2010-11 NBA Season

[loogodude90]

So Larry Ellison wants to buy the New Orleans Hornets and move them to San Jose.

Wow, that would probably mean an all-California division. I wonder how likely this is to happen.

Not very since I could see Golden State throwing a huge bitch-fit over this.

Actually, according to this article, he might have to pay a huge relocation fee to the Warriors. I'm not sure what the long term effects of this would be, but right off the bat the Hornets would be a net 300 mil in the hole in the region:

http://www.businessinsider.com/how-larry-ellison-could-move-the-hornets-to-san-joseand-make-the-warriors-richer-2011-1

[nash61]

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, SIR C.C.!

[loogodude90]

Double-upset in the 2 NBA games tonight, with OKC topping the Mavs in Dallas, and the lowly Kings destroying the Nuggets. Kings scored a season high 122.

EDIT: Another interesting stat, Denver did not record a single steal in the entire game, first time they've done that since 1978.

[TFoA]

Double-upset in the 2 NBA games tonight, with OKC topping the Mavs in Dallas, and the lowly Kings destroying the Nuggets. Kings scored a season high 122.

EDIT: Another interesting stat, Denver did not record a single steal in the entire game, first time they've done that since 1978.

Yeah I had to do a double-take when I saw that result. They gave the Hawks fit in their other game, but I didn't watch this one because I figured the Nuggets would handle that light work. Wrong.

[cameroncrazie07]

Not a good sign for Knicks fans

[Starchild]

Not a good sign for Knicks fans

Not happening. Melo still refuses to sign an extension with NJ. Also, according to Chris Broussard, the Pistons rejected the deal. You're going to ship out Rip Hamilton AND a 1st rounder for Troy Murphy and Johan Petro? No chance.

Alan Hahn had a great article about these constant leaks from inside the Nets camp. It's really all about maintaing some kind of manufactured relevance for as long as they can. They're not getting Carmelo Anthony, but they're just trying to stop NY from again, eclipsing them. Nobody goes to their games, their presumed "young stud core" aren't nearly as good as most make them out to be (Devin Harris is injury prone, Derrick Favors is no budding all star, and Brook Lopez averages stats similar to Wilson Chandler... who does it at 6'8" and the forward position). Lopez has achieved double-figures in rebounding this season twice... who would choose to play with Lopez/Harris over Stoudemire/Felton? Nets lose by 20 to Washington, while the Knicks embarrass Phoenix on their home court, including a triple-double from Felton, and playing without Danilo Gallinari.

Point is, unless some other team like Chicago (not going to give up Noah) or Dallas (scares me a little... could offer Butler's expiring, Beaubois and whatever else) swoops in like the Phillies did with Cliff Lee, Carmelo is likely going to end up either caving in with Denver, or ending up in NY - before or after the trade deadline.

[Waffles]

Yahoo! Sports:

The New York Knicks remain Anthony’s preferred destination, but Nuggets general manager Masai Ujiri has told Knicks president Donnie Walsh that his team doesn’t have the assets Denver wants. When Walsh has asked Ujiri to provide him with a list of the Nuggets’ desires, whether it be draft picks or specific players from other teams, sources said Ujiri has been unresponsive.

We all knew the Knicks didn't have anything to offer. But it's surprising that Denver barely engaged them.

Anthony’s agent, Leon Rose, has been the driving force behind bringing Hamilton into the talks, league sources said. Rose, also represents Hamilton, and sources said he pushed King to bring the Pistons into trade talks with New Jersey and the Nuggets. Anthony has wanted the Nets to upgrade their roster upon his arrival for him to sign a three-year, $64 million contract extension.

“Leon is driving this one,” one front-office executive told Yahoo! Sports on Friday night.

With Anthony’s agent so heavily involved in brokering particular players in the deal, the Nets are working under a belief that a proposed package to bring them Hamilton and Denver’s Chauncey Billups would be sufficient to sell Anthony on joining them over his preferred destination, the New York Knicks.

Melo may have prefered the Knicks to other teams, but his top priority was getting out of Denver with a pre-lockout extension, something the Knicks never even seemed to have a shot at. Would Leon Rose basically orchestrate the trade if he hadn't already sold the centerpiece - his client - on it?

[DG_YouKnowWhatThatMeans]

Question: Could the Knicks trade cash for Anthony and pay a penalty? Seems like they could certainly afford it.

[Starchild]

Anthony?s agent, Leon Rose, has been the driving force behind bringing Hamilton into the talks, league sources said. Rose, also represents Hamilton, and sources said he pushed King to bring the Pistons into trade talks with New Jersey and the Nuggets. Anthony has wanted the Nets to upgrade their roster upon his arrival for him to sign a three-year, $64 million contract extension.

?Leon is driving this one,? one front-office executive told Yahoo! Sports on Friday night.

With Anthony?s agent so heavily involved in brokering particular players in the deal, the Nets are working under a belief that a proposed package to bring them Hamilton and Denver?s Chauncey Billups would be sufficient to sell Anthony on joining them over his preferred destination, the New York Knicks.

Melo may have prefered the Knicks to other teams, but his top priority was getting out of Denver with a pre-lockout extension, something the Knicks never even seemed to have a shot at. Would Leon Rose basically orchestrate the trade if he hadn't already sold the centerpiece - his client - on it?

What Donnie Walsh also happens to have up his sleeve is the likelihood that the league will rollback all salaries as part of whatever new CBA is reached. So even if Melo were to sign an extension and get his max money now, it could still be rolled back. If this is the case, suddenly the contract extension isn't totally in play anymore - Melo could simply wait until his contract expires, and sign with whoever he wants for the max under the new CBA without the fear of losing as much money.

By all accounts, Rose hasn't sold Melo on anything outside of New York or Chicago (though, again, I suppose Dallas is in that conversation too, should they provide an enticing package for Denver... but even then, I'm sure Denver would rather ship him out of the West). Rose is probably just covering his ass and working the phones diligently to set up potential Plan B, C, D, etc., but there's no indication that Melo has any desire to get max money now and play on a team in worse shape than the current Nuggets. Just thinking from a basketball standpoint, if this blockbuster Denver-Detroit-NJ deal were to happen, NJ would wind up with Melo, Rip and Billups as centerpieces, playing alongside Brook Lopez, right? But Billups is going to demand a buyout. So suddenly your roster is Lopez, Humphries, Melo, Rip, Farmar, with absolutely no bench (not like they had any bench before). That team still doesn't make the playoffs - clearly not even on the level of the Pacers, Bucks and 76ers who are all fighting for the 7/8 seeds right now. They also would lose the majority, if not all, of their accumulated draft picks, eliminating the ability to build through the draft and capitalize on poor records. Denver obviously sees this as the greatest deal for them - young talent, financial freedom and draft picks come there way. Fantastic. But there is absolutely no incentive for Melo outside of max money - yet, if that were the driving force, if say, NY or Chicago weren't possible, wouldn't the logical next-best-choice be to resign with Denver and remain in playoff contention AND get the dollars?

If Leon Rose can sell Carmelo on New Jersey given the circumstances, he's the greatest agent in the game. And, if he does, and Carmelo agrees to sign an extension with NJ, then just like LeBron's supposed love affair with NY, it was all just nonsense. Carmelo's power exceeds that of Denver's - it's just who will blink first. If he wants to be a Knick, he'll be a Knick. If being a Knick was never that important, he'll be in the swamp soon enough and Brooklyn later.

[Lights Out]

Apparently the Clippers and Rockets are also in serious talks with Melo according to Ken Berger of CBS Sports. The Clippers are potentially going to offer the Minny pick, Al-Farouq Aminu, and DeAndre Jordan, although Chris Kaman has also been bandied about. The Rockets can offer a bunch of expiring contracts (including Yao) packaged with a member of their young core (Budinger, Brooks, Lee, Hill). I think either of those trades would be much smarter for all involved - the Nuggets get young talent to rebuild with, the Clips or Rockets get a bona fide superstar, and Melo gets to play with a great young core with a chance to contend.

[cameroncrazie07]

I still don't get why melo would want to go to the Nets. He'd be playing with a washed-up Billups and Hamilton. An even with those guys I still don't think theyre a playoff team.

[loogodude90]

I still don't get why melo would want to go to the Nets. He'd be playing with a washed-up Billups and Hamilton. An even with those guys I still don't think theyre a playoff team.

Could be one of those change of scenery things. I'm not saying that if he goes to the Nets they will all of a sudden become unbeatable, but he's been spinning wheels in Denver for several years now. I mean I think after a certain number of years with no real team success, a franchise player is going to look elsewhere even if just for the sake of being somewhere else and trying something different.

[DDR]

I still don't get why melo would want to go to the Nets. He'd be playing with a washed-up Billups and Hamilton. An even with those guys I still don't think theyre a playoff team.

I could think of a few reasons:

1. The Nets' ownership group, primarily Jay-Z

2. The impending move to Brooklyn could and should make the Nets (or whatever their name will be) among the "coolest" brands in the NBA

3. The marketing opportunities afforded to athletes in the NY market

4. The very real possibility of playing with Chris Paul in 2012 (or sooner, perhaps)

[rams80]

I still don't get why melo would want to go to the Nets. He'd be playing with a washed-up Billups and Hamilton. An even with those guys I still don't think theyre a playoff team.

Have you looked at the Eastern Conference lately? Some of those players may be washed up, but they could definitely sneak into the postseason as a 7 or 8 seed with Anthony.

[CS85]

Melo would be stupid not to want to go to new jersey. The franchise is on the cusp of relocation and renewal in new york anyway. If he wants to be part of some big 3 or something, he needs to stow that crap and let the pieces fall into place.

[The_Admiral]

It doesn't matter where they play in the tri-state area or which rapper owns them, the Nets are still a long way away from perennial contention and relevance. I'm not buying BROOKLYN as this panacea for everything this organization sucks at.

[MadmanLA]

Apparently the Clippers and Rockets are also in serious talks with Melo according to Ken Berger of CBS Sports. The Clippers are potentially going to offer the Minny pick, Al-Farouq Aminu, and DeAndre Jordan, although Chris Kaman has also been bandied about. The Rockets can offer a bunch of expiring contracts (including Yao) packaged with a member of their young core (Budinger, Brooks, Lee, Hill). I think either of those trades would be much smarter for all involved - the Nuggets get young talent to rebuild with, the Clips or Rockets get a bona fide superstar, and Melo gets to play with a great young core with a chance to contend.

As well as DeAndre Jordan has been playing since Kaman's been injured (and especially over the last week or two), the Clippers would be stupid to trade Jordan. Kaman, I can understand simply because I'm not sure if he's a great fit with Blake Griffin. And, I'm certainly not sure about bringing in Yao, expiring contract or not...the fact he may never basketball again is an automatic red flag. If there's anybody from Houston I would want, it's Shane Battier and/or Aaron Brooks.

[Lights Out]

DeAndre has been playing well, but the opportunity to trade for an NBA superstar does not come around often. If the Clippers have to trade DeAndre to get Melo, so be it.

We don't even need an upgrade at center. The Clippers' one main problem area on the starting lineup is at small forward, and Melo would fix that. Then we could move Gomes to the bench, which makes our bench less sucky. Losing DeAndre is a small price to pay for a well-rounded starting lineup - possibly the best starting five in the NBA.

[MadmanLA]

DeAndre has been playing well, but the opportunity to trade for an NBA superstar does not come around often. If the Clippers have to trade DeAndre to get Melo, so be it.

We don't even need an upgrade at center. The Clippers' one main problem area on the starting lineup is at small forward, and Melo would fix that. Then we could move Gomes to the bench, which makes our bench less sucky. Losing DeAndre is a small price to pay for a well-rounded starting lineup - possibly the best starting five in the NBA.

I may have misread your earlier comment regarding Carmelo, but in theory, I agree with what's said. Small forward has been a weakness for the Clippers (among other things) since Mike Dunelavy ran Corey Maggette out of town. Gomes has been playing well lately as well, but I'll be all for him coming off the bench. DeAndre's a free agent after the season, and he's certainly going to command some offers (not too many mega-million dollar offers, but several nonetheless), and the Clippers need to go against their grain and lock him up before someone else does.

[UnclearInitial]

I still don't get why melo would want to go to the Nets. He'd be playing with a washed-up Billups and Hamilton. An even with those guys I still don't think theyre a playoff team.

I could think of a few reasons:

1. The Nets' ownership group, primarily Jay-Z

2. The impending move to Brooklyn could and should make the Nets (or whatever their name will be) among the "coolest" brands in the NBA

3. The marketing opportunities afforded to athletes in the NY market

4. The very real possibility of playing with Chris Paul in 2012 (or sooner, perhaps)

To get Melo, the nets would be gutting their entire team, leaving them no chance for a trade.