the official Dwayne Wade <<<<<< you thread

Yeah, really doesn't make sense. They get a defender that's all, and improve their second unit.

Grizz players obviously don't like it http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/1/30/3934448/rudy-gay-trade-tony-allen-mike-conley-reaction/in/3619169

Calderon to Detroit is intriguing. They actually get a true PG. P&R with Drummond should be fun to watch. Idk what they'll do with Knight. Bring him off the bench or move him to the 2.

And they got out of Princes deal which I think has 2 more years @ 7m after this year.

edit: And this needed to be posted

Woooo Rudy Gay, now all we got to do is trade Bargnani for a PF and our lineup should be solid. Lowry, DeRozan, Gay, Johnson, Val looks great.

I hope Calderon does well wherever he ends up, true professional for all of his time here, and always put the team first. He would have been great on a contender.

Ed Davis has been a surprise this year. Last year he was an absolute scrub, but he put on a load of weight and has become a rebounding monster. Loads of potential in the kid.

Toronto kept their 2 best prospects too. If Ross and Val progress well they have a 4-6th seed playoff team in a couple seasons.

They got Rudy at his lowest value. 2 years ago I believe the 5th overall pick was offered for him.

If it doesn't work out though they will be handcuffed. But the alternative was tank next season and try to get Wiggins/Brave Scotty Parker, which they would have played themselves out of anyway, with or without RG. And in Free Agency it's unlikely they would have gotten a better player.

Also if they are in the lotto this year they have to give up their pick IIRC, and the FO wants to avoid that happening.

I do have to wonder if DeRozan is getting traded away. He does his best work off the ball - but at the same time it would be better if he were a shooter rather than a cutter.

They might get decent value for him. Maybe a pick if someone's generous.

DeRozan got extended earlier in the year for 4 more years. Would be pretty hard to move.

I just realized the Celtics gave Green the same money DeRozan got

Toronto should now try:

Ross, filler and a pick to ATL
J Smoove to Toronto
Bargnani to 3rd team

Lowry
DeRozan
Gay
Smith
Valanciunas

Rudy Gay is a Raptor, I cant believe it I knew it would happen but wow.

I will go to the next game for sure.

If I was a Memphis fan....I'd be pretty choked. Condolences.

For some reason, every forum or site I go on people are praising this move for the Grizz and laughing at the Raptors. Confused as hell as to what all these people think thinking.

Prince is almost finish and Ed Davis, from the little I have seen, is merely a decent big man..who in the end will be a back up.

I get people think Gay is overpaid, but that doesnt mean any old guy is better than him.

I dunno, maybe im missing something.

I dunno why they'd be laughing at the Raps, but the Grizz I think the jury is out on. They believe in Z-Bo and Gasol , we'll see how it works out. I don't think they thought they were getting their money's worth out of Rudy, they had him and it just wasn't feasible to use him the way he's supposed to be used. On his contract I can see why they'd look to get away from that.

Because Rudy's overpaid and shooting career lows, all of a sudden he's average. The Grizz have no real perimeter shooting now; Conley that's basically it. Ellington gone, Rudy gone, Mayo gone.

Sometimes you have to overpay players to be a contender, especially when you're not going to find an equal or better player on a cheaper contract.

They are the frecking Grizzlies...this is what people are missing.

Do you think they are ever going to have a team this good again, like ever?

For god sake pay the luxury tax for one frecking season or whatever, you are a contender, if you cant break through with this group then fair enough but your not even giving it a chance.

If I was a fan I would be outraged, actually im already outraged, if your not committed to winning, whats the point?

I'm indifferent about this trade, Rudy is a good player but not the superstar I think the Raptors need..

Well tbh, they last time they had a player better than Gay, it was Vince Carter which feels like a decade ago. And they only got him because they drafted him.

The Raptors will always struggle to get superstars.

I have a trade idea.

If OKC dont win in the playoffs this year, they will want to make some minor changes I imagine.

What do you guys think about Perkins and the Toronto pick/Lamb for Anderson Varejao?

Varejao seems to be cursed with injuries, so thats a worry...but, his rebounding and scoring ability around the basket is way superior to Perk and has comparable post defence.

Of course all this is based on Varejao coming back and OKC not winning.

The Franchise wrote:Well tbh, they last time they had a player better than Gay, it was Vince Carter which feels like a decade ago. And they only got him because they drafted him.

The Raptors will always struggle to get superstars.

True, I think Gay will be a All-start with Toronto. Best place for him to make a better carrier. We dont have a superstar bunch average players and Gay is the right player to lead us to playoffs next season.

Funny thing is... the Raps could've just drafted Rudy in 06 instead they took Bargs.

Looking back that draft was pathetic. One of the worst in recent memory. Of the top 20 picks about 4 are above average and still in the league.

The Franchise wrote:I have a trade idea.

If OKC dont win in the playoffs this year, they will want to make some minor changes I imagine.

What do you guys think about Perkins and the Toronto pick/Lamb for Anderson Varejao?

Varejao seems to be cursed with injuries, so thats a worry...but, his rebounding and scoring ability around the basket is way superior to Perk and has comparable post defence.

Of course all this is based on Varejao coming back and OKC not winning.

They need a post presence but at the same time I would be real hesitant to give up Lamb. I guess it depends what happens with Martin. He said he wants to come back to OKC with a reduced contract, but if I was GM I'd tell him to kick rocks. It's only D-League and doesn't mean much unless you're struggling there, but Lamb has been going off w/ about 30 ppg on 60+% shooting.

Depends where that Toronto pick ends up but if they can get Varejao with that pick and Perkins, I like it. If Toronto misses the playoffs though, which is how it's looking, OKC could look into drafting a post player in the lotto.

Rudy Gay was gracious toward the Memphis Grizzlies following his trade to the Toronto Raptors, but was surprised not to hear directly from anyone within the front office.

"I guess its time to move on," Gay said. "To my teammates and fans, thank you."

Gay didn't receive a phone call from CEO Jason Levien, or any of the new members of the management team.

“I can’t even get a phone call?”

Gay had been with the Grizzlies since his rookie season in 06-07.

“It was good. I can’t really complain about what happened when I was here. I was happy to see the team progress.”

Gay was not described as sounding angry during the conversation.

John Hollinger is a lame and so is that new owner. They're like some spoiled kid getting a new toy and they have to immediately start messing with it. "Lets see what happens when we do this..."

dmize wrote:

The Franchise wrote:I have a trade idea.

If OKC dont win in the playoffs this year, they will want to make some minor changes I imagine.

What do you guys think about Perkins and the Toronto pick/Lamb for Anderson Varejao?

Varejao seems to be cursed with injuries, so thats a worry...but, his rebounding and scoring ability around the basket is way superior to Perk and has comparable post defence.

Of course all this is based on Varejao coming back and OKC not winning.

They need a post presence but at the same time I would be real hesitant to give up Lamb. I guess it depends what happens with Martin. He said he wants to come back to OKC with a reduced contract, but if I was GM I'd tell him to kick rocks. It's only D-League and doesn't mean much unless you're struggling there, but Lamb has been going off w/ about 30 ppg on 60+% shooting.

Depends where that Toronto pick ends up but if they can get Varejao with that pick and Perkins, I like it. If Toronto misses the playoffs though, which is how it's looking, OKC could look into drafting a post player in the lotto.

True. I think it depends how Martins does in the playoffs I think.

I mean Harden came up small, Martin has a much more simply role..catch and shoot, catch and drive and do your best not to get torched on defence. If he does all that at a high clip in the playoffs and OKC win, then im sure they bring him back on a 2 year 15m type deal.

I like Lamb, I liked him in Houston even though he didnt get a chance, but what I saw and heard I liked..he like Martin is skinny as hell, dont know who he can gaurd. And I doubt he can get to the line like Martin does either so its tough.

Anyway, it depends on how the playoffs go but I think they might be open to it and the Cavs arent ready to compete right now so moving Varejao for young peices might be a good idea.

Agree about useless per man and the front office...not even a phone call? Da fuq out man.

The Franchise wrote:Well tbh, they last time they had a player better than Gay, it was Vince Carter which feels like a decade ago. And they only got him because they drafted him.

The Raptors will always struggle to get superstars.

Yeah the Raps are a shit franchise but Toronto is one of the top cities in North America for sure..

They should change the jerseys and/or colors, get some stage lighting.. Things like that to get people excited again IMO.. The ACC isn't great as it is

They gotta start improving their draft picks also

Lol @ the Grizz getting rocked by OKC

1-9 from 3 already. That'll be their story for the rest of the year. If I was a coach I'd probably even throw a zone at them

Also, as of right now Lamb's probably not a great NBA defender, but he's got potential to be as good as any SG in the draft defensively. 7 foot wingspan is longer than Martin even though he's 2 inches shorter. And he knows how to use his length in passing lanes, just a matter of getting experience defending NBA 2's. He's on OKCs bench tonight, would be nice if they played him before Liggins.

Didnt know he had that wingspan, good point.

I didnt see the game but on NBA TNT they showed Westbrook having a cry because he got taken out the game for not passing to the open man in the double team.

Start going crazy, having a tantrum.

As I said, this guy is the obstacle in their way. Bigger problem than Miami.

Yep, this time it was with Sefalosha.

His interview with Craig Sager after the game had me laughing

The one on TNT is too funny. Shaq mocking him, Barkley saying he upset because he was what he was wearing

But in all seriousness, Kenny made a good point in that, now guys for the next 2-3 days aint going to be able to talk to you the same way, which hurts overall moral. I am sure most of us played team sports before...if a guy blows up like that, gets mad at whoever, nobody is going to go make jokes with him like they might do before, they are walking on egg shells round that guy for a couple days.

I dont understand him, I really dont..who gets upset 25 points in the lead over such a thing? I mean, what would it take to make anyone that angry in such a position?

I now understand in fact it wasnt Sef who moaned about not getting the easy pass (which he would be right to) but in fact it was Westbrook who complained about Sef cutting and bringing another defender his way.

He's very dislikeable, I dont know why Le Sam likes him, but yeah, I cant stand the guy's attitude and I dont care for his game too much either.

Rank these duo's.

Shaq/Frobe
Wade/Lebron
Pippen/Jordan
Magic/Kareem
Bird/McHale
Stockton/Malone
Payton/Kemp
Westbrook/Durant

Celtics were definitely a trio, can't forget Parish imo.

As far as pure duo, I've always had a soft spot for Stockton/Malone.