[If you missed last weeks, there's an introduction there of what the Carnival is all about.]
The trade deadline has passed and with a critical eye on the short-term and long-term effects on their favorite team, the bloggers around the NBA have been active.
--- Knickerblogger has a writeup on the trade sending Webber to the Sixers, noting that people seem to be overlooking the Kings' improvement in defense due to jettisoning Weber and his one leg. Of course he also weighs in on Knicks GM Isiah Thomas' moves, and was one of the few praising Isiah for his deal with the Spurs, thinking that getting two first-rounders for Nazr Mohammed is a 'no-brainer', salary issues notwithstanding:
"A lot of the ire received from the San Antoinio trade is that the Knicks are saddled by Malik Rose's 4 year overpriced contract. However they're already in cap hell until the end of the 2007 season, so the first three years are meaningless. New York can take on as much salary as they want until then."
While he likes the trade with the Spurs, the other trade that aquired Maurice Taylor from the Rockets wasn't as well received...
---On the other end of that Mohammed-Rose trade, the San Antonio Spurs Blog is thanking Isiah for sending a very good backup center for a small price from the Spurs end...
---And Father Knickerbocker is happy that Kurt Thomas wasn't dealt...
---The other big trade over the weekend was the one that sent Antoine Walker back to the Celtics. Celticsblog has blown up this week with reaction from their two contributors and hundreds of commenters. Both Hagrid and Jeff are happy with the move:
Antoine Walker is what he has always been. Like him or not, he's here to play his part once again. Personally I like what he brings to the table and I am happy with the price we paid to get him (especially if we can bring Payton back). Of course you can take this all with a grain of salt since I've always been a Walker fan. However, I can at least say that I'm a realistic Walker fan. The biggest complaint I've ever had with Walker was that he had so much talent, and never really got the most out of it. Some of that I blame on O'Brien. Much of it falls on him. However, he's got another shot at it now.
If it works out, everyone's happy. Otherwise, he'll be on to a new team next year (don't forget we can always sign-and-trade him in the offseason). Here's hoping that it works out.
Obviously if the C's don't get Gary Payton back after he's bought out of his Hawks contract they will be trusting the point guard spot to two young players in Delonte West and Marcus Banks, but so far so good on that front...
---The Hornets used the trade deadline to slash payroll and rebuild, and Ron Hitley over at Hornets247.com writes a eulogy for the Mashburn/Davis era, while looking toward the future:
Although the Hornets will finish the season as one of the worst teams in the League, there's no guarantee that they'll land one of the top three picks. Therefore, we can't count on having a rookie phenom in the mix come November.
The safest bet is that the biggest pick-up for the Hornets will come via free agency... the cream of the crop - and those who will be high on the Hornets' wish list - seem to be Ray Allen, Eddy Curry and Stromile Swift.
Ron thinks that Swift has the best chance of coming to NO, and has a larger list of potential FAs at the bottom of his post...
---One of the players acquired by the Hornets is Dale Davis, and Motoring thinks that the Pistons can get him if the Hornets buy out his contract. If I were the Hornets though I'd tell Davis to play for them or be suspended, they don't owe him a thing...
---With the Heat's acquisition of Steve Smith at the deadline (after Alonzo Mourning), Crazy from the Heat is calling this season the "Miami Heat reunion tour" ...
---A team that was rumored to make moves but didn't was the Raptors, and Raptorblog reviews the other deals at the deadline, leaving a pot-shot for Raps GM Rob Babcock at the end...
---Also reviewing all the deals is Hoopinion, as well as NBAFanBlog.com. Like I said earlier in the week about that site, just go there and keep on scrolling...
---Another team that was expected to make moves but didn't was the Blazers, and that pleases BlazerTalk:
Reef is still a Blazer. Damon too. I am very glad. I didn't like any trade I had heard about. I would have loved to see us get Redd but not at the expense of losing Reef. I will hold on to my hope that Zach and Miles can be moved during the summer and we can make use of expiring contracts.
I'm sure that'll create a more fan-friendly TrailBlazer squad, but with the salaries involved seems unlikely to happen....
Forum Blue and Gold saw his Lakers also stand pat, and looks at clutch statistics for Kobe Bryant sees that Kobe needs some help now that the big fella aint around anymore:
The point is not to say Kobe shouldn’t have the ball in his hands at the ends of games, he should. But the Lakers are going to see a number of close games the rest of this season — how well they do in those games may be the difference between making the playoffs and missing them — and when it gets to crunch time every other team is playing it as if Kobe is the first, second and third option.
Candidates for some help include Lamar Odom and Chucky Atkins...
---Despite a recent loss to the Bulls (had to throw that in there), Les Bullez knows that Larry Hughes is coming back and for the first time all season his Wizards are going to be fully healthy:
That’s right; the Wizards will have two 7-footers patrolling the paint along with the 65+ PPG that the other three guys bring to the table. Does anyone want to play the Wizards in the first round of the playoffs?
Well to be fair, one of those 7-footers is Kwame Brown...
---Watching a team that is sliding down the East, and Orlando Magic Fan looks for Grant Hill to step up and lead the team where Steve Francis won't...
[That's it for this week's carnival. If you read or write something in the coming week that you think should be mentioned, let me know. Like I said last week these things work better when they rotate amongst the bloggers, so email me if you want to step up for next week and take the reigns.]