Thunder/Pistons rumor shows the possiblities
This from DraftExpress.
"With the Detroit Pistons looking to get as far under the salary cap as they can this summer, and the Oklahoma City Thunder being one of the few teams who are able to help them shed salary, the two teams have emerged as natural trade partners, multiple NBA sources told DraftExpress this past weekend.
With very few teams projected to have cap space this summer (Oklahoma City, Memphis, Portland, Sacramento and Atlanta being the main ones), it appears that Detroit could be in great position to take advantage of the strength of this free agent class and nab a couple of pieces that would put them right back in the mix to compete for the Eastern conference finals. Detroit is currently slated to be around 20 million dollars underneath the cap, but could shed another five million or so by unloading the contracts of Amir Johnson and their first round pick (#15).
Enter the Oklahoma City Thunder. They are reportedly high on B.J. Mullens (as is Milwaukee), and likely would be able to nab him with the 15th pick. Considering how far under the cap they’ll be this summer, they would have no problem taking on Amir Johnson’s expiring 3.66 million dollar contract. They should be able to find a suitor for their late first round pick if they choose to do so, as teams like San Antonio, Houston, Toronto and Orlando are all in the market for a draft choice in that range.
With the money Detroit frees up, they could go after their top two free agent targets, rumored to be Paul Millsap and Ben Gordon."
Not bad. Thunder end up with two good young players for basically nothing.
5 months ago
parkinglotj
17 comments
0 recs |
Comments
Nice idea
It won’t work. The Pistons are definitely headed for a difficult few years at least…
Proud member of Duck nation!
by skywaker9 on Jun 2, 2009 10:14 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
For anybody who thinks the Blazers will pick up Amir Johnson...

Not sure this is the kind of player KP would want to bring in, since he said repeatedly a somewhat more difficult player would have to be one the Blazers are sure puts them on another level.
We might be in a position to pick up a nice backup player for next to nothing like OKC is rumored here to do with cap space (and they are thin and can take more of a risk for a few more years). But after Miles came back on the cap the first order for the Blazers is to address the big needs and not help out another team rebuilding. And it also doesn’t sound like Detroit is willing to put their really good players like Prince, Stuckey, Tayshaun on the table hoping for a relatively quick turnaround once Wallace and AI are off the books.
by Norsktroll on Jun 2, 2009 11:10 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
I don't get it
What’s wrong with Amir? Does he have problems other than just not really improving, that I ain’t aware of?
It can’t just be the neck tattoo, that’d cut out a lot of players.
M.
by Mortimer on Jun 2, 2009 11:41 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Neck tattoos scream "Denver."
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
by timbo on Jun 2, 2009 11:43 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Honestly Amir Johnson doesn't seem like that bad of a person.
Certified blazer.fangirl
by Roybot on Jun 2, 2009 11:43 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
never heard a bad word spoken about amir johnson.
by Ben. on Jun 2, 2009 11:47 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I really, really hope this happens and OKC drafts Mullens. Hopefully they’ll invest three years of development into him before they realize that he’s an athletic freak with the lowest BBIQ in the NBA. He’s more Kwame Brown than Tyson Chandler.
proud hinrichsheeple
by Cablinasian on Jun 2, 2009 11:13 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Yeah, B.J. Mullens screams Kwame Brown, Patrick O'Bryant, et al.
Mullens’ low BBIQ, hands of stone, and overall rawness are huge drawbacks.
by AK1984 on Jun 2, 2009 11:20 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
It's not just BBIQ
Did you see the interview owhere he compares his game to KG, Dirk and Amar’e all tied into one ("explosive" "triple-thread" "can play facing the basket or back to the basket")? I was almost falling off my chair laughing. http://tinyurl.com/rapfh6
With his long list of weaknesses, he can be happy if he reaches a level somewhere between Rafael Araujo and Chris Kaman
http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/B.J.-Mullens-1107/
by Norsktroll on Jun 2, 2009 11:25 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
that is a truly fantastic interview.
proud hinrichsheeple
by Cablinasian on Jun 2, 2009 11:28 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I really really really want him to go to OKC.
proud hinrichsheeple
by Cablinasian on Jun 2, 2009 11:32 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Wow, KG + Dirk + Amare..... The 9.8 pts. and 4.8 rebounds he was talking about must have been his college stats PER QUARTER...
Wait, they only play 2 halfs in college, don’t they?
Hmmmm. Maybe that is scoring PER MINUTE…
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
by timbo on Jun 2, 2009 11:40 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I really like how he says "...that's who I like to compare myself to."
You and nobody else, baby.
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
by timbo on Jun 2, 2009 11:41 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I compare myself to KG, Dirk, and Amare… others compare me to Kwame and O’Bryant…
Hmmm. I wonder.
proud hinrichsheeple
by Cablinasian on Jun 2, 2009 11:44 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
He's going to be worse than Todd Fuller
dinasour type of guys choir boys
by mittsabishy on Jun 3, 2009 9:03 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I'd like to have Amir and the pick
then we can even trade the 15/24 for a better pick or trade the picks for another vet.
Come on you gotta listen unto me,
lay off that whiskey and let that cocaine be. ~Johnny Cash
by HurraKane212 on Jun 2, 2009 12:14 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Detroit is after Millsap?????
“With the money Detroit frees up, they could go after their top two free agent targets, rumored to be Paul Millsap and Ben Gordon.”
Detroit already has a player like him in Jason Maxiell.
by spencerbutte on Jun 3, 2009 7:37 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
























