Get Free Shots from Snap.com Toronto Raptors Ramblings: June 2007

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Garnett, Stoudemire and Zaza...oh my


If what Yahoo reports is true you have to guess McHale is just sticking it to the Wolves on the way out the door.

Phoenix: Gets KG
Atlanta: Gets Amare
Minn: Gets Zaza, Anthony Johnson, #3 pick and #11 pick

First off none of these salaries match-up so there has to be more to it. Garnett is $23 million, Amare is $13 million, the two butt plugs from Atlanta are $6 million total.

But why oh why would Minn not just swap KG for Amare and someone else to make the contract work like an expiring Kurt Thomas and Marcus Banks? They end up with youth, expiring contract (for more youth) one year of toughness out of Kurt and a future.

Would Phoenix do it? Probably. They give up an ego maniac / budding All-Star but somehow all the buzz is on Phoenix needing to do something to win before Nash's wheels fall off. Not sure they'd give up Thomas but clearly i'm not 100% clear on how this deal works financially regardless.

The only weird thing is Amare dominated last season and was fantastic in the playoffs. Had that ludicrous suspension not happened Phoenix had a shot to win the whole thing!

But there it is, the wild world of the NBA where Kevin McHale involves a third team so he can build young instead of acquiring a 24 year old All-Star and an acquiring contract to build his team around!

p.s. if your argument is that Amare 'doesn't want to play' in Minnesota, who cares? Does he have a no trade clause or something? The guys got five years to get used to the idea so it's a non factor.

p.p.s. anybody who thinks Colangelo will trade Jose for the #11 pick (i.e. Chad Ford) should not be doing mock drafts. Saying "this would work well for Atlanta" seems a little short sighted. Neither Ford nor Jose were all-stars on their own but if everyone is desperate for a PG could we not look at unloading T.J. for a position we need?

p.p.p.s. i'm not sure why a trade rumour got me out of hibernation. I've been writing on my fat camp blog which takes up my blogging time.