Heat / Wolves trade

[BravesRule22]

From ESPN / Rotoworld :

ESPN is reporting that the Miami Heat will soon complete a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves to acquire swingman Ricky Davis and center Mark Blount in exchange for Antoine Walker, Michael Doleac and Wayne Simien and possibly a first-round pick.
We have no idea what Minnesota is going to do with Walker, although a buyout seems likely, but the good news for Ricky Davis owners is that he'd likely step right into the starting lineup for the Heat. It's believed the Heat will throw in a first-round draft pick to help push the trade through. Davis would likely start at shooting guard, while Blount would help back up Shaquille O'Neal and Udonis Haslem. None of the players going to Minnesota would have any fantasy value.

So the Heat are getting : Ricky Davis and Mark Blount while sending the Wolves Walker, Simien and Doleac ??????????

Riley really did a number on Mchale in this trade, wow. Great trade for the Heat and this clearly makes them a BIG threat to contend in the East this year.

Wade, Davis, Haslem and Shaq thats going to be a force in the East.

And now it takes their bench from a weakness to a strength

Just a GREAT trade by the Heat here

As for Wolves, I have NO idea why did this. I could see if it was expiring contracts or something but Walker is owed another 40mil on his contract. And he is AWFUL to boot, Doleac is trash and Simien might have ok potential but hes not anything special.

I have no idea how they didnt get more for 2 really good players in Blount and Davis. Mchale is going to have to answer some serious questions after this one.

[Habsfan84]

Thats an interesting trade.

[Zen653]

I have no idea how they didnt get more for 2 really good players in Blount and Davis.

Blount and Davis are head cases. I had the displeasure of watching both of them in Boston.

There's a reason why Ricky Davis is on his 6th team in less than 10 seasons. He's a selfish player who misbehaves in practice and never gets along with the coach or teammates. He seems like a good guy when you see him on the court. He's always smiling, diving for loose balls, and playing at full speed. He ingratiates himself with the home fans. But he's also apparently a ruffian behind the scenes. He gets into fights with teammates. He disobeys his coaches. He disrespects authority.

There's no doubting his talent or athleticism. He can be a clutch shooter and also an effective slasher. However, he won't pass the ball at key junctures in the game and his defense depends on the quality of the opponent. He tries hard against big name players, while letting the no-names torch him for 20+.

Mark Blount is an enigma. He's one of the best shooters I've ever seen (at any position.) He has an immaculate shooting stroke that allows him to hit most of his free-throws and score from almost anywhere within the three-point line. He's even been working on three-pointers over the last season and a half. The problem with Blount, as a player, is that he's a shooting guard caught in the body of a center. He doesn't like to bang in the post or play defense. He hates to rebound (even though he's very capable of doing so on the rare occasion that he feels motivated.) And he's a terrible ball-handler. He drops every third pass and turns the ball over a lot. To make matters even worse, Blount's personality infuriates his teammates, coaches and fans. He's surly, quiet, dispassionate, disagreeable, lazy, and selfish. The man is a great person off the court (very charitable, wonderful with kids, engaging, etc.) but a difficult one on it. He plays the game his way and doesn't care about anyone else's opinion of him. If he's not getting his touches, he whines to the media (the only time he ever talks.) If the coach decides to bench him, he just sits there indifferently, chomping on his gum with a poker face. In practice, he refuses to participate in certain drills and he gets into fights with his teammates. When Blount and Jefferson were teammates in Boston, the two of them got into more than one altercation. With Jefferson now in Minnesota following the Garnett trade, there was no way that these two could coexist.

Meanwhile, in Miami, Antoine Walker fell out of favor with Pat Riley last year when the former #6 overall draft pick couldn't keep his body fat down. This year, Walker reported to camp 20+ pounds overweight, sending Riley into an absolute tizzy. Riley also grew frustrated with Walker because of his poor shot selection and declining inside game. Given the rapidly deteriorating relationship between Walker and his coach, it made sense for the Heat to move him.

In my opinion, this is a win-win deal for both the Timberwolves and the Heat. Minnesota gets to subtract the problematic Blount and Davis for a guy who has one less year remaining on his contract (Walker) and who plays with an infectious enthusiasm for the game. When Walker returned to Boston for a half-season in 04-05, he took Al Jefferson under his wings and the two of them developed a strong bond. The two players will now be reunited in Minnesota which should improve team chemistry. Any time you can drop two head cases for a veteran leader, you have to strongly consider the swap. Kevin McHale wanted no part of Mark Blount and Ricky Davis causing trouble with Minnesota's young rookie core.

From Miami's perspective, the deal makes sense because Walker and Riley simply weren't getting along, and Walker is washed up and overpaid. In Davis and Blount, Riley inherits a pair of troublemakers who he hopes to reform into disciplined role players. There's no denying the raw talent of Davis and Blount. If someone can motivate them to play basketball the right way, it's Pat Riley. Maybe playing on a championship-contending team for the first time in their careers, they'll behave themselves. If you're the Miami Heat, you figure it's a worthwhile gamble, especially when the cost is just the eminently expendable Antoine Walker and a pair of throw-ins.

[djwhokid]

From Miami's perspective, the deal makes sense because Walker and Riley simply weren't getting along, and Walker is washed up and overpaid. In Davis and Blount, Riley inherits a pair of troublemakers who he hopes to reform into disciplined role players. There's no denying the raw talent of Davis and Blount. If someone can motivate them to play basketball the right way, it's Pat Riley. Maybe playing on a championship-contending team for the first time in their careers, they'll behave themselves.

The Miami Heat championship-contending?

D-FLOP could bump into a 5 year old girl and he'd fall over and break his leg doing it. He needs to learn to play real basketball and stop relying on phantom foul calls to get his points. Until he does, I will continue to bash D-FLOP as long as he plays.

Shaq is 35-years old and cannot play an entire season.

The Heat got swept by the Bulls in the first round last year, they will be lucky just to make the playoffs this season. Signing Penny Haraway (washed up) will provide nothing. The rest of their roster is crap.

Smush Parker, White Chocolate, Cook, etc... LOL!