Tttttraayyde Talk!

Andre Drummond trade: Well, he’s been thrown around quite a bit, if he goes to the Celtics, the Cavs might get greedy and ask for Jaylen Brown, Kemba Walker, or Jayson Tatum, which they’re not willing to give. Their mentality is to get Drummond without giving up one of the three listed above, that’s a tough ask for one of the top centers in the NBA. The Knicks might get him. Yes! That’s perfect, move Mitchell Robinson to the 6 man and move Noel in the deal. The Knicks don’t have much that the Cavs want, so, virtually, we’re not losing anything, just potentially gaining. Toronto: I talked about that above, and yes, that’s good, Aron Baynes is not good, Chris Boucher is not the move (I like him but Drummond is better). If we want to get freaky, move Siakam to the 3, Boucher to the 4, and Drummond to the 5, you’re not losing speed and you’re gaining height, I hope Nick Nurse is reading this. Except, Kyle Lowry’s going to have to move in this deal, no doubt. For Colin Sexton and Darius Garland to improve more, Kyle Lowry could be a mentor, like the Rose situation in New York. Knowing how volatile the bottom of the East is, they could be the 11th seed or the 4th seed in a few games, they need all the help they can get. Those are the leaders to win the lottery for Drummond, but the Lakers, Hornets, and Mavs are all in the mix as well.

John Collins trade: This is the Robin to Trae Young’s Batman, you have to keep him. The only catch here is that Collins doesn’t want the puny money the Hawks are willing to pay him, so, they want a lot for him, evidently. The Knicks are in the mix again but I feel like we’re leaning towards Drummond and anyway, we have Randle at PF. The 76ers are a great candidate for Collins, but the Hawks are reportedly looking for a lottery pick, the 6ers pick is most likely late 20s. The Thunder are also a great destination because they could convert to small ball and play Collins at the 5 while still developing Darius Bazley at the 4. Collins is young and also right in the Thunder’s wheelhouse.

Blake Griffin: Griffin could to the Suns, to remake the Clipper’s “Lob City” with Chris Paul. If you don’t know, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin teamed up in Los Angeles and they threw A LOT of lobs. But, the Suns don’t want the cap space, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin both have totally unreasonable contracts and two players cannot make up 50% of your salary, I mean, it’s possible, just not practical. He could also go to the Nets, but then, their bench will be full of Walmart baggers and free agents signed on minimum contracts. But hey, you get 4 great starters, haha. The Thunder? No, just no, because he’s old and he costs a lot, the opposite of where the Thunder should go. The Heat are the favorites, bye Kelly Olynyk and hello solid power forward. They could run a big ball lineup, with Jimmy Butler as the primary ball-handler, Tyler Herro at the 2, Duncan Robinson at the 3, Griffin at the 4 and Bam Adebayo at the 5. Butler can see things differently and he’s a vet, not all primary ball handlers need to be short and fast.

Zach Lavine: He could go to the Knicks. I couldn’t begin to make up some trades but I trust Leon Rose. This would be great. Immanuel Quickley at the 1, Lavine at 2, RJ at the 3, and then Randle and Robinson at the 4 and 5. Wow, we’re a lock for the second round of the playoffs then. Lavine could also go to the Heat, and that would make them a superteam. Duncan Robinson, Kelly Olynyk, and Kendrick Nunn may go. But, we haven’t paid any attention to the Bulls. Why would they trade him? They’re left with Lauri Markannen at PF and barely anything else. I think Lavine will stay in Chicago. Most of these rumors are really just rumors, but some really may happen.

One trade that’s not a rumor anymore is Carson Wentz to the Colts.

This trade is so bad. I don’t know what goes on behind closed doors in NFL front offices, although I would love to, but the Colts were in the market for so much more. They had Carson Wentz, Deshaun Watson, Dak Prescott (if the Cowboys didn’t resign him), Russell Wilson and a QB in the draft all at their disposal, all they had to do was choose. They went with Wentz? Aw, Cmon, Colts! Watson wanted the Colts, Russ might’ve been on the move, or they could’ve drafted Mac Jones. Wentz to the Colts doesn’t make the Colts too bad of a team. They need to draft a receiver, take Kenny Golladay or Allen Robinson in Free Agency and then touch up their defense and they have a really good team. Running backs are good, Marlon Mack, Nyheim Hines and Jonathan Taylor, added receivers are good, TEs are good, the O-line is good and their defense is a top 10 in the NFL. What Wentz needs now is renewed confidence and for his teammates to like him. Nelson Agholor was on the Eagles and he didn’t like Wentz, everyone blamed it on Agholor – Agholor leaves – 8 touchdowns, up from 3 with the Eagles, more than 500 yards more in Las Vegas and that’s on only 9 more receptions. His teammates didn’t like him; the media didn’t like him and now, with a coach that he knows? If he doesn’t prove himself here, then, well, bye this North Dakota State star’s career. I think he’s going to do well, this situation isn’t so much physical as mental and I think he’s going to hit the theoretical hammer right on the “good QB” nail. 

We’ll see if the NBA stops being so shaky and, of course, if I’m right.