NBA Chat With Derek Page 1/28/12

Join HOOPSWORLD NBA Writer Derek Page for his weekly chat Saturday’s at 5:00 pm EST. Shoot in your questions now.

  1. AJ

    How plausible is this idea? Nets trade some (but not all) of their assets for a 2nd-3rd tier star? Some combination of Lopez, Morrow, Farmar, James and/or 1st round pick for Iggy, K. Martin, G. Wallace, or J. Smith.

    Helps keep D-Will content and sets them up for a potential big-three.

    • Derek Page

      Well I think it’s plausible, but don’t you feel like Brook Lopez (who is the main piece in your hypothesis to trade) is that 2nd-3rd tier guy? Which means, if he’s not content already, the addition of Andre Iguodala, Kevin Martin or Gerald Wallace wouldn’t sway Deron WIlliams much with Lopez out of the picture. Also you don’t want to trade a promising young center for a smaller player later in their career as skilled big men are few and far between in this league.

  2. Jhon

    Why u think Nba tv wont do a a hard wood classic fan night i like to see the bulls lakers form 2002 when Lakers won 86 bulls 73. They kept the bulls to one of the lowest points in la. Thats one of the lakers great games.

    • Derek Page

      Well you would have to get something a little more mainstream than that simply because how many people want to see a great defensive performance? Especially when it’s just a regular season game. But, to your point, I think they should have a fan night where you can vote on a particular vintage game you’d like to see. OK NBATV? Thanks.

  3. Cain

    What has happened to Paul George’s 3 point shot? He has been struggling lately. Will a full training camp next year will he become that break-out player he was to be this year?

    • Derek Page

      Well he’s hitting over 43 percent of his 3′s so far this year, up from just under 30 percent last season so he’s only gotten better in that capacity. I also think he’s been playing pretty well overall, averaging double figures and starting at the 2 for the surprising 12-6 Pacers this season. What more do you want from the guy?

  4. Cain

    Is Rodrigue Beaubois coming back to his old form? Can he hold down the starting 2-spot in Dallas and give 16-18ppg a night?

    • Derek Page

      The question with Beaubois has never been his potential, but remaining consistent out there on the floor each and every night. The Mavericks’ most recent game, in which Roddy B scored a season-high 22 points, dished out 7 assists, grabbed 6 rebounds and swatted a career-high 4 blocks, was certainly impressive. The real question, and Beaubois is likely to be playing more strenuous minutes depending on Jason Kidd’s prognosis, is whether or not he can put together a nice string of games together. As of now, Delonte West is the starter at the 2 with everyone healthy. It will be interesting to see if Roddy can play his way into the starting lineup, which would not only benefit him but this Dallas team as a whole going forward.

  5. James

    D,
    In the wake of the rumor that the Lakers are interested in Agent zero’s services, who do you think they would cut out of their 15-man roster?

    • Derek Page

      That’s a good question, James. I think it would have to be one of the younger guys such as Darius Morris or Devin Ebanks. Both players have averaged less than 18 minutes per game this season and likely could even benefit from getting extra time on the court, say in the D-League. However, when Gilbert Arenas flames out (which he will) the Lakers will probably think back and realize they would’ve been better off keeping things the way they were.

  6. Anthony Pascua

    There is an interest in Gilbert Arenas from the Lakers. Are there any other interest(s)the Lakers are viewing other than the obvious D12 & DWill situation?

    • Derek Page

      I’ve also heard that LA is interested in offering up Pau Gasol for Kyle Lowry and Luis Scola in Houston, but that seems like a lot for Houston to offer up for just Pau. Would be a great move for LA though.

  7. d

    Can the Magic go after Chris Kaman now that he’s on the market.Noone in Orlando likes the fact Otis is too stupid to go get a backup center.

    • Derek Page

      They can but Orlando would have to find someone on their roster that New Orleans actually wants. Another difficulty is that they’d have to piece together enough players to match Chris Kaman’s whopping $14 mill left on his contract. In terms of strictly talent, Kaman would be a nice player for the Magic in the low post. However he has missed a ton of games over the past few seasons and the 29-year old’s best days on the basketball court seem to be behind him, although that hasn’t stopped an abundance of teams from salivating over him after yesterday’s news that NO is shopping him.

  8. Al

    What are the chances Wolves make a strong bid for Kaman? I’d like to see him side by side with Love.

    Any word on what the Hornets are looking to get in return?

    • Derek Page

      I don’t know how well Kaman’s would work next to Love. They both can take it inside but prefer the perimeter game offensively. It really all depends on Kaman – Love is 23-years old and a budding superstar – Kaman would have to figure out how to tailor his game to best compliment the incumbent power forward from the center position. If Kaman could stick to the low post, and big if stay healthy, that would conceivably be a nice 1-2 combo for Minnesota.

  9. likeabull

    Is on the market hear Kaman. Josh Smith and 1rd pick for Kaman. Who says no?

  10. likeabull

    Would utah consider this trade big AL/Milsap/Miles for Noah/Deng/Asik?

    • Derek Page

      Looks good on paper, but why? Utah has played above expectations to start the season and the Bulls look like the class of the East. No sense in trading just to trade and altering whats already working.

  11. rodney

    As a magic fan im getting tired of dwight! someone needs to tell him when you point 1 finger at someone you have 3 pointed back at you.

    he is questioning the team and there desire, yet he is playing with half emotion in the game, he is saying people need to know there role and play as a team yet says he wants to win his way, and wants to be the main focal point in the offense,he says the team cant get frustrated by refs and need to keep there composure yet he is known for complaining to refs and has more techs than any other player on the magic, he says he wants to win yet he wants to go to NJ! NEWWWW JERSEYYYYY!!, he is the definition of an oxymoron!
    As a magic fan i dont care if he is wearing a Magic jersey come all star game in fact im disgraced that he beat Nick Andersons all time Magic scoring record to trash his team the way he is, no honor no class,

    sorry for the rant but this is ridiculous!

    Do you see the Magic begin to start to open the flood gates to trade this cancer off our team! Just take a look at the boston game when he sat we build a major lead and the magic played like a team, Howard came back in and it appeared that the magic were trying to make him happy by giving him as many possessions as they could to appease him and we lost the game.

    • Derek Page

      Whoa killer simmer down. :)
      It’s certainly a difficult situation. Really it reminds me of the LeBron situation a few years ago but even worse because almost no one thinks Dwight Howard is going to resign with Orlando. All that being said, it’s hard for the Magic to simply open up the flood gates in terms of trades because it’s nearly impossible at this point to get equal value for Dwight. We’re talking about hands down the best center in the game at just 26 years old. Unless your getting Durant, Griffin, Aldridge, Love, etc; your going to be a sub-par team for the duration if you trade Howard. Orlando’s best bet is to wait until we get closer to the trade deadline and see just how much teams are willing to part with to get him. If they wait until the end of the season, Orlando will likely get a S&T but with not nearly the talent in return if they did it in season.

  12. eddy

    How does this trade sound? Kaman and Gordon for Jamison, Thompson, Erden and Cavs 2012 1st round pick.
    Cavs are set with a powerful backcourt for 10 years, Kaman is a solid starting center (who the Cavs should extend)
    Hornets get Jamison who’s a vet and a HUGE expiring contract, Thompson has a lot of potential drafted at #3 and Erden plays hard all the time. Plus the pick would be between the 10-18 area in a strong draft.
    Salaries match. Win-Win trade, right?

    • Derek Page

      If the salaries match, I do like that trade Eddy. Only problem is both Kaman and Gordon are oft-injured, would the Cavs want to make that type of investment in two guys that can’t seem to stay on the court? New Orleans is going nowhere fast and wouldn’t mind a trade to shake things up, especially with a talent like Thompson coming back. All depends on if Hornets believe Gordon will be their player of the future with CP3 gone, if not — which seems to be one idea since they’ve delayed any contract extension– I don’t see why not. Creates cap space and makes team younger in the process.

  13. Cain

    With Paul George I meant he is only shooting 25percent over last 10games?

    • Derek Page

      I think that’s just the ebb and flow of the regular season. He’ll be fine.

  14. AJ

    The idea would be that the Nets would be looking to sign Dwight Howard outright this summer, in which case Lopez wouldn’t really fit as the third piece.

    • Derek Page

      Understood. I just don’t think the combo of D-Will and Iguodala/GWallace/etc is enough to entice Dwight to join NJ when he will have plenty of other options.

  15. John

    Couldent the lakers waive Derrick Charecter?

    • Derek Page

      He’s the most underutilized of the Lakers’ younger guys but I think Caracter has an abundance of untapped talent that will begin to unfold as his raw talent matures and he gets more time on the court.

  16. tbadfq

    Report says Raptors are open to moving Calderon. Good fit for Jazz?

    • Derek Page

      Devin Harris has been playing better lately, but I can understand your point. A pass-first point guard who’s not afraid to take shots like Jose Calderon would generate easy baskets for the Jazz abundance of big men. If Harris doesn’t start to put it together before the trade deadline, I could see Utah making a play for Calderon.

  17. Justin

    Now I hope Minny can get someone by offering Beasely and/or Anthony Randolph.. Is Eric Gordon a realistic target? Or they should go for other guards like Mayo, G Henderson, etc.

    Now I can say that Minny has a future tied up to them with a Rubio – Love core

    • Derek Page

      When he’s on the court Gordon is a supreme talent capable of dropping 20-30 points on any given night. The problem is he’s rarely on the court. Gordon’s missed over 20 games per over the last two seasons and has only been on the court for two games so far with the Hornets. I like Gerald Henderson’s game a lot, Bobcats’ price likely through the roof at this point for the team’s only legitimate scorer.

      That’s all for today guys, thanks for all the questions! Let’s do this again, same time next week!