The Big Lead Posts

So now that the Bobcats have traded for shooting guard Jason Richardson and re-signed wing Gerald Wallace, one has to wonder: what becomes of their mustachioed rookie, Adam Morrison? My answer? His NBA future in Charlotte is in deep trouble.

Michael Jordan would have not made the Brandan Wright-for-J Rich deal if he did not intend to start the former Michigan State star. They're paying Richardson $50 million over the next four years, so he'll be starting at shooting guard. The high-flying Wallace, who was had for the bargain basement cost of $57 million over the next six years, is going to be starting at small forward.

Which leaves exactly where for Adam Morrison? If the plan is to make him a Vinny Johnson-type microwave off the bench, is that something he's going to be interested in? Perhaps. But that doesn't pay well, unless your name is Kyle Korver.

Morrison's in trouble, and here's the reason: he's just too slow. If you look at the small forwards in the league, he is among the slowest and worst defensively. Is he swift enough to play shooting guard? That remains to be seen. If the Bobcats want to go small, they can play a lineup of Richardson, Wallace, Morrison and Ray Felton at point guard, with Okafor at center. That's not bad ... for the East.

First, Amare weathered all of those silly trade rumors. Some folks had him going to Atlanta. We had a hunch it was poppycock all along - why would you give up a young stud in his 20s for an aging stud already in his 30s? Phoenix held onto Amare and with the roster intact, should be one of the favorites - if not the favorite - to reach the NBA FInals.

Then, it seems, the first-team All NBA dunking machine elected to take a few college classes at nearby Arizona State University.

Amare Stoudamire was just on the Dan Patrick show, sans Dan Patrick of course, and is apparently attending summer school at Arizona St. University in the quest for a History degree. What courses is he taking? Human Geography and Palates of course.

If you recall the tremendous HBO Sports piece on Stoudemire from a few years ago, it talked about how he had attended six high schools in two years and overcame a difficult - to say the least - childhood. Now he's going back to get his degree? Nice. Increasingly, I'm becoming a huge Amare Stoudemire fan. Perhaps the Suns should trade for Andrew Bogut so that the Aussie can see the positive cultural side of American basketball players.

Now that the dust has settled and Vince Carter, Chauncey Billups and Rashard Lewis have all decided where they're going to play next season (New Jersey, Detroit and Orlando, respectively), there's one huge name left on the free agent market: Charlotte's Gerald Wallace.

Orlando would have been a nice home for the small forward, but the Magic went with Lewis. Not many other teams can afford the kind of money Wallace wants ($10 million a year, which I feel is absurd), so the early indications were that he'd stay in Charlotte.

But after the draft night deal that brought in scorer Jason Richardson and his bloated salary, plus the fact that Charlotte is going to need to pay Emeka Okafor in the near future, and the fact that the Bobcats drafted small forward Jared Dudley, one has to wonder ... is there room for Wallace?

I said it last year - once Charlotte went with Adam Morrison in the draft in 2006, that signaled the end of Wallace. As nice of a player as he is (career numbers last year in scoring, three-point shooting and assists and he's only 25 years old), he's going to impede the growth of Morrison.

So the question remains: where to? Is Dallas really a contender? Supposedly a three-team deal is in the works, but it would have to involve Josh Howard, since he's a small forward. And is Wallace even a better player than Howard? I don't believe so. Milwaukee is supposedly in the fold, but can't offer him Charlotte money. In addition, would he want to play second fiddle to Michael Redd?

All the Trailblazer fans unimpressed with rookie Greg Oden's first summer-league showing (10 fouls, six points) can get down from the ledges of buildings in downtown Portland. All is not lost. Former Portland coach Maurice Cheeks would like you to know that a current NBA Hall of Fame lock struggled in his first summer league game, too. His name? Tim Duncan.

"I remember Tim Duncan's first summer league game, and Greg Ostertag killed him. Just killed him. Now, who do you think the better player is? The kid is going to be fine.''

Anyone who puts stock in summer league games needs to get their head checked. The games amount to less than an NBA preseason game, if that's possible. Oden could commit 10 fouls in each of the next three summer league games and I wouldn't be think for a moment that he's not going to be an NBA force.

I'm predicting that Oden ends his rookie season with averages of about 10 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks. Not otherworldly, and probably not good enough to warrant rookie of the year honors. But more importantly, the Blazers will probably win 40 games, and set things up quite nicely for the 2008-2009 campaign, when I anticipate the start of a lengthy playoff run. And yes, I do expect championships.

Besides getting dunked on by Rudy Gay Friday (at the end of the above video, you can see Yi returning the favor), there's actually positive news to report on Bucks first-round pick Yi Jianlian - he finally spoke with Milwaukee officials, a potential sign that the two signs could avert disaster and work out a deal.

Yi's solid showing followed his first face-to-face meeting with Bucks officials Thursday at the team's hotel in Las Vegas.

Harris and Krystkowiak represented the Bucks at a meeting that lasted about one hour, with Yi bringing an interpreter and the Bucks' officials bringing one of their own.

"We talked about the opportunity in Milwaukee," Harris said. "He was very respectful and, I thought, very engaging."

Baby steps, people. And based on the clip above, Yi's game somewhat resembles that of Dirk Nowitzki from inside 15 feet, except it's clear he'll be a better defensive player than Dirk (the block), and he's far more athletic (the dunk). I think Milwaukee should be bending over backward to appease Yi, who, paired with Andrew Bogut and Michael Redd, could form a very strong nucleus.

You'd think the 2006 NBA Champs would be poised to overhaul the roster this summer, especially since Miami was swept out of the 2007 playoffs by the Chicago Bulls in the first round.

Except the Heat have regressed.

First, Miami boggles minds everywhere by taking a shooting guard with their first round pick in the NBA draft, selecting upside guy Daequan Cook, a freshman from Ohio State. He plays the same position occupied by the Heat's top player, Dwyane Wade.

Next, the Heat allow their best shooter, Jason Kapano, to sign with Toronto.

Now, it appears as if Miami could be on the verge of signing overrated point guard Steve Blake since Mo Williams is looking for too much money, And the Heat's third best player, James Posey, is likely not going to return as well.

What is Pat Riley doing in South Beach?

There aren't many solutions with the free agent market quite barren, and Shaq isn't getting any younger. It's probably a good idea to pass on Blake, though, and if you're going to pass on James Posey, then perhaps a player like Travis Outlaw should be brought in to play small forward.

It's only a brief clip, and looks to be taken from a fan sitting in the second or third row. But as you can see here, Rudy Gay of the Memphis Grizzlies spins to beat Milwaukee Bucks rookie Yi Jianlian baseline, and then throws down a nasty two-handed facial in the rook's face. The crowd's reaction says it all.

Yi did finish with 23 points, but the Grizzlies defeated the Chinese national team, 86-77.

San Antonio Spurs - Rare is the day when the Spurs botch a draft pick, but Marcus Williams is a cancer waiting to happen. He was a ballhog in Arizona, didn't enjoy playing defense, and pouted frequently. Can't see him lasting long with the Spurs.

Los Angeles Lakers - All around pretty terrible draft for the Lakers, who did nothing to improve the team in the short term. Perhaps they are building for the inevitable post-Kobe era, but Sun Yue from China? Spain's Marc Gasol? Will either even score a point for the Lakers this season?

Houston Rockets - I'm all for snatching up foreign players and waiting on them for a year or two, but Australian small forward Brad Newley? Why not pick up some immediate insurance for Yao in the form of Syracuse 7-footer Darryl Watkins? Or a gander on a shooting guard such as Virginia's JR Reynolds or OSU's Ron Lewis?

Minnesota Timberwolves - Chris Richard? Wow. Major surprise. A nice player, sure, but perhaps a bit undersized (6-foot-9) to play power forward. Would have much preferred the T-Wolves make a move on a legit center, such as Kyle Visser (a guy ESPN's John Hollinger love, and yet went undrafted).

Josh McRoberts, Portland Trailblazers - Supposedly, he was going to be a lottery pick if he had left after an awesome freshman campaign. Now, he's got to make a roster to get paid.

Zabian Dowdell, Virginia Tech - ESPN's Chad Ford, who has taken on some kind of all-knowing role in the draft, had Dowdell rated as the 35th best player in the draft. He wasn't selected.

Bobby Brown, Cal-State Fullerton - There were times when he seemed to be shooting up the charts into the early second round. Guess nobody bought the hype. He wasn't drafted.

Atlanta Hawks: Scoring post player? Check. Al Horford is a monster. Point guard? Check. Acie Law is perfect. There really was no way Billy Knight could have bungled this one. He hit a meatball out of the park. A core of Law, Joe Johnson, Josh Smith and Al Horford isn't bad at all. If this team can somehow acquire a center - even if he's just a shot blocker and rebounder - it could turn into something decent sooner rather than later. And no, Shelden Williams is not that man.

Golden State Warriors: If the proposed trade of Brandan Wright for Jason Richardson goes through, the Warriors just made a tremendous acquisition. With the 18th pick, the Warriors got arguably the best foreign player in the draft, scoring guard Marco Belinelli. He reminds me of Manu Ginobili. And Wright is a perfect fit for the up-tempo Warriors. He's the power forward they didn't have against Utah in the conference semis, when the Warriors were destroyed inside by Carlos Boozer. It'll be interesting to see what the Warriors do with Mickael Pietrus. But how's this potential lineup: Baron, Belinelli, Stephen Jackson, Al Harrington, and Wright? Or, the Warriors could go big with Wright at power forward and Andris Biedrins at center.

Washington Wizards: By now you know about my man crush on USC wing Nick Young. Between Gilbert Arenas, Young and Caron Butler, the Wiz won't be hurting for offense. This leads me to believe Antwan Jamison could be on the move for a power player.

Philadelphia 76ers: Philly could have used a shooting guard or a power forward. Naturally, it drafted the position it was strongest in: small forward. Billy King bricked here with the selection of Thaddeus Young. Iggy's not a shooting guard. Colorado State's Jason Smith is a bit of a curious selection as well - he seems to be a center more than a power forward. A center that floats to the perimeter. He's not a back-to-the-basket guy, which is what they needed. With the final pick in the first round, guard Petteri Koponen isn't a bad one, since he'll be stashed overseas. So with three picks in the first round, Philly didn't draft anyone to come in and immediately contribute. Nicely done!

Sacramento Kings: I like Spencer Hawes. Burly center from Washington with a strong low-post game. Eventually, he'll replace aging center Brad Miller. But for a team with a crazy small forward (Artest) and no talented power forwards, why would you take a center? BC's Sean Williams probably would have been a reach here, as would Josh McRoberts. But passing on small forwards like Al Thornton, Thaddeus Young and Julian Wright? Oops.