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May 23, 2008
Jermaine O'Neal: Buyer beware
I suspect we'll hear a lot this off-season about Indiana Pacer Jermaine O'Neal being available in trade.
At first glance, he'd be a great addition to the Charlotte Bobcats -- a scoring big man who can play power forward or center. Get past that first glance, and the package isn't quite as attractive.
O'Neal is on the back end of his career and very expensive. He has two years remaining on his contract at a total compensation exceeding $44 million.
O'Neal turns 30 in October, and while that's not old, the issue is mileage, not age. Turning pro out of high school in South Carolina, he's already played 12 NBA seasons and wear-and-tear is apparent. He's no longer an explosive post-up player; he's more a tall jump-shooter.
A player-personnel guy I know predicted a year ago that O'Neal's decline would be steep for a five-time All-Star.
O'Neal isn't washed up; he's long and skilled and he'll continue on occasion to play like an All-Star. But inheriting that contract hardly seems like a bargain for anything less than a guy you know would raise your team a full level.
Posted by Observer Sports on May 23, 2008 at 02:16 PM | Permalink
Comments
skip this guy. talk to seattle about nick collison and their late 1st(25 or so) for sean may and matt carrol. turn the late first into florida C/PF mareesse speight. collison and okefor would be decent front court in east and speight is decent as bench player. plus morrison is free-ed up as number one bench scorer by moving carrol.
Posted by: brendan | May 23, 2008 2:56:46 PM
A lot of people keep talking about trading Sean May, other than the fact that he only has 1 year left on his contract, why would someone want to trade for him?
Last year, he still had some value as New Jersey offered their first round draft pick, I think it was 17th, for May. I don't think May has any trade value now coming off a difficult knee operation.
Posted by: Mason | May 23, 2008 3:09:00 PM
The team needs a post player that can play defense, rebound, & score. An athletic big man is needed in the mold of a D. Howard or C. Bosh but not excessively big. Charlotte needs a player that can contribute now.
Old veterans with mileage is not the answer because we need to save cap space. If Charlotte can finish well next season then maybe FA's wouldn't mind comming here. As for the expendable list, I would trade Morrision before Carrol b/c of his D.
Posted by: CEREBRUM | May 23, 2008 3:48:13 PM
Bleh, just draft Randolph, Speights, or Arthur.
Posted by: BroD | May 23, 2008 4:57:36 PM
Brendan, that makes total sense. Why wouldn't they trade us a first-rounder and a quality center for a fat guy who's never played and a sixth man for a 30-win team?
Posted by: Michael Procton | May 23, 2008 5:46:14 PM
Come on, it is not Sean May's fault, the NBA doctors and med staff are really sensitive to injuries, they baby these player. I saw a player sit out for a month because of a broken pinky finger on his non-shooting hand. Greg Oden is going thru this right now and look how hard the criticism is coming on him. When May played he was a 15pt 8reb monster so come on and get off his back. So is Reddick a bust, or is he just not in the right situation. It aint your call procton, its none of ours. Owners do what they want with their property, cause after they sign that contract the words at the bottom "the fine print" will say, we own you!
Holla!
P.S. Oneal is Okafor with a jump shot, dont get the same guy. Get a guy that compliments him. And carroll has not defensive game what so ever. Oppossing players smile when he gets put on them cause they know they will go off for 30 in that game. LOL! This game is becoming a SG game. The better defensive SG you have the better. Period! Just ask Manu!
Posted by: T-Dub | May 23, 2008 7:28:21 PM
There is no such thing as a 30-game-a-year monster. And yes, to this point, Redick's career has certainly dissappointed, but at least he's been healthy enough to suit up most of the time. Further, the injuries he HAS had aren't a result of overeating.
Posted by: Michael Procton | May 23, 2008 9:42:36 PM
Neither is May's, its a knee problem he is been havin since college. And its not just Reddick, 40 of the 60 player drafted will never see playing time. Thats like vegas, you just role the dice. But May has proved in game situations in the NBA that he can produce. Now what let him stay out there and hurt his injury more. No they have trained staff that says the best thing for him is to stay of it.
He is a good player that just hasnt got his chance to show his full potential. Like 40% of players drafted and then let go. But they keep May, so do they know something you dont. YES, and that is he is a good player in this league. Or nobody else wants him. LOL! But I doubt that.
Holla!
Posted by: T-Dub | May 23, 2008 11:05:59 PM
Larry Brown will make the right decision in drafting or trading. Both Jordan and B.J. are deperate to get this team to the playoffs quickly or its huge loss of money to continue as they are. Luck is not om our side with lottery picks so wisdom was brought in for that. Brown will probably have more control in Charlotte then any previous job he has had. B.J. and Jordan cant pay the fine if they move out of Charlotte. They need Charlotte fans and they need them quick so Brown will make a playoff splash in 2 years becuase Jordan and B.J. need it to be so.
Posted by: tarpanthercats | May 24, 2008 12:59:59 AM
Hah...the only way Sean May will ever be healthy is by losing about 50 pounds. And the only reason they "keep May" is that they had to. With the guaranteed contracts in the NBA, their decision to extend his a year earlier than they needed to (when it was already apparent he was too fat for his joints to maintain his own body weight) has screwed their roster flexibility and cap space.
Posted by: Michael Procton | May 24, 2008 11:55:04 AM
why are all of you so big on trading matt Carroll... He is a great player and anyone with any basketball iq can see how much he helps the bobcats. If anyone needs to be traded its sean may. He has played 40 games in 3 years. But all I can say is I'm glad some of you are not gms because you would be giving away great players at a low price tag. There are a few tweeks that need to be made and one has already taken place by the middle school girls coach Sam vincent leaving. Thanks and go bobcats
Posted by: Tyler | May 24, 2008 12:24:34 PM
The only way May gets traded is to package him, Morrison, and someone like Davidson. Even then the return would be pretty small, I believe. And there is no way they trade Matt Carroll. They invested too much effort in resigning him last offseason, and quite frankly nobody wants to take on that salary cap figure for a role player, we overpaid slightly, but we had room to do so. Matt Carroll, when given the oppurtunity by Sam "How-do-I-tie-my-shoes" Vincent, came on strong. That buffoon simply screwed up rotations and chemistry on the floor too often. I personally would like us to try and cash in on G-Force, his injuries are starting to catch up with him because of his aggressive style of play, and it would free a good amount of cap space. Late in the season the Bobcats played better with him off the court, and I would much rather see us get something decent now instead of nothing later. I'd hate to see him go personally because of the excitement he brought from day 1 of this franchise, but as a business move, it should be looked at.
Posted by: go'cats | May 24, 2008 1:27:49 PM
You got it, gocats...that's why we went 0-7 without Wallace in February. We definitely need to get rid of him.
Posted by: Michael Procton | May 24, 2008 2:13:56 PM
I said late in the year, you douchebag. You jump at the opportunity to call out somebody, so much so that you overlook the context of what they're saying. You have a problem with May and Morrison being injury prone, yet you're alright someone who now has a serious concussion problem? I don't doubt he can still play at a high level, but it's a business. He is making nearly 10 million a year, and at this point, he is only going to continue to miss more games per year, not less. Players can't turn down the dial on their aggressiveness, just ask Dan Morgan. G-Force is going to continue to throw his body around and take high-risk plays, and he is going to continue to get injured. And you're kidding yourself if you think players can miss 5-10 games at a time and just hop back in the rotation like they were never gone. And I believe Bonnell even commented on the situation with Wallace towards the end of the season. If he can stay healthy I'm all for it, but that's alot of money going to someone who is starting to develop quite a medical history.
Posted by: go'cats | May 24, 2008 2:29:36 PM
The only thing that concerns me about Carroll is that he only seems to shoot well when starting or logging heavy minutes. The only problem with that is he can't defend his own shadow. But off the bench he doesn't shoot nearly as well. A lot of this could have been Vincent's fault though.
Posted by: BroD | May 24, 2008 2:54:52 PM
I've never ONCE said I had a problem with Morrison, who suffered a legitimate knee injury while actually PLAYING THE GAME, something May hasn't done much of in about two years at this point. Regardless of the fact that he missed the whole season, he's still played about twice as often as May. Further, May's injuries are a result of his laziness when it comes to his personal fitness and conditioning. That's shameful when he's a professional athlete who has earned nearly $6 million to do a lot of sitting on the bench.
I'm also impressed by your medical expertise regarding Wallace's "serious concussion problem," not to mention your financial expertise in deciding that $8.3 million (after $7.5 million last year) is somehow "nearly $10 million," a number he won't reach in salary until 2011. Even RobertCat Johnson thinks $2 mil is a big gap between two numbers. Wallace has averaged 66 games a season since coming to Charlotte. I'll take Wallace--a 20-point scorer and excellent help defender--for 66 games any day.
Posted by: Michael Procton | May 24, 2008 4:04:18 PM
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3265951
Read on. I don't just pull ideas out of the sky. 4 concussions in 4 years is pretty serious, and I'm guessing most people on this blog would agree.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/teams/roster?team=cha
Also, ESPN lists his 08 cap figure at 9.5 million. That's where I got the "nearly ten million" remark.
The fact of the matter is that studies have show concussions happening frequently within a set period, and my humble opinion says 4 in 4 years is frequent, can lead to more concussions, often with less impact needed to do so...i.e. Dan Morgan. I love "Crash" but you are kidding yourself if you think he will stay healthy for a majority of the season. If he could turn down the dial on his intensity, which most likely isn't possible, his stats would suffer. Bickerstaff once remarked, and I quote: "Gerald can only play one way and be effective. Energy -- that's his game." As long as he is on the court he is going to throw his body around and continue to be injury prone.
Posted by: go'cats | May 24, 2008 10:19:32 PM
ESPN's apparently wrong, then. Hoopshype (http://hoopshype.com/salaries/charlotte.htm) lists not only his salary for this year, but for the life of the contract...as I said, he doesn't get $10 mil for another FOUR freaking seasons. Further, if you're going to try and tell me than ANY player wouldn't have had significant repercussions from taking that elbow that Mikki Moore delivered, you're crazy. Again...I'll take 66 games from Wallace at $9.9 mil a year (his remaining yearly average if he exercises his player option in the last year of the deal) over Rashard Lewis at $18.9 mil in a heartbeat.
Posted by: Michael Procton | May 25, 2008 12:28:45 AM
Hey Bonnell.....J O'neal is a 12 NBA Vet but he didn't play at all his first 3 years. He actually is a young 30 for a NBA player....no college wear and tear and he didn't play a minute his first 3 years. He has the same mileage as a 28 yr old. You are an idiot.
Posted by: Bonnass | May 25, 2008 1:04:46 AM
Now there's an argument against going to the NBA early. You only get so many years out of a body in the NBA. It's all a question about when you want to begin to use up that time. O'Neal is an example of that. Jumps to the league right out of school and at 30, he's on the downside.
Posted by: Dave | May 25, 2008 9:19:52 AM
I thiink that Jermaine O'Neal will end up in Cleveland next season, Cleveland is desperate
Posted by: Elliott | May 25, 2008 9:21:00 AM
Procton, why is ESPN apparently wrong? Because you checked a different website? I'm sure HOOPSHYPE is accurate, but I don't trust any of these websites 100% down to the dollar. So, forgive me, Oh Holy One, I used information of the World Wide Leader in Sports' webpage. I back up my arguments with fact, just as you do, which I commend you for, but don't try to belittle me and act like yours is more valuable than mine. And not once did I ever mention that the Mikki Moore thing. Yes, that's where he received his most recent, and probably strongest, concussion, but he was throwing his body around and getting banged up long before that. That Bickerstaff quote says it all. Of course any player hit like he was by Mikki Moore would have serious repercussions, and not once did I ever mention the incident, or even state otherwise, you brought that up as a bone to pick. I would take Rashard Lewis myself, I think his game is more refined. Defensively, not in the same ballpark as Crash, but his offensive game is a step above. He has a sweet stroke, and can hit from almost any spot on the floor. Not to mention the fact that his style of play is a little more controlled.
Posted by: go'cats | May 25, 2008 9:50:15 AM
imagine how bad lebron james is going to be in 7 years.
Posted by: ddsdfa | May 25, 2008 1:23:42 PM
You REALLY think Lewis is worth more than TWICE as much per year? That's ridiculous.
Posted by: Michael Procton | May 25, 2008 1:29:19 PM
I've changed my mind. If he's still there, I want OJ Mayo. Check out the Chad Ford article there...
He can be the 2g superstar, plus back up pg mins. He's being referred to as a shorter LeBron...
Might also like to trade back in and pick up the center from Florida. Can hit a consistent midrange jumper and has some quicks. Could be our offensive PF.
How about this: felton, Mayo, Jrich, Spleights, okafur. That's a consistent playoff team...
Trade carrol and crash to make this happen...
Posted by: Bonnell = Procton | May 25, 2008 2:12:09 PM
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