Atlanta Hawks: Hawks said to pursue Josh Smith for Pau Gasol trade
According to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times, the Hawks have tired to trade forward Josh Smith for Lakers forward Pau Gasol.
Bresnahan tweeted that no deal is imminent. And a big caveat is that his report says the Hawks first expressed interest in Gasol after Los Angeles was eliminated from the playoffs by the Thunder, back when Rick Sund was still Hawks GM.
The Hawks have since hired GM Danny Ferry, who says he’s focused on building long term. Gasol turns 32 next week and is owed more than $38 million over the next two seasons.
Also, Bresnahan and ESPN’s Chad Ford reported the Lakers are open to trading Gasol for a high lottery pick and players, a price the Hawks can’t match.
The Rockets, who have been accumulating draft picks, could meet the Lakers’ price. Houston already tried to trade for Gasol as part of the infamous Chris Paul deal that was eventually nixed by NBA commissioner David Stern.
Update: Ford now says the Rockets aren’t pursuing Gasol.
Smith, who can become an unrestricted free agent next summer, first told the Hawks he wanted to be traded after last season and reiterated that desire prior to this season’s deadline. Smith wants to join a franchise he feels is more committed to winning and play in a market with better fan support.
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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588 comments Add your comment
Slimjr
June 28th, 2012
1:23 pm
LOL at AJ!
Everybody else had been through a marathon with the condensed season and ALL GET REAL had three months off to rehab..
Duh…..Of course he was going to look fresh compared to everybody else..
Nice try though Sir….LMFAO!
J.J.M.
June 28th, 2012
1:23 pm
Chris Broussard just reported it
Ray
June 28th, 2012
1:24 pm
@ DS
Only without the championship or even a ECF caliber coach just saying.
Air Zaza
June 28th, 2012
1:25 pm
@J.J.M is a troll. Pay him no mind.
St. Bernard
June 28th, 2012
1:27 pm
@ Ray
Thanks for clarifying that Gasol isn’t a center. I must have been confused by all the facts.
Ray
June 28th, 2012
1:28 pm
@ St. Bernard
That wasn’t for you more like for those that think he’ll be effective at C especially in the offense we run(whatever it is lol).
@ Air Zaza
Okay thanks if that is the case.
O'Brien
June 28th, 2012
1:28 pm
Ray,
How do we get rid of Marvin (2 years, $15.8 mil) and JJ (4 years, $89 mil)? Keep in mind that Josh would have to be convinced that what we get in return would improve the Hawks.
DS
June 28th, 2012
1:29 pm
Ray, of course…we’d have to hire a real coach..
J.J.M.
June 28th, 2012
1:29 pm
troll deez nutsssss
Ray
June 28th, 2012
1:30 pm
Gasol can play the position, but it doesn’t mean he’ll be effective as people want him to be. Look at Jason Collins he can play C, but has he really been effective besides bothering Dwight Howard.
O'Brien
June 28th, 2012
1:31 pm
If Houston comes calling for Josh Smith, what would be a fair trade package (and please keep in mind that it must be reasonable for Houston as well – given the fact that Josh might only be a 1 year rental).
Two options (imo) are:
1) Kevin Martin and a pick (#12 would be nice, but I doubt Houston gives it up – so what about #16). Like Josh, Martin only has 1 year left (similarly salaries), but he can be our starting SG (for his career, he averages 18 ppg), and we move JJ to SF. We get to strengthen our bench with the #16 pick.
2) Kyle Lowry and 2 of their picks (probably #16 and #18 – I doubt they give up #12). Lowry is signed for 2 more years at $12 mil. We would start either him or Jeff, but our bench would get a huge improvement (imo) with Jeff or Lowry ruining the second unit. And we could package those picks to move up. We would also save $6 mil in salary.
What do you guys think?
Najeh,
JJ will make $20+ mil each year for the next 4 years. The ASG is not going to pay $20+ mil to go away. Therefore, I think Marvin is the only likely candidate.
Ray
June 28th, 2012
1:32 pm
@ O’Brien
Trade Marvin Amnesty Joe unless you can field a trade for Joe then do that.
Astro Joe
June 28th, 2012
1:36 pm
Ray, we can resign Josh and he knows it. There are several levers in place to make that happen. Josh won’t leave because he won’t get a quality offer from the Hawks, the assumption is that Josh WANTS to leave in 370 days. Now what?
hawk haterbecauseof ownership
June 28th, 2012
1:43 pm
Trade everybody but hoford they all suck!
earl
June 28th, 2012
1:45 pm
I am so glad if josh isnt going to play like he should then he should be traded josh has the game exp but not the mechanics in the brain he doesn’t understand of what he cant do and this is the problem
yeah he is still young but its time become a man in basketball joe loses games on purpose
coach is good but we need a great coach someone who wants to win like kc jones type not a lenny wilkens or old mike but someone who takes full command since we wont draft a leader except for horfield who comes from a winning tradition from fla . i am a true hawk fan and i am ready for some rings in this town i dont even care if atlanta dream gets a ring someone please
St. Bernard
June 28th, 2012
1:46 pm
@Ray there’s no comparison between Collins and Gasol. Gasol is an all-star (on the decline). I’ve been a Hawks fan for a long time. Gasol gets them to the next level, even if he has less overall worth than Smith. I like Smith, but I think Gasol would change the team for the better if he’s motivated.
PD
June 28th, 2012
1:48 pm
I would try to convince the Kings to take Joe Johnson for Tyreke Evans and they can throw one bad contract our way like Chuck Hayes.
If this franchise is as broke as the rumors claim they shouldn’t amnesty any players. They have to ditch Joe’s contract somehow to open it up for the rest in many ways.
@O’Brien I do like this scenario too
Kevin Martin and a pick (#12 would be nice, but I doubt Houston gives it up – so what about #16). Like Josh, Martin only has 1 year left (similarly salaries), but he can be our starting SG (for his career, he averages 18 ppg), and we move JJ to SF. We get to strengthen our bench with the #16 pick.
northcyde
June 28th, 2012
1:53 pm
I forgot to add that Gasol’s opponents at center are scoring 14.5 points on 13.9 shots . . on a per 48 minute basis. Despite the extremely high iFG%, that is damn good.
So I guess now the only thing to do is compare that to what the other Hawk big men who play center has produced against them:
Zaza Pachulia Opp Per 48
18.2 points ( on 15.4 shots )
13.3 rebounds
eFG%: 50.8%
iFG%: 50%
PER: 16.7
Synergy:
- Post up defense: 46.4% FG
- Pick n Roll Man: 39.6% FG
*************************
Josh Smith Opp Per 48 @ C
15.2 points ( on 13.8 shots )
12.8 rebounds
46.2% eFG%
51% iFG%
12.4 PER
( Contrary to popular belief around here, Josh Smith’s best alternative position has ALWAYS been Center, not SF. When he gets to play around the rim, he’s a more active scorer AND shot blocker AND rebounder. If he were tougher, he’d be the “Ben Wallace” that Billy Knight always envisioned for the Hawks. )
Synergy:
Post Up – 41.5% FG
Pick/Roll Man – 41.9% FG
************************
Al Horford Opp Per 48 @ C
15.9 points ( on 14.7 shots )
13.2 rebounds
50% eFG%
51% iFG%
PER: 13.6
Synergy:
Post up – 46.7% FG
Pick/Roll Man – 43.8% FG
*********************
In a trade for Gasol, the guy that must be added to this squad, is Ivan Johnson. I don’t know if Ferry values Ivan like the rest of us, but from an active and defensive standpoint, he’s a guy that needs to be added to this squad as a reserve PF. And with 3 guys who can legitimately play center on the team ( Gasol, Horford, Zaza ), Ivan will be able to exclusively play PF.
Ivan’s Opp Per 48 numbers @ PF
16.7 points ( on 15.3 shots )
10.9 rebounds
43.6% eFG%
32% iFG%
PER: 13.1
Synergy
- Post up: 40.4% FG
- Pick/Roll Man: 28.6% FG . . ( the 0.53 points per possession that he gave up ranked THIRD in the entire league )
That dude looks very good with his defensive awareness and the way he rotates from his man to an open man in his area. Unless Ferry is going after a Reggie Evans or someone along those lines, they can’t let Ivan slip away, especially if we lose Josh.
Dawg
June 28th, 2012
1:54 pm
Comparing Gasol to Collins? I am not necessarily in favor of the trade because of money. But we would be getting a player who could help us in an areas of need in exchange for a peson (although very talented) has Al and Alvin who could still pay the position at a very high level.
Don’t anyone remember the 10 minute 1 rebound performances by Collins?
Marcus
June 28th, 2012
1:56 pm
OB,
A couple weeks ago I suggested Marvin for K. Lowery + Patrick Patterson (salaries match) when K. Lowery was not feelin’ McHale as coach. Not sure if HOU would want Marvin or if K. Lowery’s public display of displeasure with his current coach was enough for them to pull the trigger just to move him elsewhere…. but it was a wish …
Astro Joe
June 28th, 2012
2:03 pm
northcyde, Kupchak has been sitting on the trade offer for 3-4 weeks. No need to try and convince hawks fans why Gasol would be a good fit here… someone needs to convince the Lakers GM/owner why Josh would be a good fit there. if the reported timeline is true, the Lakers are the ones who “aren’t feeling it”.
Slimjr
June 28th, 2012
2:04 pm
Oh did I forget to mention that our point center[All Get Real] had 7 to’s in the elimination game[Game 6] against Boston?
Shop him too…
Yea he looked real good……..Whatever…..
Slimjr
June 28th, 2012
2:06 pm
Thanks Kupchak for laughing at Sund! Whew……
Mike
June 28th, 2012
2:06 pm
Well, its looks like Rockets bid for Howard isnt working out too well. So they started on Plan B. Their Plan B is Josh. Want to see if they give Hawks something good.
Jason S
June 28th, 2012
2:08 pm
@O’Brien: I am not sure the Hawks get better* this year by trading Josh for (a) Kevin Martin and the #16 or (b) Lowry and the #16 and #18. But I do like these trades because the Hawks would not get worse* this year, they would not loose potential cap flexibility in the near future, and the Hawks get a chance to acquire an OK prospect or two in the draft.
What about K. Martin as a 6th man? I know that would require starting Marvin or a less talented guard (e.g., Kirk if he was to be brought back), but having K. Martin coming off the bench would be potent. (Plus, I am not sold on K. Martin defensively … )
* For me, for the Hawks to be considered “better” they would have to have a legit shot at the ECF. For the Hawks to be considered “worse” they would have to be considered a gauranteed 1-and-done (or not make the playoffs at all). If the Hawks remain a team that might/probably get passed the 1st round, then the Hawks would be no better/no worse than the current Hawks.
Slimjr
June 28th, 2012
2:09 pm
We need picks with this potentially historic draft!
Deepest one in years!
Gasol not coming here…Good..
t minus 5:51 mins till liftoff!
What say you Houston????????????????????????
Ken Strickland
June 28th, 2012
2:10 pm
I’d work on the trade with Houston for KMartin and one of their 1st rd picks, and then offer them MWilliams for LOdom, who they’ve given permission to seek trade opportunities on his own. That would give us the 14th, or 16th, and 23rd pick in the 1st rd, and the 43rd pick in the 2nd rd. With those picks we could draft a starting quality center, a SF and SG.
Our starting lineup would be
SF-JJ, or draft pick,
C-draft pick,
PF-Horford,
SG-Martin, or JJ,
PG-JTeague.
Our bench would be
LOdom-SF/PF,
IJohnson-PF/C,
ZPachulia-C,
KMartin-SG/PG(if he doesn’t start),
draft pick(if he does)-SG,
draft pick-SF(if JJ starts at SF),
WGreen-SG,
JPargo-PG,
and extra Big(Thabeet).
Jhawk
June 28th, 2012
2:10 pm
No don’t trade for Gasol you can get way better for Josh, saying this offload this idiot asap. It will be great to sit in Phillips and when he is thinking about lofting a 3 or a long 2 everyone can yell shoot it Josh you will be helping your team you can hit it man go for it!!!
Slimjr
June 28th, 2012
2:10 pm
Check that t minus 4:50 mins till liftoff!
Mike
June 28th, 2012
2:12 pm
Atleast I want atleast one or two First-round picks for Josh and Marvin if they want him.
Najeh Davenpoop
June 28th, 2012
2:12 pm
” I think this article is right on the mark except for picking White.”
White is a unique player — and unique usually also means polarizing — but I think he’s a solid building block. He does too many things well to not be a good NBA player. I don’t know if he’d fit well with Horford, but I don’t think the Hawks should be drafting with “fit” in mind.
Slimjr
June 28th, 2012
2:13 pm
t minus 4:47
Najeh Davenpoop
June 28th, 2012
2:15 pm
“Gasol gets them to the next level, even if he has less overall worth than Smith”
What is “the next level”?
“I like Smith, but I think Gasol would change the team for the better if he’s motivated.”
Do you trust LD to motivate Gasol?
Ray
June 28th, 2012
2:15 pm
Okay let’s get on thing straight Gasol is 100x the player Collins is I’m just saying Gasol is a PF Horford is also a PF.
Look Gasol can play the C position, but what I’m getting at is will he really be effective at it? The reason I put Collins in is because he also plays the C, but he’s only effective doing one thing annoying Dwight Howard.
Gasol might do more than that, but how much more considering in the east you got Roy Hibbert, Chandler, and Howard.
northcyde
June 28th, 2012
2:15 pm
Ra’mon
June 28th, 2012
12:40 pm
Northcyde, stats do not paint an entire picture. For instance it doesn’t factor in before this season, Gasol played with a hall of fame coach in Phil Jackson Also it doesn’t factor in that Gasol had the best 2 guard in the game and the 2nd best center in the game, so Gasol was the THIRD focal point of the defense.
******************
There is no such thing as a “3rd focal point” on defense. If you can defend, you can defend . . point blank, period.
The problem is that even when people bring empirical evidence stating what everyone WANTS to believe about Pau, they still believe what they want to believe. It doesn’t matter if you post stats, or a youtube clip of a game in which Pau goes up against Boston, or whatever. It simply doesn’t matter to those of you who are flat out against this move.
It’s always a “yeah, but . . ” when it comes to this discussion. Pau was always an efficient rebounding and high scoring PF before he came to the Lakers, and he’s continued to be that when he came to that team. His game or production didn’t change when he went to LA, only his exposure. He was always that good in Memphis, they just didn’t have enough to win in the playoffs.
The same would happen to Josh Smith if he’s in Los Angeles. His offensive game would be scrutinized even more, but his defense would be hyped beyond belief, and he won’t miss not being on another All-Defensive team as long as he plays just like he’s playing now. The extra exposure will do wonders about how he’s perceived overall . . . which is probably why he wouldn’t mind a trade to a high profile team.
The bottom line when it comes to this trade is BALANCE. We’d finally have a frontline that people would have to account for on the inside. There would be no more leaving our PF wide open to go double Joe Johnson out on the perimeter, because both Gasol and Horford would make you pay dearly for leaving them open for an 18 foot jumper.
And while the help defense Josh provides would be gone, the overall man defense may be better, seeing that both Gasol and Horford are good on the ball defenders.
Anybody who thinks this move would weaken the Hawks, simply isn’t watching the Hawks. We have a hell of a time scoring in the halfcourt offense, especially when teams zero on taking JJ out with double teams. By giving the Hawks a big time low post scoring weapon on the frontline, it’ll not only eliminate some of the doubles that JJ receives, but also will make Teague a more dangerous player.
If the Hawks make this move, that’s what they’ll be looking at. How it affects the team as a whole.
Rod from College Park
June 28th, 2012
2:17 pm
“In a compressed season with injuries to 2 of 3 captains, the bench was essential to get us home court advantage. In my way of thinking, that is an effective bench. I can’t dismiss 66 games worth of contribution because of a poor 5 games in the playoffs (they did step up a little in Gmae 3 as I recall).”
Typical Atlanta fan loser thinking. The bench was effective this year because they helped us get home court in the playoffs. In case you did not know it home court did not matter in the playoffs. The bench did nothing in the playoffs (when it matters). The playoffs are what matters, not the regular season.
Michael Cunningham
June 28th, 2012
2:17 pm
new blog posted. shutting down this thread.
Najeh Davenpoop
June 28th, 2012
2:17 pm
“If he were tougher, he’d be the “Ben Wallace” that Billy Knight always envisioned for the Hawks.”
Haha. Josh’s “toughness” isn’t what keeps him from playing C. Josh’s 225 pound frame and 6′9″ height are what keep him from playing C. Ben Wallace had an amazingly strong lower body that allowed him to hold his post position and compensate for his lack of ideal C size. Josh doesn’t have that, and if he tried to develop it he would likely lose a lot of the explosiveness that makes him good in the first place.
Once again, players can’t simply wave a magic wand and “step up” to become what they want to be. There are real limitations on what players are capable of doing.