Tis’ the Season for Trades and Free Agents

As the NBA lockout comes to an end, teams will have not much time to acquire free agents and make trades

By JOSHUA NATOLI
Staff Writer

Lockout? What lockout? Now that the NBA season is set to begin on Christmas Day this year, NBA fans can now focus on the highly anticipated free agent market and blockbuster trade rumors during the preseason. Let’s take a look at some potential moves.

Dwight Howard.

There are many places that would make good fits for the best center in the league and number two on ESPN.com’s NBA player rankings.

First off is his current place on the Magic. Howard has made great connections with his fans and teammates that it would be very hard for him to leave that. Also with a new area set to host this season’s All-Star Game, Howard might want to wait until after mid-season to make a move.

Los Angeles is also a destination where Howard will gel. Both the Lakers and the Clippers offer Howard advantageous positions on their respective teams. The Lakers can offer up center Andrew Bynum and forward Lamar Odom in exchange for Howard, creating another “big three” in the NBA. The combination of Howard, Kobe Bryant, and Pau Gasol will be a force to be reckoned with in the Western Conference.

The Clippers can offer up center DeAndre Jordan and some draft picks for Howard but Orlando will most likely settle for nothing less than a trade involving rising star guard Eric Gordan.

 If this trade can go through, the Clippers will be left with the most insane frontcourt since the Charlotte Hornets had Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning in the power forward and center positions. Howard paired with Blake Griffin would not only absolutely dominate the paint but would also manhandle the boards.

Chris Paul.

Arguably the most effective point guard in the league and ranked number four on ESPN.com’s NBA player rankings, Chris Paul has the ability to make any team that he goes to better whether it’d from a scoring or passing perspective.

The buzz surrounding Chris Paul has been the rumors that he is extremely interested in playing for the New York Knicks along with Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony to form what I would like to call “The Biggest Three”. This has been a rumor since last season and with every passing day seems to be more and more plausible, but there is one major problem. The Knicks have nobody to offer.

With no draft picks left to offer and a team filled with no trade value, the Knicks have only Anthony and Stoudemire to offer in exchange for Paul, those two being the reasons why Paul wants to play in New York in the first place.

Rumors also surfaced that the Celtics would be willing to trade their star point guard Rajon Rondo for Paul if Paul was willing to sign a contract extension with them. Those rumors were shot down within days when Paul said he would not sign an extension in Boston; also Celtics president Danny Ainge said that they would never trade Rondo.

Another place Paul could end up is in Oklahoma City. If the Thunder would be willing to deal Russell Westbrook and a few draft picks they could acquire Paul, but would he sign an extension? If this deal goes down, the Thunder would have all of the issues solved between Kevin Durant and Westbrook.

Westbrook has yet to really fit his scoring ability in with Kevin Durant’s. By bringing in Paul, the Thunder will still have a great scoring presence at the point but also a star who is willing to feed the league’s number one scorer in Durant.

Tyson Chandler:

Chandler is not a superstar or a household name by any means, but the way this guy can stifle an opposing team’s inside game is incredible. Chandler’s length and defense could be invaluable to a team like the Celtics if he does not re-sign with the Mavericks.

The aging Celtics are lacking a strong center after trading Kendrick Perkins to the Thunder last season for forward Jeff Green. Jermaine O’Neal has been filling the void but has been unreliable with health issues. They lost backup Nenad Kristic when he signed a deal overseas with a no opt-out clause, not that he would really have made a difference anyway.

Chandler would mesh nicely in Boston. He can score when he has to and keep opposing players out of the paint. Also, at 29 years old Chandler can add a little splash of youth to the Celtics starting five.

For the fans that live for the transactions that takes place during the NBA season, you are in luck. Starting December 9th, teams can start talks and negotiations with players. It looks like Christmas will come early for some NBA teams.