Empty the Bench

And just when we thought the deadline would slip by with nary one big, last-minute maneuver, boom goes the dynamite. And we were right — damn right– for taking the over on Hardwood Paroxysm’s over/under of 2.5 on number of total trades today. And we’re happy to welcome John from the Cleveland Cavaliers’ blog Fear The Sword, who has contributed his thoughts on “the big one” from a Cavs’ perspective — please be sure to read what he has to say after the jump.

The Headline Deal: Ben Wallace to Now Age in Cleveland

Cleveland Gets: C Ben Wallace, F/C Joe Smith, G Delonte West, F Wally Szczerbiak
Chicago Gets: G Larry Hughes, F Drew Gooden, G Shannon Brown, F Cedric Simmons
Seattle Gets: Expiring Contracts (F Ira Newble, F Donyell Marshall, G/F Adrian Griffin)

In almost completely retooling the top of their roster, the Cavs surround LeBron with two new perimeter threats and two new interior presences. The big name here is Big Ben Wallace, who is in the midst of a steep decline in productivity. He’s in single-digits for rebounds and under 2 blocks per game for the first time since 1999-00, when he was with Orlando. In addition to the stats trending downward, he’ll never be the man-defender that he was in Detroit, but Wallace still has a little left in the tank. He can get after loose balls, rebound and play some solid help defense. And maybe leaving that trainwreck in Chicago will rekindle his hard-working spirit.

I think Ben pairs well with the smooth jump-shooting game of Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Big Z is a scoring center who is below average in other facets of the game, while Ben can’t score but does the other things well. At the very least, these two should provide a competent interior for LeBron that can handle most Eastern Conference frontcourts. Joe Smith will be the first one off the bench now, and he’s a hybrid of these two. Not a great defender or rebounder, but not atrocious either. Not a great scorer, but capable of 20-point games here and there. He’s a vet with limited upside who should be steady off the bench.

The Cavs have been starved for a real point guard for years, and now the Larry Hughes-as-point experiment mercifully comes to an end. His 2.4/1.8 assist-to-turnover ratio was eye-gougingly bad. Initial reports had Chris Duhon going to Cleveland, which made a lot of sense since he’s a pure point who plays solid defense, doesn’t shoot a lot and can knock down outside shots. Instead they got Delonte West, a guy with less experience and more upside. And while he isn’t a pure point either, he’s a step in the right direction. Delonte is much more comfortable running an offense, taking care of the ball and being unselfish. West is an ETB guy: we like his toughness, defense and productivity. It was just two years ago in Boston that West posted the impressive line of 12 points, 4.6 assists, 4.1 rebounds, 1.2 steals, 1.2 threes, 0.7 blocks and just 1.9 TOs on 48.7% FGs and 85.2% FTs. That’s what you call a clean, efficient line. If he can reproduce or even improve upon that, Cleveland’s offense will run much more smoothly and LeBron will be freed up to attack the basket more.

The other piece headed to Cleveland is local basketball hero Wally Szczerbiak, a proven outside threat. Like West, Wally is an efficient scorer who won’t pound the rock, but will knock down the open jumpers as they come. He’s struggled with health and poor teammates in recent seasons, but Wally World was an All Star in 2002 and a consistent 50% FGs, 43% threes, 85% FTs guy during his tenure in Minnesota.

We don’t want to sugarcoat it though: Wally is a defensive liability with poor court vision. But he can score. He can help this team, especially late in games when Cleveland is playing from behind (which seems often) or whenever teams decide to collapse on LeBron’s penetration. Who would you rather dish to for an open three: Szczerbiak or Hughes? He’s also the only player in the league I can think of whose last name starts with four consonants.

Bottom Line: Cleveland improved, but with so many new pieces it remains to be seen how they will gel this season.

More thoughts on The Headline Deal, as well as on a smattering of Minor Deals, after the break…

The long, strange trip just gets weirder for GM Jim Paxson and the Chicago Bulls. It’s hard to figure Chicago’s angle in this one. Yes, they clearly wanted to erase the mistake that is Ben Wallace’s contract ($28.5 million over the following two seasons). But they also took on a nearly identical albatross in the deal, Larry Hughes’ fat contract ($26.48 million over the next two years). And apparently the much-improved play of last year’s first-round pick, Thabo Sefolosha, didn’t make much of an impression on the Bulls’ brass; the 6-5, Swiss-born swingman has averaged 12.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.7 blocks/per as a starter. Hughes will now join a crowded SG committee that now includes him, Sefolosha, Ben Gordon, Brown, and even Luol Deng at times (though his more natural position is SF).

I think it’s very likely that Chicago parts ways with Gordon this summer, i.e. trades him. They’ll be hard pressed to find a taker for Hughes’ bloated contract, but Gordon will be attractive to those teams out there willing to offer him the big deal he’s seeking. More than anything, on a strictly “NBA fan” level, I’m a little disappointed that this will likely stunt Sefolosha’s development and take away valuable court time for the remainder of the season.

In the frontcourt, the one we refer to around these parts as “douchebag,” rookie Joakim Noah, is the biggest beneficiary of Wallace’s departure. He’ll likely step into the starting center spot immediately, and though we’re no big fans of his he could put up some nice box scores; something in the neighborhood of 8 – 12 points, 8 – 12 boards, and 1 – 2 blocks/per sounds about right. (He should be owned in all fantasy leagues.) Fellow rookie Aaron Gray will also see an uptick in minutes, and while Gooden would start over Ty Thomas at PF on better teams, I think Thomas will probably get a crack to hold it down. Either way, I think those two will probably just about split time down the middle.

Paxson was on a mission to rectify his miscalculated free-agent signing of Ben Wallace, and he likely took what he thought was the best offer he could get. Addition by subtraction from a team chemistry standpoint, perhaps, though if that’s what he was angling for it seems like Gordon should have been dealt too. It feels like there are a lot more changes on the horizon for this team, and right now we’re less than confident Paxson can get it done.

There was a lot of talk about all three of the Sonics’ main PG components–West, Luke Ridnour, and Earl Watson–all being shopped and available, but I now get the feeling that just about everybody not named Kevin Durant and Jeff Green could of been had for a reasonable price (aka an expiring contract). Maybe everyone in the league just wasn’t made aware of it. With Szczerbiak, West, and Kurt Thomas all jettisoned over the past two days, it’s pretty obvious that Seattle is in full cost-cutting mode and liquidating for their inevitable move from Seattle. It makes sense, in a way, and hordeing expiring deals is nothing new… but what they’re doing is just kind of embarrassing and a total raising of the middle finger to Seattle’s remaining Sonic fans. “Hey, you didn’t want to pay for a new arena? Well, up yours too, Seattle… enjoy the last days of your precious Sonics. Mwuahahahahahaha!!!”

Using expiring contracts to go after big-name free agents and stockpiling draft picks is a popular rebuilding strategy these days, but it’s important to note that no team has ever built a championship team that way. In the span of 36 hours, Seattle has taken on five washed-up veterans (Newble, Marshall, Griffin, Brent Barry, and Francisco Elson). Veterans who are going to be very bored for the next few months, very disinterested, and mostly just taking up roster spots. It’s not like Seattle had all that much going for them this season anyway, but if I’m a Seattle resident–especially one with just a casual interest in the team–I’d probably completely tune out the rest of the season, stop watching games, certainly not attend any games, and maybe egg Clay Bennett’s mansion.

And I wonder: did Cleveland demand Delonte West, or no deal? From our view, of the Ridnour/Watson/West pack, he seems like the one guy they’d maybe want to hold onto and see if he doesn’t come around. Would Cavs GM Danny Ferry have nixed the whole trade if the Sonics refused to give up West and would only offer, say, Earl Watson? Or even Luke Ridnour? We’ll probably never know, but we have our doubts.

The Minor Deals

Detroit Gets: G Juan Dixon
Toronto Gets: C Primoz Brezec

Acquired from the Charlotte Bobcats earlier this season in the Nazr Mohammed deal, Primoz Brezec packs his bags again and joins the Euro-friendly Toronto Raptors organization, at least until the end of the season when his contract expires. With the fade of the Miami Heat and the departure of Shaquille O’Neal, amassing big men (and their six fouls) is no longer a strategy that title-contending teams in the East such as Detroit need to worry about, though Dwight Howard might disagree. And though during his short stint in Motown Brezec did his best to fit in and proved to be a great cheerleader, he didn’t do much with the few minutes he was given. His spastic, sporadic play and wanting to impress/give the vets something to talk about turned him into the team’s “resident goofy white guy.” He’ll now join a cadre in Toronto that includes Rasho Nesterovic and Maceo Baston that’ll fight for backup minutes at center behind Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani.

The 6-3 Dixon, drafted 17th overall out of Maryland back in 2002, is a streaky long-range bomber who can provide some scoring, some ball handling and a veteran presence off the bench; think a smaller Jarvis Hayes with a better handle. He averaged 12.3 points on 43% shooting with the Portland Trail Blazers back during the 2005/06 season, but with the emergence of former Piston Carlos Delfino had really struggled to find any time with the Raps. He won’t find much in Detroit, either, and will be carried as a low-risk insurance policy whose contract expires this summer. Dixon’s arrival should not affect the minutes currently allocated to improving rookies Rodney Stuckey and Arron Afflalo, and he’ll likely fall behind Lindsey Hunter in the backcourt pecking order as well.

Houston Gets: F Gerald Green
Minnesota Gets: G Kirk Snyder, Second-Round Pick

And so ends the storied career of Gerald Green in Minnesota. There were ups and downs, tears of sadness and joy, and the impressive defense of his Slam Dunk Contest title, but mostly he just sat on the bench. Wolves’ coach Randy Wittman stubbornly refused to find minutes for the explosive 21-year-old, and his scoring potential and top-flight athleticism went wasted. It’s hard to figure why Minnesota couldn’t find more time for such a talented and young (if unpolished) player in a rebuilding season. Word out of Minnesota all season is that it was his poor defense which limited him to less than 12 minutes per game this year. One wonders why Minnesota even wanted him included in the Garnett deal this summer if they thought so little of his potential.

It’s a nice coincidence that he lands in Houston, because Gerald can learn a lot from Tracy McGrady, a player with similar physical skills that went through a lot of the same things early in his career. We said it yesterday, and I’ll say it again: Gerald Green will be an 18+ PPG scorer in this league in the next few seasons. The 6-8 swingman has the requisite skills: a feathery outside jumper, explosive leaping ability, a quick first step, good size and the capability to rise over defenders, a desire to be great and the ability to stop-and-pop on a dime. Those raw skills also mean that he could become at least a capable defender with the proper coaching and experience. It’s anybody’s guess if Houston will re-sign Green when he becomes a free agent this summer, but it didn’t cost them much to give him a trial.

In exchange for Birthday Cake Green, Minnesota gets fourth-year shooting guard Kirk Snyder from the Rockets. The 6-6 swingman was the 16th overall pick out of Nevada in 2004, but has never managed to crack the 20-minute, 70-games or 8-points plateaus. Snyder is known as a plus defender on the ball with nice quickness and decent ball-handling skills, but it’s hard to say that he brings anything more to the table than a serviceable 10-15 minutes a night. Minnesota also lands a second-round pick in the deal. In the words of Lyle Lanley, a Kevin Mchale with a second-round pick is like a mule with a spinning wheel: no one knows how he got it and danged if he knows how to use it! Well, it’s not that bad: McHale did draft ETB favorite Craig “Rhino” Smith in the second round last year, but that’s pretty much the extent of his success with picks outside the top-ten.

Portland Gets: G Von Wafer
Denver Gets: PG Taurean Green

This is about as insignificant as a deadline deal can get, but it did happen, so we must at least mention it in passing. The Blazers had somewhat of a logjam at point guard, while the Nuggets had somewhat of a hole at point guard, so in that regard this makes some sense for both teams. Both rookies, the 6-5 Wafer will see little to no floor time with the change of address (same as in Denver), while the pint-sized Green will make a huge impact in Denver and likely become the final, missing piece to the Nuggs’ championship puzzle. Yes indeed, they finally got the point guard they’ve been looking for. Hey, at least now we know the name “Von Wafer” isn’t made up after all.

Bonus Coverage!

John, FearTheSword.com

“The Cavaliers re-invented themselves today, becoming a much tougher team, while at the same time announcing they are ready and willing to defend their Eastern Conference Championship.

While Ben Wallace seems to be the figurehead of the deal it is the other parts that I am excited about. Joe Smith is a heady player that has always been a thorn in the side of the Cavs. Always getting the big rebound or hitting the key J, Smith’s presence substantially increases the Cavs’ basketball IQ. Smith is the perfect complement to LeBron on the floor.

Wally World brings a big-time shooter to the Cavs, something they have desperately needed the past two seasons. Donyell Marshall just wasn’t the player the Cavs thought they were getting 2+ years ago and Wally is a big-time improvement. Like Marshall, Larry Hughes never seemed to fit in with LeBron. More of a slasher, the Cavs style of play forced Hughes to become more of a spot-up shooter, something Hughes has never been comfortable doing. Wally is as good as it gets from the perimeter, and with LeBron getting to the basket at will, Wally is going to have A LOT of open looks.

Delonte West is just the type of player the Cavs needed at the point. While it is true West is not the proto-typical PG, he can defend on the perimeter and handle the ball. Like the other two, everything changes when you play next to LeBron James. He makes everyone else better. West is a smart, tough basketball player that plays hard every night. You can never have enough of those types of guys.

Of Course, Ben Wallace is the big name. There are questions about what Big Ben has left, but to me it is a simple answer. Ben was never allowed to wear the headband in Chicago. When the Headband came off, Wallace lost a little bit of that mojo. In Cleveland, Wallace will be on a team full of headbands, starting with King James himself. Wallace brings what the Cavs did not have on the inside. A bad-ass that will play defense first and have no problem dropping a guy to the floor when a message needs to be sent.

Drew Gooden was a nice player, but was never the sharpest tool in the shed. The addition of Wallace also takes some pressure off Z, who gets worn down trying to bump bodies with the big centers in the game. Z can now focus on offense, with Wallace doing a lot of the dirty work. With Wallace and Smith, the Cavs got tougher and smarter while not losing that much offensively.

The best part of all this is the Cavs gave up very little. Hughes was a non-factor in the Cavs playoff run the past two seasons and does nothing to effect a win or loss. Wally is the shooter that Hughes is not and will take a lot of pressure off James. Gooden was replaced by two players that add a lot of smarts and defensive presence. The rest of the guys? Marshall, Newble, et al? Please.

Will it be enough? Only time will tell. One thing is certain. The team that surrounds LeBron James for the rest of the season is a lot better than the one he has had to suffer with the past two seasons.”

Tags: Ben Wallace, Gerald Green, Drew Gooden, Wally Szczerbiak