Does it seem like the Los Angeles Lakers 2008-09 championship win occurred a long time ago? With the flurry of offseason activity already keeping us interested and guessing, the focus has quickly switched from game-time to trades, the draft, and now the free agency period. Following the NBA is truly a 24/7, year-round adventure.
No doubt that a lot of the off-season moves and happenings have not exactly been explosive headline news, but there have definitely been some unexpected events that have transpired…things that have really raised our eyebrows. HOOPSWORLD compiled a list of what we believe are the biggest surprises that have occurred in the offseason so far. See if you agree.
RICHARD JEFFERSON TRADED TO SPURS
The Spurs are deadly serious about returning to their elite status in the Western Conference. They gave the Bucks veterans, i.e. aging, Bruce Bowen, Kurt Thomas and Fabricio Oberto (who was later traded to the Pistons for Amir Johnson, then waived) in exchange for offensive threat Richard Jefferson. This trade came out of nowhere, but after analyzing the benefits to each team, it does seem to make sense.
The Spurs add a new scoring dimension from athletic 29-year-old Jefferson who started in every game last year, averaging 19.6 ppg, even 4.6 boards. Clearly they have decided to eschew salary cap building for the future by focusing on team-improving now while Tim Duncan is still viable. On the flip side, the Bucks met their objective of achieving financial flexibility so that Ramón Sessions can be re-signed while having the ability to add another player.
VINCE CARTER TRADED TO MAGIC
Nobody was more happily shocked by the Magic/Nets trade than Vince Carter himself, calling it a "dream come true" to represent his hometown. And nobody was more sadly shocked about the trade than Courtney Lee.
"Going all the way to the Finals on a good team ... just expecting to regroup for next year and make it back to the playoffs again ... and just to get the news that you've been traded?" said Lee in New Jersey for his physical last Tuesday. "It definitely was a shock. But it's one I have to live with." Very unexpected that the Magic would trade Lee after his key performance in the playoffs, and it sounds like they really struggled with the decision to give him up, but the Nets were clear that excluding him was a deal-breaker.
The Nets gave up Carter and Ryan Anderson for Lee, Rafer Alston and Tony Battie. Even Battie weighed in on the Lee factor. "I mean, I tell you what's a shock -- me being traded is no shock," Battie said. "But for them to trade Courtney, that was a shock for me."
Skip to My Lou doesn't mind backing up Devin Harris, maybe even Kenyon Dooling; he's just ecstatic to play in front of friends and family.
The trade was made after Hedo Turkoglu rejected the Magic's initial offer. And they appear satisfied that Anderson can make up for the perhaps-departing Marcin Gortat.
RUMORS ABOUT RAJON RONDO TRADE
How many trade scenarios involving Rajon Rondo have we heard in the last couple weeks? Lost count. Not sure why you trade your fearless 23-year-old point guard, who nearly averaged a triple-double throughout the playoffs….especially when next season may be your best bet for a title in the foreseeable future. Celtics GM Danny Ainge is backtracking now, calling trade rumors "a bunch of bull", but he has certainly said some less-than-favorable things about Rondo lately. Even Rondo's agent is firing back at Ainge's criticism. It's all very entertaining. So who knows if Rondo is for sale or not?
YAO MING OUT NEXT SEASON?
This is just a heart-breaking unexpected development. Sure, Yao never plays a whole season (although he just missed a handful of regular games last season), but to hear that he might miss next season, and could even be facing a career-ending situation….just sad. What's weird is that Yao thought he was progressing very well. He is experiencing no pain, swelling, or tenderness, but a recent CT scan shows the hairline fracture has actually extended across the bone. Now doctors are trying to determine the best course of treatment, so his future is just simply unknown.
CARLOS BOOZER STAYING WITH JAZZ
OK, Carlos Boozer announced back in December that he was opting out of his contract, and that no matter what, he was going to get a pay raise. Then the inevitable speculations about his destination began and went on and on, ad nauseam. We were convinced Boozer was definitely going somewhere until recently when he started extolling the virtues of the Jazz (miraculously coinciding with the realization that nobody was going to pay him what he thinks he's worth). So, on the last day that a decision was required, Boozer elected not to opt out of the final year of his contract (Mehmet Okur followed suit). Best of luck to the Jazz in figuring out where to go now.
T-WOLVES TRADE MILLER, FOYE TO WIZARDS
After reflection, this seems like a win-win trade as the Wizards backcourt was immediately upgraded with the addition of Mike Miller and Randy Foye, and the Timberwolves got a No. 5 pick to go along with their No. 6 pick (and 2 other first-round selections), plus forwards Etan Thomas, Darius Songaila and Oleksiy Pecherov.
It's all good, until we start noticing that…….
T-WOLVES GM DAVID KAHN IS MAKING SOME STRANGE DECISIONS
Yes, he's quirky. And one should be prepared to whip out a dictionary to decipher his vocabulary choices.
Questions to David Kahn: Why the delay in firing Kevin McHale? Why not have your new coach in place for one of the biggest drafts (with four first-round picks) of your franchise? Why announce that that your team is going to be bad for the next couple years? Why the delay in meeting the players?
Then the Twilight Zone moment on draft night….David Stern tells us, "With the No. 5 pick, the Minnesota Timberwolves select Ricky Rubio." Great! Pretty surprising that he fell to No. 5, and despite Rubio's pronouncement that Minny's too cold for his mother (insert your own joke here) and his existing contractural issues, it's a solid draft pick. Stern reappears, "And with the No. 6 pick, the Minnesota Timberwolves select….Jonny Flynn." Excuse me? Um, two true pass-first point guards, one weighing in at 180 pounds and the other standing 5'11"?? Surely one is trade bait? Nope, Kahn said last Tuesday that there are no plans to trade either of them and that he envisions the pair playing "dynamic defense together" in the backcourt.
Bad news for talented Flynn. If Rubio stays in Europe next season (and beyond?), and Flynn develops well at the point guard position, it may be for naught, because he told fans in a letter following the draft that Rubio "will be the starting point guard the day he walks in the door." Love to be a fly on the wall in that locker room.
Honorable Mentions:
• Genius move of the Nuggets snagging Ty Lawson. They wanted him all along, and found a way to do it.
• The Spurs steal DeJuan Blair in the second round of the draft. His knees scared off some teams, but the Spurs were not deterred. Have you seen the Thabeet-UConn/Blair-Pitt YouTube clips? Go check it out, then congratulate R.C. Buford.
• Shaq was traded to the Cavaliers. Well, obviously he was leaving Phoenix. This trade was on the radar for months….it's only surprising that it took so long. Shaq's new motto: Win a ring for the King.
• Jamal Crawford to the Hawks for Acie Law and Speedy Claxton. Crawford's just happy to be out of Nellie's world, and Law's looking for some minutes.
• Did Don Nelson double-cross Steve Kerr by reneging on his agreement to trade Stephen Curry, et al. for Amar'e Stoudemire? The latest rumblings have Stoudemire staying in Phoenix.
• What is the deal with New York talking to Jason Kidd? This does not fit in with their plan. At all.
• The Lakers just might let Trevor Ariza go, and the Cavaliers just might welcome him. And, it appears the Cavs are talking to Ron Artest....and LeBron fully endorses it. Can you say formidable?
Plenty of excitement for NBA fans this time of year. Teams are restructuring, deals are being made, draftees to monitor, more unexpected news sure to come….the Summer League is about to start, then training camp, preseason and off we go headed to the 2009/10 season.
