We all know guys like Steph, Bird, and Reggie are all great shooters, but what about Kyle Korver's ability to knockdown a corner 3? Hakeem had legendary post moves, but Zach Randolph also had a bag full of tricks in the low post. Here are some guys I think had a specific HOF level skill, despite not having HOF talent other wise:
Peja Stojakovic- contested 3 pointers
Shawn Kemp- pick and roll finisher
Jason Richardson- finishing a contested dunk
Jason Williams- handles
Leandro Barbosa- speed while dribbling
Mark Jackson- court vision
Anderson Varejao- taking a charge
Mark Eaton- rim protector
Enes Kanter- boxing out
This is a thought I have had for a while including these 3 teams, all of which have had dissapointing endings to the last season and are often mentioned in trade rumors.
Portland gets: Porzingis, Simmons, Hardaway Jr and Tobias Harris
76ers get: Damian Lillard and Robert Covington and Derric Jones jr
Mavs get: CJ and Nurkic
This is what the package would be centered around with picks possibly being included to make everyone happy and possibly some other players to make salary cap work. I think it benefits everyone.
76ers get a real superstar to pair with Embiid and deal away Tobias Harris large contract. Covington and DJJ are also decent.
Trailblazers obviously want to keep Lillard but if he wants out this gives them 3 all star caliber players while Simmons and Porzingis have even more potential and I think would have better chemistry than either of them have with their current star teammate.
Mavs get Nurkic who I think would mesh really well with Luka. Not the shooter that Porzingis is but he plays more aggressive and really good team basketball. CJ is a great shooter that can create for himself that Luka can pass off to when double teamed. Even though CJ is an undersized shooting guard, Luka makes up for it being an oversized point guard.
Edit: Lots of guys disagreeing with me, nothing wrong with that. Just want to further develop my thoughts. For those who say portland would never agree to this because it makes them much worse, how often does a team being forced to trade their superstar ever end up just just as good as they were before? Its all about trying to salvage as much as possible. Of course picks would need to be included which I did mention but just because you get a bunch of first round picks, is no guarantee that they are all gonna be lottery picks and even if they are, unless its a top 5 pick, the odds you get an all star is very low, hell even low for top 5 picks. Look at the picks OKC is hoarding, nothing has come out of it, they had the chance for two top 5 picks this draft but "only" got one lottery pick. Portland isnt gonna attract free agents either. This trades at least gives them 3 all stars so they stay in playoff contention. Of course every team wants to contend, but realistically few can. Portland are fortunate they have at least been in the playoffs for the past decade and this trade would give them a chance to continue that which is a lot better situation than most teams.
Ben Simmons for CJ McCollum seems like it would be a great fit for both sides. Portland gets another elite playmaker that could they could pair with Dame to have a Curry and Draymond like PnR, who is also a 1-5 stopper which they desperately need. Portland is also full of shooters which would be a perfect environment for Simmons to thrive. Philadelphia gets an elite 3 level scorer that can space the floor in CJ. While running CJ at the 1 would be definitely be an experiment, when he had to fill that role last year in games where Dame didn’t play he certainly looked like he could play-make at an elite level. Portland has loads of draft capital and young players to sweeten the deal. It would also show Damian Lillard that they’re still trying to build a team around him. What am I missing?
Elton Brand is a good player, but he has never stuck out as someone really deserving of being in the hall of fame right after retirement. I'm sure he'll eventually be inducted, but for the time between his retirement and his induction, retiring his jersey would be a nice gesture to show that the Clippers appreciated him.
Elton is definitely known as a good player, but he is also known for when the Chicago Bulls traded him, in an attempt to rebuild the team quicker. The trade definitely overshadows his career, and has to the second biggest thing that the 2001 draft is known for, other than Kwame.
Elton had both of his all star appearances while on the Clippers, and led the Clippers to their first playoff appearance in the 2005-06 season for the first time in 9 years. Also in the 2005-06 season, Elton led the team to their best record at that point in time, and was considered league MVP material.
Brand was the shining light of the dark ages of the Clippers, and in my opinion, he deserves some recognition for his contributions to the team.
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