Pistons Thunder Trade (idea)

[wiley]

Trade ID #5757285

Pistons get:  Jeff Green, Harden, Aldrich, D.J. White and Mo Pete
starting:  Stuckey, Harden, Prince, Green, Wallace

Thunder get:  Monroe, Hamilton, Wilcox and Daye
starting:  Westbrook, Sefolosha, Durant, Ibaka, Kristic

Rich Hamilton backup SG and backup SF.

All trades are gambles.  This one seems pretty balanced to me, though I have no clue about Daye's potential....if his potential is high then the trade favors the Thunder.  And Detroit would have to feel they can resign Jeff Green......

Other than that, it's based on Detroit needing to rebuild and getting a bit of a head start here (again depending on Daye and his potential).

It's also based on Ok. City trying to form a team that can challenge the Lakers this year.  It allows the Thunder to have 2 genuine bigs on the floor at all times, starting Kristic and Ibaka (as they did for a while with success), and bringing Monroe and Collison off the bench...Wilcox too if he adds anything.  

Haven't watched any non-Celtic games this year, so it's hard for me to judge....Those who've seen Monroe and Daye, and Aldrich for that matter, help out.....

[PosImpos]

It's an interesting idea, but my sense of the situation in OKC is that Presti is not keen on trading youth for veterans...he's trying to build a team from the ground up with a solidified team culture.  To that end, he'll prefer to keep players that have come up in his system over trading for veterans toward the end of their careers.  This is exemplified in his recent extension of Nick Collison's contract (using the Thunder's cap space to do so).

While this trade would very likely make the Thunder better this year, I'm not sure it would make them better in the long run (unless Monroe really puts it all together).  While the Thunder are very good now, I think Presti is (quite rightly) focused on the long run, since his team is so young.

[Chris]

I am not sure how this makes sense for OKC.  Aldrich for Monroe is basically a lateral move.  Hamilton is only marginally better than Harden, but is much more expensive, and much older.  And of course Green to Wilcox is a huge downgrade. 

The only real positive piece they would be getting would be Daye...who is basically just a homelessman's Durant, and is not good enough to offset the other pieces in the deal.

So, perhaps the value on paper is close to even (and thats debatable), but it looks to me like shuffling the deckchairs, and I would hope that if OKC was going to do that, they would strengthen their weakness up front a bit more.

[Lucky17]

I've seen several Pistons games this year.

I have been impressed with Monroe so far. Nose for the ball, good passing, hustle on the offensive glass. He's a keeper.

Daye shows flashes of brilliance, with a good outside shot. The problem is determining what his true position is. At 6'11" he looks to be a stretch 4, but he is simply not strong enough to defend opposing PFs. He may have to play SF. He still has a bit of the deer-in-headlights look about him. Not even sure if he is starting material.

Prince and Hamilton are desperately in need of a trade out of town. Terrible body language. I suspect real animosity towards the head coach Keuster.

I think Dumars would prefer to build around the core of Stuckey, Gordon, Daye, Villanueva, Jerebko, and Monroe. Ben Wallace will retire as a Piston. The rest of the roster is trade bait or end of bench material.

Guys like Prince, Hamilton, and Maxiell will probably be mentioned in rumors leading up to the trade deadline.

One last note: I've been really surprised by Tracy McGrady's relevance/effectiveness, especially in helping run the Pistons' bench offense. I think he could actually contribute to a contending team in limited minutes, provided his knee holds up. The training staff in Detroit are top-notch.

[wiley]

I am not sure how this makes sense for OKC.  Aldrich for Monroe is basically a lateral move.  Hamilton is only marginally better than Harden, but is much more expensive, and much older.  And of course Green to Wilcox is a huge downgrade. 

The only real positive piece they would be getting would be Daye...who is basically just a homelessman's Durant, and is not good enough to offset the other pieces in the deal.

So, perhaps the value on paper is close to even (and thats debatable), but it looks to me like shuffling the deckchairs, and I would hope that if OKC was going to do that, they would strengthen their weakness up front a bit more.

The trade is basically based on the idea that Monroe has a chance to make a significant contribution sooner than Aldrich, as well as having more all around potential for the long term.  If this is not the case and they are about equal, as you say, then giving up Harden and Green is too much, even if Daye has good potential (at least would be risky).  The other question I have is about Wilcox.  Is an afterthought or could he contribute to a bigs rotation in the playoffs.

I like others would like to see Ok. CIty go for it this year......They're a very good team and with some more beef and good luck they could do it this year.....why bide time?

Detroit is in the muck.  This would be a good trade for them if Aldrich has some chance of being good.  After trading Prince as well they could start Stuckey, Harden, Green, Wallace, Aldrich.....and work towards getting the next good to great PF, using Gordon and whatever in a trade to get one.....