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East Coast Trade Talk

by Chad Ford

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Also Below: Time to blow up the Hawks? | Bulls play Let's Make a Deal | Wizards face Kwame conundrum | Is George Karl losing it? | Miami feeling the Heat | Peep Show

The old year is out. The new year is in. The Hawks, Bulls, Wizards, Bucks and Heat are all worse than anyone could've expected. Panic is starting to set in ...

Warm up your hot stoves, ladies and gentlemen. The NBA silly season is about to get under way.

Last season saw several blockbuster trades happen right before the trade deadline. Of course, the prevailing sentiment right now is that teams want to wait to get closer to the Feb. 20 trade deadline before making commitments. But expect to hear a lot of wild stuff over the next six weeks.

Insider has been poking around the league for the past week, looking for where the trade action will be this winter. Today we'll break down five teams in the East that are looking to make a move before the deadline. Tuesday we'll comb through the Western Conference.

Time to blow up the Hawks?

Obviously, the Hawks' phone operators don't check out the NBA box scores each morning. Give the Hawks' front office a call and you'll still hear their operators refer to the lowly Hawks as "the playoff-bound Atlanta Hawks." That [censored] playoff promise (the brain child of ousted coach Lon Kruger) may end up costing just about everyone in Atlanta their jobs. Hawks GM Pete Babcock has been working the phones for weeks trying to figure out how to inject some life into a franchise that's lost 10 of its last 12 games.

The Hawks thought they did that when they pulled the trigger last summer for Glenn Robinson. While Robinson has played well, the rest of the team has gone to [censored]. Theo Ratliff isn't even a shadow of his former self. Shareef Abdur-Rahim plays largely uninspired basketball. Jason Terry has played better at the point this year, but not well enough to keep NBDL upstart Michael Wilks from stealing his job. And Nazr Mohammed has completely disappeared.

The dilemma for Babcock is in deciding who goes. The Hawks have a talented team on paper. But on the court, the pieces just aren't fitting.

"When you are assembling a puzzle and two pieces don't fit, because either they are bad guys, or they don't buy into what you are doing, or they don't work hard, then it's easier to identify," Babcock told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. "In our situation, each individual player -- they're good guys. They're working hard. They're doing the extra things. They take the program seriously. But when you put the pieces together, it's like they don't have faith in each other. They don't quite believe in each other yet.

"That's the job of this staff, to get them believe. If they can't, then you've got to reassemble the puzzle. You've got to change the pieces to get that mix that believes in one other, because this is a team sport."

Jason Terry

Guard

Atlanta Hawks

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

32 16.8 3.2 7.5 .397 .900

Insider reported on Friday that Terry would be the Hawks' primary trade target for several reasons. First, his contract, (1 year, $2.15 million) makes him easy to deal. The two sides were unable to come to terms on a contract extension this fall, meaning he'll be a restricted free agent this summer. A team would basically get four months to audition Terry, and then have the inside track on resigning him.

Second, despite public pronouncements to the contrary, the Hawks still aren't convinced that Terry is a point guard in the pros. Despite his better assist numbers this season, one of interim coach Terry Stotts' first moves was to move Terry back to two guard and bring in NBDL point guard Mike Wilks. With rookie Dan Dickau waiting in the wings, the Hawks will be better off trying to land a bigger, more versatile two guard in return for Terry.

Rumors this weekend had the Heat (dangling Eddie Jones) and Blazers interested in Terry. While Babcock denied on Sunday that they were shopping Terry, he didn't rule out the possibility of trading him.

"No question, we're talking," Babcock said. "Anything that makes us a better team now and for the future and makes sense financially will be considered and is being considered. But I can tell you that we do not feel that we have to move certain players.

"And certainly Jason is not being shopped."

Hawks are getting nowhere

Michael Lee / Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Not seeking Terry trade, Hawks claim

Jeffrey Denberg / Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Bulls play Let's Make a Deal

The Bulls pulled off the biggest mid-season trade of 2002 last February when they dealt Ron Artest, Brad Miller and Ron Mercer to the Pacers in return for Jalen Rose and Travis Best. The move pushed the Pacers into the playoffs last season and on top of the Central Division this year. The Bulls, meanwhile, continue to struggle.

By now you know that the Bulls play like a bad soap. Jamal Crawford keeps his bags packed by the door. Marcus Fizer spends his time on the road flipping through the want ads. Eddy Curry is the official playing time keeper of the team. Eddie Robinson wants the go-to role he was promised when he signed as a free agent last summer. Jay Williams stashes the ball under his pillow every night. Rose sneaks through Williams' window and steals it while the rookie is sleeping.

Pretty standard stuff actually.

Jamal Crawford

Point Guard

Chicago Bulls

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

31 6.6 1.8 3.0 .376 .750

The latest rumor picking up steam, reported on Insider on Thursday, has the Cavs and Bulls talking about a Crawford-for-Darius Miles swap. The trade would likely include another player like Fizer and/or a Bulls protected first-round draft pick. The Chicago Sun Times was the latest to report it on Saturday.

What's interesting about it is that it would give the Bulls an all-high school front line: Miles, Curry and Tyson Chandler. Whether that makes them better or worse is a question I think you already know the answer to.

Crawford, as we mentioned, isn't the only on who can be moved. There is a growing interest around the league in Fizer. He's not going to net an all-star in return, but several GMs told me over the weekend that they're seriously considering making a bid. Despite his lack of size and rebounding, he's tough and can score in the low post, two rare commodities these days.

Rose is also available, though his $12 million a year price tag will scare just about everyone away. GM Jerry Krause is ready to trade Robinson for a season pass to the local all-you-can eat pizza buffet. And the latest, courtesy of Bulls assistant GM and Chicago Tribune writer Sam Smith, has the team dangling Curry and Crawford to the Wizards for Kwame Brown. Will two wrongs make a right?

Smoking out trade winds

Roman Modrowski / Chicago Sun-Times

Bulls can put smile on Curry's face: Deal him

Sam Smith / Chicago Tribune

Wizards face Kwame conundrum

Here comes Mr. Jordan.

A three-game win streak and a 41-point night for Michael Jordan have the Wizards talking playoffs again. Their closest competition for the eighth playoff seed, the Bucks and the Hawks, are both floundering.

So forget for a second that the Wizards have no point guard and absolutely no low-post presence. Jordan and Jerry Stackhouse, barring an injury, should be enough to push the Wizards into the door. Of course, Jordan isn't pushing that 40-year-old body every night to have that same door slammed in his face in the first round.

Kwame Brown

Forward-Center

Washington Wizards

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

32 7.8 5.8 0.8 .453 .744

But the Wizards aren't going anywhere in April and May without biting the bullet and making a move for either a legitimate point guard or, more important, some low-post muscle. The problem for Jordan is that to win now, the price will be the future. Kwame Brown, despite all of his flaws, is still the Wizards' most valuable asset.

You have to be 30 years old before GMs will quit talking about your upside. Right now Kwame, who turns 21 in March, has as much trade value as almost any young player in the league. How much? Could Jordan steal away a top-notch veteran and make one last run at the playoffs? The question surely haunts him and the franchise.

Forget about Jordan's promise, last fall, that he was there to help the young kids develop. Most of those young kids are wearing different uniforms now, replaced by veteran mercenaries looking for playoff bonuses. If Jordan's title drive comes up empty, the Wizards will pay a terrible price. Kwame, Jared Jeffries and Larry Hughes won't be enough to carry this team into the next century.

What could the Wizards get for Kwame?

The Chicago Tribune's Sam Smith suggested Jamal Crawford and Eddy Curry. It's doubtful that either of those players would help Jordan in his playoff run. There's talk the Grizzlies are willing to part with Pau Gasol if any team is also willing to take Jason Williams (and his six-year contract) off their hands. Given Williams' base-year compensation status, doing any deal this year would be tough, but not impossible. Given Donald Sterling's thrifty ways, there's always a chance that Andre Miller or Elton Brand might be available once Elgin Baylor moves out of denial and realizes that Sterling is never going to fork over the cash to keep together a team that can't even crack the playoffs.

The Wizards could lessen the long-term blow by trying to package Etan Thomas and Brendan Haywood, but in the end, would it really change anything in Washington?

Jordan's Number Is Not Up Yet

Steve Wyche / Washington Post

Wizards' Brown Sees Red

Steve Wyche / Washington Post

Is George Karl losing it?

There are no temper tantrums. No outrageous comments after a tough loss. The dog house sits vacant two months into the season. The Bucks are 13-19 and George Karl says he's feeling groovy.

What's wrong with this picture?

"For me, this has been a great year," Karl told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Sunday. "Maybe it hasn't been my best year basketball-wise, but personally, I'm great with my family and my off-the-court life. I've had more support and more strength there than I've probably had in my life."

OK.

Karl promised last season that he learned his lesson after some comments that he made about his three star players — Glenn Robinson, Ray Allen and Sam Cassell — backfired. But this is ridiculous. Karl, always one of the most outspoken coaches in the business when his team is winning, won't really say a word about the Bucks' woes.

The team expected big things from Tim Thomas this year and hasn't gotten much. Ditto for third-year big man Joel Przybilla. Allen is nursing a nagging ankle injury and Anthony Mason may go down as one of the worst free-agent signings ever. The Bucks are in disarray. The Bucks' window of opportunity to make a serious run at an NBA title seems to have passed them by. Is it time to start selling off the assets and rebuild?

Ray Allen

Shooting Guard

Milwaukee Bucks

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

26 22.3 4.1 3.2 .446 .907

Only GM Ernie Grunfeld knows the answer to that, but if you watch what he did last summer, you get the idea that the Bucks are headed in a different direction. The team has three rookies on the roster — two of them playing prominent roles. Third-year guard Michael Redd is also making his mark. Is a youth movement in the works?

It may be. Allen, the team's best player, happens to play the same position as Redd, the team's second-best player. Cassell has kept his mouth shut, but recent comments made to the Salt Lake Tribune make it pretty clear that he doesn't believe the Bucks have it anymore. Thomas is available to the highest bidder, and, of course, Mason can be had.

But the big question mark is Allen. While the team would certainly prefer to parlay Thomas or Cassell into the missing piece, Allen may be the only guy with enough trade value to get a big piece in return. Reports out of Milwaukee have the superstar fighting with his coach again. Sooner or later, one of them will probably have to go.

Believe it or not, Karl feels fine

Tom Enlund / Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

Cassell Knows What's Needed for Title

Phil Miller / Salt Lake Tribune

Miami feeling the Heat

Pat Riley was quick to shoot down this weekend's rumor that had the Heat talking to the Hawks about Jason Terry.

"Bulls---. That's all I'm going to say. It's absolute bulls---," Riley told the Sun Sentinel on Sunday. "You can quote me on that."

Brian Grant

Forward-Center

Miami Heat

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

33 10.0 11.2 1.3 .516 .756

But that doesn't mean that Riles isn't desperately trying to get something done before the February deadline. The Heat, right now, are slated to be about eight or nine million under the salary cap this summer. Miami has been trying to put a deal together for either Eddie Jones or Brian Grant to get further under the cap.

Eight or nine million is nice. But it won't be enough to lure the top free agents like Tim Duncan, Jason Kidd and Michael Olowokandi. While Riley knows the Heat will have to take back similar salaries for both players, he's hoping to get at least one player at the end of his deal to help get them around twelve million under the cap. Terry would've fit that bill.

The Mavs, Sonics, Knicks and Blazers have all shown interest in Grant in the past. The Bulls and possibly the Hawks are intrigued by Jones. Riley, however, won't pull the trigger on any deal unless he gets young talent or immediate cap room in return. In this market, that's not an easy proposition.

The most prominent rumor making the rounds in front offices around the league has the Heat and Sonics talking about a swap that would send Grant and Anthony Carter to the Sonics in return for Kenny Anderson (in the last year of his contract) and Calvin Booth. Sources inside both clubs would not confirm the talks to Insider.

The Sonics don't really miss Vin Baker, but they do miss having a tough defender in the paint. Grant, one of the all-time NBA nice guys, would fit in perfectly into the Sonics system. Carter only has one year remaining on his deal after this season, and would provide backup for the Sonics should Payton come up lame.

The Heat, by pulling the trigger on the deal, would clear an additional nine million off the books for this summer.

The only downside for the Sonics at this point, is the loss of flexibility. If the team keeps Anderson, they'll clear the nine million off their books and be in a position to make a run at a top free agent like Kidd of Elton Brand. However, if the plan is to re-sign Payton anyway, why bother. He's use up any additional cap room the team would have anyway.

Riley: No Hawks talks

Harvey Fialkov / South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Peep Show

Blazers, Knicks: Point guard Damon Stoudamire, who's buried at the end of the bench in Portland, is praying that the Knicks come and rescue him. "I would love to play here," Stoudamire told the N.Y. Post. "New York has always been the Mecca of basketball to me, and if that would happen, I would look forward to that." During a break in Sunday night's Blazers-Knicks action, fans behind the Portland bench began begging for Stoudamire to get traded to the Knicks. "I'll stay in your dog house to get here," Stoudamire reportedly said. Stoudamire told the Oregonian this weekend that he believes his benching is a directive from the office of team president Bob Whitsitt, not coach Maurice Cheeks.

Clippers: The team, in the midst of a six-game slide, says the finger needs to be pointed at the players, not the coach. "You can't blame the coach," Corey Maggette told the L.A. Times. "Everybody always blames the coach, but we [the players] have to take responsibility. Of course they'll come down on the coach. He's the coach. But it's our fault we're not hitting our shots. He can't go out there and shoot them for us." The Clippers rank 26th in the league in three-point shooting percentage at just 31.8 percent from the field.

Magic: Grant Hill is expected to play tonight after missing the past four games to calm the tendinitis in his left ankle, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Hill has not played since exiting four minutes into a game in Memphis on Dec. 27. That's the good news. The bad news is that until the Magic get a good low-post player, the team will struggle to stay above .500. "The team we have is a good team when we're playing defense, knocking down shots," guard Tracy McGrady said. "But we need somebody to give us a presence in the post. With Grant out, I'm probably our only post player. We need someone in the post, making it tough on other bigs, getting guys in foul trouble."

T-Wolves: It looks like agent Bill Duffy made the right decision when he told center Rasho Nesterovic to turn down the Wolves' contract offer last summer and instead take their one-year tender. Nesterovic is having a career year and should be able to cash in big time this summer. "Name better centers in the East who are playing right now," Wolves coach Flip Saunders told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "He's become much more consistent. He's playing with a lot more confidence. That's attributed to, one, that the players and staff have a lot more confidence in him. He's a year older. Offensively, some of the things we're doing, he gets more opportunities. And not having Wally [healthy] allows him to be more of a focal point. You put all those things together, and he's shown good production."

Pacers: The team is learning the hard way that the road isn't always easy when you have a second-year point guard running the team. Jamaal Tinsley's play has been erratic this season. He's shooting under 40 percent from the field and several costly turnovers at the end of games have the Pacers frustrated. "It's an issue," coach Isiah Thomas told the Indianapolis Star. "If there's one thing he needs to correct in his game -- and I'd say it's the only thing he needs to correct -- he has to take care of the basketball. When he wants to, when he does, we're a really tough team to beat."

Celtics: The team made its highly anticipated signing on Sunday -- former Pistons center Mikki Moore. Moore, who has been dominated his fellow minor leaguers down in the NBDL, was the Celtics' second choice. "We had a desire to bring in Grant Long, but Grant has a broken hand, so we are not going to sign a player with a broken hand," coach Jim O'Brien told the Boston Globe. "He's coming in to have our medical people examine the break and give us the best understanding as to when [he'll] be ready to play. We are in a situation where if Mikki Moore is the guy, then there will be no Grant Long. If Grant Long is able to play 20 days from now, and we don't think that what Mikki is giving us is [good enough], then we'll look at our options and they may or may not include Grant. My hope is that we don't have to be in a position to sign Grant, that Moore will be everything that we want, that he will be the guy that will be our 13th man. If Long was healthy, he would be coming in right now, but he's not, so we're bringing in the next-best thing."

Nuggets: Coach Jeff Bzdelik believes that Rodney White is starting to live up to his potential. White had 18 points and eight rebounds Saturday night against the Kings. "I've been pretty tough on Rodney, and he's responded," Bzdelik told the Rocky Mountain News. "He really had his every level high [against the Kings], although I'd like to see him give up the basketball more. . . . He responded with eight rebounds. Earlier in the year, I had made some reference in that he played 30 minutes and had no rebounds. His energy level is getting better and he's trying to do the right thing."

Cavs: Rookie point Smush Parker got some good news on Sunday. The team informed him that it would be keeping him on for the rest of the season. "He's going to have lapses because he's a rookie but he's really trying to grow into a professional," assistant coach Jerry Eaves told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "The only way to learn is from experience and the only way for rookies to gain that is from playing. And he's done well at times."

Stoudamire: Bring Me To NY

Mark Hale / New York Post

Stoudamire claims benching is not Cheeks' decision

Jason Quick / The Oregonian

Players: Gentry Is Not to Blame

Elliott Teaford / Los Angeles Times

Magic still struggling with the terrible truth

Jerry Brewer / Orlando Sentinel

A pivotal year for Nesterovic and Wolves

Steve Aschburner / Minneapolis Star Tribune

Pacers need Tinsley's full attention

Mark Montieth / Indianapolis Star

With signing, Celtics will have Moore to work with

Shira Springer / Boston Globe

Bzdelik has White's ear, hope for future

Chris Tomasson / Rocky Mountain News

Parker's contract worry disappears

Branson Wright / Cleveland Plain Dealer