Finally, some Sixers news. The Sixers and Nuggets pulled off another deal today. Heading to Denver: Steven Hunter and Bobby Jones, heading to Philly: Reggie Evans and the rights to Ricky Sanchez.
There are so many different ways you can judge the winners and losers of trades. For example, in this trade, the Sixers are getting rid of one of the worst rebounding big men in the game (Hunter averaged 8.4 rebounds per 40 minutes) for one of the best rebounding big men (Evans averaged 16.5 rebounds per 40 minutes). Or, you can look at salaries. Evans is owed $19 million over the next four seasons ($4.2 million this year), Hunter's contract is less-expensive, $10.4 million over the next three seasons ($3.2 million this year). Or you can take a look at the makeup of a roster. The Nuggets had a glut of power forwards (they seem to think Kenyon Martin is going to be playing this year, which seems naive to me), this moved helped that problem. The Sixers had too many guys for the roster, again, this move is a two-for-one, so both teams win in that regard.
The final two methods for evaluating a trade are more subjective. How do you, as a fan, feel about the trade? I'm ecstatic. The Sixers didn't get a bad contract back, Evans is making less than the Sixers would've paid Joe Smith, and he's going to basically fill the same role. Obviously, he isn't as good as Smith on offense, but he's better on the boards, and the Sixers needed a big who would come off the bench and pound down low. Hunter is fine, for short spurts, but he gets exposed if he's on the floor for too long, and he really is a horrible rebounder. Jones is, well, garbage. He has no game whatsoever, and if they didn't trade him, I thought they may cut him. One last way to judge a trade is to see how fans of the other team feel about it. Here's a post on the trade from a Nuggets blog, The Nugg Doctor. He seems sad to see Evans go, and his rationale is a bit of a reach.
Where things start to get interesting is in the acquisition of Bobby
Jones. While Jones only finished last year's rookie season averaging
2.5 points and 1.3 rebounds. It was the way he came on at the end which
makes him intriguing. Some would say that Philly didn't have the best
of years in last season's efforts, but in the month of April Bobby
Jones averaged 6.1 points and 2.4 rebounds in a total of nine games.
Bobby Jones was garbage wire-to-wire last season. He doesn't belong in this league. He averaged six points in 9 games because they were blowouts and half the Sixers team was hurt. He has no future. He does seem like a nice guy though.
I don't know much about Ricky Sanchez, but it's nice to see the Sixers get their hands on a foreign guy (that sounded dirtier than I intended). I'm sure Ricky from Sixers4Guidos will shed some light in the coming days with a scouting report on the Sixers' newest property. The important thing is, this trade made the Sixers better this year, and probably in the future as well. The difference in salary is minimal and I believe the team is still under the luxury tax threshold, so it's a win for Billy King.
Here's some YouTube magic on Steven Hunter (believe it or not), followed by our new guy, Reggie Evans.
Hmm, interesting trade. Most likely it was to create a roster spot. Does Philly get the better end of the deal? I think Evans is a better player than Hunter, yes. I also think that Evans contract is longer and therefore less appealing than Hunter's. No, it's not a Chris Webber cap killer contract, but it's not a good one, either.
Evans is a one-dimensional role player. Normally I like these guys (especially for two-year contracts), but don't the Sixers already have a rebounding, offense-averse big in Dalembert. This team is interesting... I think what you see here is a team that is molded after the Jordan Bulls in some ways, minus Jordan. The 76ers might be wise to sign a high-scoring SG/SF after the season is over... maybe if Kobe opts out in 09, he'll be the perfect fit. Beyond that I don't know who is available - T-Mac, VC, Wade, even Redd are all signed long term.
It's an odd team. They might be better off trading Dalembert for a low post player to compliment AI2, if that was possible.
I don't think Evans is going to be starting, he's going to fit somewhere in the rotation and provide rebounding off the bench. His contract is one-year worse (longer) than Hunter's, but they're only paying him about $1M more than they would've paid Hunter this year. Basically, they cleared a roster spot and made a notable upgrade over Hunter in their rotation for not that much more money. I like the deal.
I like the trade and I am happy to see you like it too Brian, I wrote more or less the same things
he fills a need we had, period
SML, I think Evans is a better tradeable asset than Hunter because even if his contract is longer (like Brian showed) he will have more suitors due to his ability as specialist. He's the kind of hard player that coaches, GMs and fans like, kinda like Oakley, Mahorn etc
(I'm sorry to disappoint you but I don't know anything about Ricky Sanchez...)
This move definitely makes Denver more athletic. Not that they were struggling with that to begin with. But, Bobby Jones is going to be one of the better wing defenders in the league. I don't think Philly should have traded him, but they have so many wings right now, they had no other choice.
Come on man, you're the European Sixers correspondent, you have to be on top of things like this :)
GM,
I don't know, I saw every single minute Bobby Jones has played in his NBA career and he showed me absolutely nothing. He routinely got beat off the dribble, didn't rebound, didn't help on defense, and his offensive game is just putrid. I'll be surprised if he isn't in the NBADL when the season starts.
Hunter will be a good fit for them, he runs the floor well and he can finish when he's within 2 feet of the hoop. Iverson will set him up, and they don't need to rely on him for heavy minutes. If Camby goes down, though, he is not the answer as a backup center.
I remember thinking Hunter was really going to contribute to the Sixers. He never developed into that player. I know little about Evans and nothing at all about Sanchez (is he related to Pepe? LOL... shows the extent of my knowledge).
As for Jones, he was a waste in a roster space. That opens up a spot and gives someone else a chance.
As long as Evans is a healthy, relatively injury free player, I'm happy with this trade.
Couldn't agree more. Now the Sixers don't have to trade Garbage Time!
I'm just waiting for Kevin Ollie to either retire, get traded or get bought out. Although I think Cheeks and King may be hesitant to go into the season with only Lou Williams as backup for Andre Miller.
Good point about Evans being more "tradeable" than Hunter... there will always be a team interested in a tenacious rebounder like Evans.
Surprised no one has made a "nut-grabber" joke yet.
I'm very intrigued by the Ricky Sanchez aspect... someone has to dig up something on this. He can't just be a throw-in, so do the 76ers think he will actually sign someday? And, if so, what can he contribute?
In my opinion this a great trade. We got rid of a player from one loaded position (SF) but lost another player from our weakest area(frontcourt-Big Men). Every time I think of Bobby Jones, I think of the time when he air-balled a 10 footer from the baseline in New York. NBA players don't do that. The team improved when Steven was inserted into the lineup but I think that was just because any tall player would be an improvement in the rebounding department. Steven Hunter What prevents this from being a bad trade is Reggie Evans is one of the best rebounders off the bench and maybe the best offensive rebounder in the league. Although he is undersized, he gives us that tenacity underneath that Steven lacked and Sam lacks. He is limited offensively but we can just put in Jason Smith when he gets exploited. I think this one of the better trades we have made.
P:S- We also got signed Calvin Booth, adding more depth to our frontcourt. He should see some minutes as Sam's back-up. I hope Sam is able to play around 34 minutes a game because I don't think Booth should be in there for extended minutes.
The biggest question for me in the front court is who's going to be the odd man out. Shav, Amundson, Herbert Hill, now Booth. They can't keep all of those guys. You know Sam and Smith are on the roster, I think at most three of the other guys makes the team.
Have we signed Booth yet? I haven't seen any evidence of it on sixers.com. If so, your question is a great one... who's the odd man out. Frankly, it's pretty hard to guess. I'd guess you're correct that Sammy and Jason are a lock... and I'm guessing Shav will get his shot as well. The other three (Amundson, Hill, and Booth) better lace up their sneakers pretty tight. Personally, based on his summer league performance, I'd love to see Amundson on the team. Yeah, summer league performances don't always mean much (see John Salmons), but who knows? He might be a diamond in the rough.
Here's a link to the story about Booth. They list Evans as the favorite to start at PF, but I have think they're going to give Smith every opportunity to win that spot.
I'd love to see Amundson make this team, and get 10-15 minutes per. I think he brings a toughness that they lacked on their starting front line last season, but I think the addition of Evans probably means the Sixers are leaning in Shav's direction. He's more polished offensively, and Evans isn't going to give you points down low. They're going to want an offensive option off the bench. I think it's a mistake. We'll just have to wait and see.
Just weeks away from the regular season. So, who's the odd man out. From what I can tell (from Ohio, anyway), Herbert Hill has made a pretty good impression... at least good enough to land a spot. Does that leave it down to Amundson and Byars? If so, who has the edge?
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Hmm, interesting trade. Most likely it was to create a roster spot. Does Philly get the better end of the deal? I think Evans is a better player than Hunter, yes. I also think that Evans contract is longer and therefore less appealing than Hunter's. No, it's not a Chris Webber cap killer contract, but it's not a good one, either.
Evans is a one-dimensional role player. Normally I like these guys (especially for two-year contracts), but don't the Sixers already have a rebounding, offense-averse big in Dalembert. This team is interesting... I think what you see here is a team that is molded after the Jordan Bulls in some ways, minus Jordan. The 76ers might be wise to sign a high-scoring SG/SF after the season is over... maybe if Kobe opts out in 09, he'll be the perfect fit. Beyond that I don't know who is available - T-Mac, VC, Wade, even Redd are all signed long term.
It's an odd team. They might be better off trading Dalembert for a low post player to compliment AI2, if that was possible.
I don't think Evans is going to be starting, he's going to fit somewhere in the rotation and provide rebounding off the bench. His contract is one-year worse (longer) than Hunter's, but they're only paying him about $1M more than they would've paid Hunter this year. Basically, they cleared a roster spot and made a notable upgrade over Hunter in their rotation for not that much more money. I like the deal.
I like the trade and I am happy to see you like it too Brian, I wrote more or less the same things
he fills a need we had, period
SML, I think Evans is a better tradeable asset than Hunter because even if his contract is longer (like Brian showed) he will have more suitors due to his ability as specialist. He's the kind of hard player that coaches, GMs and fans like, kinda like Oakley, Mahorn etc
(I'm sorry to disappoint you but I don't know anything about Ricky Sanchez...)
This move definitely makes Denver more athletic. Not that they were struggling with that to begin with. But, Bobby Jones is going to be one of the better wing defenders in the league. I don't think Philly should have traded him, but they have so many wings right now, they had no other choice.
Ricky,
Come on man, you're the European Sixers correspondent, you have to be on top of things like this :)
GM,
I don't know, I saw every single minute Bobby Jones has played in his NBA career and he showed me absolutely nothing. He routinely got beat off the dribble, didn't rebound, didn't help on defense, and his offensive game is just putrid. I'll be surprised if he isn't in the NBADL when the season starts.
Hunter will be a good fit for them, he runs the floor well and he can finish when he's within 2 feet of the hoop. Iverson will set him up, and they don't need to rely on him for heavy minutes. If Camby goes down, though, he is not the answer as a backup center.
I remember thinking Hunter was really going to contribute to the Sixers. He never developed into that player. I know little about Evans and nothing at all about Sanchez (is he related to Pepe? LOL... shows the extent of my knowledge).
As for Jones, he was a waste in a roster space. That opens up a spot and gives someone else a chance.
As long as Evans is a healthy, relatively injury free player, I'm happy with this trade.
JJ,
Couldn't agree more. Now the Sixers don't have to trade Garbage Time!
I'm just waiting for Kevin Ollie to either retire, get traded or get bought out. Although I think Cheeks and King may be hesitant to go into the season with only Lou Williams as backup for Andre Miller.
Good point about Evans being more "tradeable" than Hunter... there will always be a team interested in a tenacious rebounder like Evans.
Surprised no one has made a "nut-grabber" joke yet.
I'm very intrigued by the Ricky Sanchez aspect... someone has to dig up something on this. He can't just be a throw-in, so do the 76ers think he will actually sign someday? And, if so, what can he contribute?
In my opinion this a great trade. We got rid of a player from one loaded position (SF) but lost another player from our weakest area(frontcourt-Big Men). Every time I think of Bobby Jones, I think of the time when he air-balled a 10 footer from the baseline in New York. NBA players don't do that. The team improved when Steven was inserted into the lineup but I think that was just because any tall player would be an improvement in the rebounding department. Steven Hunter What prevents this from being a bad trade is Reggie Evans is one of the best rebounders off the bench and maybe the best offensive rebounder in the league. Although he is undersized, he gives us that tenacity underneath that Steven lacked and Sam lacks. He is limited offensively but we can just put in Jason Smith when he gets exploited. I think this one of the better trades we have made.
P:S- We also got signed Calvin Booth, adding more depth to our frontcourt. He should see some minutes as Sam's back-up. I hope Sam is able to play around 34 minutes a game because I don't think Booth should be in there for extended minutes.
The biggest question for me in the front court is who's going to be the odd man out. Shav, Amundson, Herbert Hill, now Booth. They can't keep all of those guys. You know Sam and Smith are on the roster, I think at most three of the other guys makes the team.
Brian,
Have we signed Booth yet? I haven't seen any evidence of it on sixers.com. If so, your question is a great one... who's the odd man out. Frankly, it's pretty hard to guess. I'd guess you're correct that Sammy and Jason are a lock... and I'm guessing Shav will get his shot as well. The other three (Amundson, Hill, and Booth) better lace up their sneakers pretty tight. Personally, based on his summer league performance, I'd love to see Amundson on the team. Yeah, summer league performances don't always mean much (see John Salmons), but who knows? He might be a diamond in the rough.
Ohio,
Here's a link to the story about Booth. They list Evans as the favorite to start at PF, but I have think they're going to give Smith every opportunity to win that spot.
I'd love to see Amundson make this team, and get 10-15 minutes per. I think he brings a toughness that they lacked on their starting front line last season, but I think the addition of Evans probably means the Sixers are leaning in Shav's direction. He's more polished offensively, and Evans isn't going to give you points down low. They're going to want an offensive option off the bench. I think it's a mistake. We'll just have to wait and see.
keep Hill, let's see if Shav is healthy and, in case, waive Amundson
I also don't get why Booth has a PLAYER option for next year, weren't we supposed to clear cap space for the summer of 2008 ????
They signed him for the veteran's minimum, but the option is a bit puzzling.
i like amundson...terrific blocker and athletic
Just weeks away from the regular season. So, who's the odd man out. From what I can tell (from Ohio, anyway), Herbert Hill has made a pretty good impression... at least good enough to land a spot. Does that leave it down to Amundson and Byars? If so, who has the edge?