I think this and the Kidd news indicate more clearly than ever that a Rahim for Carter deal will happen. That may seem to be at odds with what the article says, but I think that what is happening behind the scenes is different from the public face being put on it.
First Portland and Toronto had what, Portland at least thought, was an agreement in principle. Then Toronto suddenly changed their minds and "backed out", or more likely, changed the deals makeup. Toronto was obviously pushing for more. Portland then walked away. Sounds like a lot of posturing, but clearly both teams are very close to doing a deal. For Toronto they get a high quality player for Vince, and a player who they can let go and save $14,000,000 in salary, or they can resign and he will be a big time contributor. Look at what happened with Rasheed and his deal with Detroit. He went from making $17,000,000, to resigning with Detorit for $9 to $10 million. I could easily see Shareef resigning for a similar number, so Toronto saves $4 to $5 million, and still have Shareef. How many teams are going to pay him more? Shareef gives Toronto what they need, and inside player, who can score and rebound. Of all the players that are really available in trade right now for Vince, Shareef is the best player and the best fit. Portland also gets what they want, which is shooter and a scorer at the SG position.
All the talk about Kidd I think is a smokescreen on Portlands part. If they have to trade Shareef, they don't need Kidd they need a scorer. There have been a number of articles about Nash and his meetings and discussions with NJ regarding the Nets. These articles have been to obvious and convienent, and I think it is a deliberate attempt by the Blazers to up the Value of Shareef. I agree with everybody here taht the Minn/NJ/Portalnd deal makes little to no sense for Minnesota and NJ, and a lot of sense for Portland. As a result it won't happen. I am more convinced that ever that a Portland and Toronto deal is what will happen, and it won't include Jalen Rose.
Blazers pull out of Carter talks Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Report: Blazers pull out of Carter talks
Bill Harris of Slam!Sports says the Blazers shut down talks with the Raptors because Toronto reportedly backed out of a deal Portland thought was done:
Nothing is totally dead until some of those players get moved in other trades, but to be blunt, the Blazers are ticked at the Raptors right now for backing out on what Portland thought was a done deal involving Carter and Abdur-Rahim, but not Rose.
According to thestar.com, if Toronto does trade Vince Carter and/or Jalen Rose, it must get a rebounder in return:
The Raptors are quickly becoming the rebounding laughingstocks of the NBA — under-sized, understrength and unable to hold their own on the boards. If Babcock doesn't parlay his glut of perimeter players into some big men, it'll be nothing more than shuffling an already questionable deck.
Out in New Jersey, GM Rod Thorn rebuffed the Stoudamire/1st rd. pick for Jason Kidd rumor:
"That was something that was never talked about," he said. "One time Damon's name might have come up this summer, and we quickly said there was no interest from our standpoint.
"But this stuff will keep coming up. I don't know if there's anything you can do about it. But I'm not worried about it being a distraction, because since training camp, Jason has been very professional about his public pronouncements."
But Thorn sounds like the ultimate salesman in this nypost.com story:
"He was moving around the court as if nothing ever happened to him. He played last year the last two months of the season with his leg bothering him and he didn't move like that," Thorn observed. "He was moving side to side. He had a great burst of speed [and] it appeared as if his knee were healthy."
Nynewsday.com says Portland is squarely focused on Kidd, but they've got some stiff competition:
But the Blazers have competition for Kidd from Denver, which could send point guard Andre Miller to the Nets in a package that also might include young power forward Nene Hilario. If the Nuggets land Kidd, then, the Blazers can renew their efforts to get Carter with a deal that provides immediate salary-cap relief for the Raptors.
The same story also says Toronto may have unreported offers on the table:
"I think Toronto has more offers than what people have been putting in the paper. They're going to wait and get the best deal."
