Trade Restrictions for Recently Traded Players

No Reacquiring:
Teams cannot reacquire a player that they traded during a given season (July 1- June 30) unless the player has been waived.

This rule was put in place to block teams from trading a player to make the salaries work with the understanding that the team would then release that player, so he could be resigned by his original team.

However, if a team waits thirty days, then they are able to reacquire that recently traded player. For instance, in the current proposed trade between the Nets and Mavericks, Jerry Stackhouse will immediately be bought out by the Nets, then will sit out for thirty days, and then will resign with the Mavericks.

On February 24, 2005, Alan Henderson was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks along with Calvin Booth for Keith Van Horn. The Bucks then waived Henderson the following day. On March 1, 2005, he re-signed with the Mavericks.

This also occured in a situation with Gary Payton. Like Henderson, Payton was also traded on February 24, 2005 to the Atlanta Hawks in a deal that brought former Celtic Antoine Walker back to Boston. The Hawks then waived Payton immediately following the trade, and he returned a week later to Boston as a free agent. Payton started all 77 games he played for the Celtics and they won the Atlantic Division before losing in the first round to the Indiana Pacers.

Trade/Claim:
If a team is over the cap and receives a player in a trade or claims a player off of waivers, they cannot trade the player in combination with other players for 2 months. The player can be traded by himself.

Some current examples of this include: Pau Gasol, Shaquille O'Neal, Kwame Brown, Shawn Marion, Marcus Banks, Stromile Swift, Jason Collins, Javaris Crittenton.

Portland-New Jersey Revised

With the Nets-Grizzlies trade occuring today sending Jason Collins to Memphis for Stromile Swift, my Kidd-to-the-Blazers trade needs to be revised.

Here is the new version:

Nets receive:
Raef LaFrentz, $12,440,787, 2 Years Remaining
Jarrett Jack. $1,217,400, 2 Years Remaining
Channing Frye, $2,487,240, 2 Years Remaining
Sergio Rodriguez, $817,000, 2 Years Remaining
2008 First Round Pick

Portland receives:
Jason Kidd, $19,728,000, 2 Years Remaining
Malik Allen, $770,610, 1 Year Remaining
Darrell Armstrong, $770,610, 1 Year Remaining

Memphis, Chicago & Orlando Up For a 3-Way Trade?

With the Bulls floundering at seven games under .500 and Memphis looking to the future as they sit in last place in the Western Conference's Southwest Division, both teams look like they are ready to make a move. In Orlando, Stan Van Gundy has struggled to find an effective big man. So, here's a three-way trade that would get each team closer to their short-term and long-term goals.

Memphis gets:
PF Pat Garrity ($3,818,750, 1 Year Remaining)
C Adonal Foyle ($1,219,590, 1 Year Remaining)
PF Tyrus Thomas ($3,505,320, 2 Years Remaining)
C Ben Wallace ($15,500,000, 3 Years Remaining)
SG Ben Gordon ($4,881,669, 1 Year Remaining)
Future Orlando First Round Pick

Chicago gets:
SG/SF Mike Miller ($8,376,194, 2 Years Remaining)
C Pau Gasol ($13,735,000, 4 Years Remaining)
PF Andre Brown ($770,610, 1 Year Remaining)

Orlando gets:
PF/C Stromile Swift ($5,800,000, 1 Year Remaining)

In this trade, Memphis gets more young talent (Gordon, Thomas, first round pick), cap flexibility (Foyle, Garrity, and potentially Gordon), and veteran talent (Wallace). Adding Thomas and Gordon to the core in Memphis of Rudy Gay, Mike Conley Juan Carlos Navarro, Kyle Lowry, Darko Milicic, Hakim Warrkick gives general manager Chris Wallace a great start to turning this team around. With this trade, the Grizzlies would have just about forty million dollars for seven player - Milicic, Brian Cardinal, Damon Stoudamire, Gay, Lowry, Ben Wallace, and Tyrus Thomas. Even with the option of bringing back Ben Gordon long-term and eating into their payroll, the Grizzlies would still have a significant amount of cap room to bring in a veteran post player.

The Bulls would be able to re-make this team in a short period of time. Gasol clearly would fill the void the Bulls have had in the post since Eddy Curry was traded to the Knicks. Averaging 19 points per game and almost nine rebounds, Gasol would be the focal point of the Bulls offense. Mike Miller would also be a great addition to the team. Playing Miller (6-8) next to Luol Deng (6-9) on the wing would allow the Bulls to turn a negative (size at the wing) into a positive. Miller is also a veteran scorer that would take some pressure of Deng and Kirk Hinrich. With averages of 16.5 points per game, 6.8 rebounds per game, and 3.9 assists per game, Miller would be a perfect fit in the Bulls offense. Andre Brown is a young, power forward from Chicago, who the Bulls would get a half of a season to take a look at.

For Orlando, this trade would The Magic have had a great deal of success this season playing a smaller front line with Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis playing the forward spots. Off the bench, the Magic have gotten very little production from their big men - Brian Cook, Pat Garrity, Adonal Foyle, and James Augustine. Adding Stromile Swift to this Magic squad would give the team athleticism, shot blocking, and post defense off the bench. Swift has a player option after the 2007-08, but could become an unrestricted free agent. In this trade, Garrity and Foyle are little used big men who are free agents after this season.

Wallace and Iavaroni Making an Impact Quickly in Memphis

Newly-hired Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations, Chris Wallace, have gotten off to a great start in Memphis. Coming of a 22-60 regular season record last year, the Grizzlies offseason started off with a disappointment when they fell in the lottery down to the fourth spot. However, it has been all positive since then. On May 31, the Grizzlies named Marc Iavaroni as their new head coach. The previous three and a half years, Iavaroni was the Phoenix Suns lead assistant. Iavaroni was credited for helping Amare Stoudemire with his development, as well as, other young players who spent time with the Suns.

The next pivotal step for the Grizzlies occurred when they picked point guard, Mike Conley, with the fourth pick in the draft. Conley will pair with Kyle Lowry to create a great, young tandem of point guards in Memphis. Conley has proven to have a high basketball IQ and is an intense competitor. He has nice moves around the basket, but needs to improve the quickness of his jump shot. He is lightening quick and rebounds well for his size. Adding strength and improving his three-point accuracy will also help him to improve. Conley will be a great leader for the rebuilding of the Grizzlies.

The Grizzlies pivotal move came on July 11, when it was reported that they agreed to terms with Darko Milicic. At 22, Milicic is still very raw, but has show flashes of the potential seen what he was the second pick in the draft in 2003. Working with Iavaroni, Milicic should be able to continue to develop and take some of the pressure off of Grizzlies big man, Pau Gasol. Milicic has shown a variety of skills, including a nice mid-range jump shot and a lefty hook shot. He needs to improve from the free throw line and get tougher around the basket. On the defensive side, he has shown an outstanding ability to block shots with great timing and instincts. The main concern in the past has been that Milicic sometimes appears not intense enough and can become out of shape.

Adding Milicic was a win-win situation for Memphis. Signing only a three-year, $21,000,000 deal was a no-brainer for Wallace and the Grizzlies. At worse, he’s a big, young body who can block some shots and fill some minutes for Gasol. After three years, his contract will expire and the Grizzlies can say goodbye to win. At best, Milicic develops into a young, versatile force who pairs with Conley, Rudy Gay, and Gasol to create one of the best young cores in the league.

Last week, the Grizzlies also brought in Andre Brown, who played 38 games last season with Seattle. Brown is an athletic, hard working power forward, who Wallace hopes will improve with more playing time. So, that leaves the Grizzlies right now with a nice mix of youth and veterans. At point guard, Mike Conley, Kyle Lowry, and Damon Stoudamire will be competing for time. Mike Miller, Rudy Gay, and Tarance Kinsey will be fighting for minutes at the shooting guard and small forward positions. Up front, the Grizzlies will be deep with Pau Gasol, Darko Milicic, Stromile Swift, Hakim Warrick, Brian Cardinal, and Andre Brown. The Grizzlies biggest need right now is some outside shooting at the wing positions. The Grizzlies have been rumored to be considering Casey Jacobson and Ime Udoka for this spot. Both of these players would perfectly fit the need for Wallace. Wallace was quoted today as saying, "''It's a small group we're looking at and we could have something pretty soon."

With Conley and Lowry as the point guards, Iavaroni will look to speed up the tempo in Memphis similarly to what they did with his old team, Phoenix. Iavaroni will be expected to work closely with the big men as well, helping Swift reach his potential and to continue to develop Warrick’s game. The style of play and development of players will be essential to Iavaroni's success in Memphis.

At the start of the upcoming season, the Grizzlies will be vastly improved for both today and the future. With Stoudamire and Swift's contract expiring after the 2008-09 season, there will be room to still add in another high-profile player to the mix. If the Grizzlies can continue this positive momentum, Iavaroni and Wallace should have the franchise turned around very quickly.

Memphis' Draft Night Move

The Facts

On the night of the draft, Jerry West pulled off another major trade in his career when he went ahead and acquired two rotation players. The Grizzlies acquired Stromile Swift and the draft rights to Rudy Gay, the eighth pick in the 2006 NBA Draft, from Houston in exchange for Grizzlies forward Shane Battier.

Salaries:

Stromile Swift

06-07 5.4 million

07-08 5.8 million

08-09

Player option at 6.2 million

Rudy Gay

2.6 million is his avg salary per year over the next four seasons

Shane Battier

06-07 5.4

07-08 5.9

08-096.4

09-10 6.8

10-11 7.3

When comparing the salaries, Battier and Swift's contracts are very similar with the exception being that Swift's contract is shorter. Gay's contract is slotted because he is in his rookie contract.

Memphis' Depth Chart:

SG, SF Depth:

Mike Miller

Eddie Jones

Rudy Gay

Dahntay Jones

PF, C Depth:

Pau Gasol

Stromile Swift

Hakim Warrick

Jake Tsakalidis

The Analysis

Jerry West was able to bring in a potential star in Rudy Gay without giving up all that much in return. Gay, who was once regarded as the top player in the draft will immediately come in and play for the Grizzlies. At the end of this season, Eddie Jones will be a free agent and Gay should be ready to step in and take his minutes. In Swift, Memphis also was able to bring back a former first round pick for them. Swift will get significant minutes at the power forward and center spots. He is an athletic player who can change the game through his shot blocking ability. Another plus for the Grizzlies is that Swift is someone who can play multiple positions. The bottom line in this trade is that at worse, Gay will be no better then Shane Battier. At best, Gay could project out to be an all-star for many years to come.