Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Pau, AK, Darko and other tall foreign rumblings

All three of these guys want out. Pau I can't sympathize with, because he's the one who took a very solid team to the playoffs for 3 straight years and couldn't win a playoff game. Then he goes and screws up the first half of this season by getting injured playing at the world championships. Then his team, which has literally the exact same roster as last year other than Shan Battier's departure (I know, he's a "glue guy," as the writers are so fond of calling him), gets off to the worst start since they were in Vancouver. He's back, but they still suck. The only positives for the Grizz have been the emergence of Mike Miller as a full on star, the strong(ish) play of Hakim Warrick, and the promising start by their 2 first round picks Rudy Gay and Kyle Lowry. Pau's beastly as always, but it's not enough and he wants a trade. Well wah wah wah. Here comes the wambulance. I would love to see him in Cleveland. Maybe something to the tune of THIS. At any rate, I would hate to see him end up in Chicago, but they appear to be the front runner.
Now AK-47 is a man I feel bad for. He's one of the scariest talents in the league and he's been buried by a log jam up front in Utah, and by his own softness and penchant for injury. The dude can block shots though. I'd definitely love to see him in Cleveland. Maybe something like THIS. He's better when he has room to work, but his defensive skills cannot be ignored.
Darko, Darko, Darko. I thought this was his year to blow up. And actually, he's coming along. His numbers have been slowly improving all season. If they continue to do so, he could be a straight up valuable trade chip. I would not like to see him in Cleveland.

Progs: AK will stay, 'cause nobody's taking on a $12 million 5 year contract for a dude who misses more games than C-Webb. Pau's definitely on the move, possibly before the deadline, but unlikely due to the ownership situation in Memphis. Off season move likely to Chicago, LA or some other big market, non-Cleveland contender. Darko will move, but I think he could stick around another year in Orlando.

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