Sign and trade scenario--Mavs acquire Al Harrington

[Dirkenstien]

I can't believe no one has posted a potential trade scenario having us net the coveted athlete. Here's the deal...

Harrington is reportedly seeking a six year $57 million deal. Now initially that sounds like a pretty hefty price until you take into consideration that he is only 26 -- meaning that he would be approximately 32-years-old when his contract ends (how old Damp is now.)

57 million divided over six years would be right at $9.5 million, which is very close to what Stackhouse is earning (approximately 9.3mil) this season before coming off of the books with an expiring contract, something the Hawks would be VERY interested in.

The leading competitors in the Harrington sweepstakes include Indiana and Golden State. The problem is that Goldent State can't offer anything substantial without sending Atlanta a bloated contract back in return (something the Hawks do NOT want), and Indiana happens to be in the East, an essential no-no when it comes to trading away talented players. Furthermore, Indiana is only offering cap relief, a draft pick, and cash considerations to Atlanta -AND- if Indiana acquired Harrington, they would have to come to an agreement to start off his contract at $7.5 million whereas with Dallas, Harrington would be able to get his $9.5 mil the first year of his contract while playing an important role for a championship contender.

Thus, a Stackhouse, cash consideration, and future draft pick for Harrington deal makes mroe sense to both the Hawks and the Mavericks. Here is why...

Al Harrington can:
-Play both forward positions
-Make a significant impact in the game when Dirk is not playing
-Add depth to our roster at the 3-spot.
-Provide an amazing offensive spark off of the bench and play some pretty decent defense
-Shoot the three pointer fairly well (34%)
-Provide a great back-up to Dirk WHILE assuring that no "small ball funny stuff" will happen (something many people worry about with the idea of bringin Kenyon Martin to Dallas).
-Rebound much better than Croshere and is FAR more athletic.

Here is a scouting report on Al Harrington:
"Great attitude...very enthusiastic...Good size and athleticism...Plays both forward positions...An all around offensive player...Not a great shooting mechanic, but pretty good accuracy (45% career from the field including last season)...Great turnaround jumper...A threat on the baseline...Nice post-up game...Must be more unselfish"

Ofcourse, with the role he would play on Dallas, a selfish competitive player (ala Stackhouse) is perfect.

Our lineup would look something like this:

Diop/ Damp/ Benga
Dirk/ Harrington / Croshere
Howard/ Harrington/ George (hopefully?)
Terry/ Buckner/ Ager
Harris/ Johnson

That is an insanely athletic lineup and we don't lose our identity with this move. Hell, even if we didn't sign George we would still be two deep at both F positions with Dirk/ Croshere and Howard/ Harrington.

One the other side, Atlanta looks like this:

Shelden Williams/ Pachulia
Marvin Williams/ Batista
Josh Childress/ Josh Smith
Joe Johnson/ Stackhouse/ Salim Stoudamire
Claxton/ Lue/ Ivey

A very decent lineup for Atlanta that:
1) Allows Atlanta to send Harrington to the Western Conference
2) Allows Atlanta to take their time developing Stoudamire for another year
3) Offers them strong and fiery veteran leadership to develop their youth.
4) Gives them the opportunity to remain competitive this season and,
5) Gives them an opportunity to be a big-time player in next year's deeper FA pool.

The only question is: Do we pay this good of a player that much money to back up Dirk and Howard? The answer should be a resounding "YES" for a plethora of reasons but primarily because
1) Harrington is young, very talented, athletic and energetic...something we absolutelty NEED to give Dirk as he continues to age. We MUST take care of our super-star.
2) There is no assurance that Dirk or Howard will be healthy for the majority of the season, and for a team that is competing for a world championship, that could be the difference between success and failure. Unless however, we have a star player ready to come in and fill the gaps.

These next few years are Dallas' window of opportunity for a championship and we should do everything we can to insure a better chance at achieving this goal.

[chumdawg]

Nice idea. But it doesn't work for the Mavericks. It's not 2001 anymore.

[Dirkenstien]

Originally Posted by chumdawg

Nice idea. But it doesn't work for the Mavericks. It's not 2001 anymore.

Harrington would basically replace Stackhouse's role but through backing up Dirk and J-Ho. Now that we have Buckner, Ager, and possibly George (crossing fingers) then Stackhouse is expendable. As I said, I think this move would improve the team "without" messing with our new identity.

[scorched03]

no player <30 will come here. the mavs are too deep

[Dirkenstien]

Originally Posted by scorched03

no player <30 will come here. the mavs are too deep

You sure about that? I can see where you're coming from but remember that Dallas has an important role for him and he could be a vital piece to a potential dynasty in the making. He still get his money (actually more money up front with Dallas), he still gets plenty of minutes, and he still gets to compete for a championship.

Considering those factors among others, I don't think that it's fair to say a player wouldn't come to Dallas solely on the basis that they are 30 years of age or younger.

[Tokey41]

Harrington as overated as he is would be a good fit here as you posted... he could back Dirk and Howard. Now dont get me wrong Croshere and George are just fine with me but if we can get Harrington for a good price then we would be filling two holes with one good player. That and we could definitely trade Stackhouse... think the Hawks would want the cap space?

[nah-vit-ski]

The Question is, would they trade Stackhouse?

[chumdawg]

Sorry, dirkenstein. I meant that it would require more payroll...and it's not 2001 anymore.

[fluid.forty.one]

If we get george, I see no use for stackhouse.

[purplefrog]

I have been assuming that Harrington to Indiana was a done deal, but if there is a snag there then I like this trade option. I think that Stack has given us a great (albeit inconsistent) boost off the bench, but I would like the Mavs to acquire someone with a low post game, an aggressive rebounder, and a long-term solution to Dirk's backup. Don't get me wrong, we can win alot of games with that backup being Croshere but he is not a long-term solution, nor is he a very athletic option at the 4 spot. Harrington has alot of upside. I also think Gooden or even Chris Wilcox could fill the void here. In all cases the issue is the long-term contract and the other obligations we already have. So imo the question becomes who is best gamble over the long-term (if any of them). I think Dirkensten has made a compelling case that Harrington could be the one if he is willing to accept a 6th man role. This would lock our roster in for some time. It would be a major move for the franchise if we made it.

[spreedom]

Al Harrington is the man. He's basically Antoine Walker without the random threes or mindless dribbling and SHOOTING(!). However.. there simply aren't enough minutes to back up either/both the 3 and/or 4 spots on this team, because neither Dirk nor Josh are foul or (for the most part) injury prone. The only way this would work is if at times, Josh could shift to the 2-spot.. because Harrington is going to need at least 30+ mpg to significantly contribute.

I'm just not quite sure this would work great, unless we went pretty big. JET, Howard, Harrington, Dirk and Diop would work.. but it wouldn't happen. Like I said, I absolutely love Harrington, and feel like he'd definitely be the second best player on this team, but he just wouldn't quite fit.

[dalmations202]

If this were to happen, Harrington moves into the starting SF, Howard is the starting SG, Terry the starting PG, and Harris moves to the bench.

With that said, I don't see it happening at all.

Harrington isn't coming to Dallas to be a backup. If he plays the minutes of a backup, he would be grossly overpaid.

[Some Guy]

I can't see Harrington coming to Dallas to be a backup, and I don't see why Atlanta would want Stackhouse. Atlanta needs a big man (Foster) far more than they need another swingman.

[Dirkenstien]

Originally Posted by Some Guy

I can't see Harrington coming to Dallas to be a backup, and I don't see why Atlanta would want Stackhouse. Atlanta needs a big man (Foster) far more than they need another swingman.

From what I've read, Atlanta management doesn't want to get any of Indiana's veteran big men in return, including Foster. They're purely seeking cap relief and Foster's contract is worth over $5 million a year for three more years.

Also, Atlanta would want Stackhouse because they are in DIRE need of some veteran leadership to help develop their youth, and the fact that Stackhouse comes off of the books at the end of the season which would allow them to be even more competitive in Free Agency next off season.

Edit: This is from Marc Stein's latest article on ESPN about the situation: "Sources say that Atlanta's teetering ownership group, in the midst of a legal battle with former partner Steve Belkin to keep control of the club, prefers a cash infusion to the idea of taking back a player or two from Indiana's roster (such as center Jeff Foster) or a more expensive veteran."
Here is the link: Hawks have stipulations

[nah-vit-ski]

Maybe we should make a video like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDWLga4ti2c to convince him to come here, but instead of Celtics put Mavs.

[Dirkenstien]

Originally Posted by nah-vit-ski

Maybe we should make a video like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDWLga4ti2c to convince him to come here, but instead of Celtics put Mavs.

Yeah I saw that,...but I think $56 million and the chance to be a big part of a championship team should do the trick.

On a related note, Harrington has just fired his agent and must wait a minimum of 15 days before any deal can go through for him. Meaning that more teams could gain interest and get into the sweepstakes for Harrington.

I think the proposed deal makes perfect sense, especially considering we just signed George and Stackhouse is now even more expendable.