Orlando Magic Blog

Group Blog talking about the NBA 2009 Eastern Conference Champions. Due to the amazing success of the 2009 playoff run comments are now frequently deleted to kill offensive comments, incoherence, or asininity. Comments can no longer be anonymous and require either a Blogger or OpenID account.

Friday, February 17, 2006

Francis for Odom?

Orlando Sentinel reports that LA Lakers is "aggressively" pursuing a trade of Lamar Odom for Steve Francis. This may not produce salary cap relief but creates an intriguing scenario. Since Odom's salary does not match Francis's, Lakers have to throw in another player, most attractive of all is Chris Mihm, whose contract at just over 4 million expires after next year. Read the full report at the following link:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/basketball/magic/orl-bk-spt-francis021706,0,7953079.story?coll=orl-magic

The good news is that there are a few teams who are interested to take Francis. They probably know more than a few dumb sports writers.

posted by Matt @ 7:09 PM  

26 Comments:

  • At 7:26 PM, Blogger Big Figure said…

    I dont like francis for odom,we have enough forwards,we need a shooting guard! And how about throwing alot of money at hubie brown,i know we dont have an influence like jerry west,but money talks!

     

  • At 7:37 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    We don't have a back-up PF. Remember the first one off the bench is Garrity. Odom makes $11,465,500, 12,489,000, 13,524,000 and 14,559,000 in this year and 3 yers ahead. What we need to remember is the main drag on salary cap is Grant Hill's salary that will come off after the next year.

     

  • At 7:44 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    Big Figure, hold on to that thought about Hubie Brown. This ownership is content on Brian Hill for the time being.

     

  • At 8:51 PM, Blogger Mike from Illinois said…

    Geez, the Francis trade rumors are really heating up! I'll reserve my comments until a trade (if there is one) is actually made. I agree there won't be any announcement until Monday because of All-Star Weekend.

     

  • At 12:41 AM, Blogger Mike from Illinois said…

    Maybe we'll have to put all the Francis trade rumors on hold. I just saw an interview on the 11 PM Eastern Time edition of ESPN's Sportscenter with NBA expert Steven A. Smith. Steven A. said that he talked with Francis on Thursday night, and that Francis said he would not report to Denver if he were traded there, that he wants to stay in Orlando.

    Meanwhile, Stephen A. also said he talked with Otis Smith and BHill, and that both said they want Francis to remain with the Magic, and that there are no plans to trade him at this time.

    The drama continues... Days of our Magic!

     

  • At 3:09 AM, Blogger Ken said…

    Good point matt, about us not having a backup PF, It would be great to see Garrity moved down, down, waaay down the bench instead of being BSHill's 6th man.

    Odom and Mihm would be an interesting trade. I wouldn't think it be much fun playing in Kobe's shadow all the time. But we won't hear anything this weekend because no one want to distract from the NBA/HipHop festival going on this weekend. I watched about 10 minutes of that celebrity game or whatever the hell it was and had to change the channel. It's worse than those MTV/celebrity softball games they use to have, or the VH1 celebrity golfing with Alice Cooper. BS!

     

  • At 4:01 AM, Blogger OVERWADED said…

    A general manager and organization is always going to say there is no plans to trade a guy, or that we want this guy here, until the deal is done. They've admitted as much as they can at this point.

    As far as Odom goes, he's a great player. He was one of the reasons Miami had a decent season before Shaq arrived. He's listed as a guard/forward. Yeah, he's 6-9/6-10, but he's basically a small forward. I would have no problem seeing him come in here. He's unselfish, he's smart with the ball, has a nice basketball iq, and can basically do it all. Would a line up of Nelson/Stevenson/Odom/Howard/and Darko not be intriguing? It could cause a hell of alot of problems and be a really smart basketball team.

     

  • At 8:04 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    This deal won't cut it. it's true we don't have a real backup PF, but hell, Odom is just to expensive to serve as a backup for DW. We need a scoring shooting guard. If Odom can be transformed to serve as a SG, I'm up for it, because I do believe he's a great player.
    Odom at the SF is the best option maybe, if he comes, but for some wacky reason I still believe Grant Hill is gonna make it back in full force. But that's probably just me dreaming.

     

  • At 11:49 AM, Blogger Big Figure said…

    Not basically,he IS a small forward,that was the reason miami lost in the playoffs when he was there,they tried to play him at the PF and it beat most teams during the reg season,but when you get deep in the playoffs,playing a guy out of position usually shows up in the form of defense and rebounding,and thats what miami lacked,odom is a decent player at best,and not equal value for steve even if we got mihm too,the deal to make is getting nene from denver,nene can play PF or center,and would be like us getting cato back,big strong defender with attitude,thats what we need!

     

  • At 1:26 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    It's nice to see Mathieu back. I agree that our most urgent need is a SG with range. The interesting point about Odom is he is the kind of player that there always will be takers for him, if it doesn't work out here in Orlando. MIA didn't want to give him away but they couldn't get Shaq without parting with him. He also can play at both SF and PF positions although he is more of a SF. He is built like Jamison (actually 1" taller but 5 pound lighter). I don't think that we need a big player to play either PF or C position assuming that we resign Battie and Kasun

     

  • At 2:52 PM, Blogger OVERWADED said…

    So if we need a shooting guard where is Stevenson going? Are you assuming he would be moving to the SF spot? I know he can play SF, but I think he might be better fit for SG.

    As far as G Hill goes, we all need to stop including him in our thoughts as a starter. As of now, for the better of the team we need to think of him as what he's become. He's a pros-pro, great veteran, great example for young guys, and the perfect kind of guy to be playing 25 or so minutes a game off the bench. Based on the past 6 years, we all need to assume his starting career is over and fill that spot the best we can.

    As far as Odom goes, I've always been a fan. I agree with Larry Brown, he rates Odom and Kinlenko as two of the most underrated players in the game.

     

  • At 2:56 PM, Blogger OVERWADED said…

    Oh, and if Mihm came along in the trade we can plan on letting Kasun go. Kasun is pretty much a big goofy white boy anyway. Sure, he's our only true 7 footer, but he plays like a pussy, no offense. At least Greg Kite was aggressive. And when you look at our lack of big men, if he can't win any playing time, he probably is the stiff that everyone says he is. Chris Mihm is far ahead of Kasun in the game and would be a welcomed replacement for him in my books.

     

  • At 3:22 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    If we get a good shooting guard with range, Deshawn could sub at both SG and SF.

    I, respectfully disagree with projections for Grant. Prior to his sports hernia surgery, he proved himself as a stabilizing force in offense and a true floor leader. Between him and Hedo, he is a starter, in my view, although he may not play starters' type of minutes. I envision that even after his contract expires, especially if the team is a championship contender, he may sign for a veteran's minimum. His influence would be greater than what Reggie Miller was for IND.

     

  • At 3:47 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

     

  • At 4:42 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    Kasun is a young big body with limited talents. There are not many big bodies in NBA, thus they are at a premium. I didn't understand the relevance of the "white boy" part.

     

  • At 4:45 PM, Blogger OVERWADED said…

    I'm one of the few fans that want Grant to actually stay around. Most that I've talked to just want him to retire. I on the other hand can see his value even if he isn't playing as much. I just think the Magic have gave him the starting job for to many years now and have got nothing in return. And they pretty much stated that they are "rebuilding", and it's still smart to keep some solid vets around to mentor the young guys, but I don't know about starting in front of them. Of course it all depends, if I have to choose between Hedo and Grant, Grant is my starter because Hedo likes coming off the bench. But if they can land 2 big men(Odom and Mihm), which trades like that don't happen often, one of which could be a solid starter for years to come and the other could be a solid bench player, then I'd want Odom starting over Grant. As much as I love everything about Grant Hill the person and player, his body hasn't been reliable for the past 6 YEARS, and he's only getting older, so for me thinking of him as a starter, not anymore, maybe just a finisher. Regardless, I understand your point, because Grant Hill is amazing on the floor.

     

  • At 4:55 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    I agree that if Odom is here he should start ahead of Grant.

     

  • At 4:57 PM, Blogger OVERWADED said…

    There is plenty actually if you look in the history of the NBA. He does nothing well. The only reason he's in the NBA right now is because he's a 7 footer. Steven Hunter was better than Kasun, and Hunter sucked too. Kasun is not aggressive. He's not athletic. He doesn't have a power game or a shot. He's not even athletic. He's a big goofy white boy that is in the NBA because he's 7 foot, just like a lot of other big goofy white boys of NBA's past. Am I racist, no, but that’s what he is. And if he has value, tell what it is. I just need to know what he is good at? I mean, 7 foot or not, there are many players in the league that are smaller that will still throw him around like a girl. I really see no upside to him besides the fact that he is a 7 footer, and that just doesn't cut it. And I know I'm not the only one that feels this way towards Kasun. I just don't stress about it because I don't have to see him on the court that often anyway.

     

  • At 6:06 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    Introvert316, I think you have set your mind on Kasun, and that's fine. Have it your way but stay away from racial comments.

     

  • At 8:37 PM, Blogger OVERWADED said…

    As screwed up as this world is, and I can't say "goofy white boy". Ha-ha, OK, I’ll be color blind from now on. Seeing that I'm a "white boy" and I'm hanging at my house as I type with someone who is black and Spanish, but you didn't know that. I have no problems with different races just for future reference in case I make another "racial-slur", and if anyone was offended by what I said, then they are the one that might have a problem. Even though I have no idea how "goofy white boy" could offend anyone, I’m sorry if I offended anyone. I guess you guys don’t’ watch NBA on TNT huh? Sir Charles makes worse comments on a regular basis on NATIONAL TV. Anyway I'll make it easy on you, because everyone tends to butt heads with whatever I say, so I'll keep all of my thoughts to myself from now on. Have a nice blog.

     

  • At 8:55 PM, Blogger Big Figure said…

    Intro if your all done,nice knowin' ya bra!

     

  • At 10:52 PM, Blogger Mike from Illinois said…

    Matt, I'm sorry that introvert316's comments about Kasun offended you. However, I really don't think that intro was trying to make it a racial thing... it was just an off-the-cuff-remark not intended to be racially demeaning, in my opinion.

    You know, I've been on this Magic blog a month now, and I'm convinced that the 8 or 9 of us who contribute are among the most devoted and intelligent Magic fans anywhere, and I really look forward to reading what all you guys have to say regardless of whether I agree with what you write or not. All of us have 1 thing in common: we are true fans and devoted followers of the Magic! I don't think that any one of us is racist, and I hope we don't lose intro because of this.

    Now back to Kasun... I don't agree with what intro said about Kasun not being aggressive enough. Kasun is averaging 2.3 rebounds in just 8.1 minutes per game. If you average that out over 48 minutes, that's an average of 13.6 rebounds a game! Not bad at all. I don't think BHill has played Kasun enough for anyone to say that he can't rebound like that on a consistent basis.

     

  • At 11:44 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    Mike, to clear the situation, I am neither offended by the comment nor I want for us to lose Intro. I initiated to invite him to the blog. To be honest, I don't worry about a "goofy white boy" comment as much as I worry about a "goofy black boy" comment somewhere down the road. This is a slippery slope that we do not want to get on. I, personally like to keep this blog away from any appearances of impropriety. I also like for all us to be respectful to each other while agree to disagree. I have mentioned before that I for one am honored when challenged because I feel that my comments were worthy of being challenged. I would like for Intro to re-consider his decision of leaving the blog. In my request of him I did not mean any malice, and I certainly value his contribution.

     

  • At 7:26 AM, Blogger Ken said…

    Nobody asked, but i'll throw my $0.2 in anyway...........

    intro... I'm pretty sure no one here was offended by the off-the-cuff remark, in my opinion, not any different than white men can't jump, rap, or even dance for that matter.. and if they were, well, thats being pretty thin-skinned and they may have some deeper issues to deal....

    Anyway.. we're all adults here, i think, and are here for one reason, we're crazy enough to be fanatical Magic fans, who, like me, has no one else who enjoys conversing in, in-depth conversations about our only local sports franchise, and if anyone noticed, theres not a whole hell of alot of us here, and we need everyones views and opinions on our team....

     

  • At 2:20 PM, Blogger Mike from Illinois said…

    Well said, Matt, Omar, and Pete.

    We're all here because the Sentinel blog was no longer a good way to air our feelings about the Magic, with it being moderated. I glance over at the Sentinel blog once in a while, and the quality of postings has really gone down there. I'm glad that the 8 or 9 of us can have an intelligent banter among each other, and provoke a lot of thought too. Hopefully some more intelligent Magic fans will join our blog in the near future.

     

  • At 5:21 PM, Blogger Josh B. said…

    i dont care who we get for francis, we just need him out of orlando before howard walks

    and as for the coaching situation, its a business and there are a lot of good coaches out there w/o jobs, and a lot of even better college coaches that would love to make the NBA jump....out w/ hill

     

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