Should the Warriors Trade for Ford?
The Toronto Raptors are supposedly shopping T.J. Ford given Jose Calderon's emergence as the starting point guard in 2008. Ford is still just 25 years-old, and his 12.1 ppg and 6.1 apg suggest that he's got plenty to offer.
Down in the States, the Golden State Warriors have a point guard conundrum of their own. Baron Davis is looking for a new contract, but Golden State seems a bit reluctant to give the 29 year-old a premium contract. Should the Warriors let Davis walk, they're going to have a hole to fill at the point guard position. I know some people suggest that Monta Ellis could run the point, but I think this would be a mistake. Ellis is a scorer - he's probably capable of running the point and doing an adequate job, but he's more valuable playing off the ball and scoring. The Warriors would be better off with someone who can distribute at the point to get guys like Al Harrington, Stephen Jackson, and especially Ellis their touches.
So what should the Warriors do? Trade for T.J. Ford. (Wow, I bet you didn't see that one coming). But can they pull it off? I don't pretend to be some kind of NBA trade guru, but it seems to me they could. If Baron Davis walks, the Warriors are left with a ton of cap relief. This should allow them to trade Brandan Wright and his $2+ million contract to the Raptors for T.J. Ford and his $8+ million. The Warriors still cut salary in 2009, and the Raptors basically convert a bench player into an extra $6 million of spending money.
But does it work talent-wise? I think it might. Brandan Wright is a young power forward, and his time with the Warriors has been short so it may seem harsh to ship him off - but it's not like he showed a whole lot his rookie year, and some mock drafts show the Warriors taking Kevin Love with their first round pick (a great selection for the Warriors, in my opinion - but that's for another blog). This would seem to give the Warriors a bit of a logjam at the 4 position with guys like Harrington, Love, and Wright. Why not redeem one of them for a needed, young point guard? Especially one who should be more than capable of driving their up-tempo offense.
As for the Raptors, it's not so much about bringing in talent as it is dumping Ford's contract. But in this case, the Raptors make off pretty well with Wright. They get a young, talented and athletic power forward to back-up Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani - giving them a nice young nucleus of Calderon, Bosh, Bargnani, Jamario Moon, and Wright.
Couldn't this work?
