Last year we were witnesses to eleven NBA draft day trades.  Yes, 11.  Most of the deals went under the radar in exchanges that sent one team a player’s rights in exchange for cash considerations or future picks.  But still, a lot of deals were cut.

And there were some big deals. 

The Sonics sent Ray Allen and Glen Davis to Boston in exchange for Jeff Green, Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West.  Boston went on to win the NBA Championship and don’t think that other general manager’s did not take notice.  The Sonics, of course, dumped Wally and West on Cleveland in a deadline deal that brought them some cap relief.

The Bobcats acquired Jason Richardson from the Warriors for the draft rights to Brandan Wright, whom GM Chris Mullin and Coach Don Nelson apparently still value quite highly.  Last season, Richardson averaged 21.8 points per game, shot over 40% from three, and started all 82 games in Charlotte.

Isiah Thomas got into the act when he sent Channing Frye, Steve Francis and a 2008 2nd rounder to Portland for Zach Randolph (whom they have been trying to trade for the past six months), Dan Dickau and Fred Jones.

In 2006 there were 15 deals that went down but none of them would involve the star power that we saw in 2007.

Certainly Draft Day has become one of wheeling and dealing.  Coming off one of the most explosive trade deadlines in history, we should expect another round of roster shakeups Thursday night. 

In recent days we have seemingly heard every team mentioned in trade rumors with the exception of Atlanta, Boston and Utah. 

We were excited at the possibilities of Carmelo Anthony moving on from Denver, perhaps to Detroit who could have drafted him in ‘03, but it appears he’s been promised not to be dealt.  Bringing a perimeter shooter like Mike Miller to the Nuggets makes a lot of sense.  Package him with the number five pick and a young point guard like Kyle Lowry and it’s a deal that we liked.  However, with due respect for the “promise”, we won’t speculate further on any potential ‘Melo trades.

A number of players are being shopped, including:  Richard Jefferson, Lamar Odom, Leandro Barbosa, T.J. Ford, Mike Miller, Udonis Haslem, Anderson Varejao, Zach Randolph, Mo Williams, Chris Wilcox, Boris Diaw, Josh Howard, Martell Webster, Linas Kleiza, and the Detroit Pistons starters.  The most intriguing name that may be dealt is potential number one overall selection, Michael Beasley.  A lot of rumors are flying, as is expected this time of year, but there are some trades we would like to see go down more than others.  Do we expect them to?  Not exactly.  Here are the top five trades we want to see on draft night.

Chicago receives:  Dwyane Wade and Miami’s ’09 1st round pick
Miami receives:  Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and the rights to Ben Gordon.

Miami currently has the worst roster in basketball and a very young, inexperienced coach at the helm.  To make matters worse, they do not have enough cap room to bring in top free agents.  Even if they did, there does not appear to be much talent available at point guard and center, where they are most desperate for talent.  It would almost be impossible for Heat President Pat Riley to build a legit contender out of his current roster.

Already equipped with the number two selection, Miami could launch the scariest rebuilding effort that the league has seen in a long time if they could pull the trigger on this mega-deal.  One could argue that there is no better way to put together a young dynasty than with the first two picks of an NBA draft.

The Heat would bring in a pair of 19 year-old college phenoms, Rose and Beasley, to mix into the starting lineup with Gordon, Noah, and Marion.  All five players would thrive on an up-tempo team that would do its share to boost television ratings.

Ben Gordon is a restricted free agent, but with the majority of teams financially restrained, he may not field the eight-digit offers he expected to when he turned down big money from the Bulls last summer.

Noah was arrested earlier this summer on open container charges and marijuana possession.  Last season he butted heads with Bulls players and coaches and by now general manager John Paxson has to be thinking about moving him away from the Bulls.  There’s no doubt Noah would love to play back in Florida where he won two championships while in college.  He’s a born leader, but that leadership was stifled and frustrated last season in the presence of NBA veterans.

The second string, anchored by a recovering Udonis Haslem, would be significantly better but still below average.  Journeyman Marcus Banks and the inconsistent Mark Blount would be balanced out by the young and athletic likes of Daequan Cook and Dorrell Wright.

If Chicago agreed to the trade, they would immediately join the ranks of the Eastern Conference elite, where they were supposed to be last season.  Wade, an all-world player, would immediately help an offense that had the worst shooting percentage in the league and struggled to score points on most nights.

Larry Hughes may challenge Kirk Hinrich for point guard duties but he would likely come off the bench along with Andres Nocioni, Tyrus Thomas, and Thabo Sefolosha.  The Bulls would have enough extra pieces to make a play for a center (Brad Miller? Marcus Camby?) or try their luck in free agency.

Both teams would have just enough cap room, need, and attractive pieces to get in on the DeSagana Diop sweepstakes.  The 26 year-old, seven-footer will probably be the top center on the market.

Cleveland receives:  Jermaine O’Neal and Jamaal Tinsley
Indiana receives:  Anderson Varejao, Wally Szczerbiak, Eric Snow and the #19 draft pick.

Just how long have the Pacers been trying to move O’Neal and Tinsley?  Wasn’t Reggie Miller still with the team when this all began? 

The two starters both have deals that the Pacers hate (Tinsley has three years and over $21 million; O’Neal has two years and over $44 million).  They have tried long and hard to get star players in return for O’Neal but it’s more apparent than ever that that is not going to happen.  Moving these two players in one swoop would be like walking out of prison three years early.

In this deal, they get $20 million in expiring contracts (Szczerbiak and Snow) and a young, legit big man (Varejao) that can play center or power forward.  Perhaps most importantly, they pick up another first round draft choice where a number of young centers (or Mario Chalmers) should be in play.

The Cavaliers have nothing to lose here.  The pick would be nice, but they want to win now and their roster is plenty deep already.

Jermaine O’Neal would be a perfect compliment to Ben Wallace (much like Rasheed Wallace was) on both ends of the court.  Zydrunas Ilgauskus is still very good but can no longer log 30 minutes a night.  He provides good insurance, along with Joe Smith, if O’Neal does get injured again.

Tinsley is a poor shooter, but is one of the league’s best facilitators.  He averaged 8.4 assists per game last season.  He would allow Delonte West to play his natural shooting guard position and would be a huge upgrade over Snow and Damon Jones, the other point guards currently on their roster.  Daniel Gibson, who just had ankle surgery, could also be re-signed. 

With Jermaine O’Neal on board, LeBron James and the Cavs would be serious title contenders next season.

Charlotte receives:  Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince and the #29 draft pick
Detroit receives:  Gerald Wallace and the #9 draft pick

Joe Dumars is in the mood to blow up his roster.  He can read the writing on the wall:  This group is not good enough to win a championship and their trade value will only fall with more time.

Dumars gets what he wants in this trade:  younger, more explosive players.  Gerald Wallace, 25, is a prototypical Joe Dumars player.  His defense is among the best in the league, he’s aggressive and he’s fearless.  He also has a very reasonable deal for a potential All-Star.

Charlotte has just brought in Larry Brown who was a disaster with a young New York Knicks roster.  The Bobcats are very young and would only get younger with another lottery selection.  They badly need veteran leadership and a big man to pair with Emeka Okafor in the frontcourt.

This trade would fetch Charlotte another UNC guy (Rasheed) and two Larry Brown championship players from his stint in Detroit.  Wallace would take a load of stress off of Okafor and Prince, 28, would keep Morrison in a sixth-man scorer's role, where Brown will want him because he plays no D. It's no secret Brown likes vets and this would give him two who are very familiar with what he wants to do in Charlotte.  Rasheed also brings with him an expiring contract worth $13.68 million. 

The deal would soak up most of Charlotte’s cap room (which is needed in order to make this deal) but Rasheed and Prince are better than the available free agents (except for Antawn Jamison and Gilbert Arenas). 

It would be a win for Charlotte if they could talk Dumars into taking back Nazr Mohammed, 30, and his $18 million-plus that he is due over the next three years.  They just might be able to do it considering Detroit will lack some size after losing Rasheed.  The Pistons would have to hope Amir Johnson and Jason Maxiell could replace him.  Mohammed, who enjoyed a resurgence in Charlotte after the Pistons traded him 21 games into last season, would add depth.

With the ninth pick, the Pistons could make a play at their favorite big on the board – Brook or Robin Lopez, DeAndre Jordan, Alexis Ajinca, Kosta Koufos, Anthony Randolph, Darrell Arthur, Joe Alexander, Donte Greene, or Mareese Speights.

At 29, the Bobcats would probably look to add more size unless Mario Chalmers is there.  There will be an interesting mix of bigs remaining including:  Jason Thompson, DeVon Hardin, Omer Asik, D.J. White, Joey Dorsey, Nathan Jawai, Nikola Pekovic and Ante Tomic.  Some of these players may still be available when they make the 38th selection, as well.

Sacramento receives:  T.J. Ford
Toronto receives:  John Salmons, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and the #42 draft pick

Bryan Colangelo and the Toronto Raptors have made no secret of the fact that they plan on handing the starting point guard job to Jose Calderon next season.  Although Ford has played very well in Toronto, Calderon has been just as spectacular and more durable.

There are a healthy number of teams interested in Ford, which will drive his asking price up.  However, no team may be in bigger need than the Sacramento Kings who currently do not have a floor general on their roster.  Pairing Ford with Kevin Martin in their backcourt makes a lot of sense.

What they do have is an excess of wing players and power forwards who are all being paid more than they can play.  The player who might draw the most interest that is currently buried in the rotation is John Salmons.

Salmons, a shooting guard with good handles, averaged nearly 18 points and over 5 boards in his 41 starts last season but can't get the minutes he deserves when Kevin Martin, Ron Artest, and Fernando Garcia are all healthy.

Toronto should take notice.  Their starter at the position, Anthony Parker, is 33 and puts out very mediocre offensive production.  Moving Parker into a sixth-man role and giving Salmons starter’s minutes next to Calderon may be ideal.

Shareef Abdur-Rahim’s two years and $12.8 million deal is cumbersome for the Kings who already have Mikki Moore, Kenny Thomas, and Shelden Williams, playing his position.  He played just 50 minutes last season and is coming off yet another knee surgery.  Moving him would relieve another headache for the Maloof brothers. 

But in order to relieve them of their point guard issues and these burdensome contracts at crowded positions, they may have to give up their first round pick, number 12 overall.  The Kings also have numbers 42 and 43.  One, if not two, of these picks would have to be packaged with Abdur-Rahim and Salmons for T.J. Ford.

Toronto receives:  Boris Diaw
Phoenix receives: Jason Kapono and the #17 draft pick

Steve Kerr and the Suns have been aggressively shopping Diaw (four years, $36 million) and Leandro Barbosa (four years, $27.4 million) in order to clear some cap room now that Shaquille O’Neal is on board.  They have also been very high on this draft class and desire to acquire more picks.

Aside from picks, the Suns need three-point threats and depth all around.  A once legendary roster of perimeter snipers has lost some of its lethalness.  Adding a three-point champion such as Jason Kapono would help.  Kapono, a 6-foot-8 small forward, hit 48% of his threes last season.  He could relieve Grant Hill, who cannot be expected to play 30 minutes per game throughout the regular season and the playoffs.

The real gem in this deal for the Suns is the extra first round selection.  Landing Brandon Rush at 15 and one of the many big men expected to be available at number 17 would be a huge boost to the Suns roster.

Diaw, from France, would be a great fit in Toronto in more ways than one.  He is an exceptional sixth man and had his best season out-of-position starting at center, where he averaged 15.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 6.7 assists as a starter.  At just 26, he may have his best basketball ahead of him.

Other Rumors Swirling
Several other teams have expressed some desire to reposition themselves in the draft.  Minnesota and Seattle are two of the hardest teams to figure out.  They hold the third and fourth picks right now but don’t be surprised if that changes on Thursday.  Seattle has a total of six picks but already has a very young roster.  GM Sam Presti is probably offering combinations of those and Chris Wilcox to bring in an all-star caliber veteran.  They have also expressed interest in Michael Beasley.

Portland and trade-happy GM Kevin Pritchard hold four total picks but already have a crowded roster.  They have expressed some interest in Leandro Barbosa and have the depth on the wing to be a viable trade partner with Phoenix, as they were last year at this time.

The Knicks and Clippers hold the sixth and seventh selections, respectively, but have expressed their desires to move.  The Suns are also said to be after restricted free agent Corey Maggette, an exceptional fit for the team, and may try to land him on draft night.

Memphis would love to land Kevin Love at number five but if they cannot, they may package their selection with one of their excess point guards or wings to bring in some needed frontcourt help.

Finally, there has been momentum building for a Jermaine O’Neal for T.J. Ford deal.  O’Neal would not be an ideal fit with Chris Bosh as they are all too similar. 

However, it’s the NBA, and as Kevin Garnett told us just moments after he won his first championship, “ANYTHING’S POSSIBAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!”

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