NBA Chat with Mark Nugent 8/31/11

Join HOOPSWORLD’s Newsline Editor Mark Nugent for his weekly chat this Wednesday at 5pm EST.  Mark is based out of Chicago and covers all things NBA so get your comments and questions in early.

  1. phili

    who says no and why?

    tor:bargnani, barbosa, calderon or amir

    for

    nj: dwill, morrow

    • Mark Nugent

      The Nets traded half their team to get Williams, now they are going to trade him for Bargs? Not happening.

  2. phili

    IF we do have a season this year i believe the raptors starting line up should be bayless,derozan,johnson,davis,bargani and find ways to trade amir and calederon. it will take awhile for the team to be competitive but their future looks bright with jonas coming in and the 2012 draft, dont yu agree?

    • Mark Nugent

      I agree with your starting lineup 100%. I’ve been preaching that lineup all offseason. As for trades, I would keep Amir, he’s a pretty decent PF and doesn’t make a ton of money. As for Jose, he is in the last year of his contract and can still play, so he has value. Him I would definitely trade if I could land a late first rounder in this year’s draft or a young wing player.

  3. phili

    who says no amd why?

    orl: dwight, arenas, bass

    for

    okc: westbrook, perkins, collison

    • Mark Nugent

      That’s not enough for Howard. I think a lot of teams can offer more than that.

  4. phili

    i read an article on blake griffin, wouldnt mind playing for the okc thunder so with that being said wouldnt that be ridiculous for the nba and fans. griffin and durant together would be dominant but obviously for such thing to ever happen via trade westbrook would be involved. What would you say? do a deal or keep your present team

    • Mark Nugent

      The Clippers will not under any circumstances trade Griffin at this point in his career. The Clippers front office came out last season and said something along the lines of Griffin will be a Clipper for life.

  5. phili

    who says no and why?

    orl: redick, jameer, bass, (if not enough add anderson)

    for

    atl: jsmoove, hinrich,

    • Mark Nugent

      I would love to see a way to add Smith to the Magic, but I don’t think Nelson is going to do it. I think that trade is pretty fair, especially if the Magic add Anderson. But what Atlanta really needs a starting caliber center so they can move Horford to his natural power forward position. I think the only way Smith gets traded is if it’s for a center. To bad the Magic traded away Gortat last year, that piece could have really made something happen this offseason.

  6. phili

    who says no and why:

    tor: bargnani, barbosa, calederon

    for

    phi: iggy, lou williams, hawes

    • Mark Nugent

      Philly hangs up the phone in a hurry. That trade isn’t even close to fair. It’s arguable that Philly is offering up the two best players in AI and Williams.

  7. phili

    who says no and why?

    tor: derozan, kleiza, barbosa, amir

    for

    gst: ellis, dwright, biedrins

    • Mark Nugent

      Not sure. That trade makes a good deal of sense for both teams. The Raps may have to sub out Dorrell Wright and take someone else, or take no one, but that trade has possibilities, if I was running the NBA anyway.

  8. phili

    if new orleans loses landry and west i believe chris paul would ask for a trade or they will lose him via free agency, so with that being said would you agree on this trade?

    no: cp3, ariza

    lac: mo, kaman, aminu, craig, minnesota 2012 draftpick

    • Mark Nugent

      I would agree to that trade if it happened right at the trade deadline. CP3 is the best PG in the league (or 2nd best if you love D-Rose) and the Hornets would be trading him for Aminu and the Minny draft pick. That’s not a bad haul, but it’s definitely 50 cents on the dollar. Eric Gordon and the Minny pick is the deal that I would do right now if I was the Hornets. Plus whatever filler the Clippers need to throw in to make the money work.

  9. phili

    wade said lebron, bosh and himself made a new trend in the nba by 3 superstars joining one team and i fully agree so with that being said who would yu love to see form a next big three in the future between these options:

    cp3, melo, amare(knicks)
    or
    dwill, dwight, gay or granger (nets)
    or
    westbrook, durant, griffin(okc)

    • Mark Nugent

      The only one of those that is possible within the next two years is CP3, ‘Melo, and Amar’e. So if I had to chose, I would chose that one.

      However, I’m not a huge fan of players forcing their way to a certain team or players teaming up in free agency and deciding to head to the same team. Players aren’t doing anything wrong, I just like the old fashioned way where the franchise builds the team up. You start with draft picks, add some trades, and pick up some veteran free agents. I like it when stars stay with the teams that drafted them, at least for a long enough time where they give the team a chance to build around them.

  10. phili

    agree with any of these trade scenarios:

    tor: calederon, bargnani, barbosa
    for
    mil: jennings, mbah a moute, douglas-roberts

    tor: amir, j.johnson
    for
    min: beasley

    tor: barbosa, amir, calederon, j.johnson
    for
    atl: jsmoove, hinrich, marvin

    • Mark Nugent

      If I’m Milwaukee I’m not trading Jennings for Bargs and Calderon, plus the salaries aren’t even close to matching up.

      I don’t think Toronto would want to add another high volume shooter who doesn’t play defense like Beasley, so I doubt they would want to do that trade.

      For Josh Smith, the Raptors would have to give up a lot more than what you are offering.

  11. aaron

    whats with all the durant hype? he’s a high volume scorer and nothing else. and dirk absolutely owned him but no one really talked about durant choking the entire series. would you rather have rose or durant on your squad?

    • Mark Nugent

      I’m a Chicago Bulls homer, so I will take Rose. That said, Durant has a chance to be one of the all-time great scorers in the history of the NBA. He can do it all on offense and once he gets his post-game going, there will be no stopping him. He is easily one of the top five players I would want to start my team with.

  12. Ali

    On erics sf article, two trade scenarios stuck out, kaman for j.green seems like it’ll work. Green can play both 3 and 4, will be useful if Griffin got into foul trouble, and celtics just need a 5…period. Kaman and minny 1st rounder for green and davis seems like a good swap for both. Or kaman for hawes and t.young. Both fantasy moves or a real possibility?

    • Mark Nugent

      The Clippers will never trade that Minny pick. That is likely to be a top 5 pick in an absolutely loaded draft. So anything involving that pick the Clippers will say no to. That said, I would love to see Kaman traded so he gets a chance to play, and a Kaman for Jeff Green trade makes a lot of sense for both teams. Kaman for Thad Young does as well, but I’m not sure the 76ers are too interested in moving him.

  13. Ali

    since beasley ” broke his wrist” that means his contract can be voided right? If let go, would he be worth a pickup by another team? Talents there just to much of a headache from what I keep reading of him. And how much would you think another team would offer for his services if his contract were to be voided. Thanks

    • Mark Nugent

      I do not believe his contract will be allowed to be voided for a couple of reasons. 1. He was playing basketball and most contracts allow you to play basketball. If he was riding a motorcycle that would be different. 2. Because of the lockout, he isn’t actually under contract, so anything he does right now can’t get him in trouble. Only right now. This is my understanding anyway. Once the lockout ends then arguments can be made about whether someone voided a contract with their behavior during the lockout, but that would most likely have to be taken to court. Again, this is my understanding and if I’m off a little bit I apologize.

  14. Danny

    Is Devin Harris the answer for the Jazz at PG? If not who should they be looking at?

    • Mark Nugent

      He is the answer this year, I believe. But long-term I do not think he is the solution. They need a PG who will get their talented bigs the ball in the paint and in a position to be successful and that isn’t Harris’ strong point. He’s more a scoring PG and the Jazz really need a facilitator.

  15. Danny

    Should the Jazz keep Millsap or Jefferson?

    • Mark Nugent

      I’m a pretty big fan of both, but I’d keep Jefferson because of his size. Jefferson can play the center, whereas Milsap is barely tall enough to be a power forward. I also think the Jazz could get more in trade for Milsap and both Favors and Kanter can play PF, while only Kanter has the body to one day play center.

  16. Zac

    what do you think the blazers will do for a center this season if oden doesnt come back fully healthy? will they let camby play out his cintract or try to move him for a younger center?

    • Mark Nugent

      I think they let Camby play and I think Aldridge will play more center now that Gerald Wallace is around full time. I think Wallace can play some four with Aldridge at the center. Those two on the court at the same time will be one of the most athletic front courts in the league.

  17. Zac

    who do you think is the best free agent that would fit well in portland and that portland could afford?

    • Mark Nugent

      Portland is pretty much capped out this offseason, so the only chance they will have of adding someone is if some salary cap exceptions make it into this new CBA. If the Mid-Level survives they could throw that at Carl Landry, who could help a lot. They really could use another big, whether it’s a PF or C, because they cannot rely on Oden to stay healthy, and Camby isn’t getting any younger.

  18. memo

    is this deal realistic? bulls send joakim, gibson and luol, for dwight howard? or what more would the bulls need to offer? pg and center are the most important spots why not have the best PG and Center in the league on the same team?

    • Mark Nugent

      Is the deal realistic? Do you mean is it realistic that the Magic will trade Howard? I would say it’s highly unlikely.

      Do you mean if the Magic do trade Howard will the Bulls get involved and is that the offer they would make? I would say they will get involved but it will all be very quiet and behind the scenes. The Bulls made it to the Eastern Conference Finals last year and they are not going to threaten their season by having trade speculation follow them around all year. The Bulls would likely, in my opinion, make an offer for Howard similar to what you offered, but I doubt it would be enough to get it done. Also, the Bulls won’t trade for Howard unless he agrees to an extension, and by all accounts he WANTS to go into free agency. He never got recruited by colleges because he jumped straight to the pros, and he wants his moment in the sun. So it is very doubtful the Bulls have any legit shot at landing Howard.

  19. Tbadfw

    Tony Parker, pick, and McDyess (for salary reasons only since he might retire) for Devin Harris and Paul Millsap?

    • Mark Nugent

      Not bad. not sure the Spurs will trade Parker since they’ve already traded George Hill, but that helps both teams I think.

  20. Tbadfw

    Who is a better PG prospect Marquis Teague or Myck Kabongo?

    • Mark Nugent

      I’m sorry, but I haven’t seen either player so I have no idea. Once the NCAA season starts I’ll have a much better idea, but right now I cannot even take a guess.

  21. Tbadfw

    Is Darren Collison the answer at the PG for Indiana or George Hill? If they lose out on David West would Paul Millsap be a nice fit between Granger and Hibbert?

    • Mark Nugent

      I think Collison is a starter and I believe HIll is more of a combo backup guard. I would stick with Collison.

      Milsap would be a good fit for just about every team in the league, but the Pacers aren’t looking to make trades, they are looking to add via free agency. They want to add to their team, not break up the pieces they already have. The only way I believe the Pacers could add Milsap is if the Jazz were willing to give him away for a draft pick and cap space.

  22. simon

    can the magic trade nelson arenas and bass for toronto’s barnigani and derozin

    • Mark Nugent

      Everything I have read and heard is that the Raps love DeRozan and aren’t interested in trading him. Any trade rumor I’ve seen about Bargnani usually involves a player that is of equal or higher stature than he is, which means the Raps value him very highly.

      Arenas is essentially un-tradeable right now, so any deal with Arenas isn’t going to happen. A deal involving just Nelson and Bargs makes sense to me, but I doubt either team views it that way.

  23. Bill

    Luc Mbah a Moute is a restricted free agent. He can lock down on defense yet is highly unrated. What type of yearly salary should Luc expect a GM to give him this offseason?

    • Mark Nugent

      If we go by the old CBA, I believe he should expect something around 5 million a season. Unfortunately for him, that might be a reach if the owners get most of what they are asking for during the current negotiations.

  24. Bill

    In Yannis’ latest article, he stated Andre Drummond’s potential ‘is as high as any center prospect to come along in the last five years.’ DeMarcus Cousins, Brook Lopez, Joakim Noah, Greg Oden. How does Andre rank for you?

    • Mark Nugent

      Oden as a prospect was a once in a generation talent. He was picked over Kevin Durant for a reason. His athleticism and size at such a young age is and will always be an extremely rare thing. I don’t think anyone in the last five years matches up with Oden.

      After Oden however, I would say Drummond is absolutely second. Cousins had question marks back in high school and the others just don’t have the talent or upside as Drummond. This year’s draft could be very interesting, because it’s possible Drummond isn’t even the first pick in 2012.

  25. Andrew

    Which team would be the likely suitors to trade for Monta Ellis? And who’d they give up to get him?

    • Mark Nugent

      Any team that needs a SG would love to have him. The past rumors have included teams like the Bulls, 76ers, and Clippers. With GS most likely asking for a big man in return. However, the Warriors have gone on record saying they intend to keep Ellis.

  26. bob

    nelson anderson and bass for kaman and gordan and gomes

    • Mark Nugent

      The Clippers are not trading Gordon for a package around Nelson. That’s not even close.