[ghettosermonParticipant]

 

http://blogs.ajc.com/jeff-schultz-blog/2011/05/21/hawks-and-josh-smith-may-have-had-enough-of-each-other/?cxntfid=blogs_jeff_schultz_blog

 

After reading the above article it got me thinking as a Hawks fan. Although J-Smoove is my favorite Hawk it appears as if this offseason is finally time for both sides to part ways.

For the Hawks side they have decided that the franchise will be built around Joe Johnson and Horford, agree with it or not those two will make up over 50% of the teams salary for the next 6 years. Even if the Hawks elect to let Jamal Crawford walk which would be wise given the development of Teague, the team is simply unlikely to extend Josh in a couple of years especially with the anticipated new CBA rules. Because of that now seems to be the best time to move him as with free agent uncertainty teams will be looking to acquire players through trade. The Hawks two biggest needs are Small Forward and Center. If they were able to trade Smith they would be able to move Al Horford to PF. I personally don’t believe that Horford is a guy you can build a championship around but much like Joe Johnson when you are paying him 12 mil a year for the next 6 years he has to be.

As for Josh Smith a change of scenery seems to be a good option for him. Even though he’s a hometown kid who has had some great moments in Atlanta a change is much needed. Because he’s not signed long term he has become the scape goat. Like the article mentions he has been crushed by fans and media for taking 3 pointers when in actuality he shoots a better percentage than Joe Johnson. But because Johnson is stuck with the Hawks for 5 more years the fan base can’t boo him. Josh has developed an extremely good post up game which is hard to stop. Unfortunately because of the Hawks isolation of Johnson and Crawford offense, Smith is relegated to standing on the perimeter. I see Smith’s 2 biggest weaknesses to be effort and decision making. I think those two things are fixable if he can finally have a competent coach who tries to understand him. A good coach adapts to every player, every coach Josh has had, has basically just let him be and shown disappointment when he’s done wrong. I really feel like a new setting and a competent coach can turn him into a consistent allstar caliber player which he’s flashed. Josh is a guy who needs veteran leadership. Joe Johnson has never been a leader and has never tried to help teammates. Put Josh on a team in which he’s held accountable for his decisions and he will improve vastly.

With all of this said I decided to list the best possible destinations and situations for him and have tried to evaluate what trades could be made. I would appreciate some feedback to see if I’m off base with some of these trade ideas. With that I’d list the best possible destinations for both Josh and the team to be:

Washington Wizards:

Why? Washington is a team with some great young, raw talent, but they lack veterans. At some point the Wizards need to turn some of these young assets into productive NBA players. Josh Smith seems like a natural fit. He solves the Wizards #1 problem which is post defense. Andray Blatche simply is a poor defender. Getting a defender like Josh to pair potentially with Mcgee would be a great shot blocking duo which you could live with the at times questionable man defense. Offensively Josh fits in perfectly with John Wall and the up tempo offense. Josh’s post passing is extremely underrated and that’s the thing the Wizards lack the most in the post. When their big men get the ball everyone becomes stagnant. Once Andray Blatche touches the ball you can guarantee no one else will. Javale Mcgee as well, when he decides to go to the hoop he isn’t changing his mind.

What could they offer? In terms of assets it’s tough to predict what the Wizards could offer. They don’t have ready contributors but they have a ton of assets. You’d like to move Andray Blatche in a trade for Josh but he isn’t really needed on the Hawks. They want to move Horford to PF, getting Blatche doesn’t help that. They could trade Mcgee who has so much potential, although having him and Smith together might not be the best idea. Nick Young S&T seems like a viable chip as he would be a younger and cheaper alternate to Jamal Crawford. The #6 and 18 picks would definitely help the Wizards get Smith.

Orlando Magic:

Why? The Magic need to do whatever they can ASAP to insure that Dwight stays with the team long term. Josh Smith is a good friend since kindergarden and someone he has played with growing up in AAU ball. Don’t get me wrong though, trading for Smith would be a lot more than just a ploy. Smith would be the perfect fit beside Howard. They would immediately form the most feared defensive tandem in the league. People forget that Josh is the youngest player in league history to 500 blocks, and Dwight of course is the best defender in the league. Trading for Josh would change the offensive philosophy to run through the post instead of the current Magic offense which is so dependent on the 3 point shot.

What could they offer? This is the tough part, had the Magic still had Gortat that would be a key piece the Hawks would want. Right now the best the Magic could probably offer is Jameer Nelson+Ryan Anderson or Brandon Bass and a future pick. The question is if the Hawks would take this. PG is no longer a top need, and any Magic future pick would have to be assumed a late pick.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Why? Bringing in a young PG like Kyrie Irving you’d love to get someone who can help him out right away. The Cavs also need some new buzz and an electric player like Smoove would definitely help sell more tickets.

What could they offer? Even though he’s coming off injury and has a pretty sizable contract Anderson Varejao could be a valuable asset for a team like the Hawks who have a win now mentality. His defense and hustle would definitely be an asset. Possibly packaging Anderson and Hickson would get Smith. Hickson would give the Hawks a valuable athlete to replace Smith and Varejao a starting center. If they were able to keep the #4 pick they could pick from Kanter/Jonas/Biyombo to fill the center position, and Irving, Smith, and one of the 3 above mentioned would be the core. You might think though that the #4 pick would need to be involved in a trade to get Smith.

Philadelphia 76ers

Why? This to me seems like the most logical fit. The 76ers seem happy with their trio of the future in Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner, and Thad Young. Lou Williams off the bench. There is no secret though that their front line is weak. Elton Brand while bouncing back this year still is older with injury issues, and the depth beyond that is incredibly poor. Speights has not developed and really there is no other big man on the roster worth mentioning. In fact Thaddeus Young has become their best PF option. The 76ers are definitely interested in Smith. The summer they signed Elton Brand they were actually interested in Josh Smith more. But since Smith was a RFA and the Hawks were expected to match the 76ers went with Brand. The grizzlies signed Smith if you remember but the Hawks matched. I think a starting lineup of Jrue/Turner/Thad Young/Josh Smith/Elton Brand would be very solid.

What could they offer? It’s pretty obvious that an Iguodala for Smith swap would make a ton of sense. Obviously there would be other parts involved but they would be the two big names. I’d imagine maybe Marvin Williams would go to Philly and maybe Speights, Hawes, or a draft pick to the Hawks. Iguodala would solve the Hawks need for a SF. He would also create an allstar trio of their own with Iguodala, Joe Johnson, and Horford. Add in Jeff Teague and a few other guys on the Hawks and they would be a center away from being real challengers. If Joe Johnson could revert back to being a spot up shooter he and Iguodala would be perfect complements. Defensively Iguodala would be a massive upgrade from Marvin, offensively as well.

New Orleans Hornets

Why? The Hornets not only need a PF, but they need a fresh face for the franchise. PF is a huge need with both David West and Carl Landry being free agents.

What could they offer? This is the tricky part, obviously the Hawks would like Chris Paul but do they have the ammo to do it? Josh Smith and Jeff Teague would be an excellent base to a trade for Paul, but without draft picks I can’t foresee the Hawks being able to offer a lucrative enough package. As for the rest of their roster if the Hawks were not to get Paul back in a trade they would definitely be interested in Okafor and Ariza but their contracts appear to be too big for the Hawks to take on.

　

 

[kobyzParticipant]

this is the most reasonable trade that could be think of:

Josh Smith for Channing Frye, Josh Childress and the #13 pick(the trade could be maid officially on july 1st).

Phoenix had interest in Smith in the past. he will make them stronger and more attractive team, will make very nice combo with Gortat inside and Steve Nash would make him a beast in that system.

this is how the Suns will look for next year:

Steve Nash/Aaron Brooks
Vince Carter/Mickael Pietrus/Zabian Dowdell
Grant Hill/Jared Dudley
Josh Smith/Hakim Warrick/Gani Lawal
Marcin Gortat/Robin Lopez/Garret Siler

Atlanta will become more conventional team with big lineup, with Frye serve as a center who spread the floor and let Horford play more within his natural position and work inside, let Jeff Teague more room for his amazing slashing ability. Josh Childress could come and replace Jamal Crawford as a Sixth man and a scorer of th bench. with the #13 pick Hawks could draft another talanted wing or big for the future.

this is how the Hawks wll look for a start before the draft and free agensy:

Jeff Teague/Kirk Hinrich
Joe Johnson/Pape Sy
Marvin Williams/Josh Childress
Al Horford/Josh Powell
Channing Frye/Zaza Pachulia

[omphalosParticipant]

I’d like Smith to drop some weight and go somewhere he can play the SF; I agree about Washington, would be the perfect 3 alongside Wall, Crawford and McGee, that would be a very athletic lineup. The would likely have to trade some first round picks and probably Nick Young too, but a lineup of Wall, Crawford, Smith, Blatche and McGee would be worth it.

I don’t like him ending up with the Cavs though, it would likely put them into the realm of mediocrity where they couldn’t compete to win but wouldn’t be getting particularly high draft picks.

[ghettosermonParticipant]

I don’t know why everyone keeps saying he should be a SF. People who think that are still hanging on to his high school days. Here’s the facts, he’s 6-9" 240+. His strengths are low post offense, rebounding, shot blocking, and post passing. His weaknesses are ball handling, perimeter offense, and perimeter foot speed. Doesn’t sound like a SF to me, and he had these same problems even when he came into the league and was lighter and more athletic. Josh is now a legitamate 4 who has improved his post defense by a big margin. Anyone wanting him to play SF will be dissappointed. It’s like trying to make Amare a SF just because he’s athletic. It doesn’t make sense.

[bksmithParticipant]

What about this trade for the Hawks. The Hawks trade Smith for Jefferson. The salaries work straight across. I think Atlanta would want more form the Jazz and they could throw in Miles and probably some cash but I am sure that Kevin O’Conner would want a future draft pick out of it. It could be first or second it wouldn’t matter.

For the Hawks they get another good scorer in Miles(as a possible replacement for crawford but mich cheaper and not quite as good) and more size down low for Horford to be able to play at the PF because Jefferson has played at the C most of his career.

For the Jazz if Smith could move to the SF position then they could have a starting line up next year of Harris, Hayward, Smith, Milsap and Favors.

The other possibility is to trade Okur and big Fes for Smith.

 

[bksmithParticipant]

What about this trade for the Hawks. The Hawks trade Smith for Jefferson. The salaries work straight across. I think Atlanta would want more form the Jazz and they could throw in Miles and probably some cash but I am sure that Kevin O’Conner would want a future draft pick out of it. It could be first or second it wouldn’t matter.

For the Hawks they get another good scorer in Miles(as a possible replacement for crawford but mich cheaper and not quite as good) and more size down low for Horford to be able to play at the PF because Jefferson has played at the C most of his career.

For the Jazz if Smith could move to the SF position then they could have a starting line up next year of Harris, Hayward, Smith, Milsap and Favors.

The other possibility is to trade Okur and big Fes for Smith.

 

[bksmithParticipant]

What about this trade for the Hawks. The Hawks trade Smith for Jefferson. The salaries work straight across. I think Atlanta would want more form the Jazz and they could throw in Miles and probably some cash but I am sure that Kevin O’Conner would want a future draft pick out of it. It could be first or second it wouldn’t matter.

For the Hawks they get another good scorer in Miles(as a possible replacement for crawford but mich cheaper and not quite as good) and more size down low for Horford to be able to play at the PF because Jefferson has played at the C most of his career.

For the Jazz if Smith could move to the SF position then they could have a starting line up next year of Harris, Hayward, Smith, Milsap and Favors.

The other possibility is to trade Okur and big Fes for Smith.

 

[bksmithParticipant]

Sorry, I only meant to send that once but it took me to the wrong screen so I thought that it didn’t post.

[ghettosermonParticipant]

The Jazz are one of the few places where Smith could play some SF/PF, if they use him similarly to how they use Kirlenko in his prime.

[PlatypusParticipant]

Denver: Harrington, Birdman, (S&T)  Chandler or Smith and a 1st rounder

Lawson – Afflalo – Gallinari – Smith – Mozgov

Felton – free agent – 2nd rounder – Rolle – Kufos

Atlanta: Josh Smith and Magnum Rolle

Hinrich – Johnson – Smith or Chandler – Horford – Zaza

Teague – 1st rounder – Sy / Williams – Williams / Harrington – Birdman

[Author]

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