Heat close to deal with Wolves for Davis, Blount

[sa_butta]

The Miami Heat, reeling from the continued injury absence of Dwyane Wade and an 0-7 record in the preseason, are on the verge of a double boost to their depleted roster, according to NBA front-office sources Wednesday.

Sources told ESPN.com that the Heat will soon complete a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves to acquire swingman Ricky Davis and center Mark Blount.

The latest incarnation of the deal, according to one source, has Miami sending Antoine Walker, Michael Doleac and Wayne Simien to the Wolves for Davis and Blount.

Minnesota initially balked at taking back Walker in the deal, sources said, but it's believed that the Heat will send the Wolves at least one future draft pick to push the trade through.

Walker has fallen farther and farther out of favor with Miami coach Pat Riley since the Heat's 2006 championship, in part because of conditioning issues, but Minnesota might also have been convinced to shed its reservations and make the swap because Walker has only one year left on his contract more than Blount.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3077037

[Bruno]

It makes a lot of sense for Minny given that the last two years of Walker contract aren't guaranteed. They are in rebuilding mode and their goal should be to get cap space in the 2009 summer. if they get a first round pick, they will get a good value for Davis + Blount.
With their young players, future draft picks and a lot of capspace in 09, it could work.

Miami will get a starting quality SF. Riley should be able to manage Davis who is in a contract year. I'm more skeptical about Blount, I don't see him playing PF at all and Heat has still Shaq/Mourning at C. Miami should try to trade him for a backup PF like Kenny Thomas.

After this trade, I can see Minny waiving Walker and Walker signing with Boston.

[ShoogarBear]

WTF? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. I picked up Blount for my Dynasty fantasy league team expressly because he was going to get a lot of minutes at center for a ty team.

He won't see 10 minutes a game as long as Shaq and Mourning are healthy. Although that's if BIG if.

[JamStone]

Even with a first round pick, it still doesn't make that much sense for Minnesota unless that is really the very best offer they could get for both Davis and Blount. And, what good is cap space when no free agents want to go to Minnesota? It's better to keep bigger contracts for an organization like Minnesota to get players in trades and not use those contracts to relieve cap space. They essentially trade their remaining best scorer and only decent center for Wayne Simeon and a draft pick. It would be a very good move by Miami, not so much for Minnesota.

[Phil Hellmuth]

minny got too many wing players, this would be good b/c there youth can show what they have on a lottery season anyway.

[HeatChamps]

Oh yeah. Shaq and Wade will be unstoppable now. They don't need any help but any extra is just groovy. Heat=07-08 Champions.

[baseline bum]

Man, McHale makes even Isiah look like Red Auerbach.

[AFBlue]

Blount plays on the perimeter, so I don't think he'll log the majority of his minutes at Center. Theoretically he could play alongside Shaq/Mourning.

Davis should be a good pickup as a quick offensive boost. He doesn't provide the defense that Posey and Jones did, but he'll be a much more reliable scorer for a team looking for weapons outside of Shaq/DWade.

Minnesota did this for two clear reasons...

1)PT for the younguns

2)Add capspace in the future

[1Parker1]

Hmm, looks like a poor deal for Minny. They could have probably gotten something better for all that...

[JamStone]

Blount plays on the perimeter, so I don't think he'll log the majority of his minutes at Center. Theoretically he could play alongside Shaq/Mourning.

Davis should be a good pickup as a quick offensive boost. He doesn't provide the defense that Posey and Jones did, but he'll be a much more reliable scorer for a team looking for weapons outside of Shaq/DWade.

Minnesota did this for two clear reasons...

1)PT for the younguns

2)Add capspace in the future

A center that plays on the perimeter does not mean that center can effectively play power forward. Blount does not have the athleticism or agility to defend the better power forwards in the league.

We all know the reasons why Minnesota is making the deal. That doesn't mean those are good or justifiable reasons or that it's a good deal by Minnesota. They should get more for Davis and Blount than Wayne Simien and a first round pick that will likely be in the late teens or early 20s of the draft. Instead of using Davis' and Blount's contracts to get expiring contracts to clear cap space, a team like Minnesota that does not attract quality free agents needs to trade those contracts for players that they want that are still under contract. Cap space doesn't mean if no one of any value wants to sign with your team. Look at Atlanta with cap space a few years ago. They went after Kenyon Martin. And, the following season, their big free agent signing was Speedy Claxton. If players don't want to go to your team, your city, what good is cap space? Look at Memphis this summer. The best they can do is overpay for Darko Milicic. Their biggest free agent acquisition before that was Brian Cardinal. The quality players they have were either draft picks or trades.

If you have a lot of cap space with no expendable players with considerable contracts, you can't work out trades for players. And, you still can't sign free agents because no one wants to go to Minnesota.

Understanding McHale's reasoning for such a deal is clear. That doesn't change the fact that it's still stupid on his part to do the deal if he traded Davis and Blount for Walker, Doleac, Simien and a draft pick.

[duncan228]

It's done.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200....ap/index.html

Heat deal Walker for T'wolves' Davis
After a winless preseason, the Heat hope Ricky Davis can get Miami off to a better start in the regular season.

MIAMI (AP) -- Antoine Walker's turbulent time with the Miami Heat is over.

The Heat traded the three-time All-Star forward to the Minnesota Timberwolves today in a five-player deal that came one day after Miami completed a winless preseason.

Walker, backup center Michael Doleac, oft-injured forward Wayne Simien and a conditional first-round draft pick were sent to Minnesota for former Miami swingman Ricky Davis and center Mark Blount.

The deal gives Minnesota added depth and gives Miami a third scoring option it wanted in Davis. The Heat will try to fit him in alongside Shaquille O'Neal and Dwyane Wade -- the 2006 finals MVP who'll miss a few more weeks while recovering from knee and shoulder surgeries.

Walker helped the Heat win the 2006 NBA le but hasn't always had the easiest time dealing with Heat coach Pat Riley's strict conditioning standards.

Walker was briefly suspended last year because his body-fat measurement wasn't within team limits, and he arrived for training camp earlier this month not in the shape Riley wanted.

[Kriz-Maxima]

Pass the dutchie on the left hand side...


This was definitely a good deal for Miami, finally Walker its good for something. Do the shimmy!

[Mr. Body]

Ricky Davis is even less of a winner than Antoine Walker. He's talented and can score, but barely affects the outcome of ballgames. An overall plus for Miami in the deal, but not in a major way. Funny that the Heat have one of the best players in the game and are such a shambles...

[lil'mo]

Ricky Davis is even less of a winner than Antoine Walker. He's talented and can score, but barely affects the outcome of ballgames. An overall plus for Miami in the deal, but not in a major way. Funny that the Heat have one of the best players in the game and are such a shambles...

yeah that makes alot of sense

mr body is notorious for saying things that would be hard to dispute so that he doesn't ever have to back up some of the he says

[And1Mak]

[HeatChamps]

I feel sorry for the rest of the league. The juggernaut heat are ready to take off.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Good trade for Miami. I now expect them to make it past the 1st round.

[Hemotivo]

[ElNono]

That reminds me... the Antoine Walker shimmy... Do you guys remember what forum these came from?

[Hemotivo]

[ShoogarBear]

That reminds me... the Antoine Walker shimmy... Do you guys remember what forum these came from?

It was a thread on the Inside Hoops forums from two years ago. The forerunner of the the Steve Nash grimace thread here on ST.com.

I couldn't find it on Inside Hoops (it looks like you need an account to search), but there's an article on it (with some additional pictures) here.

If anyone has a link to the original thread, it's well worth the 30 minute peruse.

[LaMarcus Bryant]

I will always respect a player who jumps over a seemingly unavoidable Nash-flop-offensive-foul, subsequently kicking nash in the face with his Jordans.

[Trainwreck2100]

If anyone has a link to the original thread, it's well worth the 30 minute peruse.

Most of the originals are probably red x's by now anyway

[703 Spurz]

That reminds me... the Antoine Walker shimmy... Do you guys remember what forum these came from?

ing priceless