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You are here: Home / Archives for Outside the 'Plex

My NBA Trade Grades

February 24, 2011 by Jamie Plunkett • Permalink

The NBA Trade Deadline passed today at 3pm Eastern/ 2pm Central, so now it’s time to grade some of the more meaningful moves that were made:

1. Memphis Trades Hasheem Thabeet and 1st round pick to Houston for Shane Battier and Ish Smith.

Memphis (B): Essentially, the Grizzlies traded a failed draft pick and a future pick for the chance to make the playoffs this year. I think it’s a smart move, because the Grizzlies need a body that can help them out on D. Battier fits that mold. He’s strong on defense and can rebound.

Houston (C-): I understand what Houston was trying to do here. They clear up cap room and get a draft pick that could end up in the middle of the 1st round or a little higher. They also have someone to fill the void at center, and by fill the void I mean Thabeet can at least go stand on the court. He had the best opportunity to start and make an impact with Memphis and he fell flat. Really flat. Until he proves he can contribute, Houston doesn’t get the benefit of the doubt.

2. Houston trades Aaron Brooks to Phoenix for Goran Dragic and a 1st round pick.

Houston (B): Houston gets a solid backup in Dragic, and another first round pick. The future could be pretty bright for the Rockets if they cash in on these picks.

Phoenix (C+): Phoenix gets a good guard in Brooks, who can start learning immediately from proven veteran Steve Nash. I think they gave up too much to get him though, but I guess Houston wouldn’t have sprung for a 2nd round pick.

3. Atlanta trades Mike Bibby, Jordan Crawford, Maurice Evans and a 1st round pick to Washington for Kirk Hinrich and Hilton Armstrong.

Atlanta (B+): By swapping Hinrich for Bibby the Hawks are getting younger and more productive. They had to give up a promising rookie in Jordan Crawford, but they also get a young, athletic center in Armstrong who may just breakout in a new environment. I like the idea of Hinrich running with Joe Johnson and Josh Smith. That just turned into a scary offense with the ability to run up and down the court.

Washington (B+): I like the idea of Mike Bibby coming into this offense, because he will have the opportunity to become a mentor to John Wall. He’ll also be able to provide leadership to a team that has been lost for most of the season. Washington also gets a young guard that can prosper off of playing with Wall in Crawford, giving the Wizards a young duo that could contribute a lot in the future.

4. Sacramento trades Carl Landry to New Orleans for Marcus Thornton and cash considerations.

Sacramento (B+): Sacramento clears a lot of cap room with this trade, and they get younger. Thornton can give Tyreke Evans a few minutes off every night.

New Orleans (C): Carl Landry will help the Hornets, but I don’t understand how the NBA can approve this trade. I have to side with Mark Cuban on this one, I don’t get how a broke team that’s owned by the league is allowed to take on more money and give cash away in a trade. Doesn’t make sense.

5. Oklahoma City trades Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic to Boston for Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson.

Oklahoma City (A): Oklahoma City just became a big threat in the Western Conference. Nate Robinson will be a great backup for Brian Westbrook, and Kendrick Perkins will make a huge difference down low. I know Perkins is having some knee trouble, but I don’t think it’s very severe.

Boston (B-): The Celtics got a good replacement for Marquis Daniels (out for the year) in Jeff Green, and they get a capable backup for Kevin Garnett in Krstic. However I definitely think Krstic is a step down from Perkins

6. L.A. Clippers trade Baron Davis to Cleveland for Mo Williams and Jamario Moon.

L.A. Clippers (B): The Clippers create a lot of cap room by shipping off Davis, and they get a capable guard in Williams and an electric wingman in Moon. Williams knows how to play with a superstar like Blake Griffin, and all he’ll really need to do is get Blake the ball.

Cleveland (C-): Cleveland gets an older player to go along with a large contract. They also get an attitude that will likely be unhappy going to a team with 10 wins. Don’t expect Baron Davis to skip and smile all the way to the Cleveland. I expect a lot of resistance and bitterness from him.

7. Utah trades Deron Williams to New Jersey for Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, two 1st round picks and $3 Million.

Utah (A): Apparently Williams was shocked when this trade went through, but he shouldn’t have been. He helped the longest tenured coach in the NBA walk out in the middle of the season, and had started to really wear out his welcome. Meanwhile, the Jazz get a good point guard in Harris, along with a young, incredibly promising power forward in Favors. They also managed to squeeze two 1st round picks and 3 million bucks out of the Nets, who looked really desperate to get a deal done after losing out on ‘Melo.

New Jersey (D): This is a huge waste of assets and money for the Nets. Now they have to prove to Williams that he can win in New Jersey (good luck with that) or he walks when his contract is up. If that happens the Nets are left with Brook Lopez and Sasha Vujacic. Whoopee.

8. Denver trade Carmelo Anthony, Chauncy Billups, Anthony Carter, Shelden Williams and Renaldo Balkman to New York for Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mosgov and 3 1st round picks. Minnesota sends Corey Brewer to Denver and recieves Eddy Curry and Anthony Randolph from New York.

Denver (B+): Yes, Denver lost arguably their two best assets, but they got a TON in return. If they can convince Gallinari and Felton to stay once their contracts are up, they can use those three picks to build a team that can continue to contend at the same level as they have been with Anthony.

New York (A): They won the ‘Melo lottery. Sure they gave up a lot, but now they have a draw for players like Chris Paul who has said that he’d like to play in New York. This is a long haul victory for the Knicks.

Minnesota (B): Minnesota had to get involved for logistics, and they ended up getting two players for one. Brewer had been underachieving with the T-Wolves, never quite living up to his potential. Now it looks like the Wolves will buy out Curry, opening up some cap space to bring in a wingman to help out Kevin Love. Hey who knows, maybe Ricky Rubio will have second thoughts and want to come play too…

Melo to the Lakers? Are you Kidding?

February 9, 2011 by Jamie Plunkett • Permalink

Earlier this week reports surface that The Denver Nuggets were in discussion with the Los Angeles Lakers to trade Carmelo Anthony to the reigning champs. Two thoughts come to mind almost immediately.

1. If this happens, every other superstar in the Western Conference should just retire, because the Lakers would win every championship for the next decade.

2. If this happens, every fan of another Western Conference team should drive to Denver and punch the Nuggets GM in the face, one by one, until he gets the point.

Are you kidding me? What the hell are the Nuggets thinking??

It’s like one of my friends put it, “The Nuggets, with Melo as their best player, couldn’t beat the Lakers. So their next move is to trade him to them?”

I wonder if this is how the conversation between the two GM’s went.

Lakers GM: “Hey! Want to give me your best player and ensure that your team not only falls out of playoff contention this year, but is guaranteed not to win a championship for the next ten?”

Nuggets GM: “Hmmm I dunno, the Knicks really want him, and then he’d be in the Eastern Conference so he wouldn’t hurt us as much that way.”

Lakers GM: “C’mooonnnnn”

Nuggets GM: “Uhm, I’m still not sure”

Lakers GM: “We’ll give you an injury prone center and an over-aggressive, under performing small forward!”

Nuggets GM: “You’ve got a deal!!”

This would be the most ridiculous trade since Memphis sending Pao Gasol to LA for the rights to his younger brother. Boo.

This isn’t exactly what the Cowboys had in mind…

January 24, 2011 by Jamie Plunkett • Permalink

The Dallas Cowboys’ worst nightmare has come true.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers are coming to Dallas to play in the Super Bowl.

This was supposed to be our season. The Cowboys weren’t only supposed to be the first team in NFL history to play for the Super Bowl on their home field, they were supposed to be the first to win.

Instead two of Dallas’ longest, most-hated rivals are coming to our city for a chance to expand on their legacy. There are three teams that could make this worse than it is, and even then one can’t be sure. That would be all three of the Cowboys’ division rivals, the Giants, Eagles and Redskins.

However it is fans of the Steelers and the Packers that will not-so-gracefully descend upon the Metroplex, and we can bet that they will take every opportunity to rub it in our noses that it is their boys, and not ours in the championship game.

That being said, let’s look at the matchup.

Right out of the gate the Packers are a 2 and 1/2 point favorite, which strikes me as odd. I’m not one to question Vegas, but personally I think the team with the two-time champion quarterback, to go with one of the best defenses in the league is the favorite to win the game.

Ben Roethlisberger has been there twice before, and twice before he’s won. You can’t deny the edge that gives the Steelers in this game.

His performance in ’05 against Seattle wasn’t the greatest, and he didn’t even throw the touchdown that put the game away (that was Antwaan Randle El, on a trick play to Hines Ward), but he was in his second year in the league at the time.

In 2008 he was much, much better. He threw for 256 yards and the game winning touchdown to Santonio Holmes with 35 seconds left on the clock.

Meanwhile this year boasted Aaron Rodgers’ first, second and third playoff wins, all on the road. He’s good, don’t get me wrong, but who knows how he will react on the biggest stage of them all. And even if he does show up, will the Packers defense be able to contain Roethlisberger?

I don’t think so.

Instead I see the game going like this:

1st Quarter:

Both teams get off to a slow start, and the Steelers mounting a drive to score in the waning minutes of the quarter to go up 7-0. The Packers hit back, but can’t get the touchdown and have to settle for 3.

End of 1st: Steelers 7, Packers 3

2nd Quarter:

Roethlisberger and Rodgers both start to heat up, and the defenses struggle to contain the dynamic quarterbacks. The difference? Pittsburgh is getting touchdowns while the Pack is getting mainly field goals.

End of 2nd: Steelers 21, Packers 16

3rd Quarter:

Big Ben makes his one mistake of the game, throwing a pick and giving the Packers good field position. Green Bay capitalizes and takes the lead, only to watch the Steelers march right back down the field and take it back with a Suisham field goal.

End of 3rd: Steelers 24, Packers 23

4th Quarter:

Big Ben proves that he’s one of the best in the game, and after the new Steel Curtain holds against a long Packers drive, he marches down the field to put the game away with a scramble to paydirt.

Final: Steelers 31, Packers 23

So there you have it, Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers win Championship No. 7 on Dallas’ field, they go celebrate on the Star and I promptly go vomit.

The only thing left to discuss is how Roethlisberger matches up against the likes of the other two three ring quarterbacks, Troy Aikman and Tom Brady.

Ugh.

Quick Picks: NFL Championship Week

January 23, 2011 by Jamie Plunkett • Permalink

The NFC and AFC Championship games today both present incredibly interesting matchups, so let’s jump right it.

NFC Championship Game: Chicago Bears vs. Green Bay Packers

The Bears had an opportunity to keep the Pack out of the playoffs all together in the last week of the regular season and couldn’t make it happen. Now, they have a change to send their long time rival home empty handed. Jay Cutler’s first postseason start ended in victory, although not much can be take away from that game. Let’s be real, Seattle was terrible on the road all year long. Actually, they were just terrible everywhere for most of the season. Expect the Packers to get pressure pretty regularly on Cutler in an attempt to throw him off and get him to rush his decisions. If this happens the Bears will try to run with Matt Forte, giving Clay Matthews an opportunity to hit the gaps hard and stuff the run. I fully expect Aaron Rodgers to come out on fire, and if he does the Bears will be hard pressed to keep up on offense.

Final: Green Bay 28, Chicago 23

AFC Championship Game: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. New York Jets

The Jets have already beaten the Steelers in Pittsburgh once this year, but I don’t see it happening again. Why? Because Ben Roethlisberger is 4-1 against Rex Ryan defenses. He may be a sketchy character off the field, but on it, he’s as good as it gets.If Ben gets past the Jets today, he’s one win away from his third ring. Yeah, as many as Tom Brady.

Look for the Jets to minimize Mark Sanchez’s impact on this game by giving him easy passes, and favoring the run. With LT and Shonn Greene, the Jets can slow the game down and keep Ben off the field, but I still don’t think it matters.

As much as I want to see LT and Drew Coleman return to the TCU campus for Super Bowl week, I don’t see it happening.

Final: Pittsburgh 35, New York 20

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About Jamie

The site is owned and operated by Jamie Plunkett, a TCU graduate with a B.S. in advertising and public relations. In short, he’s a sports junkie. Born and raised in Dallas, he grew up following Dallas sports closely and passionately. He created the Dallas Sports Rant as an opportunity to unleash his sports knowledge and bias on the rest of the world. He also performs a pretty excellent karaoke version of Ice Ice Baby.

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