To Cleveland? For their trade exception? And we throw in a first rounder? Just to be nice? Question mark?
Adrian Wojnarowski, who I like a lot, is reporting that the Cavs have discussed it, no deal is imminent. This is another one of those “according to a league source” who asked for anonymity because they’re full of it. Who are these people? I understand wanting to be the first and to let fans know about movement before it happens. I love having the fodder for the forums here as well as something to write about. What I don’t like or really even understand, is how the entire sphere of media that cover this sport have become rumor mongers and “if this, then this” guessers and hacks like the rest of us.
Is it a good trade? For reasons of savings and cap value and whatever else? Yeah, why not? Gerald Wallace is due anywhere from $19 to $22 million dollars over the next 2 years. Some places report Gerald gets paid $10.5 every year, some say it ramps up over the years…who knows but the guy is the highest paid player the Bobcats have. Is Michael Jordan that concerned about saving money that he’d give up the one All-Star on the team for a trade exception? Not only that but toss in a first rounder?
The idea, as Steve Kyler at HoopsWorld points out, is to get the trade exception from Cleveland then turn it around for other pieces that would help towards another playoff run. Seems logical, except for the fact that neither Cleveland nor Toronto have been able to do anything with the exceptions they received when their star players each took their talents to South Beach in sign-and-trades. True, they may be waiting it out until the trade deadline to see what team is most desperate for them. To me, it’s a foreign concept, trading guys for a slip of paper that says “redeemable for ‘x’ amount of contracts.” However, the Bobcats shed the final year of Tyson Chandler’s massive deal for Dampier’s non-guaranteed contract, hoo-dooed into taking back Matt Carroll and Eddie Najera. Unable to trade Damp’s nothing for something, the Bobcats simply cut him, he ended up in Miami and the Bobcats wound up under the luxury tax.
