The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel is reporting on a possible three-way trade between the Bucks, Cleveland and Oklahoma City.
Now I know, I know.. during the off-season you have to take trade rumors with more than a couple grains of salt. But come on now…if it weren’t for this I was going to talk about how great the Latvia/Brazil women’s basketball from last night was. (It really was…back and forth clutch shots….Anete Jekabsone is the truth….see…..see….look at me). You have to factor in that there has been next to no news as of late…and I have to at least mention it. Even if it blows up in 2 hours and I have to post the ‘UPDATE: I’m an idiot’. It’s still something to talk about.
To the trade, the proposed deal has Mo Williams going to Cleveland, Luke Ridnour going to Milwaukee and OKC getting either Delonte West or Joe Smith.
If it goes through I’d like this trade a lot for Cleveland. Mo Williams is not a traditional PG by any means, but when you have a star like LeBron you can get away with it. Also as we all know, Cleveland desperately needs someone else on that team who can score on his own. One thing Mo Williams can do is score. 17+ PPG the last two years with 6+ assists. That equals instant help for the Cavs.
Ridnour to Milwaukee….well it would definitely be good for Ridnour. Last year he battled injuries and then managed to find his way so deep in PJ Carlesimo’s doghouse that he actually lived under it. With Westbrook on board he would probably be the first squeezed out of the rotation because of PJ’s obsession with defense. He’d much rather watch Earl Watson (who I still can’t believe had a triple-double) run around and make terrible decisions than Luke. Ok, rant over. I do wonder how Ridnour and Scott Skiles would mesh. He’s much more a traditional PG than Williams. Also he has some similarities to Kirk Hinrich….in the fact that he’s white. He’s definitely not a defensive player by any means and Scott Skiles loves him some defense. If he could get over that it would be a good move for an evolving Bucks team. Ridnour does have skills.
OKC….wait didn’t they just trade away Delonte West for nothing? Either way it seems like they are getting slightly jobbed to me. Yes they would rid themselves of a potential unhappy player in Ridnour…but you’re either adding another PG to the formula (one who also struggled to get consistent PT from PJ last year as well) or you’re adding Joe Smith. And to paraphrase Bill Walton, if you’re adding Joe Smith to your team, disaster is soon to follow.
Of course this entire trade could self-destruct anytime now which would make a part of me die on the inside. I’d blame PJ…he’s just bad at life.
UPDATE: Knew this was coming. On their NBA Rumors page, ESPN is reporting that the deal has stalled. The exact verbage:
“Sources now say that Cleveland is balking at taking on Williams’ contract. OKC and Milwaukee are ready to do the deal. The trade is not dead, but I’m told as of right now it has stalled.”
Really Cleveland? You’ll take on Ben Wallace’s dead body…I mean contract but won’t make a move that could push you over the edge? Classic Danny Ferry.