Rumor Roundup: Two Days Out
We=E2=80=99re a little more than two days away from the draft and = rumors are=20 percolating, most of them involving the Grizzlies and Heat in a possible = deal=20 for Michael Beasley.
Before I round up the most significant Griz-related rumors from = around the=20 web today, let me throw out a couple of tidbits of my own:
Over the past couple of days, I=E2=80=99ve heard from three different =
team-connected=20
sources that something may be happening with Beasley. Mind you, these =
are all=20
people without direct connection to any potential negotiations and =
no-one has=20
quite the same tale to tell: One source says
On another note, with ESPN 730=E2=80=99s The Geoff and Gary Show off =
the air, I=20
turned the radio on to Sports 56 this morning and heard
![3D""=20](3D"http://www.hoopsvibe.com/IMG/jason_williams-arton21254-240x240.jpg=)
Upon reflection, I don=E2=80=99t think this is as crazy as it =
appears. The people=20
Williams appeared to have the most problems with during his last stint =
(aside=20
from Geoff Calkins, anyway) =
were
Now, some of the more notable Griz material around the web today:
ESPN.com=E2=80=99s Chad Ford = leads with a=20 Beasley-to-Grizzlies rumor in his=20 draft column today:
Quote:
One source told Insider that the Heat = are=20 revisiting trade talks with the Grizzlies. Insider reported several = weeks ago=20 that there was talk that Memphis would give up Mike Miller, Kyle Lowry = and the=20 No. 5 pick as part of a package for the No. 2 pick. The same source = said the=20 Heat are asking the Grizzlies to sweeten the deal by substituting Mike = Conley=20 for Lowry. The deal would be Conley and the No. 5 pick to Miami for = the No. 2=20 pick and Daequan Cook.That trade would land Riley the point guard he covets and still get = him a=20 high lottery pick in the draft. The Heat would likely choose between = Kevin=20 Love or Brook Lopez at No. 5.
While the price is high for the Grizzlies, they have great depth at = the=20 point guard position and could afford to lose Conley. Memphis' biggest = need is=20 at the power forward position, and Beasley appears to be a = once-in-a-decade=20 talent at the 4 -- a perfect fit for a young and upcoming Memphis = team.=20
It=E2=80=99s been interesting, though, to see how this scenario has = evolved over the=20 day, with Ford suggesting in an interactive mock draft with Bill Simmons = a=20 little later in the day a slightly different variation:
Mike Conley, Mike Miller & #5 = for Udonis=20 Haslim, Daequan Cook & #2
That deal, in particular, would be problematic for the Grizzlies: = Giving up=20 an awful lot and leaving the roster wildly out of balance.
Marty Burns at CNN/SI talks=20 to Chris Wallace on the eve of the draft, passing along the = suggestion that=20 potentially adding Marc Gasol = is the=20 equivalent of a second lottery pick.
But, will Gasol stay with the Grizzlies. A Spanish=20 report linked via Hoops Hype mentions the possibility of the = Timberwolves=20 trading for Gasol=E2=80=99s rights. I wonder if this could be part of = three-team=20 scenario designed to land the Grizzlies Beasley and the Heat Mayo.
![3D""=20](3D"http://www.fiba.com/images/web/News/players_head_shots/esp/marc_ga=)
CNN/SI=E2=80=99s Ian Thomsen =
offers
Quote:
5. Memphis Grizzlies: Word around the = league=20 has had the Grizzlies taking either Mayo or Love. One of them figures = to be=20 available at No. 5 barring one of these two scenarios: (1) Minnesota = goes for=20 Love and Seattle takes Mayo, or (2) a team trades up to the Nos. 3 or = 4 for=20 Love or Mayo.On Monday, however, I heard another rumor that Eric Gordon is the = top=20 choice here. Another alternative is Lopez
ESPN.com=E2=80=99s Andy Katz =
offers
Quote:
=E2=80=A2 A potential deal with = Memphis and New York=20 apparently has some legs. The Knicks, who have the No. 6 pick, would = get the=20 Grizzlies' No. 5 pick and give David Lee and other considerations to = Memphis.=20 New York would then select UCLA's Russell Westbrook and Italy's Danilo = Gallinari with its No. 5 and No. 6 picks. If Memphis selects UCLA's = Kevin=20 Love, that is a strong indicator that the Grizzlies are keeping the = pick.
Finally, the Miami = Sun-Sentinel=E2=80=99s=20 Ira Winderman continues to warn = the Heat=20 away from dealing Beasley in his fine=20 blog.
Submitted by Chris Herrington on Tue, 06/24/2008 - 7:35pm.
Chris Herrington's =
blog | ad=
d new=20
comment | email this=20
blog
The grizz have to make all attempts at getting beasely-give up whom = ever=20 except gay-give the fans a chance to want to watch them again-if they do = that=20 deal with new york just to cut costs-i will never watch another game = ever-that=20 would be a slap in the face to all grizz fans
Man if we could do that Heat trade where we give up Mike Conley and = the #5=20 for the #2 and Daequan Cook, I would jump on it so fast. I mean we could = always=20 draft another point guard of the future in '09 or sign one in free = agency when=20 Jason Collins' contract expires. Also, we would still have Mike Miller = so we=20 could trade him for the rights to a point guard this year like DJ = Augustine and=20 an expiring contract, or we could use him to acquire a big man in the = draft or=20 even one on a current team as long as he is young and talented. We could = be good=20 if we just made the right moves and Heisley wasn't always trying to cut = costs.=20 The draft is supposed to be the most exciting time of the year for the = NBA, but=20 I'm afraid management will make it a miserable time.
Great job Chris. Your work is greatly appreciated.
herrington@memphisflyer.com
Hey Chris where can I find an email address for you? I couldn't find = one on=20 the Flyer site.
The Grizz should make all efforts to land Beasley. Even though I was = largely=20 disappointed with where the West era left us, this would be our first = real=20 chance to end up with a legit superstar. This was Jerry's first goal = when taking=20 over the Grizz.
Any word on why Geoff and Gary are going and where they will end=20 up?
Any deal that gets the Grizzlies Beasley, and doesn't involve trading = Rudy=20 Gay, is a win. Even if it takes Miller and Conley to get it done.
The team would still have two solid young point guards, and adding = Haslem and=20 Cook isn't a bad move either. I could see a starting line-up of Lowry, = Gay,=20 Beasley, Haslem, and either Marc Gasol or Darko. Now that isn't a = playoff threat=20 in the West, but it should be a fun team to watch. And it would make for = a great=20 foundation to build on.
The main ingredients though are Gay and Beasley. That would give us = two=20 versatile ultra-athletic players who could both be potential All-Stars = in the=20 next couple of years.
Now, if it is possible to hang on to either Miller, Conley, or the = 5th pick=20 and still get the deal done, then so much the better. But there are few=20 scenarios for getting Beasley that I think would be bad, short of either = including Rudy or trading the rest of the entire team for him. We will = see soon=20 enough, but the next couple of days should be interesting.
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Recent comments
- I agree - =
we shouldn't give
36 min 35 sec ago - ford=20
working late
6 hours 13 min ago - Chris,=20
excellent analysis.
9 hours 12 min ago - trade=20
deal
9 hours 24 min ago - The =
grizz have to=20
make all
11 hours 47 min ago - Heat=20
Trade
14 hours 33 min ago - Nice=20
work
14 hours 42 min ago - Heat=20
Trade
15 hours 22 sec ago - E-mail=
16=20 hours 44 min ago - Hey =
Chris where=20
can I find
16 hours 52 min ago
CW would be foolish not to do a deal that would land Beasley. First = of all,=20 the Grizz have 3 quality PGs. Conley or Lowry could be traded. Miller is = a=20 slasher but is a natural SF not a SG so he overlaps Rudy. What I think = would=20 work: Miami's #2 and Blount for Conley & the #5 or Miami's #2 & = Cook for=20 Miller, Conley and Marc Gasol.
We have the best pieces for Miami. = Seattle=20 does not, MN doesn't either. CW can make a lasting draft that will = finally get=20 the Griz out of the bottom of the barrel.