You see (
Carlos Boozer) after practice shooting for 25 or 30 minutes. You see Memo
(Mehmut Okur) shooting for 20 minutes. You see all the rookies. [Then] you see Andrei being the first one out the door."
Williams admitted refusing to pass the ball to Kirilenko last season: "If he's coming off a screen on one side and
Matt [Harpring] is coming off a screen on one side, who do you think you're going to pass to? You think you're going to pass to the guy you see working every day in the gym, or are you going to pass to the guy who never works on his shot but yet wants to shoot 'em every time? … Guys don't want to sit across the locker room from a guy who doesn't want to be here."
Kirilenko's explanation: "I'm stuck. ... I don't have a spark."
The teams had some preliminary talks, but the Jazz supposedly wasn't interested, and owner
Larry Miller is now saying there will be no deal.
Why not?
The Jazz can extend Williams after next season, and he's emerging as its key player. Miller has said the former Illinois star is in line for a maximum contract. Marion has two seasons left on his deal, a perfect financial segue to Williams' new deal.
And while his Suns teammates like Marion, Kirilenko would be a terrific fit for the team. He's taller, he offers more of a defensive presence inside and he's practically screaming for a milder coach, such as D'Antoni, after putting up with hard-edged
Jerry Sloan.
Marion, meanwhile, would give the Jazz an athletic complement to inside/outside big men Boozer and Okur and a defender who can guard a shooting guard, currently a big weakness. Marion could make the Jazz a legitimate championship contender. How could Utah pass up the chance?
The initial hang-up in the talks was said to be the Jazz's lack of interest in backup point guard
Marcus Banks, a frequent subject of trade talks.
Marion had 18 points and 20 rebounds in 29 minutes Saturday against the Hornets. He'll continue to play, though this deal makes too much sense for both teams not to happen.
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