News came out that the Lakers have traded Vladimir Radmanovic for the Bobcats' Adam Morrison and Shannon Brown.
I'm not sure what to make of this trade. It seems like a lateral move for the Lakers, at best, and a tiny step forward for the Bobcats. I'm going to give the win to the Bobcats for a few reasons. Reason one is that Larry Brown and MJ got to get rid of Morrison, someone they were not fond of, especially after his awful play during his starting job role after Gerald Wallace went down. They add Vlad-Rad, a player they believe can play the 3 or the 4 and can stretch the defense with his outside shooting. Of course, Vlad-Rad has been criticized for his lack of effort at times, and his inconsistency. Radmonovic is also not known for his defensive capabilities, which is one of the reasons Larry Brown fell out of favor with Morrison. When it all comes down to it, Vlad-Rad and Morrison have the same flaws. They both play little to no defense, inconsistent scorers, and inconsistent effort. The Bobcats made the trade probably because they believe that they can Vlad-Rad can hit shots a couple more times than Morrison can. In reality, it was probably just to get rid of Morrison, and they realized that Vlad-Rad was the best thing they were gonna get for him.
On the Lakers side. The Lakers get a 3rd pick who never panned out. We all remember Morrison making ridiculous shots at Gonzaga, but many were skeptical about his success in the NBA. He has proven those doubters correct. Morrison is not the most athletic, but he is a shooter, and that is why the Bobcats took a chance on him. A shooter who will make a shot every now and then, but he won't provide the instant offense we need off the bench night-in and night-out. It is also unknown what role Morrison will play on the team. Vladimir Radmanovic has recently lost his starting job to Lamar Odom, and it will be interesting to see how Phil Jackson utilizes Morrison, if at all. What I think, and what I hope, the Lakers are using Morrison for is a trade piece for another deal. The only one I can see right now is for Amare. Yes, Amare Stoudamire. Lamar Odom and Adam Morrison for Amare would work out financially. The Suns would get the very rare skill set of Lamar Odom, and a guy who could play almost any position except Center in Terry Porter's system. This is all speculative of course, and there has been no mention of Morrison being traded again. It leaves Lakers fans to wonder why Morrison was acquired in the first place. It will save the Lakers $7 million in cap space next season, but the Lakers have not been known as a money saving team. If that is the ultimate reason, I think the Lakers and Lakers fans can live with that. The Buss family has proven they will do whatever it takes to win, and if cost cutting now for wins in the future is what the team is doing, that is something Lakers fans can deal with. Well, Lakers fans can only hope that Morrison will be part of a bigger deal. Morrison's contract is guaranteed until the summer of 2010 with an option for the 2010/2011 season. That could be attractive to some teams, and Lamar's expiring $11.4 million is also an enticing option. As of now, the Lakers just hope that Morrison can develop up to his potential, and prove everyone wrong. Nonetheless, interesting news coming out of the NBA, and one that may not be favorable to Purple and Gold faithful right now. We have seen Mitch Kupchak do it before. We are just outsiders that may not have a perspective on what Kupchak's grand plan is.
Izzy
If you want more trade news and rumors, a great piece by SI will let you know everything you need to know before February 19th.
2/7/09
Vladimir Radmanovic for Adam Morrison Trade Analysis
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8 comments:
I agree with your analysis. Adam Morrison and Vladimir Radmanovic have similar games. They're both one dimensional perimeter shooters who struggle on defense.
Neither player is especially mentally tough, and neither has a great attitude.
Basketball wise, it's probably a wash (although at this stage, Radmanovic is the better player of the two). But Charlotte did well to get Morrison out of their hair.
And when you're talking about Adam Morrison, you can't get away from the subject of hair. That's because Morrison's hair probably has as much to do with his fame as his a basketball skills. Morrison is a total media creation. ESPN and the national media fell in love with his long, stringy hair, with his porn 'stache, with his 70's-esaque Pete Maravich-meets Che Guevara-meets the masked protagonist from "V for Vendetta" style, and with his political outspokenness.
Adam Morrison has the talent level to be a mid-level NBA player. He may have been a star at Gonzaga, but his game had major weaknesses. And now, those weaknesses are on display night in and night out in the NBA (obviously). Morrison may help the Lakers to some degree, but I doubt that he'll be much of an improvement over Radmanovic.
One thing's for sure: the Hollywood crowd in the Staples Center will love Adam Morrison. After all, he's all about style over substance ... just like they are.
I disagree with your analysis of the trade. The lakers traded away Radmonovic which has a poison pill of a contract accompanied with little playing time. In return, they got 2 players with upside. Morrison is a third year player hampered by injury and shannon brown has great potential. This move has the ability to further improve the lakers. If the prospects dont pan out, they can simply not resign them with little consequence. Furthermore, the additonal money saved from trading radmonovic, approx 13million if considering luxury tax, can be used to resign players that are actually in the rotation, like trevor ariza or lamar odom. So I do not think that the Lakers lose out in this trade, unless we are talking from a pure talent standpoint, as it was a fiscally responsible long term move.
WJ,
Financially, the move made sense for the Lakers. And I think thatfinancial considerations were what drove the deal, from their standpoint.
The basketball side of the trade is another story, however. In terms of on-court production, Morrison for Radmanovic is a wash (at best) for the Lakers. And Shannon Brown is a non-factor. He's the quintessential "throw in" guy in NBA trading circles these days. If he gets moved again, he'll be closing in on entering Larry Hughes and Ricky Davis territory. At the very least, he'll have the "journeyman" label attached to his name.
Don't get me wrong: I'm happy to see Shannon Brown still surviving in the league. He played basketball at the legendary Proviso East High School in Maywood, IL. I play basketball with Proviso guys every once in a while. It's always good to see Proviso East guys in the NBA (Michael Finley, Dee Brown, Celtics coach Doc Rivers, etc.) But make no mistake: Shannon Brown is lucky to still be in the league.
Hmm... I agree with you on the point on Morrison, but disagree with you on Shannon Brown. I think it is far too early in his career to label him as a non-factor. He is proven to be a hard-nosed perimeter defender, something I see the lakers may need against the quick guards. The athleticism is also a plus. In fact, I dont believe Shannon Brown is the throw in guy, but rather the focus of the trade, with morrison in to make the salaries match. Another blogger has also agreed with me @ http://www.rufusonfire.com/2009/2/7/752693/shhhh-don-t-tell-anyone-th
Furthermore, lots of NBA players were 'journeymen', that turned out to be successful, Like Ben Wallace, Gilbert Arenas or Chauncey Billups. Im not saying Shanon will be up to their calibre, but I believe he deserves a chance to prove himself.
i think it's a pre-emptive plan on keeping Odom, letting go of Rad Man gives the Lakers more of a salary cap, seeing as Odom is a free agent at the end of the year. This year seems to be full of twists and turns!
Still think the bobcats got the better end? Vladimir is languishing in who knows where now ( warriors last I heard) while Shannon brown is starting in place of Kobe Bryant, arguably the decades best player. Morrison? Meh, he's an expiring contract. But one championhip later, you can't argue with the results.
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