A ton of NBA trade rumors leading up to tonight's draft, mostly involving Minnesota's Kevin Garnett. Phoenix is the likely suitor but what would they have to give up? Consider their lineup (all stats and salaries are for 06-07 season and all stats provided by ESPN.com):
PG Steve Nash $10.5 million, 18.6 PPG, 11.6 APG, 3.5 RPG
Absolutely no way Nash is going anywhere. He IS the Phoenix Suns.
SG Raja Bell $4.5 million, 14.7 PPG, 2.5 APG, 3.2 RPG
Excellent three-point shooter and great defender (especially on Kobe Bryant). Not likely to be dealt.
F Boris Diaw $1.87 million, 9.7 PPG, 4.8 APG, 4.3 RPG
Not a vital part of the offense and an okay defender. I consider him the "weak link".
F Shawn Marion $15 million, 17.5 PPG, 1.7 APG, 9.8 RPG
Career-long Sun but most likely to go based on his salary. That 17 PPG and 9 APG will be hard to replace.
C Amare Stoudemire $12.4 million, 20.4 PPG, 1.0 APG, 9.6 RPG
Same boat as Marion.
Bench PG Leandro Barbosa $1.6 million, 18.1 PPG, 4.0 APG, 2.7 RPG
The reigning 6th Man Award Winner isn't going anywhere. He's a sparkplug.
Compare those with Garnett's stats:
F Kevin Garnett $21 million, 22.4 PPG, 4.1 APG, 12.8 RPG
As much as I would love to see Garnett in a Phoenix uniform, the only way I see an upgrade is if Shawn "The Matrix" Marion goes and that's going to be tough for Suns fans because he's been there his entire 8 year career. If the Suns want to upgrade, I'd like to see them upgrade from Boris Diaw and the bench, which has Barbosa and Kurt Thomas, but not much else. The other big thing is the money issue. Phoenix wil be taking on an extra $6 million if Garnett arrives and Marion departs.
Also, some late-breaking news involving Indiana Pacer Jermaine O'Neal. Rumor has it that the Nets have offered Nenad Krstic, Richard Jefferson, and Jason Collins for O'Neal. The Knicks and Trail Blazers have reportedly talked of a Zach Randolph and Martell Webster for Steve Francis and Cganning Frye deal. These late headlines courtesy of Yahoo Sports.
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