Five NBA Trades That Should Happen

By Kyle Slavin
Love of Sports Correspondent

Happy NBA day, world. It truly is the most wonderful time of year.

The NBA got underway this past week, and with some heavy doses of fanfare in many parts of the country.

Many fans will see the new incarnations of their teams for the first time. New players, new coaches, new schemes, new uniforms. There’s even a team in Oklahoma City with pastel uniforms, with thousands of rabid fans cheering while they lose 65 games.

And I get to see an 6-foot-9 Asian point guard with mono play for the Lakers. It is surely a special time.

One thing we can be sure of is the fact these teams are still ironing the kinks out. Though rosters have been trimmed to 15 players for opening day, we all know there are still changes to be made.

Injuries happen, and many teams are thin to begin with. Remember, the great summer of free agency is only two summers away, so if your team stinks, they’d better be clearing some cap space now.

That, or they could just move to Seattle. Those folks would be willing to accept a good D-League team right now. There are tears in many a latte in the Great Northwest.

So, in conjuring the spirit of the late great Bill Simmons, here are five NBA trades that need to happen.

NBA Trades That Need To Happen

(All proposed trades have checked out in the ESPN NBA Trade Machine. They work. Try them yourself.)

1. New York’s Jamal Crawford ($8.6 million ‘til 2011) for Phoenix’s Raja Bell ($5 million ‘til 2010) and Grant Hill ($1.9 million ‘til 2009)

Fact: David Lee shouldn’t be the first Knick on the trading block. The dude could be an All-Star. He’s young, healthy, ambitious and would be willing to share the spotlight with LeBron or whoever they sign in 2010. Besides, he might be the best U.S. white guy in the NBA, he’s playing in NYC and I dig that. You do too. Don’t lie.

Furthermore, I’ve long believed Crawford needs to play for a West Coast team with a killer point guard. I saw him when he scored 51 points, and the kid is the perfect running mate for Steve Nash. Can’t you see it? Amare and Shaq clog up the middle, and J.C.’s free for the three. They get a fast break, J.C.’s a finisher. He’s no more of a team killer than Shawn Marion or even Raja Bell. He’d be perfect.

On the flip side, the Knicks get some veteran leadership and some quality production in Grant Hill’s skeleton, and a hard-nosed defender with an attitude in Bell. Let me tell you, Bell has New York written all over him. He’s a little short, sneers, shaves his head, talks a lot of “ish,” and can produce decent numbers. Plus, they both come off the books by 2010 and free up some cap room, whereas Crawford would be a holdover for one year with the “Potential LeBron” before bolting town. Crawford’s absence makes LeBron to NYC more of a possibility, as does Lee’s staying in NYC. It’s common sense. But hey, it’s the Knicks. So, who knows.

(BTW, I’ll officially refer to this LeBron-to-NY situation as the “Potential LeBron” from this point forward. It sounds like an Econ 101 term, and the Knicks are playing with his specter for the next two seasons anyways. I like it.)

2. Indiana’s Jamaal Tinsley (??) for Denver’s Steven Hunter ($3.9 million ‘til 2010) and Chucky Atkins ($1.4 million ‘til 2010)

OK, you got me. This is cheating. Everyone and their mom knows this trade is happening. Indiana’s moved past the Tinsley/Jermaine O’Neal era like an Indy car past a double-wide trailer on the infield. Larry Bird must be a great poker player, because he folded this hand quick-like. And Lord, would I love to play cards against Bird. Think about that … if he won a hand, he’d be slyly pointing at Kevin McKale on the sidelines and not saying anything, just nodding with a little smile under his blonde mustache and mullet. And if he’d lose, he’d say “That Kyle is the best poker player I’ve ever seen. He’s just … unbelievable.”

Moving on.

Consider this: while Indiana still has the rights to Tinsley, his status is sketchy. He doesn’t appear on the ESPN Trade Machine, he isn’t assigned a jersey number on his team’s roster. That’s how badly the Pacers want to move on. This is a guy who averaged 12 points and 8.5 assists last year. He can’t help your team? He can’t still play?

So, Denver gets more street-cred and wins the contest for “Most Tattoos Per Square Inch” ... George Karl included. Indiana gets another perennial backup point guard, and a decent but injured big man in Hunter. Yawn. Let’s get to the next trade before I nod off and the Coffee Bean staff has to poke me with a broom.

3. L.A.’s Lamar Odom ($14.1 million ‘til 2009) for Milwaukee’s Richard Jefferson ($13.1 ‘til 2011) and Ramon Sessions ($722k ‘til 2009)

Attention, Lakers fans. Listen carefully. The Lamar Odom situation is over. OVER. Yes, he’s a very talented, five-tool player. He has the ideal basketball body. In fact, he’s a very good basketball player. (Other teams, stop reading now.)

But he’ll never win a championship. He can’t be relied upon in crunch-time situations. He’s moody. He’s insecure. The fact he does many things well on the basketball court doesn’t make up for the fact he does NOTHING very well. He’s the perennial third-option, and on a championship contender like the Lakers, the third option must produce. End of story.

Personally, I’ve been disappointed with Odom for a while now. From my father’s griping “he doesn’t play defense! What is that stance?! He’s sleeping out there!” to the fact that he’s exactly as good as he was his rookie year (and his senior year of high school … he hasn’t improved one bit).

Honestly, have you ever heard the words “and then Lamar Odom took over the game?” It even looks funny to read on my computer screen.

So, let me kick the lever on the guillotine. Odom gots to go. He’s not even producing on the second unit of the Lakers right now, and being that Vlad Radmanovich finally woke up and is looking like a basketball player, there’s literally no need for him.

So, let’s make Richard Jefferson’s stop in Milwaukee a short one. If you watched the Nets last season, you saw a PO’ed Jefferson. He’d been out for a year due to a knee injury, and the Nets were scraping the bottom of the East barrel. But he just wouldn’t give up. Plus, this “veteran” is only 28 years old … two years younger than Kobe.

The only problem I have with this trade is why Milwaukee would ever agree to it. But then again, maybe they haven’t seen Odom play recently. Besides, he’s always done well on underachieving teams.

4. L.A.’s Chris Kaman ($9.5 million ‘til 2012) and Cuttino Mobley ($8.9 million ‘til 2010) for Miami’s Shawn Marion ($17.8 million ‘til 2009)

I’ve always liked Frankenstein.

Kaman’s a workhorse. His game, as a big man, is as refined as any bigs in the league. He doesn’t demand the ball, but can put up 20-10 games in his sleep. His hook shot is silk, he shoots above 70% from the line and he’s only 26 years old.

The problem? They just traded for Marcus Camby, and there’s a logjam in the post. Camby, though long-in-the-tooth at 34, is perfect for a run-and-gun offense, the style Baron Davis and Al Thornton would be successful with. Kaman? Let’s just say he won’t be leading the fast break.

So, Kaman’s on the outs, and the Clippers are looking for a running power forward. Keep in mind Camby and Baron aren’t getting any younger, and the window for these Clippers to be successful is about two years.

Now let’s look to the youth movement in Miami. Marion’s completely out of place. With no prominent point guard, we now see the player he is: a 15-and-9 hustle player, getting points mainly on put-backs and open jumpers. He can still get up the floor and elevate, but in a set offense his skills diminish. Plus, this is the last year of his contract, and the Heat aren’t set to make any moves next year with the cap room he frees up. It would clear the way for Udonis Haslem (completely underappreciated) to step in with Michael Beasley, Wade and Mario Chalmers.

Oh, and the Heat needs a center. The Ilgauskas to Dwyane Wade’s LeBron. That’s a solid lineup. I’m sold on this.

5. Chicago’s Kirk Hinrich ($10 million ‘til 2012) for Oklahoma City’s Chris Wilcox ($6.7 million ‘til 2009) and Jeff Green ($3.2 million ‘til 2010)

Sooner or later, the Thunder’s going to figure out Kevin Durant should be playing at small forward. That way, they can move the talented Russell Westbrook to shooting guard and let him explode for the 15-4-and-4 he’s capable of. At that point, they’ll realize Earl Watson, though a smart and assist-happy point guard, is far too small and shoots far too poorly.

In this fictitious world, the Thunder will then realize they have two of the same player in Wilcox and Nick Collison, both of whom would excel if not for the other. In my mind, that means one is expendable.

So, let’s look at the Bulls, who’d be willing to sell their souls to part with Hinrich’s salary and give the keys to their #1 draft pick, Derrick Rose. The fact they get a starting center (when they were starting a converted small forward at center) and an upcoming young stud in Green only sweetens the deal. Plus, they’re both off the books by 2010 when several tempting free agents comes on the market.

End result? Both teams get better. I swear, this is too simple. It’s like simple math, but with players’ careers. I carried the one, right?

Happy regular season, folks. Yes, I’m just as excited as you are.

(You can read more of Kyle Slavin’s work at www.tscblogs.com.)