Is It Time To Trade Ray Allen?

[ssspence]

He's not having any more 30+ point games against good teams.  Those games were yesterday.  This is now.

Agreed -- Ray struggles to be a high level scorer against elite teams. Orlando and Cleveland have both done excellent jobs of shutting him down / limiting him over the past year. I expect other very good to elite teams to do likewise this season.

Ray Allen is at a point in his career where he is firmly a secondary threat offensively. Someone who needs to play off others and rely on others to create for him. He's no longer able to be a consistent go-to guy especially against elite teams.

You know what fixes that? 

Get the ball in low and hurt teams. 

I think this is at the core of the discussion. Ray needs this to be at his most successful, and yet we lack that player.

~ Perk's low post game has improved but he's not a passer or a go to guy (i don't think i've ever seen him pass out of the post once he puts the ball on the floor);

~ KG's a capable post player, but mostly taking turnarounds from the high post and this has become more and more rare;

~ Wallace rarely shows willingness to play in the post anymore;

~ Pierce rarely shows willingness to play in the post anymore.

 Even as a reserve, Leon's presence is sorely missed. His replacement has been an absolute 3 chucker -- and not a very good one -- tho he is a better defender and passer.

So -- do we need to go out and get that post player? And if so, can we get that player with our smaller expiring deals and / or Baby, or does it require moving Ray? It's a Catch-22 consider Ray would likely benefit the most from the arrival of such a player.

I'd thrown out the idea of trading Ray and Baby for Boozer and Kirilenko, most panned it. OK, so who else is available as a post scorer? Could Utah be convinced to trade Boozer for expiring deals plus Baby? They'd get a shooter (Eddie House) they really need and a good young PF to back-up Millsap. There are teams that may provide a better offer (Chicago?).

Regardless, he would be a major improvement to the bench and take alot of pressure off KG's knee. Can you imagine a 4 man rotation in the front court of KG, Perk, Boozer and Wallace?

[Jon]

It's too early for all of this garbage.  Ray Allen isn't the reason for this losing streak.  If anything, the team has been playing lackadaisically, which won't be fixed in a trade.  And you know what, I'm not sure if it matters.  As long as they right the ship by playoff time, everything will be fine.

Right now there just appears to be some identity issues.  As much as I love the overwhelming talent on this team, it makes the question of who takes over a game awfully tough.  Two years ago it was complicated enough, but then we just had to worry about KG, PP, and Ray.  Now, we have to extend that list to include Rondo, Wallace, and maybe even Perk, Daniels, and House.  While that's great when everything's clicking, it makes it tough when it's not.  Usually when shooting goes cold teams start pounding it in to their star who takes it to the hole and gets fouled  However, the attitude on this team is to not do that, but to share the ball. 

Overall, I think we're going through some identity problems right now that will be overcome.  Plus, we're playing about as badly as we can and still sit at 9-4.  No need to panic.  But this team does need some time to reincorporate KG with the advances in Rondo and Perk's game.  We also need some time to fully incorporate Wallace and Daniels. 

[crownsy]

Why would Phoenix even think about this trade? Right now they are one of the top 5 teams in the league.

They aren't winning a championship so whats the difference? They have been rumored to want to cut payroll the last few years and this trade would give them a chance to be in position to get a max free agent next year. Plus Ray and Eddie would still let them play that run and gun style without any drop off .

Danny: "hey, make us a really bad trade and hurt your team dynamic while helping us out!"

Suns: "uhhh...no thanks danny we're actually playing quite well and Q-rich has been a huge par--

Danny: "Your not winning the championship, so what's the difference!!"

Suns: Golly danny, your right, we need to abandon all hope 15 games in. Lets make a deal.

Danny: muhahaha

[screwedupmaniac]

I appreciate Ray and all he's done for this organization, but I would get over losing him pretty quickly if we swung a deal for a Dwyane Wade calibur player.

We'd all trade Ray for a superstar.  The thing is, Wade, CP3, Lebron, and even Joe Johnson aren't going to be available.  The question then becomes, do you dump Ray for a chump like Kirilenko.  I say no, you don't.

God forbid we ever trade Ray for AK47, that'd be terrible. However, if the right deal for the right package of young players came up, current superstars or not, I would still strongly consider it at this point. I'd rather get something for Ray Allen while we still can, versus ending up with nothing at all after his retirement but goosebumps, memories, and sentimental feelings 

And with the frustration that CP3 has been showing and experiencing as of late, I wouldn't be surprised in the least to see him force his way out of New Orleans in the near future. Heck, ever Chris Bosh is losing his mind trying to make a name for himself north of the border. There are young superstars out there who are getting sick of losing and playing for franchises with a weak fanbase. Maybe I'm overly optimistic about our chances about landing any of these players, but Ray is one of the most valuable expiring contracts in the league. There is definitely a reason that Danny didn't work out an extension with him over the Summer.

[LB3533]

It's not time to trade Ray at all. In fact, it is time to make Ray more of a primary offensive weapon for our team.

Ray and KG are the only 2 players that have increased their efficiency and production over the last 5 games (since we have been struggling).

Pierce and Sheed have regressed, with the former only slightly, but the latter....a great deal.

[Chief]

I've been saying this since the day after the C's one that last championship. It is a very unpopular topic and won't earn you many TPs. I agree Ray seems to be playing well on offense this season, but if the right trade presented itself; I'd do it in a heartbeat.

[SCBirdman]

If we don't start playing better than the past 4 games, then I say blow it up at the trade deadline if the right deal/s present.

[ssspence]

I've been saying this since the day after the C's one that last championship. It is a very unpopular topic and won't earn you many TPs. I agree Ray seems to be playing well on offense this season, but if the right trade presented itself; I'd do it in a heartbeat.

Well said and straight forward. It's not about Ray - per se. If he is the asset most desired and it brings us a deal we HAVE to consider, so be it.

[Jeff]

I've been pondering this a lot in the last few days.

my short answer is no, you don't trade Ray now - it is too early

however, if we are still struggling at Christmas, I think you have to start looking around at what you can get for him - especially since some teams will be looking to offload big contracts

maybe this is a bad example, but someone like the Wiz might be ready to blow up the core of their team if they are still struggling - if we could pry away someone like Butler or more likely Jamison, don't you at least have to listen to that conversation?

this isn't really a reflection on what I think of Ray Allen, but as the whole team gets older, he becomes the easiest of the big three to move in trade

[Greenbean]

If Ray continues to shoot below 30% from deep, then yes. Anyone want to bet on that?

[BASS_THUMPER]

i often wonder

"why dont we trade robert parish"..?

in his later years you heard more bout is herb habit than his game stats...


keep ray..