Trade Thoughts

Is Boris Diaw a solid starter once again? And how is J-Rich going to look in a Suns uniform?

The Bobcats traded away Jason Richardson, Jared Dudley, and a 2010 2nd round pick to the Suns for Boris Diaw, Raja Bell, and Sean Singletary on Wednesday.

What are the Bobcats thinking? In the long-term, who are they going to build around? In the short-term, who’s going to score points for them? Will Boris Diaw be a fantasy force once again? Do others realize that Bell & Brown are re-uniting? How is J-Rich going to look alongside Nash? How much will the Suns miss Raja’s defense and how long will it take them to adjust?

Questions need to be answered, so here are my thoughts…

What are the Bobcats thinking?

They must have a lot of faith in DJ Augustin, because they just traded away a premier scorer in his prime (J-Rich is 27) for a defensive-minded veteran on the decline (Raja is 32). This would make sense if Charlotte had plenty of young talent and was just a solid defender away from advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals, but the Bobcats haven’t made the Playoffs in 4 years of existence (franchise record of 115-234) and they won’t be contending anytime soon.

They’re locked into Emeka Okafor for $72 million over 6 more years, even though he’s not a Top 10 center and his upside is limited. Gerald Wallace is now their best overall player, but on a good team, he’d only be a 3rd or 4th option (remember, Kirilenko is coming off the bench for Utah, and I’d rather have AK-47). Boris Diaw is versatile, but neither me nor Wallace are good outside shooters. And is Raymond Felton anything more than an average NBA starter? The Bobcats can use the injury excuse all they want, but Sean May and Adam Morrison were terrible draft picks, PERIOD. So who are they going to build their team around? DJ Augustin and Alexis Ajinca? I’m glad I’m not a Bobcats fan.

Who’s going to score points for Charlotte?

Richardson was a high-octane scorer, so who’s going to replace him? Well first, let’s look at their new rotation:

PG: Felton, Augustin, Singletary
SG: Bell, Felton, Carroll, S. Brown
SF: G. Wallace, Morrison
PF: Diaw, May, Juwan Howard(?)
C: Okafor, Ajinca, Nazr

Raja Bell will likely start at shooting guard, but Augustin is going to play big minutes off the bench for Charlotte. If the rookie was dropped recently due to his move to the bench, consider picking him up. He scored a career-high 28 points on Wednesday, and should see a lot more shots now that J-Rich is gone. Felton and Bell will also take more shots now, but Augustin is the one who’s really going to benefit in the backcourt.

Meanwhile, if Gerald Wallace can stay healthy and doesn’t get traded, he could start putting up superstar numbers. But the hottest pickup right now is Boris Diaw. Diaw was a fantasy stud in ‘05-06, when he averaged 35.5 minutes, 13.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 6.2 assists, .7 steals, 1.0 blocks, and shot 52.6% from the field, but he’s been very unreliable since then. Now there’s no way he’ll ever dish out that many assists again, but he should get 32+ minutes of action now, which is going to give his fantasy value a big boost. Consider picking him up if you need a forward.

Bell and Brown are back together!

With just a couple of weeks left in the 2000-2001 regular season, the 76ers signed a rookie named Raja Bell. He scored just 5 points in 30 regular season minutes, yet they still gave him a spot on their Playoff roster. In the first 2 rounds, he barely played and didn’t score a single point. In the Eastern Conference Finals vs. the Bucks, Bell started to get more playing time.

Then all of a sudden, the rookie was getting 18+ minutes per game in the NBA Finals against a couple of guys named Shaq and Kobe. I was immediately impressed with Bell’s athleticism and hard-nosed defense, so I was pissed when Larry Brown played him just 5 minutes in the game 5 clincher. Still, the fact that Brown was willing to give a rookie who barely played in the regular season meaningful postseason minutes was quite refreshing. And now the the two are back together.

And they’re not the only ones re-uniting…

Boris Diaw and Alexis Ajinca are 6 years apart, but both guys grew up in France and played for Pau-Orthez. In 2000, Diaw won a gold medal at the European Junior Championships. In 2006, Ajinca also won a gold medal at the U-18 European Championship. When you have a young foreign player trying to adjust to life in the NBA, the addition of a veteran who speaks the same language and has a similar background cannot be understated. Since Charlotte seems to think highly of Ajinca, I think this is a smart move on their part.

What about Phoenix?

You didn’t think I forgot about the former Warriors, did you? Jason Richardson and Matt Barnes were key members of the Golden St. squad that shocked the world in the 2007 Playoffs. Now they’re back together in Phoenix, which is something that will surely help the Suns’ chemistry.

But what about Nash? He and Raja were good buddies, and they played over 4 years together (1 in Dallas, 3+ in Phoenix). Bell’s defensive toughness always made up for Steve’s sub-par abilities on that end of the floor, and that’s something the Suns will surely miss. Richardson is a much better defender now than when he first came into the league, but he’s still not on the same level as Bell. Can J-Rich elevate his game on defense so the Suns’ backcourt can hold its own in the Playoffs? I’m not sure about that, but his stats seem destined to go up.

With Shaq dominating in the paint, Amare being more than a handful, and Nash creating for others, J-Rich should get a lot more open looks now, so his FG% should rise. Terry Porter’s slow-down offense has limited the stats of certain players thus far, but the fact that Steve Kerr went after J-Rich is a sign that the Suns want to start playing at a faster tempo. This means more threes for Jason, more assists for Nash, and (hopefully) for points for Amare.

And what about Diaw’s replacement? Well, don’t be surprised if Barnes gets more time at power forward now, but Jared Dudley can play. In 2007, he was a 2nd team All-American and the ACC Player of the Year (other recent forwards to win the award include Josh Howard, Shane Battier, Elton Brand, Antawn Jamison, Tim Duncan, Joe Smith, and Grant Hill). With so much talent now surrounding him, Dudley should be a solid complementary player. His fantasy stats are somewhat limited because he doesn’t make many threes or block many shots, but if someone gets hurt, he could fill in quite nicely.

The real questions have to do with time. How long is Charlotte’s postseason drought going to last? What is their long-term plan, and how long do their fans have to wait to see any real results? Are the Suns going to change up their style of play overnight? How long will it take them to gel, and how will they look when the postseason rolls around?

Related posts:

1. Trade Deadline Thoughts Aaron Brooks is one of several players on the rise after Thursday’s trades....
2. Team Preview #23: Charlotte Bobcats A few reasons why I don’t like Raymond Felton… LAST SEASON The Bobcats...
3. Effects of the Gasol trade Which players will benefit the most from the recent Pau Gasol trade? In...