It was only a matter of time before someone said what everyone was thinking — the Lakers ripped the Grizzlies off. They acquired a premium player like Pau Gasol, who pretty much single-handedly got the Grizzlies into the playoffs a few times, for the likes of nearly nothing. Kwame Brown, Javaris Critenton, Pau’s brother Marc, and a pair of first-round picks isn’t exactly a king’s ransom. About the only thing there worth any value would be the draft picks, but you figure the Lakers are getting Pau so those picks will probably be late first-round, like 25th or so. So when you think about it, what did the Lakers give up? Not a whole lot. And that’s what makes Spurs coach Gregg Popovich so peeved:
“What they did in Memphis is beyond comprehension,” said Popovich. “There should be a trade committee that can scratch all trades that make no sense. I just wish I had been on a trade committee that oversees NBA trades. I’d like to elect myself to that committee. I would have voted no to the L.A. trade.”
I wonder what he has to say about the Shaq trade huh? Guess Pop feels a bit threatened — as well he should. The Spurs might be the defending champions, but now the Lakers provide some serious competition. I’ll still give the nod to San Antonio, but the gap has certainly closed. The playoffs are going to be quite exciting, to say the least.
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This is not the first time we have seen highway robbery. The Pats raided the Raiders, 4th rounder for Moss?? Makes you think who’s running these franchises.
Well said Rey,
Baron Davis to GS for Speedy Claxton and Dale Davis.
Vince Carter to NJ for an Alonzo Mourning(who’s contract was bought out), 2 1st rounders, and a couple of stiffs.
Allen Iverson to DEN for Andre Miller, Joe Smith, and 2 first rounders.
Trades like this happen all the time with rebuilding teams, but thats probably the homer in me coming out.
The Spurs are on the decline for sure. They are getting OLD. Tim Duncan got manhandled by young rookie Big Baby this weekend…did anyone see it?
[...] Holy crap. And we all thought the Western Conference was loaded before. Then it got interesting. The Lakers made the first move, stealing Pau Gasol in a move reminiscent of the the Colts packing up and leaving Baltimore in the in the middle of the night? You can call that trade Gasol for the poo-poo platter. Kwame Brown and crap, this is ridiculous. Coach Pop summed it up well here. [...]
The Lakers have just finished the longest road trip in their history since the league switched to a 82 game season. After the first game of the trip (a loss to Detroit) the Lakers decided this trip could either break or make their season and with Andrew Bynum out they werent going to depend on Kwame Brown to be their low post presence. In a steal for the Lakers they traded Kwame Brown for Pau Gasol. You think the other Western Conference powers think this will push the Lakers over the top? Of course. In reaction to the Gasol trade the Suns traded for Shaq and the Mavs have tried to trade for Jason Kidd. The Jason Kidd trade was shot down by Devean George who happens to have a no trade clause in his contract (Who structured HIS deal, LMAO). The other Western Conference contender, Spurs have decided to stay put or atleast they arent publicly pursuing any trades but that doesnt mean they didnt take notice it caused Spurs Head Coach Greg Popovich to say this:
“What they did in Memphis is beyond comprehension. There should be a trade committee that can scratch all trades that make no sense. I just wish I had been on a trade committee that oversees NBA trades. I’d like to elect myself to that committee. I would have voted no to the L.A. trade.”
Of course he would have voted no the L.A. trade, can you say bitter, scared, and intimidated? I can.
go to http://www.yeahdho.blogspot.com for more
[...] arms race in the Western Conference all right, and I’m going to sing it out loud. It started with Pau Gasol going to the Lakers for Kwame “Dust Through a Fan” Brown, Javaris Critenton, and the lesser Gasol; then picked up [...]
[...] No word whether Memphis GM Chris Wallace believes the deal is “beyond comprehension.” [...]
[...] the Magic did their damage in the off-season signing Rashard Lewis. The Western Conference saw the Lakers acquire Pau Gasol for nearly nothing, setting off a chain reaction. First the Suns took a risk getting Shaq, then the [...]
In response to what Rey said, the tradeabonafidenflsuperstarforafreakin’4throundpick GM philosophy still blows my mind. Now, with Randy Moss there might have been questions about motivation…but Darrell Jackson? Jevan Walker the year before? I have to be missing something here…
[...] Wallace and my Memphis Grizzlies have decided that destroying one franchise isn’t enough. Now, the Portland Trailblazers are learning the joy of being [...]