joannes3000

Quote: I won't feel overly depressed about it if Al isn't traded today, nor will I feel that's an indication that BK is an idiot or a thickheaded, stubborn fool or that the franchise is going to hell in a handbasket or any of that stuff. I will take it to probably mean that the deals just weren't out there, and that Hawks management felt that any trade of Al at this time would just not be worth what we get in return, and that they'll be better off waiting till this summer to do something with Al... so I'm fine with that. I'd much rather we stand pat and make no trade at all rather than make a bad trade or a trade that isn't likely to help us much. But what this does is really put the pressure on BK and company do something positive with this situation this summer. If it ends up where Al ends up walking away for nothing- *then* I will be upset and pissed. But as of now, not so much. Well put. I was fully expecting to see backlash on the forums when I logged on but come on. How many threads does it take to realize that we're armchair GMs at best?

Quote: Quote: I thought it was a step in the right direction. So I think the letter was a good gesture, and is much better than having them obviously not give a crap and just ignore the fans completely, eh? Agreed.

Thanks for that. I was watching good old Stephen A. Smith and I think it was Greg Anthony that brought up the point that these franchise types don't tend to get traded midseason because it should take a lot more time than roughly half a season to pull the trigger on a player of his stature. Although it's not like KG just recently made it known that he would like to see changes come about.

Glad to see that he's willing to do what it takes to make the team better as a whole rather than just look out for himself.

Quote: heh, we said a lot of similar things when we drafted marvin williams didn't we? williams, johnson, harrington, smith, childress...maybe BK and IT both went to the same school of coaching? I'm just glad that BK didn't fail the accounting/financial management portion of school.

Quote: You probably need to give more information on how you are doing against the other teams in your league in the specific categories. Given that TMac will probably spend more time healthy the rest of the year and the studs that are Lebron and Billups, I don't like this trade off the cuff but it may be good for your league. First place team's numbers are first, followed by my team. Here we go: Standings FG% FT% 3PTM PTS REB AST ST BLK TO TOTAL 5 6 5 6 6 5 1 3 3 40 2 3.5 3 4 5 6 6 5 2 36.5 Points FG% FT% 3PTM PTS REB AST ST BLK TO .464 .820 565 11297 3848 2344 611 403 1322 .459 .772 539 10835 3771 2408 672 556 1330 We're within 2 games played of each other so the points are very relative to one another. My biggest concern is I'm gonna die in terms of turnovers. Hands down I gain more scoring at a slightly lower fg%.I'm honestly a little concerned with TMac going on record with his personal "issues" so I'd rather replace him now even though I think he'll be just fine. Adding him as the wildcard was the kicker for the deal. I lose a little bit in terms of rebounding, assists, and 3pm and lose a good bit in blocks but gain in steals. Now all I gotta do is find a way to get Marbury off my team (he's on the can't cut list...) and get an assist man/3pt shooter.

The look on his face during the unveiling of the Franchise era was priceless. Nothing spells success like having TWO small guards that have coined their own nicknames.

Quote: As for T.Lue, I think his contract is darn good for his skillset. If we offered him for Leonard, I guarantee Denver would jump all over it Not unless they have a deal in the works for Miller, Watson, or Boykins.

Can someone with Insider post the rumors up please?

You're forgetting the most important part of this potential trade though. The fact that it would completely go against Isiah's master plan of trying to catch the Yanks as far as team payroll is concerned. At least Steinbrenner's teams win games. On a serious note, that deal looks mighty good by bringing us a PG.

Quote: Can't say that I wouldn't have been happy if I woke up this morning and saw . . Harrington and Delk traded to Orlando . . for Steve Francis. Because he may have been our best option in acquiring a very good player. And yes, Steve is still a very good player. Yeah, I would've liked to have seen us get him also. In the long run, I think if you can keep Franchise happy he can be a very productive player. With that said though... Quote: That whole "Steve is a cancer" is just BS. Steve only becomes a problem when things go terribly wrong. In Houston, they tried to blame him for not getting the ball to Yao. Now that they have T-Mac, Yao still doesn't get enough touches. But now we see the reason why . . . because Yao is soft as tissue paper. So that situation in Houston wasn't Steve's fault. Even in Orlando, the Magic traded away his boy, Cuttino Mobely . . for Doug Christie. The Magic weren't having a bad season. They just thought that Christie could bring them a better defensive player. LOL @ that ish. When Mobely was traded, Steve took it hard. That was his boy. That leaves a lot to be said about professionalism. I don't think it's too much to ask that if you sign on the dotted line that you be professional with the job. Whether it's flipping burgers, playing pro sports, working at the hospital, etc., this is a concept that's all too easily forgotten. And in the case of Francis, that would have been the scariest part of a potential trade, not the contract numbers.

Quote: clue me in . . . . who is he? True testament to how far off the radar Forte has fallen.

Quote: I have to agree this was an extremely good move by the Magic, and also potential trouble for the Hawks. First Isiah aids Chicago's rebuilding with the Curry deal and now this. Isiah sure is building contenders, he just isn't building one for the guy who is paying him. Well put. I laughed when I saw the news that Isiah pushed the Francis deal through. Unbelievable.

Worse than panty hose, actually. It's spandex cleverly marketed as Under Armour. Helps keep the quads warm I guess.

Quote: So what do you think other teams would do if all we have is JJ and the baby hawks? Wham, bam, thank you sir.

Don't get me wrong, I completely agree that Al is a one-dimension guy that provides points and not much else. The only reason I'm so hesitant on pulling the trigger is that even with all of his shortcomings I think that trading him will only reveal more shortcomings from whomever gets put into the rotation. And if that happens, what do we do then and how many threads will start regarding Marvin being a bust or "I told you so" or who we really should've gotten for Al or whatever else.

Quote: Quote: I think we are going to see Al get traded soon also. The young guys are playing better and its time to get them more involved in these next 29 games. we can only hope so. i don't want to hear that 'welfare mentality' bullish either. the hawks are better off without Harrington... period. Once again, why trade the known commodity? Is there any guarantee that we will be able to make up for the loss of Al's stats with anyone we put in his starting slot? I highly doubt it. Marvin will get there but I don't think he's there yet. Until he arrives, why say goodbye to what we have.

Quote: Brees is not a franchise QB, and not worth 10 mil. You gotta admit though, he was looking pretty good two years ago. Gotta love players showing up for their contract year. I also agree that his pricetag is what hurts the most. The Bolts just resigned Feeley to go along with Rivers.

Where would they play Al? They have Simmons starting at the 3 and Bogut/Joe Smith at the 4.

Quote: man, he was so close to a triple double heck, 5 more assists with the 3 more blocks and it woulda been a quad-double! "You ain't got it like me, boy". -Wise old LeBron Smoove is definitely looking better at the 4 spot.

Quote: AI would ruin Smith if we retained JJ...and trading Smith won't work (no one would pair him with Iggy in my estimation). What?????? There's no possible way that the opportunity to run a more up-tempo style of offense would ruin Smith. And I don't see how JJ even plays into that train of thought. AI's slashing ability will open up opposing defenses PERIOD, giving our shooters open looks and our slashers open lanes. Look at two contrasting team offenses - San Antonio and Phoenix. Whether you grind it out in a half court offense or go high octane the full length of the court, the catalyst is a quick ballhandler to initiate the offense. AI would allow us to dictate our offensive gameplan to the opposing team.

Here's another tidbit taken from ESPN: "And perhaps the juiciest nugget, literally and figuratively, comes from my ESPN The Magazine colleague Ric Bucher. I wrote Friday in our blog from All-Star Weekend that the Sixers, if not actively shopping Allen Iverson, were indeed exploring their Iverson options before the deadline. Bucher took it a (big) step further on Tuesday night's NBA Coast to Coast on ESPN2 when he reported that the Nuggets tried to acquire Iverson with a package built around Nene and Watson (and presumably including draft picks as well). The Sixers briefly considered it, Buch says, before declining."

I know. Just poking fun at Le 'Stache.

Here's the revelation I just had regarding the NYK situation. Isiah is actually fueling his competitive Piston spirit by destrying the Knicks like the good old days. Seriously, there's no logical explanation to Isiah's madness whatsoever. There's even rumors of them looking at trading for Darius Miles. Someone mentioned Artest and yes, he's too talented and that offsets the baggage he brings. But we have another winner in D Miles! Isiah wins again!

I was gonna post this in the trade forum but decided against it. My team outgoing: King James, TMac, Billups, GWallace My team incoming: AI, DWade, Ray Allen, Melo My team post-trade: Marbury, Eddie Jones, R. Davis, Brand, Duncan, Raja Bell, Iguodala, Diaw, Dally, AI, Wade, Allen, Melo I'm currently 2nd in our 8 team rotisserie league and this should solidify my drive to the championship. Comments please!