NBA.com: The Lakers are getting Dwight Howard in a four-team deal.
Denver gets Andre Iguodala from Philly and Jason Richardson from Orlando, while the Sixers haul in Andrew Bynum, who like Howard, only has one year left on his contract.
The Magic salvage Arron Afflalo, Al Harrington, Nikola Vucevic, Moe Harkless, plus lottery protected first-round picks from each of the three teams in the swap. Lottery-protected picks for Dwight Howard? Good job, good effort.
How does this impact the Bucks? In a short-sighted way, it bumps them up a notch on the playoff ladder. They are now a better team than Orlando, despite the Magic owning them in head-to-head games last season. Howard against the center-less Bucks of 2011-12 was a disastrous mismatch. Now, the Bucks have beefed up the center position, and Dwight won’t be there to torment them.
The trade also bumps the Lakers’ salary up by about $2.8 million, putting them near $98.5 million for the upcoming season. Given that the new collective bargaining agreement implemented a $1 for $1 penalty for exceeding the luxury tax threshold for the 2012-13 season and that the tax number is set at $70.3 million, the Lakers will be paying approximately a tax of $28.5 million.
According to Larry Coon’s NBA CBA page, half of the luxury tax pool goes to revenue sharing and half is evenly split into equal shares among non-taxpaying teams. The Bucks will be slurping up that money — from the Lakers and other high-salary, high-revenue teams — on both of the NBA’s small-market teats.
Also, if I’m John Hammond, I start calling Orlando GM Rob Hennigan about Afflalo right now while he’s still in ‘blow-it-up-and-tank’ mode. Orlando’s current bigs are Gustavo Ayon, Glen Davis, Al Harrington, and Nikola Vucevic. Maybe Hennigan would take Drew Gooden plus a young big in a swap for Afflalo. I’m not saying that it is a fair or likely trade. It isn’t. But it can’t hurt to ask, right?
Ran into Carlos Delfino today. He didn't want to go into specifics on eve of huge USA game but said he WILL sign w/NBA team after Olympics
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) August 9, 2012
Yahoo.com via AP: Delfino and the Argentinian men’s basketball team get their shot versus Team USA tonight. Carlos gets a chance to show his suitors and the teams that overlooked him in free agency what they may have missed.
Possible destinations for Delfino after the Olympics include Houston and Boston. The Celtics, though, don’t have much to offer except for the veteran’s minimum, Doc Rivers’ love, and the playing time that went to Mickael Pietrus last season. (And if the Bucks effectively swap wingmen with the Celtics, Peaches for Carlos, then… well, I just don’t know what to say.)
In a way, the Bucks blew it with Delfino. They needed one more shooting guard/small forward type to hit threes, play smart, and play defense, i.e., someone to replace Delfino. They didn’t want to overvalue him. Smart! But the summer market for him was soft. As teams scooped up the higher-priced talent, they filled out their rosters and their open salary-cap space, and in the end, Carlos was still there.
In fact, he was there for the taking at a cheap price. Why not have him ‘replace’ himself?
So what did the Bucks do? They let him walk. What is worse, they miffed him by not even feigning interest. He claims that he aggravated his injury trying to help Milwaukee in their playoff hunt and I don’t doubt him. I saw him in one game in April taking the floor in warmups trying to get loose. He looked awful, and he simply could not move or shoot or do anything athletic on a basketball court. It was a wonder why he was even out there. Plus, he was doing it with fewer than ten games prior to free agency — a noble, selfless effort.
Argentina’s ‘Golden Generation’ has put in many selfless efforts over the years. Manu Ginobili, Luis Scola, and Delfino, among others, have sublimated their own personal goals on ‘win at all costs’ squads at international competitions over the years. Tonight, they get a chance for one final hurrah against the US.
At the very least, it’s good theater.
Journal Sentinel: Joel Przybilla is officially in the fold. He likes lunch and he says everything you would expect to hear from a veteran reserve player.
(Przybilla) said a lunch meeting he had last week with general manager John Hammond and coach Scott Skiles helped sway his decision.
“You can tell when someone wants you to be part of something special,” the 32-year-old center said. “I think it’s going to be a very good team. If some nights I don’t play, I’m willing to accept that.
“We have a lot of young bigs and I can help teach the game at this point in my career.”