Gail Miller had the same reaction most of us did when Greg Miller and Kevin O'Connor came to her with the news that they were going to trade Deron Williams. From the Salt Lake Tribune,
Gail was informed of the Williams trade prior to its completion. But Greg Miller initially answered, "Um," when asked whether his mother green-lighted the deal.
"She was very concerned that we were doing the right thing. I think she had the same reaction that a lot of fans have: ‘You're trading away our point guard? Explain that to me. I don't get it,' " Miller said. "When I said it's a move for the future and we're getting a lot of value in return and we're controlling the situation, once she heard that, it made a lot of sense to her and she supported the move."
I feel like there should be a "yada, yada, yada" included in that explanation: "It's a move for the future, yada, yada, yada, and she supported the move." That all still doesn't explain why the Jazz, or should I say O'Connor, decided to aggressively shop Williams. It was O'Connor and his staff that worked for "months" in getting a deal set up. He then proposed it to Greg and Randy Rigby. A "gut" feeling from Greg Miller isn't what you base a decision on when you're trading a top-10 player in the league.
Were the rumors that Deron was talking to Knicks representatives true? We know they certainly preferred Deron to Carmelo. There are a lot of unknowns here.
Kurt Kragthorpe gives thanks that his Wesley Matthews story was spiked last season when the Jazz traded for Al Jefferson.
Matthews will look like a bargain for years to come, much like Millsap's deal does now. It was the front-loaded portion of the deal and the signing bonus that killed it for the Jazz.
We can play "What if?" for a long time had the Jazz re-signed OMSW. The biggest "What if?" for me though is what if Brandon Roy had stayed healthy all season? Would the deal have looked good then? Sure, Matthews would have still played well but his minutes and contributions would have been sorely limited.
It not only looks great now because of Matthews' great play but because of what happened to Roy. If the Blazers knew that Roy's condition was going to take a nosedive, then the front-loaded deal to ensure that they landed Matthews was genius.
Roy has had some good games in the playoffs with his recent fourth-quarter performance being the best of the year. However, his knees aren't going to ever get better and those types of performances are going to be fewer and fewer. He used to do that almost every night.
I forgot to post a link to this AK interview that he had with Sports-express.ru right after the season ended (officially). He talks about his plans for free agency should the league head into a lockout. He feels that there will be one but is optimistic a deal gets done quickly and that they start the season on time.
He also talks about the season overall, Timofey "Brain" (apparently that's the English translation for Mozgov), and whether losing Sloan or DWill was the biggest hit.
Now that the draft declaration deadline is over, don't put much stock into where players are falling on draft boards until after May 8th when all 30 teams are expected to be in New Jersey for a pre-draft workout. May 8th is the deadline for underclassmen that haven't signed with an agent yet to withdraw and return to college. Jimmer Fredette did something similar last season when he wasn't assured as a first-round pick. He'll get that this season though he has been slipping on some boards.
Monday poll...