Top Five Destinations For Josh Smith

[Guest]

1) The Dallas Mavericks – The Mavericks are desperate to put a contending team around Dirk Nowitzki before he retires, and the clock is ticking. The Mavs attempted to lure Smith away at the trade deadline, offering Atlanta anyone not named Dirk in an effort to add him to their mix. Expect Dallas to be at the top of the list of teams looking to sign him as a free agent. The Mavs have few assets to offer in trade, so if the Hawks opt to work a sign-and-trade for Smith the Mavs would likely be out of the running early.

2) The Houston Rockets – Another team with cap space that could use a little more star power is the Houston Rockets. Their top free agent target is, of course, Dwight Howard, but if Howard re-ups with the Los Angeles Lakers then the Rockets will be scrambling for a Plan B. Unlike Dallas, Houston needs a starting power forward, and Smith is really at his best when playing the four. For a team looking to push the tempo, as the Rockets always are, Smith would be a great fit due to his ability to change ends quickly and finish with flair.

3) The San Antonio Spurs – Former Spur Danny Ferry, now the GM of the Hawks, also got a phone call from his former team before this season’s trade deadline, as the Spurs were looking for an impact player to add to their mix before what they hoped would be a deep playoff run. The Spurs still need another front court presence, and Smith is the kind of player who could help extend Tim Duncan’s career by doing some of the dirty work in the paint and on the glass.

4) The Golden State Warriors – If the Hawks elect to use Smith as a sign-and-trade piece rather than simply letting him walk in free agency, the Golden State Warriors are a team that could swing a deal that would greatly benefit both sides. It seems likely that Smith will command something in the $10-12 million range to start his new contract, meaning the Warriors could send David Lee to Atlanta in a potential sign-and-trade deal. As great as Lee was this season, the Warriors are winning without him, and Smith’s game is practically tailor-made to suit what Warriors head coach Mark Jackson is asking his team to do. Meanwhile, Lee would fit right in with the slower, half-court-centric offense that tends to define the Eastern Conference. He and Horford would immediately become one of the best front lines in the East.

5) The Denver Nuggets – Rounding out our list is one of the NBA’s fastest teams. The Nuggets have seemingly been defined by their running game since the inception of the team, but under George Karl they have taken their running game to new heights. The Nuggets were first in the league in scoring this season at 106.1 points per game while the league averaged 98.1, and Smith’s penchant for blocking shots would only serve to further fuel Denver’s fast break offense. The Nuggets also lead the league in points in the paint at 58.0 per game to a league-wide average of just 41.7. Needless to say, Smith would only help that number go up. As great a fit as Smith would be in Denver, it sounds like the Nuggets are going to bring back Andre Iguodala and basically keep the band together as is. That said, if something goes awry with that plan, Smith would seem to be a natural fit in the Mile High City. Denver certainly has some appealing pieces to offer in a potential trade.

Entire article: http://www.hoopsworld.com/nba-pm-top-five-destinations-for-josh-smith

[yungsta]

If jbrick went to the spurs Pop would kill him on the spot. He would probably be on the trading block by all star break. lol

[Eddielives]

Could you just imagine Pops face when he would see Smoove jacking up long jumpers and 3's. It would be priceless.

[DrReality]

Warriors would be a good fit with Smith. Wide open and with their playoff run he might light the location. (great place to live)

[Guest]

San Antonio has great shooting coaches so maybe they may be able Josh...but in SA you buy into the game plan all you'll be gone.

[EazyRoc]

Warriors would be a good fit with Smith. Wide open and with their playoff run he might light the location. (great place to live)

With enough shooters to force him into the post too.

[capstone21]

Anywhere but here

[Guest]

With enough shooters to force him into the post too.

The Hawks had enough shooters (not as good as GS) and that didn't limit 'mid range shawty'. 201 3-pointers.

[cam1218]

Anywhere but here

Agreed. I loved that a return to Atlanta wasn't even included in the write up lol.

[DJlaysitup]

LAL - Showtime2 with D12.

Can't happen - you never know - LAL is, of course the LAL.

[Guest]

LAL - Showtime2 with D12. Can't happen - you never know - LAL is, of course the LAL.

Only a SnT and with the new CBA who knows. Besides what young quality assests or decent draft picks does LA have that the Hawks want. I guess LAcinvolving another team is possible.

[EazyRoc]

The Hawks had enough shooters (not as good as GS) and that didn't limit 'mid range shawty'. 201 3-pointers.

Nothing like Golden State has.

[yungsta]

you can have reggie miller, ray allen, and larry bird on the court with jbrick. He still will jack up bad long jumpshots. Nothing outside of jbrick's mind has influenced him to take or not take bad jumpers.

[EazyRoc]

you can have reggie miller, ray allen, and larry bird on the court with jbrick. He still will jack up bad long jumpshots. Nothing outside of jbrick's mind has influenced him to take or not take bad jumpers.

Your frustration with Smith's chucking is clouding your judgement.

[terrell]

Anywhere but here

Agreed.

[NBASupes]

He wants the max but he wants to play for a winning team. He will probably get 12-13 mil first year for 4 years. Where does he go? I do not know.

Edited May 11, 2013 by Leadership

[Nicholasp27]

Only a SnT and with the new CBA who knows. Besides what young quality assests or decent draft picks does LA have that the Hawks want. I guess LAcinvolving another team is possible.

La can't get an snt player since they are more than 4M over luxury tax...they'd have to find a way to get below it first and stay below it even after the smith tradeAnd then the 4M over line becomes a hard cap once u take in an snt player

[LamarHampton]

4) The Golden State Warriors – If the Hawks elect to use Smith as a sign-and-trade piece rather than simply letting him walk in free agency, the Golden State Warriors are a team that could swing a deal that would greatly benefit both sides. It seems likely that Smith will command something in the $10-12 million range to start his new contract, meaning the Warriors could send David Lee to Atlanta in a potential sign-and-trade deal. As great as Lee was this season, the Warriors are winning without him, and Smith’s game is practically tailor-made to suit what Warriors head coach Mark Jackson is asking his team to do. Meanwhile, Lee would fit right in with the slower, half-court-centric offense that tends to define the Eastern Conference. He and Horford would immediately become one of the best front lines in the East.

That's interesting ... Smith for David Lee ... I like Lee a lot, but he's a couple years older, doesn't play as good defense as Smith, but has much better BBIQ. Not sure entirely, but I could go for this. Anyone else have any thoughts on this?

[MaceCase]

I think the Sloan conference this year was entirely dedicated to how bad of a defender Lee is. that and he's on a max deal so I think the Hawks would be tremendously better off letting Josh walk and picking up a much cheaper Splitter or Hickson as replacements.

[taz]

Splitter would be a much better fit and value rather than David Lee. It's not the worst move in the world but its not too good either