Trade Idea: BOS-CLE-NYK-NOP

[DefenseWinsChamps]

I risk the mercy of the blog, and I am happy there are not negatives for our posts.

This was a fun trade to put together. Not realistic for human reasons, but if the game were played on paper, it might make sense.

Boston sends out - Bradley, Johnson, Olynyk, 2018 Brooklyn pick, future Clippers pick
Boston receives - Love, O'Quinn
Why? Because, while I love Bradley and I hate sending him to the Cavs, Love could push us up into contention in the East. While I think the Cavs still have the edge while Lebron is in his prime, Love and Horford could be dynamic together.

I know it's a lot to give up, but this is essentially trading a half-dollar, a quarter, two dimes, and a nickel for a dollar. I know that most won't think Love is worth that, but this team would be very dynamic with him.

As a side note, I have always been a big fan of O'Quinn. He is a playoff player. He is tough, smart, and works hard. Foul trouble has always been his problem, but this dude can play.

Cleveland sends out - Love, Shumpert
Cleveland receives - Melo, Bradley, Jennings, Ajinca
Lebron gets depth without sacrificing the playmaking of Love. In fact, they might be more dynamic with Melo, until both he and Lebron go over the hill. Bradley is an upgrade to Shumpert. Jennings and Ajinca give Lebron the depth at guard and center that he requested.

Knicks send out - Melo, O'Quinn
Knicks receive - Johnson, Evans, Olynyk, 2018 Brooklyn 1st rounder, future Clippers pick
It's unclear what the price is for Melo is right now. Evans can play 1-3 as a playmaker in their offense, and the Knicks get first crack at resigning him. Olynyk could be a good fit next to Zinger as another floor spacer. The prize here is roster flexibility and the 2018 Brooklyn pick.

Pelicans send out - Evans, Ajinca
Pelicans receive - Shumpert
With the Pelicans moving towards small ball, Ajinca makes less and less sense. Evans is an expiring contract. This trade is about getting a dynamic wing defender who can spot up next to Holliday. This trade makes sense as the Pelicans continue to add versatile defensive players (Galloway, Hill, Moore).

http://www.espn.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=z6kw5rb

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Celtics Lineup

Thomas
Smart
Crowder
Love
Horford

Jerebko
Rozier
Brown
O'Quinn
Zeller
Green
Mickey
Young

Plus the 2017 Brooklyn Pick

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?

[hodgy03038]

It is well thought out on your part but I don't think NO will be thrilled to get Shumpert? I don't think CLE wants to replace Love with Melo but the other pieces certainly help them. I think we are giving too much with the BKN 18 pick and I don't think that is required for the Knicks to dump Melo.

[spikelovetheCelts]

It is well thought out on your part but I don't think NO will be thrilled to get Shumpert? I don't think CLE wants to replace Love with Melo but the other pieces certainly help them. I think we are giving too much with the BKN 18 pick and I don't think that is required for the Knicks to dump Melo.

I don't see DA giving up Brooklyn except for Boogie. Period!!!!

[wiley]

TP for putting it together!  Now to trash it!   

New York salivates and then explodes with joy.
Cleveland dances till the sun comes up.  Melo plus a Curry stopper with great offense, wow!
Boston cries in their clam chowder.  Love instead of Bradley and 2018 Brooklyn pick?  Plus Amir, Olynyck and more? 

Our defense crumbles to nothing...

Love waaayyyyyyyyy overrated in this idea...
Bradley and 2018 Brooklyn pick underrated.

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Yeah! I was starting to think I came up with the perfect trade because no one responded!

As to NO getting Shumpert - Evans is an expiring. Ajinca is unimportant. They get a solid two-way player on a pretty contract for 3 more years. He's not a star, but that team could become a top 5 defensive unit once they get cohesive (Davis-Hill-Shump-Moore-Holliday with Asik off the bench).

As to Melo's value - I know that, compared to the rumored trades on the table, they are getting way more here, but I think that they are unlikely to trade him unless they get a similar package. Maybe we can keep Olynyk. Maybe we can convince them to take the Memphis and Clippers picks instead of the Brooklyn pick. He's still an Olympian and you better bet that Lebron would love to have him.

As to Love's value - He is averaging over 20 ppg and 10 rpg. There are very few guys in the league with that kind of ability. I realize that we have cooled on him a bit, but the dude would still be one of, if not the, best players on our team. I like keeping Rozier, Brown, and Smart. I'd rather keep Olynyk, but with Jerebko, Zeller, and O'Quinn, we have options off the bench. I'd rather not send out the 2018 Brooklyn pick, but you can't get something for nothing. In this trade, we keep our most valuable assets (Brown, 17 BRK, Smart) while replacing what we do have to trade.

As to the Brooklyn 2018 value - the Nets are bound to get a few players to sign there eventually. Combine that with the development of RHJ and Lavert, and I don't think the 2018 pick is going to be top 7. It's risky.

As to Bradley's value - I love Bradley. I want him to be a Celtic. He continues to improve and I'd be happy to keep him until he hits his ceiling. Do I value him too highly? Maybe. I just can't help but be intrigued by Love in CBS offense, especially next to a driver like Thomas and a teammate like Horford.

[jpotter33]

TP. I actually think that's a pretty good trade all around, though at this point I think you could replace the Brooklyn pick with the Memphis pick, since they don't expect to get anywhere near that value for Melo.

It'd also be better to just find a deal among NY, Cleveland, and Boston rather than adding NO to the mix.

The only problem would be that you might be making Cleveland virtually unbeatable for us at that point. A lineup of Irving, Bradley, Lebron, Melo, and TT is kind of scary, though going big against them certainly might work.

EDIT: Just off the top of my head - I'm not quite sure this works with the trade kickers and everything, but it's close enough to be the bones of a deal with some tweaking:

Cleveland - Melo, Bradley

Boston - Love, Jennings, O'Quinn

New York - Johnson, Zeller (expiring salary), Shumpert, KO, the Memphis pick, and the Clippers pick

http://www.espn.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=h8t5ou6

Lineup of:

PG: IT, Jennings
SG: Smart, Rozier
SF: Crowder, Brown
PF: Love, JJ
C: Horford, O'Quinn

I'd be good with that while we develop Smart, Rozier, Brown, and the two Brooklyn picks!

[DefenseWinsChamps]

TP. I actually think that's a pretty good trade all around, though at this point I think you could replace the Brooklyn pick with the Memphis pick, since they don't expect to get anywhere near that value for Melo.

It'd also be better to just find a deal among NY, Cleveland, and Boston rather than adding NO to the mix.

The only problem would be that you might be making Cleveland virtually unbeatable for us at that point. A lineup of Irving, Bradley, Lebron, Melo, and TT is kind of scary, though going big against them certainly might work.

Yeah, the human element of trading with a "rival" probably makes this not happen.

Our lineup of Horford, Love, Crowder, Smart, and Thomas would give them fits in different ways.

The trouble of adding in NO is that I don't want Shumpert and the Knicks just traded him away last year. In order for the Cavs to get anything more than just Melo, they have to have another piece going out. Smith has no trade value in my opinion.

[jpotter33]

TP. I actually think that's a pretty good trade all around, though at this point I think you could replace the Brooklyn pick with the Memphis pick, since they don't expect to get anywhere near that value for Melo.

It'd also be better to just find a deal among NY, Cleveland, and Boston rather than adding NO to the mix.

The only problem would be that you might be making Cleveland virtually unbeatable for us at that point. A lineup of Irving, Bradley, Lebron, Melo, and TT is kind of scary, though going big against them certainly might work.

Yeah, the human element of trading with a "rival" probably makes this not happen.

Our lineup of Horford, Love, Crowder, Smart, and Thomas would give them fits in different ways.

The trouble of adding in NO is that I don't want Shumpert and the Knicks just traded him away last year. In order for the Cavs to get anything more than just Melo, they have to have another piece going out. Smith has no trade value in my opinion.

Here's what I came up with and added to my post above after the fact.

Just off the top of my head - I'm not quite sure this works with the trade kickers and everything, but it's close enough to be the bones of a deal with some tweaking:

Cleveland - Melo, Bradley

Boston - Love, Jennings, O'Quinn

New York - Johnson, Zeller (expiring salary), Shumpert, KO, the Memphis pick, and the Clippers pick

http://www.espn.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=h8t5ou6

Lineup of:

PG: IT, Jennings
SG: Smart, Rozier
SF: Crowder, Brown
PF: Love, JJ
C: Horford, O'Quinn

I'd be good with that while we develop Smart, Rozier, Brown, and the two Brooklyn picks!

[DefenseWinsChamps]

TP. I actually think that's a pretty good trade all around, though at this point I think you could replace the Brooklyn pick with the Memphis pick, since they don't expect to get anywhere near that value for Melo.

It'd also be better to just find a deal among NY, Cleveland, and Boston rather than adding NO to the mix.

The only problem would be that you might be making Cleveland virtually unbeatable for us at that point. A lineup of Irving, Bradley, Lebron, Melo, and TT is kind of scary, though going big against them certainly might work.

Yeah, the human element of trading with a "rival" probably makes this not happen.

Our lineup of Horford, Love, Crowder, Smart, and Thomas would give them fits in different ways.

The trouble of adding in NO is that I don't want Shumpert and the Knicks just traded him away last year. In order for the Cavs to get anything more than just Melo, they have to have another piece going out. Smith has no trade value in my opinion.

Here's what I came up with and added to my post above after the fact.

Just off the top of my head - I'm not quite sure this works with the trade kickers and everything, but it's close enough to be the bones of a deal with some tweaking:

Cleveland - Melo, Bradley

Boston - Love, Jennings, O'Quinn

New York - Johnson, Zeller (expiring salary), Shumpert, KO, the Memphis pick, and the Clippers pick

http://www.espn.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=h8t5ou6

Lineup of:

PG: IT, Jennings
SG: Smart, Rozier
SF: Crowder, Brown
PF: Love, JJ
C: Horford, O'Quinn

I'd be good with that while we develop Smart, Rozier, Brown, and the two Brooklyn picks!

I was also trying to give Lebron the depth he wants. There are no veteran bigs NY or BOS that would be available. For the Cavs to trade Love, it would have to solve all their problems without sacrificing playmaking.

Plus, the Knicks literally traded Shumpert away a year ago. So ... there's that.

[jpotter33]

TP. I actually think that's a pretty good trade all around, though at this point I think you could replace the Brooklyn pick with the Memphis pick, since they don't expect to get anywhere near that value for Melo.

It'd also be better to just find a deal among NY, Cleveland, and Boston rather than adding NO to the mix.

The only problem would be that you might be making Cleveland virtually unbeatable for us at that point. A lineup of Irving, Bradley, Lebron, Melo, and TT is kind of scary, though going big against them certainly might work.

Yeah, the human element of trading with a "rival" probably makes this not happen.

Our lineup of Horford, Love, Crowder, Smart, and Thomas would give them fits in different ways.

The trouble of adding in NO is that I don't want Shumpert and the Knicks just traded him away last year. In order for the Cavs to get anything more than just Melo, they have to have another piece going out. Smith has no trade value in my opinion.

Here's what I came up with and added to my post above after the fact.

Just off the top of my head - I'm not quite sure this works with the trade kickers and everything, but it's close enough to be the bones of a deal with some tweaking:

Cleveland - Melo, Bradley

Boston - Love, Jennings, O'Quinn

New York - Johnson, Zeller (expiring salary), Shumpert, KO, the Memphis pick, and the Clippers pick

http://www.espn.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=h8t5ou6

Lineup of:

PG: IT, Jennings
SG: Smart, Rozier
SF: Crowder, Brown
PF: Love, JJ
C: Horford, O'Quinn

I'd be good with that while we develop Smart, Rozier, Brown, and the two Brooklyn picks!

I was also trying to give Lebron the depth he wants. There are no veteran bigs NY or BOS that would be available. For the Cavs to trade Love, it would have to solve all their problems without sacrificing playmaking.

Plus, the Knicks literally traded Shumpert away a year ago. So ... there's that.

Eh, we took the corpse of Gerald Wallace in the Brooklyn deal. Sometimes that's the price you have to pay when moving stars, especially when you need salary back.

He's on a reasonable enough contract that he could be traded by himself or later this summer. If we didn't have Jaylen already, I'd want him on the C's. His 3 and D abilities are important in today's game.

[wiley]

Would you guys rather face the Cavs in the ECF as they are now, or
minus Love plus Melo and Bradley.

I'd rather face them now.

This trade makes things rosier in Cleveland for at least another 3 years...