cranrab said:
the memphis grizzlies are the butt of a lot of jokes (and deservedly so), but if they found some fool ass team to take that spaniard for a legit C or a bigger PG, they'd be in the playoffs.
how you like this trade, runaway slave?
pau gasol
stromile swift
for
jason kidd
money works.
memphis gets their PG, but they'd have to run a team with 3 forwards in the frontcourt. especially if they pick up al horford at #4. they could go for a longer player and reach down for joakim noah, but why trade 1 euro away (pau gasol) just to draft another euro (joakim noah)?
new jersey gets more length in the frontcourt, where they have been sorely lacking in size the last several seasons. unfortunately, they'd be adding length, but not necessarily size. not a perfect trade for the nets, but they'd get some value for jason kidd.
I pretty much see Noah as a lock in Minnesota. If he adapted to the SF spot, he could be a Marcus Camby type player. KG needs all the help on the glass that he can get
Speaking of the Grizz:
Memphis Draft Preview
Authored by Jason M. Williams - 28th May, 2007 - 2:36 pm
2006-2007 Finish: 22-60
Draft Picks: 4th
What they do well
Many people forget that the Memphis Grizzlies were a 49-win team in 2005-06, but followed off their strong season with a very volatile off season. They dealt core player Shane Battier to Houston for Rudy Gay and Stromile Swift, and lost Pau Gasol for the majority of the first half of the season due to his injury sustained playing for Spain in the World Championships. This, coupled with their youthful and inexperienced roster, led to a sluggish start that snowballed throughout the year and resulted in the worst record in the NBA.
However, while injuries and inexperience were the primary reasons for their demise, they were also the bright spot of the season because the Grizzlies were able to gage what talent they had hiding behind their creaky veterans on the bench.
The injuries to Pau Gasol, Eddie Jones, Damon Stoudamire, and Stromile Swift allowed youngsters like Kyle Lowry, Hakim Warrick, Lawrence Roberts, Rudy Gay, and Tarence Kinsey to get plenty of playing time.
Gay emerged as the third-leading vote-getter in the NBA Rookie of the Year race, and Kyle Lowry was showing signs of becoming a key sparkplug point guard off the bench before sustaining a season-ending broken wrist injury.
Mike Miller picked up the slack and averaged 18.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.3 assists; numbers all much higher than his career averages.
Hakim Warrick stepped up this year and started 43 games at forward while contributing career highs across the board, including 12.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.
Chucky Atkins had a great year while taking over for this depleted roster and averaged 13.2 points and 4.6 assists per game. However, he is now a free agent, and Memphis must decide whether or not to extend him another contract offer.
Most notably was how the undrafted rookie out of South Carolina, Tarence Kinsey, emerged onto the scene in March and was named the Western Conference Rookie of the Month for April when he averaged 18.8 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2.63 steals in his 8 starts.
Where do they need improvement?
Memphis is already set at three of their five starting positions. With Miller, Gay, and Gasol, they have a very strong base for their future starting lineup, assuming they decide to hold onto Pau Gasol. With Lowry, Kinsey, Roberts, Warrick, and Stromile Swift on the bench, their depth is also very solid.
They are lacking a true starting point guard if Damon Stoudamire can’t return to his former self, but more importantly could also use a help at the power forward position. With no real natural center prospects in the Draft aside from Greg Oden, they can focus on their need for a strong power forward that can score to compliment Pau Gasol when he is inserted at the center position.
Who they should target?
- Al Horford, PF, Florida:
Horford was a force for the back-to-back National Champion Florida Gators, being named to the All-Tournament Team at the Final Four in both his sophomore and junior seasons. The 6-10 junior averaged 13.2 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks on his way to 16 double-doubles in 36 starts in the rugged SEC. He also played twice against consensus number-one overall pick, Greg Oden. He managed to put up 11 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 blocks despite being very ill with mono in a dominating early season victory, and then poured on 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 2 blocks against Oden and the Buckeyes in the National Championship game. His strength, size, and tenacity would fit perfectly in between defensive demons Rudy Gay and Pau Gasol, and would provide Memphis with a huge starting lineup including 6-8 Mike Miller, 6-9 Gay, 6-10 Horford, and 7-0 Gasol.
- Brandon Wright, North Carolina:
This 6-9 freshman was the ACC Rookie of the Year, All-ACC Second Teamer, NCAA All-East Regional Teamer, fifth freshman ever to win the ACC Tournament MVP, and broke the ACC single-season freshman record with a 64.6% field goal percentage. He may be the power forward in this Draft with the most upside as an athletic scorer. The question for the Grizzlies is whether they need another freakish athlete who can patrol the paint and finish in a variety of ways around the bucket when they already have guys like Warrick and Swift on the squad. While he may have the most upside potentially available at the fourth pick, he would also add to the abundance they already have at this personnel type.
- Mike Conley, Jr., Ohio State:
Conley is being heralded as the top point guard in the 2007 NBA Draft, and with good reason as he led the Buckeyes to the National Championship game as a true freshman. His court vision and quickness enable him to tear through the paint and connect with open teammates on accurate passes while help defenders try to clamp him down. To go along with his 6.1 assists last year, he also displayed his ability to score with confidence and defend with pressure. He averaged 11.3 points per game on 52% shooting and added 2.2 steals per contest.
Picks since 2000
A little over five years ago, the Memphis Grizzlies had easily the best draft in franchise history. In one of the more lopsided deals in Draft-day history, the Grizz traded Shareef Abdur-Rahim to the Atlanta Hawks for Lorenzen Wright, Brevin Knight, and the 3rd overall pick in the Draft. That 3rd pick turned out to be franchise player Pau Gasol. They then added core player Shane Battier, who teamed with Gasol to spark the Grizzlies into contention.
Since then, they have not used the Draft entirely to their advantage. With the exceptions of Lowry, Warrick, and the acquisition of Gay, they have really added nothing to their team since the 2001 Draft. They have focused lately on a win-now attitude and ultimately backfired when all of their veterans bit the injury bullet last season.
2006
Kyle Lowry, 24th
2005
Hakim Warrick, 19th
2004
Sergey Lishchuk, 50th
2003
Marcus Banks, 13th (traded to Boston)
Kendrick Perkins, 27th (traded to Boston)
2002
Drew Gooden, 4th
Robert Archibald, 32nd
Matt Barnes, 46th (traded to Cleveland)
2001
Pau Gasol, 3rd
Shane Battier, 6th
Will Solomon, 33rd
Antonis Fotsis, 48th
2000
Stromile Swift, 2nd
