A trip around the trading block
Sean Deveney


Start with a star player being paid something near the league's maximum salary. Add a good helping of tension between the player and his coach and teammates, throw in a decline in health and production, and top it off with an unexpected descent in the standings. There, you have all the ingredients for getting a big-time player onto the NBA trading block.



Problem is, these types of players usually are not real stars; they're only paid like stars. Think Brian Grant, think Damon Stoudamire, guys whose annual appearance on the trading block is barely worthy of a yawn. Sometimes, these players actually do get swapped about for other hunks of junk (think Glenn Robinson).


Allen Iverson's huge contract makes trading him difficult, but not impossible.
Associated Press


For true star players — All-Stars, or at least bona fide 20-point scorers — the NBA makes trades difficult. First, league rules stipulate that, in most trades, the total salary sent out must match the total salary coming in — within about 15 percent. Take 76ers guard Allen Iverson. If the Sixers trade him alone this summer, the players they receive will need to make within about 15 percent of Iverson's $14.6 million 2004-05 salary. That's at least $12.4 million. The Sixers would give up Iverson's talent and box-office appeal without getting immediate financial relief. The most they could save is about $2.2 million.


The other problem is getting back equal talent. Teams can work out trades that match salaries with relative ease, but the talent factor makes potential deals sour quickly. Most teams already have franchise players and are not out to deal them.


But a look ahead shows the league in a state of flux. The axiom, "You can't fire the players," might not apply much longer. With 19 coaching changes in the past year, and with a handful more possible in the next few months, there are not many coaches left to fire. Franchises that have underachieved must — and will — consider swapping a franchise player.


Many teams have reached the breaking point with their high-priced stars this season, which means trades are inevitable. Throw in the top-quality free agents — Kobe Bryant, Rasheed Wallace, Steve Nash, Kenyon Martin — who have the potential to be part of sign-and-trade deals, and there will be more big-ticket items on the trading block than at any time during the luxury-tax era.


Chris Webber, Kings. '04-05 salary: $17.5 million (four years, $80 million remaining). Outlook: Webber's ongoing health problems, the poor reception he is getting from Kings fans and the success the team had without him seem to make him expendable. The Kings would like to be rid of that upcoming salary, too.


Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Trail Blazers. '04-05 salary: $14.6 million (one year, $14.6 million remaining). Outlook: With Zach Randolph as the franchise forward, Abdur-Rahim does not get the minutes or touches his talent and salary require. Trading him is the easy solution. But while Abdur-Rahim has been an upstanding citizen, Randolph's immature outbursts could cost the Blazers a playoff spot. Randolph's arrest earlier this season for driving under the influence of intoxicants does not help — some in the Blazers' organization say it should be Randolph, not Abdur-Rahim, who goes up for auction.


Allen Iverson, 76ers. '04-05 salary: $14.6 million (five years, $90 million remaining). Outlook: A handful of teams would make good offers for Iverson. He needs a win-now situation, and the Sixers need to rebuild.


Antoine Walker, Mavericks. '04-05 salary: $14.6 million (one year, $14.6 million remaining). Outlook: Owner Mark Cuban does not see the relationship between annual upheaval and his team's inability to improve. Coach Don Nelson, as well as one or more players, might be out. Michael Finley, Antawn Jamison and/or Nash are possibilities, but the ideal candidate is Walker, whose contract is up after next season.


Vince Carter, Raptors. '04-05 salary: $12.6 million (four years, $57 million remaining). Outlook: The franchise is in the midst of an overhaul, but the Raptors need a marquee piece to replace Carter. Basketball in Canada might not survive without one.


Steve Francis, Rockets. '04-05 salary: $11.3 million (five years, $68 million remaining). Outlook: Each side has tried to accommodate the other, but the differences between Francis and coach Jeff Van Gundy seem impossible to bridge. Francis is a dribble-happy, high-scoring shooting guard masquerading as a point guard; Van Gundy simply wants a ballhandler to deliver passes to center Yao Ming.


Jamal Mashburn, Hornets. '04-05 salary: $9.4 million (three years, $30 million remaining). Outlook: Mashburn has evolved into a slowdown, halfcourt point forward. A change of scenery, a strong coach and a reduced role would serve him well.


Wally Szczerbiak, Timberwolves. '04-05 salary: $9 million (five years, $55 million remaining). Outlook: Szczerbiak still is a dependable stand-still scorer, but it gets ugly when he must move or dribble. The Timberwolves were better this season when Szczerbiak was injured.


Jerry Stackhouse, Wizards. '04-05 salary: $7 million (five years, $40 million remaining). Outlook: Injuries prevented the Wizards from answering a key question: How do you fit Gilbert Arenas, Larry Hughes and Stackhouse into the same lineup? Still, the answer seems obvious: You can't.


Andre Miller, Nuggets. '04-05 salary: $5.8 million (five years, $45 million remaining). Outlook: Miller and rookie Carmelo Anthony haven't meshed well, and when a team has a franchise player such as Anthony, it gets players that complement him. The Nuggets could use more of a pure point guard — hence, rumors they will pursue Nash.

Could we use Tim Thomas and expiring deals to get Reef in the offseason? How about Tim/Kurt/Othella/Trybanski for Reef and Derek Anderson?