How to get rid of Zach Randolph
Written by Olmedo.Olowokandi , Wednesday June 17 2009
For reasons known to very very few, the Clippers acquired Zach Randolph from the New York Knicks in November 2008. The trade made little sense at the time, as they gave up Tim Thomas' contract (which would expire before the free agent bonanza of 2010), and now looks increasingly worse: When the Clippers landed the No. 1 pick, and the right to select Blake Griffin, it seems as if the team will have a logjam in the frontcourt with Griffin, Randolph, Chris Kaman and Marcus Camby.
The Clippers now face the same dilemma that the Trail Blazers faced before the 2007 draft. Like the Clippers, Portland had the top pick. The Blazers selected Greg Oden, and on the same day jettisoned Randolph in a package deal to the Knicks for Channing Frye, a second-round pick and Steve Francis, whose contract was immediately bought out.
The Trail Blazers gave up Randolph, the superior talent in the exchange, for very little in return. Why? The reason had less to do with basketball talent and more with constructing a basketball team. By cutting one of the final ties to the team's "Jail Blazer" days, Portland remade its image as a clean(er) team built around Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge and Oden.
The Clippers would be wise to follow Portland's example. With this draft, the Clippers have a chance to construct a new young nucleus around Griffin and Eric Gordon, last year's top pick. Everyone else, even top-dollar Baron Davis, should be expendable. The Clippers can show they are turning over a new leaf and take a step toward erasing last season's colossal disappointment by getting rid of Randolph, both to create playing time for Griffin and to get rid of Randolph's bad influence and lackadaiscal defense.
Here are six trades that can work, courtesy of ESPN.com's Trade Machine. Keep in mind that if the Clippers are truly intent on shippign Randolph, they have to be prepared to get less than his full basketball value in return. In that vein, it is important for the Clippers to remember that getting rid of Randolph would be one of those "addition by subtraction" deals, whereby the team improves its chemistry by getting less than what it could for a 20-10 player.
Trade No. 1: Zach Randolph to Milwaukee for Richard Jefferson
This trade makes sense for both teams. The Bucks get a low-post presence in Randolph to help offset the loss of Charlie Villanueva to free agency. The Clippers get Jefferson, a solid if unspectacular wing player, whom the Bucks are rumored to be shipping.
Trade No. 2: Zach Randolph and Mardy Collins to Cleveland for Ben Wallace and Terrance Kinsey
This trade works provided that Wallace retires, which he reportedly has been considering since the Cavaliers' loss to the Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals. His expiring deal would save the Clippers a lot of money, which they could use to pursue a free agent, or help offset the money Donald Sterling would have to spend to cover Mike Dunleavy's contract if he fires him (fingers crossed!). The trade also assumes that the Cavs can't land Shaquille O'Neal in a trade with the Suns. Cleveland would get a legitimate low post presence, and hopefully, LeBron James could keep him in line.
Trade No. 3: Zach Randolph and Al Thornton to Atlanta for Josh Smith, Mo Evans and Speedy Claxton
One team's junk is another team's... junk? I don't really know much about the Hawks, but apparently they're trying to unload Josh Smith and his five-year deal. And with the Clippers trying to unload Randolph's contract and all the baggage that comes with it, it looks to be unloading all around!
This trade is also the first appearance of Al Thornton in these hypothetical deals. Some Clipper fans like Thornton and his high-flying ways. Keep in mind, though, that he'll be 26 in December, which is old for a third-year player. He's also due a larger contract after this year. Still, I like Thornton, but not so much as to label him an untouchable. And sometimes you have to give up talent to get talent, especially a game-changer (if not a basket-case) like Smith.
Trade No. 4: A three-way trade in which:
- Los Angeles acquires Rip Hamilton from Detroit and Ryan Gomes and Corey Brewer from Minnesota. Los Angeles also acquires the No. 15 pick from Detroit.
- Detroit acquires Zach Randolph from the Clippers and Randy Foye and Mike Miller from Minnesota
- Minnesota acquires Tayshaun Prince and Arron Aflalo from Detroit and Al Thornton from the Clippers. Minnesota also re-acquires the first-round pick it sent to Los Angeles in the Marko Jaric trade.
The essence of this trade is Detroit's rebuilding. The Pistons gave up on Chauncey Billups, which turned out to be a huge mistake. With Ben Wallace already gone and Rasheed Wallace a free agent, this move would cut the last ties with the nucleus of the Pistons' 2004 championship team. The Pistons move Hamilton, who supposedly wants out and whom the Pistons have been quietly shopping (despite signing Hamilton to a three-year extension after acquiring Allen Iverson), and get quality talent to replace him and Prince.
Minnesota gets two back two swingmen, Thornton and Prince, who are more accomplished than the two they gave up, while picking up the first-round pick they unwisely moved a few years back.
Trade No. 5: A four-way trade in which:
- Los Angeles acquires Caron Butler and Dominic McGuire from Washington
- Washington acquires Manu Ginobili from the Spurs, Al Thornton from the Clippers and New Jersey's No. 11 pick
- New Jersey acquires Zach Randolph from the Clippers and Bruce Bowen from the Spurs, as well as the Spurs' second-round pick (No. 53)
- San Antonio acquires Vince Carter and Chris Douglas-Roberts from New Jersey, Mardy Collins from the Clippers, and the No. 5 pick from Washington
Crazy trade all around. And you wondered why there aren't more four-team doozies going down all the time. A few thoughts on the matter:
This trade picks up on some of the Spurs-Wiz trade talks in which San Antonio is looking for a top pick and Washington for a winner like Ginobili. Here, the Spurs get the No. 5 and Carter, a player they looked at before the trade deadline. One reason the deal fell through is that the Spurs would not have been able to integrate a star like Carter into the team's system at the break; this gives them Carter before the season even starts.
New Jersey gets the "moose" that its president, Rod Thorn, wants to anchor his frontline next to Brook Lopez. They also get a savvy, if aging, small forward in Bowen and a second-round pick to replace the loss of Douglas-Roberts, a previous second-round pick.
Trade No. 6: A four-way trade in which:
- Los Angeles acquires Caron Butler from Washignton and Daniel Gibson from Cleveland
- Cleveland acquiers Zach Randolph from the Clippers and Darius Songaila from Washington and the No. 14 pick from Phoenix
- Washington acquires Amare Stoudemire, Jason Richardson
- Phoenix acquires Antawn Jamison from Washington, Al Thornton from the Clippers and Ben Wallace from Cleveland
Some of the same culprits here. Wallace's expiring deal now helps out the cash-strapped Suns, and Cleveland once again replaces him with Randolph. Washington gets a megastar and a talented player to plug next to Gilbert Arenas and the No. 5 pick, and the Suns get two quality forwards along with the financial relief.
The common denominator in a lot of these trades is that the Clippers don't get the better out of the deals, talent-wise. Hamilton, Smith, Butler, Jefferson-- all good players, but not on par with what Randolph brings to the box score. Hopefully, though, the Clippers can figure out that getting rid of Randolph may ultimately change the fortunes for the team, just as it did for the Knicks and Blazers, the two teams that saw marked improvement since unloading Randolph.
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