Final_quest

I got to give props to Dolfan for calling this trade almost exactly. I didn't think anyone here proposed this deal.

I thought we had this figured out. How I understood it was that since the Lakers pick is lottery protected they must make the playoffs for Boston to get the pick. Boston wants to make sure that they get at least one first rounder this year. If the Lakers make the playoffs we get the lesser of the picks, but if they don't we have to wait until next year. Granted all of this information came from this board so I don't have a source.

According to this story from the AP: Knight said he had not spoken with Payton but wasn't worried about the guard reporting to the Hawks, whose next game is Friday night at Portland.

Didn't we trade the Philly first in the first Walker deal to Dallas?

To me it's misleading to think that all shooting guards need to have a great jump shot, or even that you need to clearly distinguish between a SG and a SF. Not all SG are Jeff Hornacek. The real issue is that if Childress doesn't develop a jumper somebody else on the floor has to be able to shoot.

Welcome to the board. I'm not sure that we will be in contention next season, but hopefully we'll be better than this season. 1. Draft the best talent available 2. We have to at least try to sign some free agents, and if nothing else bid up salaries for other players. 3. Fill out our roster with the most capable veterans to help mentor our young players.

They should've just kept Walker. Now they have to pay him and Lafrentz.

Where is your information from? I know it's not from BK. That guy has hops!!!

That is great news!! Hopefully, LA doesn't make the playoffs, and the Celtics drop to 14 or 15.

I'm not surprised. I couldn't imagine GP sticking it out here. He almost decided to not show up in Boston. GP is kind of an a$$.

The bluff was called and the Celtics came through. I'll be the first one to officially eat my words when I said Ainge would never trade to get Walker back. It would be interesting to see the full circle of what they actually got out of dealing Walker in the first place.

I agree with Dolfan, we can't avoid Marvin Williams just because we're stocked at his position. My personal inclination is to take Bogut, but I'm not a professional scout. I'm gonna leave the decision on who to draft up to the GM.

Do you guys think GP will be professional about this? Also, did anyone else read his quote where he said the next team he goes to will be his last? Anyways this is a great deal for the Hawks. Not sure if GP will remain a Hawk or not, we'll see. BK sure surprises folk, though. I never saw the first trade for Walker coming last summer, and now this. Of all the trade scenarios we come up with I don't think anyone guessed on this one. Now we have to hope the Celtics lose and lose.

A couple of weeks ago, Rob Babcock, the rookie general manager of the Toronto Raptors, said this of what it's like learning on the job: "I know what the learning curve is like. I remember after my first year of coaching looking back on my second year and saying, 'Oh, God, I was an idiot last year.' " The former teacher was referring to the transition from one year to the next as a high-school basketball coach, and it was delivered in the standard, lighthearted, no-ego manner that's quickly become his trademark, no matter what the atmosphere around Canada's only National Basketball Association franchise. Unfortunately, there's no shortage of critics who would suggest Babcock might be offering a similar self-assessment a few months from now when he looks at his first turn as a general manager. Be it a withering throwaway line on ESPN.com ("The team Babcock spent the last 12 years with [Minnesota Timberwolves] is in the toilet and the Raptors actually might be worse off since he arrived") or having his franchise being labelled the NBA's most dysfunctional by The New York Times, the capital and goodwill that being new always generates has been quickly dissipated by a string of eyebrow-raising moves that have yet to pay obvious dividends, at least in the short term. Today is the NBA's trade deadline, the next big test for Babcock, and while there have been plenty of rumours flying, even players in the team's dressing room are wondering whether Babcock is suffering from self-doubt now that the time has come to pull the trigger on his next deal. "He's a scared man," was how one Raptors player put it. "He messed up the Vince trade and now he's scared to mess up again." For his part, Babcock says his nerve is intact and he's keeping his eye on the prize: building a stable foundation for the future, even if it means some short-term pain. "I have confidence in myself," Babcock said. "I don't feel like I have to hit a home run or something. There's more pressure, but it doesn't affect my decision-making ability. I just know I'm going to answer for whatever is done, there's no question there's more stress involved, but my father taught me at a very early age: give 100 per cent and live with it. I'm not going to second-guess." Still, even though Babcock took over a franchise that was sputtering when he replaced Glen Grunwald last summer, it's not as if it's purring along now, either. Consider: Brazilian rookie Rafael Araujo, picked No. 8 by Babcock in his first move as the general manager, was nowhere near Denver at the National Basketball Association's all-star weekend, while the players picked at numbers 9, 15, 17, 18, 25 and 28 were all playing in the weekend's rookie challenge. Sam Mitchell, his hand-picked head coach, and Rafer Alston, his prized free-agent signing, have been bickering - and then some -- all season. The Carter trade, which brought the Raptors two veteran benchwarmers, Alonzo Mourning as salary cap ballast and two first-round draft picks, has been widely viewed as an act of larceny by New Jersey Nets president Rod Thorn. Until Babcock can make a move with benefits that are more obvious than salary cap flexibility or future considerations -- or the Raptors start winning -- the second guessing will likely continue, regardless of what goes down today. Both Donyell Marshall and Jalen Rose, the two Raptors veterans who have figured most prominently in trade rumours this season, doubted a deal was imminent as of yesterday afternoon. "My gut feeling is that for the most part we might stand pat," Rose said. "But who am I? In the next 24 hours, anything can happen." The sentiment was echoed by Marshall, whose agent, Andy Miller, was reportedly trying to broker a deal this week that would send his client to the Indianapolis Pacers. "Coming up to the last couple of days, I would have said I would be surprised if I was still here [after the trade deadline]," Marshall said. "But the last two or three days? I would be surprised [if something happens]. It just doesn't seem like much is going on." Does Babcock have to make a deal? Probably not. He's in the first year of a long-term contract, so he doesn't have to worry about the immediate ramifications of his decisions and he's at least got some support from the one player he needs to impress most, second-year star Chris Bosh, who will have his first chance to sign a contract extension after next season. "Just continue to bring good guys in," was Bosh's advice for management on the eve of the trade deadline. "They brought in a great coaching staff. I think Sam Mitchell is the right fit, now we just have to keep moving in the right direction -- keep bring good guys in here, guys who want to play." That was the idea behind the Carter trade, and even though Carter has resumed his superstar ways in New Jersey, Babcock stands by what, for now, is his signature deal. "The bottom line is we're a better basketball team without Vince than we were with Vince," he said.

This deal went through for the Sixers. They have made great deadline deals, and they're coming to Philips in a few days.

I would love to see this trade as well, but I'm guessing the Hawks would have to give up next year's 1st.

As a Vikings fan I'm very disappointed. You never get equal value for a superstar. True the Vikings can draft a top WR with the 7th pick, but look at the history of drafting WRs in the top ten. Most of them don't become superstars. This is a sad day for the Vikings.

The reason why I highlighted the 17 field goal attempts is because some of Chill's nights where he has 15 points or more he was like 7-7 from the field. Basically his points were coming from put backs and transition baskets. Although I would prefer a higher field goal percentage, the fact that he had 17 attempts means he is being more active in the offense. If Childress can get 17 attempts a night he could be averaging 18 points or more.

I haven't watched the Hawks since they started Walker at center, but think it's a great idea. What do you guys think about the new starting lineup? I think the Hawks have realized that they need to give Smoove and Childress minutes whatever the cost, and it seems like they are responding. Last night Chill had 17 field goal attempts, that hardly ever happens.

Patience is BK's game. The best bargains are found at the end of the offseason which is when we got both Walker and Harrington for next to nothing. He is not in a hurry to make a move if we don't get value out of it. Also, people remember, I've said this a few times, if Walker does not get traded now he can still be traded in the offseason. In fact the only way he would be signed as a UFA, without any compensation, is if one of the two or three teams under the cap make a push for him or he signs for the MLE. Last year I learned this watching Sjax. I thought he would be signed as a UFA and the Hawks would get nothing out of it. The Hawks will get compensation for Walker, if not today than during the offseason.

I don't have the stats, but it seems like Ben Gordon has this one locked up. This has been Chills break out month, though.

The balance of talent is flowing back to the east more and more.

This is kind of shocking. The Kings aren't even getting cap relief out of this. Unequal value IMO.

Where did you hear that?