NBA Chat With Stephen Litel 2/28/12

Gery

how good of a fit would Garnett be in OKC uniform next year and what is the real possibility for that to happen? OKC really needs an inside scoring presence

Stephen Litel

Hi, everyone! Welcome to this week’s chat. I see a good amount of questions in the que, so I’m going to jump right in. If I don’t get to yours, hit me up on Twitter @stephenlitel.

Hi Gery,

There could be some benefit to Garnett in OKC, but I don’t see it happening. First of all, there haven’t been any sort of discussions regarding that and I believe the Thunder would rather stay with their young and always-improving roster than add an end-of-his-career Garnett.

John Connor

Your thoughts on DWades foul on Kobe? Surely not within the spirit of the All Star game, especially since it happened early on in the game well before things got serious. Another reason for us all to hate the Heat.

Stephen Litel

Hi John,

I do think it was slightly above and beyond what is needed in an All-Star game, especially if it’s going to cause any lasting issues for Kobe and the Lakers. However, I don’t believe it was Wade’s intent to hurt Kobe in any way…just trying to give a hard foul.

John Connor

Why is D Rose being criticised for not dancing like a moron like Bron and the other Eastern starters did?

Stephen Litel

I think anyone criticizing Rose is silly and, well, doesn’t know the man well. Rose is a very mature young man and even in an atmosphere like All-Star, he is hesitant to “let loose” in any way. That is his choice and I have no issues with him at all.

Aristotle

Hey Stephen,

If Seattle do end up getting a team… which of the NBA teams do you see being relocated to Seattle?

Stephen Litel

Hi Aristotle,

Your guess is as good as mine…the criteria is pretty simple…teams that have a history of not doing well on the court, as well as not having great attendance at their games. You tell me which teams you think make that list.

Jazzfan

What are your thoughts on the dunk contest? as a Jazz fan I was excited to see Jeremy Evans win and I thought his two ball dunk over Gordon Hayward was the best of the night and loved his tribute to Karl Malone, although if Derrick Williams had been able to stick his last dunk he would’ve had my vote as winner, overall I wasnt impressed with the contest but at the same time what can really be done to make it better? people say props are ruining it but without the props there are maybe a handful of dunks that havent already been done a million times you know?

Stephen Litel

Hi Jazzfan,

I bet you were glad for Evans to win and the Karl Malone tribute. While I was, of course, pulling for Derrick Williams to find a way to pull out the win, on that night Evan was the best dunker and deserved the win. The two-ball dunk was great.

What can be done to make it better is the same answer you’ll get anywhere else…up the prize and get the big names into the contest. Period.

Shree Hari

Respected Sir,
I am going to breakdown the way of Lakers signing both Deron Williams and Dwight Howard as Free agents. As currently constituted the Lakers payroll is at 87 million dollars which is 17 millions over the luxary tax. So here are the steps involved to bring us under the cap and sign both D-12 and D-will as free agents and Pair them alongside Kobe Bryant.

1. Trade Pau gasol for Kevin Garnetts Expiring Contract. Pau makes 19 million and Garnett makes 21 million.
We all know that Danny Ainge loves pau so he would jump at the chance of getting Pau without giving up Rondo.

2. Andrew bynum has a Team Option next year which is worth roughly 15 million. Do not pick up the team option.

3. Amnesty Metta World Peace who makes 7 million dollars

4. Matt Barnes makes 2 million and is an expiring contract. Dont offer him any extensions.

5. Troy Murphy and Kopono both make roughly 1 million each and are expiring contracts.
Dont offer them any extensions.

6. Derek fisher has a player option for next season which is worth 3.5 million .Give him a job in the sidelines with the lakers and convince him not to take the player option.

7. Devin ebanks, Darius Morris and Andrew goudelock are all restricted free agents by the end of the year. So dont make
any qualifying offers for them.

8. So now the team only consists of Kobe, Steve Blake, Walton and Mc roberts who are rougly owed 38 million dollars.

9. So now we have 32 million dollars in cap space to spend. Now we can offer both D-will and Dwight 16 Million dollars each
which is less than a max contract similar to what Miami did to both Bosh and Lebron. This is the most likely Scenario.

10. Now In a bit of a stretch we can also send one or both of mc roberts or blake to another teams trade exeption and also hope
that Luke Walton retires due to his persistant back problems. If this happens then lakers will have only kobe and will have roughly 40 million dollars in cap space. Now we can offer Both Dwight Howard and Deron Williams Max Contracts.

11. Now the Lakers can have have their own Big three of Kobe , D-12 and D-will which will be unstoppable and will win
multiple Championships.

Thank You.

Yours faithfully,

Shree Hari.

Stephen Litel

Well, there you have it, everyone…the blueprint is in place…

Drew

Two trade ideas?

LA- Scola,Beaz, JJ Barea and one or both of the 1sts Minny has from Utah and Memphis
Houston- Gasol
Minny- KMartin

Or

Port gets Beaz,Randolph and either Luke or JJ Plus 1st or2 from minny (via Memphis or Utah)
Minny gets W matthews and GWallace

Either deal realistic and if so which one do you take?

Stephen Litel

First one, Minnesota is giving up way too much just to land Kevin Martin, even if their biggest need is a SG. Also, Houston is giving up a lot just to land Gasol. Pass on that one.

Second one, I’d think about it if I were the Timberwolves…but really don’t see why Portland would want to do it.

Matt

So the big question for the Nets has been how do we get Howard. But what if they don’t? Shouldn’t the question be, what the heck do we do if we don’t land him? Just let Williams walk? At what point do they consider trading Williams so they do not lose him for nothing?

Stephen Litel

Hi Matt,

If the Nets DON’T land Dwight, they’re going to continue to be the Nets. A team on the outside looking in for a long time.

Matt

What is so repelling about the dunk contest for the top players? They participate in every other All Star Weekend event, but its like the dunk contest is covered in poo or something. Wondering if you have any insight into why the top players seem to dismiss it?

Stephen Litel

I’ll flip the question on you, Matt…what’s the draw for them? Even if the top names are in the arena for All-Star weekend, they also utilize the time to rest. For the sake of argument, how dumb would the NBA feel if LeBron was in the contest, went up for a dunk, something went wrong and he broke an ankle?

Make the prize worth their time and they’ll start competing.

Ken

hearing the TWOLVES are on the verge of a major trade. Name I’m hearing is M Ellis. Any legs to this?

Stephen Litel

Hi Ken,

I’ve heard nothing of recent discussions between the teams, only the pre-season chats that involved Ellis. The Wolves were right to pull out of that discussion, as it would’ve been Beasley, Pekovic and the #2 pick going to GS for Ellis. Pass on that.

FocusLJA

There is not one Bobcat outside of Kemba Walker and Biyombo worth keeping. If the right offers came along, do you think everybody? Even if that means thCHA should move any and ey have to use 10-day contracts to fill the roster?

Stephen Litel

I’d even question if Biyombo is worth keeping…

Michael Jordan HAS to have more pride than this, right?

Urban Sports Scene

Is the combo of Durant and Westbrook the best in the NBA?

Stephen Litel

No, they aren’t, but they could be. For now, I’ll stick with Wade and James.

Jerry

Magic Johnson said that Pat Riley was about to make a roster move to solidify a ring. Do you have any idea for who? (I’m guessing a center)

Stephen Litel

What else could they possibly do to improve their team?

J Christon

Stephen, would it make since for the Magic to just hold on to Howard and make a playoff run …. where he just might change his mind about staying ? ( of course trying to add a piece or two prior to the trade deadline to improve their team wouldn’t hurt) If all fails, they can sign and trade him after the season for maybe better assets ?? I know its a gamble, but I find it hard to believe that Howard would forfeit an additional 24 to 30 million by just walking.

Stephen Litel

That’s an incredibly big gamble to take. Howard isn’t really walking away from any money because of the endorsement money he’d make in a bigger market. If the Magic want ANYTHING in return for Howard, they better not take the gamble.

Charlie

The dunk contest was a little stale this year, as the NBA has difficulty getting “name” players to participate. My solution: turn it into the “Million Dollar Dunk Contest.” Winner gets a million cash meaning the NBA can attract high level, all-star type players to actually compete. And 1 million is not really that big in relation to the buzz it will generate for the NBA and All-Star Weekend. Agree or Disagree with this proposal?

Stephen Litel

Agree…and have said the same thing for a long time. Now, finding the sponsor to put up the money…

Sweet Dee

Who would you rather start a team with: 1rst year Tim Duncan out of Wake Forest, 1rst year Shaquille O’Neal out of LSU, or 1rst year Hakeem Olajuwon out of Houston.

Stephen Litel

THESE are the questions I enjoy the most, everyone. Great question, Sweet Dee…

While these three options are pretty difficult to select from, I will go with Akeem (as he was named coming out of college) Olajuwon when coming out of Houston. Yes, Duncan and O’Neal could play both ends of the court, but Olajuwon was just amazing at both ends.

JP

Questions:
A-Who is the ideal SG for Minnesota? Can he be had and how?
B-Regarding some rumors what would it be a fair deal for OJ Mayo without giving any cornerstone?

Stephen Litel

Hi JP,

An ideal SG for Minnesota is someone, anyone who can consistently hit an outside shot off an assist from Rubio and who can create off the dribble at times, driving to the hoop. There are many options out there, but the two who come up the most are OJ Mayo and Kevin Martin. I believe either of these would be a great fit in Minnesota.

Any Mayo rumors seem to indicate the Grizzlies want a first round pick and a player. The Timberwolves may consider that if the player is Michael Beasley or Wes Johnson, but no way Memphis goes for that.

Cricket

In my opinion, the Toronto Raptors are purposefully tanking games for a better draft position. They do this subtly by playing guys that shouldn’t be on the court in key situations. For example, Toronto is only down 2-3 points with 3 minutes to go in the game against the Spurs last week. And who was in the game taking the shot on a key possession? Anthony Carter. I am no NBA coach, but it is difficult to argue Anthony is one of the Raps top 5 players and deserved to be in the game (especially considering PG Jose Calderon was on the court). Agree or Disagree?

Stephen Litel

Hi Cricket,

I’m not even going to touch the portion of your question regarding the Raptors tanking games, as it’s too difficult to believe. I will, however, say that it isn’t hard for the Raptors to lose games with the overall lack of talent or a cohesive team that makes up their roster. They have a few good pieces, but a long way to go to be competitive each and every night.

Alex

if the nets are interested in Beas, why not just trade Beas for A. Morrow and Petro ( who I assume they’d like to give up to free cap space a year early, but that is just the hit we take in acquiring Morrow).

If need be throw in one of our second round picks (if the Nets insists and are smart greedy management folks)

And just like that we have a two guard who can shoot!

Besides it is not like the nets need Morrow, all he does is take up time for Marshon Brooks (who we should have drafted) to develop, and they don’t have a SF, and Beas can be that for them.

Also according to ‘those other’ guys machine the deal works.

Stephen Litel

That’s all well and good, Alex…but who says the Nets have any interest in Beasley at all? That is the flaw in the thought.

Joshua Cody Schimmel

Is there any logic behind starting Wes Johnson? I understand players have slumps but were almost forty games in still no production.

Stephen Litel

The only thing I can figure at this point is the Wolves are trying to get something…anything…out of Wes so any other team is interested in him. Struggling on the court consistently is one thing, but not showing much concern over it is another…and the second part is the more troubling aspect.

@InfraRen

Heard today that the Wolves have inquired about Anthony Morrow. Also heard the Nets are interested in Michael Beasley. Any buzz on that? A swap could work great for Wolves.

Stephen Litel

Since you are now the second person bringing this up, I will start asking around about this and get back to you guys. I’m assuming the Nets would want a draft pick as well.

Cj

Do u think shopping Felton now, and cashing in, could lead to a deeper playoff push for the blazers?

Stephen Litel

Unless the Blazers find a way to turn Felton into someone like Rondo, I’m not sure how much better they could do than what they currently have. The Blazers don’t need to go this route.

Dane B

If you are the T-Wolves GM what move do you make at the deadline? And who do sign in the offseason?

Stephen Litel

As is the case with pretty much anyone who watches this team consistently, I’m doing everything I can to address the SG position. This is, obviously, the biggest area of need and I’m on the phones constantly trying to fix it.

Aron

Hi stephen, my question is why d12 and dwill want to play with the nets, yes they are young and have deep pockets but dallas can get both and have money along with dirk while still having a contending roster

Stephen Litel

Because the Nets are moving to Brooklyn and would have the opportunity to be THE big thing in the Big Apple. With all the endorsement opportunities in NYC, they would make money hand over fist OUTSIDE of their NBA money. It’s business…not basketball.

Bryan Thomas

What is the best trade package Boston can come up with in order to solidify that terrible rebounding, and make the push into the playoffs? Or do you think its time to start the rebuild, and if so, who to build it around?

Stephen Litel

It’s time to start the rebuild. Trade off the older pieces for what you can get…but the most difficult question is whether or not you truly believe Rondo is a player you build a franchise around? That debate is difficult.

Shabeer

Hey Stephen,
What do you make of the sources sayingthe Magic are trying to aggresively pursue a trade for Steve Nash? I can’t see what pieces orlando can offer that other clubs can’t. Also, do you think a sign-and-trade is the likeliest scenario for theDwight saga?

Stephen Litel

Nash would be fun in Orlando, but it doesn’t make them good enough to keep Dwight in town.

No, I think the Magic trade him before the deadline.

Tezz

Does it frustrate u and the writers in these chats about some of the RIDICULOUS trade scenarios that may match up on paper yet clearly are geared towards the fans team asking the wuestion? Reality people reality!!!!

Stephen Litel

You have no idea, Tezz…and I don’t even answer the most crazy ones. However, you have to appreciate the love for their team, no matter which team it is.

Brandon Brown

Will the Twolves make any moves before the trade deadline?

Stephen Litel

They’re sure as heck trying to address the SG position, as they should be. There are apparently a lot more things going on than even I was aware of before this chat began and I will continue to poke around. If/when I hear anything, I’ll let ya know.

Kyle

The Wolves are looking pretty good this year. We seem to look like an up and coming young team. But with the loss of next years draft pick, and the reluctancy most top tier free agents signing in MN. What is our future looking like? OKC built through the draft, and thats what Kahn has been trying to do here as well, but he’s missed on just about every pick besides Rubio. So what I’m really trying to ask here, does our window expire when Rubio’s rookie deal expires? Or is there a light at the end of this tunnel?

Stephen Litel

Great question, Kyle…

The Timberwolves have an opportunity to lure more free agents here through their reluctance if they keep progressing as a basketball team. Kevin Love just told me last week that he would be heavily involved in trying to recruit free agents here and now, as a two-time All-Star, his words have weight to them. Time expires when Kevin Love has the opportunity to walk…if he chooses to stay, the window remains open longer. It’s up to the Timberwolves to find a way to make him want to remain in Minny.

eddy

Brandon Roy wants to play ball again. Which team takes him?

Stephen Litel

Any team that would pay the bare minimum. Too risky to invest any more money in those knees than that.

Will

Do you think that when the Knicks and Heat play, that the Heat have the best three players on the court when the game starts? In my eyes Bosh > Stoudemire, Lebron > Lin + Chandler, Wade > Melo. I was having a discussion with a friend and I think that Bosh is underrated and Stoudemire is older and has much more wear and tear. I am a big heat fan but I was trying to be Objective here. I think anyone would trade the knicks player(s) on the right side of the “>” for the Heat player on the left. What do you think?

Stephen Litel

When the game starts, Miami has two of the best three players on the court. The other is Carmelo (when healthy.)

Cricket

As a general principle, size always gets drafted before skill – as teams are desperate for quality seven-footers. Question: how did Nikola Pekovic then fall to the second round (2008) in the age of pro teams spending millions on worldwide scouting?

Stephen Litel

I disagree with your original premise, but Pekovic wasn’t really expected to do well in the NBA for the most part. Most thought he’d be an average player, but nothing special. Kevin McHale saw something there that he thought he could work with and made a great call on the drafting of Pekovic. Now that Pek has put in some more work on his game, he’s really becoming vital to the Timberwolves…and McHale must REALLY want him in Houston.

Cricket

You just said the Toronto Raptors have a few good pieces. If you were the GM, which current players would make up the core to build around?

Stephen Litel

OK, everyone…last question this week…if I didn’t get to your question, hit me up on Twitter @stephenlitel…

Yes, I do think the Raptors have a few good young pieces in Bargs and DD, but the players that make up their core I build around, well, aren’t on the roster. They have second-tier talent at this time.

Great chat, everyone! Always love to see what you guys come up with for me! Enjoy the second half of the NBA season…it’s crunch time!