Raptors take on salary for a New Orleans lottery pick

[CalgaryRapsFan]

Here's the trade: http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=7pzhhqo

To TORONTO
- Emeka Okafor
- Trevor Ariza
- lottery pick

To NEW ORLEANS
- Amir Johnson
- James Johnson
- Gary Forbes
- $6.79M TPE
- 2nd round pick (#56, from Indiana)

New Orleans' perspective
- unload 2 horrible contracts, freeing up $6.8M next year and lots more over next 5 years
- both Johnsons likely in starting lineup next season
- get TPE to use in trade
- still have a lottery pick
- add 2nd round pick

Toronto's perspective
- use Barbosa TPE to add salary in exchange for additional lottery pick
- acquire 2 defensive-minded veterans
- draft Beal with New Orleans' pick
- draft Marshall with own pick
- sign O.J. Mayo or Kirilenko as free agent


TORONTO LINEUP
C: Valanciunas, Okafor
PF: Bargnani, Davis, Kleiza
SF: DeRozan/Kirilenko, Ariza, Kleiza
SG: Mayo/DeRozan, Beal
PG: Calderon, Marshall, Uzoh

[mcHAPPY]

Here's the trade: http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=7pzhhqo

To TORONTO
- Emeka Okafor
- Trevor Ariza
- lottery pick

To NEW ORLEANS
- Amir Johnson
- James Johnson
- Gary Forbes
- $6.79M TPE
- 2nd round pick (#56, from Indiana)

New Orleans' perspective
- unload 2 horrible contracts, freeing up $6.8M next year and lots more over next 5 years
- both Johnsons likely in starting lineup next season
- get TPE to use in trade
- still have a lottery pick
- add 2nd round pick

Toronto's perspective
- use Barbosa TPE to add salary in exchange for additional lottery pick
- acquire 2 defensive-minded veterans
- draft Beal with New Orleans' pick
- draft Marshall with own pick
- sign O.J. Mayo or Kirilenko as free agent


TORONTO LINEUP
C: Valanciunas, Okafor
PF: Bargnani, Davis, Kleiza
SF: DeRozan/Kirilenko, Ariza, Kleiza
SG: Mayo/DeRozan, Beal
PG: Calderon, Marshall, Uzoh

I'd absolutely love it to happen but, honestly, I don't see it.

While Okafor and Ariza are overpaid, they are still useful players - they are not like Eddy Curry was to the Knicks or John Salmons is to the Kings.

I could see something like that going down with a swap of picks. Say Toronto has #8 and NOH are picking 3rd or 4th?

Or how about putting DeRozan in for Forbes?

[tenforthewin]

There is no point in getting Beal when we go after Mayo.

I say use the No pick and get Thomas Robinson, trade one of Ed Davis or Bargnani and keep Amir Johnson. T.Robinson is the real deal if we can't get A.Davis, he's the Elton Brand type of PF we need and he will do well with Valanciunas on the board. I think BC will trade A.Bargnani, we can't have two soft Euros play the PF and C position when next season roams along. I say

Toronto trade Andrea Bargnani + DeRozan + Aaron Gray + 2013 1st round pick
No Trade Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza (waived) + Eric Gordon + 2012 1st round pick

We get a legit 2 in Eric Gordon - so we don't have to worry about getting Beal, sign OJ Mayo in the off season and have him be our 6th man. Our lineups would be

Trade our pick this year + Ed Davis to move up and draft one of the Wings (MKG or Barnes)

Valanciunas/Okafor/Magloire
T.Rob/Amir/2nd round pick (Quincy Acy - 56th pick)
MKG or H.Barnes/J.Johnson/L.Kleiza
Gordon/Mayo/Forbes
Calderon/Bayless/2nd round pick (Machado)

Ariza is waived so we can sign Mayo.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

I'd absolutely love it to happen but, honestly, I don't see it.

While Okafor and Ariza are overpaid, they are still useful players - they are not like Eddy Curry was to the Knicks or John Salmons is to the Kings.

I could see something like that going down with a swap of picks. Say Toronto has #8 and NOH are picking 3rd or 4th?

Or how about putting DeRozan in for Forbes?

Ultimately it would all depend on just how badly NO would like to unload salary. For me, adding DeRozan or swapping picks would be too much. I would gladly add Toronto's own 2nd round pick (#38) though.

The way I see it, once you start considering adding DeRozan, or Toronto's #8 pick or even perhaps a top-3 protected 2013 1st round pick, I ask myself why bother taking on all that salary? In that case, I'd rather just offer DeRozan and the 2013 1st round pick straight-up for an additional lottery pick this year.

[planetmars]

I wonder if there is any bad blood between Ariza and Derozan. Could be making something out of nothing, but didn't Ariza almost elbow the crap out of Derozan in a game last year, and then got ejected for it?

I love this trade idea. I really like Okafor, and I think he'd be a perfect guy to have for a year or two while Val gets acclimated. I think it might be too much for NO who may lose Gordon, and was willing to give away Kaman as well. I think it will be a tough task to get that pick from them since the new owners will be using that pick to try and re-brand that team. If they can be convinced though I'd do it in a heartbeat.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

There is no point in getting Beal when we go after Mayo.

I say use the No pick and get Thomas Robinson, trade one of Ed Davis or Bargnani and keep Amir Johnson. T.Robinson is the real deal if we can't get A.Davis, he's the Elton Brand type of PF we need and he will do well with Valanciunas on the board. I think BC will trade A.Bargnani, we can't have two soft Euros play the PF and C position when next season roams along. I say

Toronto trade Andrea Bargnani + DeRozan + Aaron Gray + 2013 1st round pick
No Trade Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza (waived) + Eric Gordon + 2012 1st round pick

We get a legit 2 in Eric Gordon - so we don't have to worry about getting Beal, sign OJ Mayo in the off season and have him be our 6th man. Our lineups would be

Trade our pick this year + Ed Davis to move up and draft one of the Wings (MKG or Barnes)

Valanciunas/Okafor/Magloire
T.Rob/Amir/2nd round pick (Quincy Acy - 56th pick)
MKG or H.Barnes/J.Johnson/L.Kleiza
Gordon/Mayo/Forbes
Calderon/Bayless/2nd round pick (Machado)

Ariza is waived so we can sign Mayo.

I have so many issues with that idea. lol

First, I doubt NO would trade Gordon, considering he was the centrepiece in the Paul trade.

Second, no way would I trade Bargnani & DeRozan for Gordon, considering how injury-prone he is.

Third, no way would the Raps waive Ariza, as they'd have to spend about $14M on a buyout. Not a chance. The Raps couldn't amnesty him, because you can only amnesty a player that was on your team under contract the day the collective bargaining agreement was signed, which Ariza obviously wasn't. Even if he was waived via buy-out, his contract would still count against the salary cap, meaning there'd be no room to sign Mayo.

Fourth, they can't trade Gray, as he is a free agent.

Fifth, you say there's no point drafting Beal if Mayo is signed (a rookie backing up a proven scorer), then you suggest signing Mayo to backup Gordon. That would seem even more redundant, Mayo would never sign to be a backup and you'd be paying a backup about $6-10M per season instead of a rookie contract. How is that logic consistent?

And finally, sixth, given that Gordon is a free agent, your trade would have to be one massive Sign&Trade. Assuming Gordon wants $7-10M per season, there is no way that deal would work from a financial perspective. Ariza can be traded for the TPE. That leaves Okafor ($12.5M) & Gordon ($8M say), in exchange for Bargnani ($10M) and DeRozan ($2.5M) - doesn't work.

[mcHAPPY]

Ultimately it would all depend on just how badly NO would like to unload salary. For me, adding DeRozan or swapping picks would be too much. I would gladly add Toronto's own 2nd round pick (#38) though.

The way I see it, once you start considering adding DeRozan, or Toronto's #8 pick or even perhaps a top-3 protected 2013 1st round pick, I ask myself why bother taking on all that salary? In that case, I'd rather just offer DeRozan and the 2013 1st round pick straight-up for an additional lottery pick this year.

Good points.

I guess you'd have to ask if the players you add via free agency are better than what you get from Ariza and Okafor. Clearly in free agency a team is going to usually overpay and with Toronto it is a given.

Looking at the roster this year, I think Okafor is an upgrade on Gray and Ariza is an upgrade on JJ. Also both are proven NBA players.

Lets assume Forbes is taken out, DeRozan included, picks are swapped, and the Raps get Beal. This would be the Raptors roster:

PG: Calderon
SG: Beal, Forbes
SF: Ariza, Kleiza
PF: Bargnani, ED
C: JV, Okafor, Magloire

I would be happy with that.

[mcHAPPY]

There is no point in getting Beal when we go after Mayo.

I say use the No pick and get Thomas Robinson, trade one of Ed Davis or Bargnani and keep Amir Johnson. T.Robinson is the real deal if we can't get A.Davis, he's the Elton Brand type of PF we need and he will do well with Valanciunas on the board. I think BC will trade A.Bargnani, we can't have two soft Euros play the PF and C position when next season roams along. I say

Toronto trade Andrea Bargnani + DeRozan + Aaron Gray + 2013 1st round pick
No Trade Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza (waived) + Eric Gordon + 2012 1st round pick

We get a legit 2 in Eric Gordon - so we don't have to worry about getting Beal, sign OJ Mayo in the off season and have him be our 6th man. Our lineups would be

Trade our pick this year + Ed Davis to move up and draft one of the Wings (MKG or Barnes)

Valanciunas/Okafor/Magloire
T.Rob/Amir/2nd round pick (Quincy Acy - 56th pick)
MKG or H.Barnes/J.Johnson/L.Kleiza
Gordon/Mayo/Forbes
Calderon/Bayless/2nd round pick (Machado)

Ariza is waived so we can sign Mayo.

JV is soft? Clearly you've never seen him play.

Unfortunately Ariza would still count towards the cap for his full contract amount. Contracts in the NBA are guaranteed and they count towards the cap under just about every circumstance except amnesty, medical retirements after 1 year, and if a contract is bought out lower than contract value.

[MangoKid]

There is no point in getting Beal when we go after Mayo.

I say use the No pick and get Thomas Robinson, trade one of Ed Davis or Bargnani and keep Amir Johnson. T.Robinson is the real deal if we can't get A.Davis, he's the Elton Brand type of PF we need and he will do well with Valanciunas on the board. I think BC will trade A.Bargnani, we can't have two soft Euros play the PF and C position when next season roams along. I say

Toronto trade Andrea Bargnani + DeRozan + Aaron Gray + 2013 1st round pick
No Trade Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza (waived) + Eric Gordon + 2012 1st round pick

We get a legit 2 in Eric Gordon - so we don't have to worry about getting Beal, sign OJ Mayo in the off season and have him be our 6th man. Our lineups would be

Trade our pick this year + Ed Davis to move up and draft one of the Wings (MKG or Barnes)

Valanciunas/Okafor/Magloire
T.Rob/Amir/2nd round pick (Quincy Acy - 56th pick)
MKG or H.Barnes/J.Johnson/L.Kleiza
Gordon/Mayo/Forbes
Calderon/Bayless/2nd round pick (Machado)

Ariza is waived so we can sign Mayo.

I certainly hope you cleaned yourself up with a towel after submitting that post.

[ceez]

yeah im totally down with either calgary or matt's trade. totally.

how many years do ariza and okafor have left on their contracts?

both guys would provide the defense casey wants for sure, regardless.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

Good points.

I guess you'd have to ask if the players you add via free agency are better than what you get from Ariza and Okafor. Clearly in free agency a team is going to usually overpay and with Toronto it is a given.

Looking at the roster this year, I think Okafor is an upgrade on Gray and Ariza is an upgrade on JJ. Also both are proven NBA players.

Lets assume Forbes is taken out, DeRozan included, picks are swapped, and the Raps get Beal. This would be the Raptors roster:

PG: Calderon
SG: Beal, Forbes
SF: Ariza, Kleiza
PF: Bargnani, ED
C: JV, Okafor, Magloire

I would be happy with that.

My only issue with that is that you're giving up DeRozan to pay big money to two backups and to move up maybe 3-4 slots in the draft. It just seems like a lot to giveup. I would only be happy shelling out that much money for backups if the Raps were acquiring an additional lottery pick, not just moving up a couple spots.

If you were spending that much money in free agency, I hope it would be for starters, not just backups.

From New Orleans perspective, they'd be saving $10.5M in 2012/2013, $15.7M in 2013/2014, but then paying an extra $7M in 2014/2015 (Amir's last season), for a total savings of $19.2M over 3 seasons ($26.2M if they traded Amir as an expiring contract). I wonder how much value a new owner would put on that kind of savings, with which they could re-sign Gordon and try to appease him by signing new talent?

CONTRACTS (next 3 seasons)
Okafor: $13.5, $14.5, FA
Ariza: $7.3, $7.7 (player option), FA
Amir: $6, $6.5, $7
JJ: $2.8, FA, -
Forbes: $1.5, FA, -

[MangoKid]

yeah im totally down with either calgary or matt's trade. totally.

how many years do ariza and okafor have left on their contracts?

both guys would provide the defense casey wants for sure, regardless.

Ariza has two years left, one being a player option averaging 7.25 million a season. Okafor has 2 more seasons after this, averaging 14 million a season.

[ceez]

two years is nothing. they could start next year and come off the bench the next then poof, capspace to splurge on a HUGE fa market.

[ceez]

actually this trade makes too much sense, lock the thread

[CalgaryRapsFan]

A minor revision is required, since the Barbosa TPE expires July 1st, when the Raptors drop below the salary cap (due to UFA contracts expiring and RFAs being renounced - goodbye Gray, Magloire, Alabi, Bayless, Weems). So, it would have to be 2 separate trades with New Orleans. The first could go through at 11:59pm on June 30th and the second could go through at 12:01am on July 1st.

TRADE 1
- Ariza to Toronto
- $6.8M TPE to New Orleans

TRADE 2
- Okafor to Toronto
- New Orleans' highest lottery pick (top-7 guaranteed) to Toronto
- Amir to New Orleans
- JJ to New Orleans
- Forbes to New Orleans
- one/both Toronto 2nd round picks (#38 & #56) to New Orleans

New Orleans
- saves $10.5M next season and a total of $19.2M over the next 3 seasons
- given their current roster, both Johnsons could be starters next season
- they'd still have 1 lottery pick and would be adding 2 2nd round picks

Toronto
- adds expensive veteran defensive-minded backups and takes on loads of salary, in return for an additional lottery pick
- Okafor would be a great mentor for Valanciunas
- Toronto drafts Beal and Marshall
- Toronto could then target either Mayo or AK47 in free agency (Mayo would likely need to be a S&T), though they would be fairly close to the salary cap (MLE for AK47?) without flipping Ariza or using the amnesty

EDIT: nevermind, it looks like it actually could go through as 1 trade, as long as it can be done prior to July 1st.