Category: Rumors & Gossip (Page 171 of 225)

      How much better off would the Blazers be had they drafted Durant instead of Oden?

      March 12, 2009 /

      No one can fault the job that Portland GM Kevin Pritchard has done so far. In 2005, when he was the Blazers’ interim coach, he reportedly advised then-GM John Nash and Steve Patterson to draft Chris Paul at #3, but the duo instead decided to trade the pick and ended up with Martell Webster at #6. He was promoted to assistant GM in 2006, and was involved in a series of deals that resulted in the acquisition of the draft rights of Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge. In 2007, he was promoted to general manager. That summer, in addition to drafting Greg Oden, he turned Zach Randolph into a trade exception that he used to steal Rudy Fernandez from the Phoenix Suns.

      Other than an ill-advised threat to sue anyone that tried to sign Darius Miles, it’s tough to second-guess anything that Pritchard has done in Portland.

      But what if he had drafted Kevin Durant instead of Greg Oden? How much better off would the franchise be with Durant on the roster?

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      Fantasy Football, NBA, NBA Draft, Rumors & Gossip

      Don’t plan on the Broncos trading Cutler

      March 12, 2009 /

      Fans in Minnesota, Detroit and Tampa have kept a close eye on the developing situation in Denver in hopes that the Broncos will eventually trade unhappy quarterback Jay Cutler. But I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were a Vikings, Lions or Bucs fan.

      It’s highly unlikely that the Broncos will trade Cutler at this point, even with the situation apparently getting worse by the day. Cutler may be upset with the way new head coach Josh McDaniels entertained trade offers for him two weeks ago, but the fact of the matter is that even if Denver wanted to deal the quarterback, they don’t have a good enough backup plan at this point to follow through with it.

      McDaniels claims that he listened to offers from the Patriots when it was reported that Denver, New England and Tampa Bay had talked about a three-team deal, but that’s only because Matt Cassel – McDaniels’ former QB in New England – was involved. Now that Cassel is set to become the Chiefs’ starting quarterback next season, it’s doubtful that the Broncos will move Cutler with no other intriguing options out there to take his place.

      One small, interesting rumor that has circulated on the web is that Denver loves the potential of Chris Simms, whom they just signed to a deal in early March. But the Broncos only signed him to a two-year, $6 million contract, which is barely the league-average for a backup quarterback and indicates that he might not even win the No. 2 spot on the depth chart. (Dan Orlovsky got more money to be a backup for the Texans, by the way.)

      Some people have subscribed to the thought that the Broncos could deal Cutler on draft day and then select their future signal caller in one of the first three rounds. But unless USC’s Mark Sanchez fell to them at No. 12 (which is a possibility), arguably no quarterback in this year’s draft would be ready to start as a rookie like Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco did last year. Prospects like Josh Freeman of Kansas State would be major projects and certainly wouldn’t be ready to be thrown to the wolves in his rookie season.

      The bottom line is that Cutler probably isn’t going anywhere because the Broncos don’t have any better options at this point. It would be incredibly unwise for McDaniels and the Broncos to deal a young quarterback that has already proven he has the tools to compete in the NFL. Cutler hasn’t won anything yet, but he obviously has more than enough talent to get the Broncos to the playoffs. Situations like this usually blow over at some point.

      NFL, Rumors & Gossip

      Anquan Boldin to be an Eagle?

      March 11, 2009 /

      SI.com’s Peter King believes that Anquan Boldin won’t be a Cardinal next season and that the Giants and Eagles are possible trade partners with Arizona.

      The Eagles and Giants, two receiver-needy teams, are in position to deal for Anquan Boldin, who I continue to say will not be a Cardinal by July. Philly has 21, 28 and 53, the Giants 29, 45 and 60. I find it hard to believe the Eagles won’t trade for Boldin. Very hard. He’s a perfect fit, and they’ve got the cap room to sign him.

      Less than a month ago, Philly GM Tom Heckert said that the Eagles were set at receiver with DeSean Jackson and that’s why the team didn’t pursue free agent T.J. Houshmandzadeh. But Housh is also three years older than Boldin and if the Eagles have had their sights on Anquan this entire time, then Heckert’s comments could have been a smokescreen. As King notes, Philadelphia is certainly in position to offer Arizona decent compensation for Boldin, who could team with Jackson to give Donovan McNabb a quality receiving corps.

      NFL, Rumors & Gossip

      Rams to draft a tackle at No. 2?

      March 11, 2009 /

      Peter King of SI.com believes that the Rams will likely select an offensive tackle with the No. 2 overall pick in next month’s NFL draft.

      Orlando PaceNow that St. Louis has released Orlando Pace, there’s very little doubt the Rams will use either pick number three or pick 35 at the top of the second round to pick into the teeth of a tackle-rich draft.

      Well, King’s notion certainly makes sense considering the Rams now have a Grand Canyon-sized hole at left tackle. And this is certainly the draft to take a tackle with Baylor’s Jason Smith and Virginia’s Eugene Monroe both being viewed as top 10 picks, if not top 5.

      But the wild card in this situation is Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry, who would also fill a need for the Rams and appears to be the best prospect in the entire draft. If the Lions don’t take him, St. Louis could pull the trigger and make a solid, safe selection in the versatile linebacker.

      NFL, NFL Draft, Rumors & Gossip

      Will the Cavs revisit Shaq trade this offseason?

      March 10, 2009 /

      Obviously, it depends on how they fare in the playoffs, but if the Cavs fail to win a championship this year, and Shaq is still healthy and producing, they may revisit the trade that almost was.

      Phoenix looked ready to do it for the low, low, bargain price of Wally Szczerbiak and Sasha Pavlovic.

      However, instead of Szczerbiak, whose $13.5-million-a-year deal is expiring, the Cavaliers insisted the Suns take Ben Wallace, who has one more season at $14 million left.

      Oh, and Shaq, who’s still broadcasting his love for Phoenix, is saying privately he wants out, upset to the highest level of upsetivity, as he once said, at almost being traded, or the team’s return to running, or both.

      If Shaq were to end up in Cleveland next season, motivation wouldn’t be a problem. The main issues are his age (37) and his knees. Phoenix owner Rod Sarver is in a tough financial position, but a summer trade would require him to take on equal salary for the 2009-10 season (in the form of Ben Wallace and Sasha Pavlovic?), so he might as well hold onto Shaq if the big fella isn’t causing a ruckus. Cleveland’s best and cheapest shot at Shaq was the Szczerbiak-and-Pavlovic deal that apparently wasn’t good enough for the Cavs.

      Cleveland could revisit this trade in the summer, but since Shaq’s deal will be expiring next season, the Suns won’t be nearly as motivated to move him. They may ask for a young prospect and/or draft picks to make a deal work, and that’s a more expensive package than the one the Cavs just passed on.

      NBA, NBA Finals, Rumors & Gossip

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