| Picking Apart These Toronto Rumors Authored by Andrew Perna - June 25, 2008 - 3:10 pm
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When you are the Indiana Pacers, rumors are bound to swirl constantly.
Not only have the perennial playoff contenders missed the postseason in each of the last two seasons, but perhaps two of their most well-known players – Jermaine O’Neal and Jamaal Tinsley – seem to each have one foot out the door.
Again.
It seems as though both O’Neal and Tinsley have been on the trading block in Indiana for decades, but the truth of the matter is that they seem closer to being shipped out of town than ever before as draft night approaches.
O’Neal has been linked to the Cavaliers, and now the Raptors, this offseason, while Tinsley has often been voted off the island by fans due to both his injury woes and off-court blunders.
Those Cleveland rumors involving Jermaine seem to have died, after a conversation I had with GM David Morway a few weeks ago, but a new swap has become the hot topic with talk of a trade with the Raptors taking place on Thursday night.
The rumored deal would send O’Neal to Toronto in exchange for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic and the 17th pick in the draft.
Strangely enough, I suggested the Pacers deal for Ford in mid-April, only with Mike Dunleavy headed to Canada rather than O’Neal. At the time I figured Dunleavy was exactly what the Raptors needed at the wing, but two months later T.J. could be coming to Indiana via a much different route.
I’m not against the deal, but I’m not enamored with it either.
Ford would be a nice option at the point, to either completely replace or challenge Tinsley, but his health issues have worried me enough to hesitate dealing a guy like O’Neal.
Maybe I’m a little jaded in thinking that O’Neal still has enough left in him to be an All-Star, but I don’t think Ford’s ceiling is nearly as high as O’Neal’s even with his history of injury problems. There have been reports in recent weeks that Jermaine is close to full-strength, but with his track record over the last few years no one will believe that until they see it.
The question becomes what’s better – an above average point guard for seventy games or a 20/10 power forward for sixty?
The addition of Nesterovic to the deal is nice, especially because it will give the Pacers some cap relief next summer (a year earlier than O’Neal will give the Raptors). I wouldn’t expect him to do much for Indiana on the court though.
What really intrigues me about this deal is the possible inclusion of the seventeenth pick in the draft. After having no first rounder last season, having a pair this year would make it feel as though Christmas has come six months early in Indianapolis.
With both the eleventh and seventeenth picks, Indiana could grab themselves a pair of studs to contribute right away. They could take a point guard to provide insurance to Ford and Tinsley (if he’s somehow still in town), while selecting a big man to help fill the void left by O’Neal just a few picks apart.
You’d have to figure that the Pacers would get rid of Tinsley by any means necessary if they acquire Ford, and opt to grab someone with point guard skills in the Lottery.
If Bird trades for Ford and/or someone like D.J. Augustin (a fellow Longhorn), Russell Westbrook or Eric Gordon falls into Indiana’s lap at No. 11, I’d almost advise that he offer Tinsley up for a gas card and a pack of cigarettes. And I don’t even smoke.
Without taking what the Pacers might get in return for Tinsley into account, here’s what Indiana’s lineup would look like after the rumored Toronto deal and the Draft:
(I have also removed both restricted and unrestricted free agents from the equation)
Point Guard: T.J. Ford/Travis Diener/Rookie
Shooting Guard: Mike Dunleavy/Marquis Daniels
Small Forward: Danny Granger/Shawne Williams/Stephen Graham
Power Forward: Troy Murphy/Ike Diogu
Center: Jeff Foster/Rookie/Nesterovic
I’ll admit that it’s not a juggernaut of a lineup, but it looks a whole lot better than the team that finished last season on the court with Diener starting at point, and David Harrison (a restricted free agent) forced to play minutes simply because there were no better options.
Throw in the fact that the ‘rookie’ slots could be filled in by guards like Augustin, Westbrook or Gordon and big men such as Marreese Speights, Darrell Arthur or Robin Lopez and you have yourself a fringe playoff team in the weak Eastern Conference.
The draft is mere hours away, but you’ll likely hear a handful of additional trade rumors involving the Pacers.
Just try not to lose any sleep over any of them.
Andrew Perna is a Senior Writer for RealGM.com. Please feel free to contact him with comments or questions via e-mail – Andrew.Perna@RealGM.com |
