NBA At 2: Jazz, Too, Talking Trade
When the Utah Jazz approached the summer of 2010 they knew there would be big decisions to be made. First and foremost, the team was faced with a tough decision about power forward Carlos Boozer, who was entering free agency. In his five seasons with the Jazz, Boozer went from a promising young front court player to a solid 20/10 guy, but the Jazz had another young power forward waiting in the wings with the same kind of potential and opted to let Boozer walk away spend their money elsewhere.
That first gamble has worked out well for the Jazz. Paul Millsap isn’t quite the 20/10 guy that Boozer was, but he’s having a career year, averaging 16.7 points and 7.7 rebounds, and he’s only going to get better.
Utah’s second, biggest gamble came when they sent two first round picks and Kosta Koufos to the Minnesota Timberwolves in order to acquire Al Jefferson. The thinking was that Jefferson could be Utah’s center for the foreseeable future, and at roughly the same price that it would have cost to keep Boozer in town.
Jefferson has been solid enough from a statistical standpoint, averaging 16.7 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, but with him and Millsap in the front court together the Jazz have been among the worst teams in the NBA from a defensive standpoint. Check out these telling statistics from ESPN‘s John Hollinger.
Utah has been outscored by more than ten points per 100 possessions with Jefferson on the court, a whopping figure that defies explanation when looking at his stats … until one flips on the TV and notes all the easy finishes at the basket every opponent gets against the Jazz. Despite adding several defensive-minded role players in the offseason, the Jazz were 20th in Defensive Efficiency entering (Wednesday’s) game and 27th in Defensive Rebound Rate.
The Jazz went into their match-up with the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night trying to snap a five-game skid, but that simply wasn’t in the cards. Few teams exploit a slow-footed front court like the Spurs, and Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker combined for 49 points as San Antonio captured a 112-105 win. For years the Jazz have been known for their defense, but the Spurs shot over 51% from the field and saw little resistance from Jerry Sloan’s crew.
Simply put, the gamble isn’t paying off for the Jazz, and there are some serious issues to be addressed in the very near future.
As Hollinger points out, the Jazz are on the books for $15 million in luxury tax this season, and that doesn’t appear to be a wise investment considering they have lost six in a row and are currently seventh in the Western Conference. Trading Andrei Kirilenko’s $17.8 million contract to the New Jersey Nets for a package that includes a smaller contract would certainly be one way out of that situation, as the Nets have shown considerable interest in Utah’s Russian forward.
The bigger issue, however, is All-Star point guard Deron Williams. There has already been considerable talk about the Lakers potentially targeting Williams in 2012 free agency, and if the Jazz can’t put together a winning team before then there’s a real chance that their franchise player could walk away.
Al Jefferson has been a solid addition for the Jazz, if a bit underwhelming. If he’s really going to be the long-term answer at center, the Jazz had better get busy adding better pieces around him. A first round elimination at the hands of the Los Angeles Lakers or the Spurs is hardly what Jazz fans had in mind when the 2010-11 campaign tipped off.
All of the trade talk right now is primarily about where and when Carmelo Anthony will change teams, but you can get the Utah Jazz will be active, as well. Everything is at stake for the Jazz, who don’t want Deron Williams to be the next subject of the wild trade speculation that now encompasses Anthony.
LeBron James and NBA Team Valuations
Forbes Magazine announced their annual NBA Team Valuations today, and there were some interesting changes from last year. First and foremost, LeBron James’ decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers and join the Miami HEAT caused the biggest swing of 2011. The HEAT experienced the biggest one-year gain ever, jumping 17% to $425 million, making them the seventh most valuable NBA team. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers dropped 26% to $355 million, putting them at 15th most valuable overall. Meanwhile, Amar’e Stoudemire’s arrival in New York helped the New York Knicks top the Los Angeles Lakers for the NBA’s top spot, jumping 12% from last season.
And so, without further ado, here is the official ranking of the NBA’s Team Valuations:
1) New York Knicks – $655 million
2) Los Angeles Lakers – $643 million
3) Chicago Bulls – $511 million
4) Boston Celtics – $452 million
5) Houston Rockets – $443 million
6) Dallas Mavericks – $438 million
7) Miami HEAT – $425 million
8) Phoenix Suns – $411 million
9) San Antonio Spurs – $404 million
10) Toronto Raptors – $399 million
11) Orlando Magic – $385 million
12) Golden State Warriors – $363 million
13) Detroit Pistons – $360 million
14) Portland Trail Blazers – $356 million
15) Cleveland Cavaliers – $355 million
16) Utah Jazz – $343 million
17) Philadelphia 76ers – $330 million
18) Oklahoma City Thunder – $329 million
19) Washington Wizards – $322 million
20) Denver Nuggets – $316 million
21) New Jersey Nets – $312 million
22) Los Angeles Clippers – $305 million
23) Atlanta Hawks – $295 million
24) Sacramento Kings – $293 million
25) Charlotte Bobcats – $281 million
26) New Orleans Hornets – $280 million
27) Indiana Pacers – $269 million
28) Memphis Grizzlies – $266 million
29) Minnesota Timberwolves – $264 million
30) Milwaukee Bucks – $258 million
For more on the rankings and how values are determined, read the entire article here!
Kwame Who???
The Charlotte Bobcats fan base wasn’t exactly electrified when it was announced that the team had added Kwame Brown as a free agent in August of last year. It seemed more like team president Michael Jordan’s attempt to resurrect the career of a player he once wasted a first overall draft pick on while with the Washington Wizards. The Bobcats were certainly in need of help at the center position after trading Tyson Chandler to Dallas for what amounted to cap space (they would waive Erick Dampier, whom they got in trade), but Brown seemed even less likely to be an effective starter than Gana Diop or Nazr Mohammed, who were already in the lineup.
{AUTHOR_BOX}The season didn’t get off to a promising start, either. Brown saw playing time in just six games over the first month and a half of the season, averaging 3.2 points and 2.5 rebounds. The team was so bad that head coach Larry Brown stepped down just before Christmas, and Paul Silas soon stepped in to try and pick up the pieces.
One of the pieces he picked up was none other than Kwame Brown.
Brown started contributing right away once he got consistent playing time, averaging 6.5 points and 5.6 rebounds in December, and now 9.2 points and 9.0 rebounds as a starter in January.
"I’m getting more opportunities, more playing time," Brown told the AP recently . "I’m starting to get comfortable with the guys. It’s nothing against coach Brown. I missed all of training camp (with a left ankle sprain) and feel like I’m just starting to get in shape."
"His confidence level is so much better," said Silas. "He’s freer, he’s talking, he’s laughing, he’s joking. With guys like him that don’t say very much, I look at, do they start talking more and laughing and having a good time? That’s what he’s doing right now and I think it’s helping him."
And he, in turn, is helping the Bobcats. Charlotte has won four of their last five games, including an impressive 114-107 win over the Phoenix Suns last night. Brown tallied 12 points and 10 rebounds in the win.
"You can’t see what’s in front of you by looking back," Brown said. "I want you to walk through that door turned around. You’re going to bust your head. I don’t do that. You let others look back. You let others talk about what you accomplished and what you didn’t accomplish. You just keep moving forward."
So far, so good for Brown and the Bobcats. No matter what disappointments there may have been in the past, Kwame Brown is becoming an impact player for the Bobcats now. . .and it couldn’t have come at a better time for Charlotte. Maybe there is redemption after all, both for Brown, and the man who once made him the top overall pick in the NBA draft.
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