by Jack Maidment
On the day that we are told that the Detroit Pistons have lost Walter Hermann to Tau Ceramica in Spain, and that the Cleveland Cavaliers have signed Jamario Moon to an offer sheet and that Blake Griffin has been ‘unjustly’ named MVP of Summer League, it becomes clear that there is literally nothing of any real interest happening in the NBA today.
Back up bench players departing for Spain can hardly be labelled exciting news, but the nature of 24 hour news and the fact that we are all greedy like fat kids with cake ensures that hoop heads around the world get a fix that might kkep them happy for around 2 minutes.
Until something more nourishing (read: anything at all) makes itself apparent, we will all have to make do with the speculation and overly hyped non events that are currently making up the bulk of our NBA diets.
So what is there to look forward to before the season begins in all those days time?
There are only two concrete definites: Lamar Odom’s contract and the money waiting to be unleashed in Portland.
So unleashed may be a bit strong, but there is certainly money to be had playing for the Trailblazers. The problem is that there really aren’t too many players left, if any, capable of justifying the almost $8 million in Kevin Pritchard’s pocket.
Turkoglu committed then bolted for Toronto and the ‘toxic’ offer they submitted for Paul Millsap just wasn’t enough to scare the cost effective folks in Utah. Which realistically only leaves David Lee as a target for the Blazer’s, though there is a very strong possibility that the Knicks will re-sign him anyway: by waiting for other teams to show their hands, New York stays in a strong position for when they negotiate Lee’s deal.
As for Lamar Odom, there seems to be a simple two horse race: the Lakers and the Miami Heat. The smart money would be on L O to remain in LA. Why would you leave? Quarrelling over one year and a few million seems ridiculous for a multimillionaire with a realistic chance at 2,3,4 more NBA Championships.
Neither storylines are exactly dynamite, but a combination of the two would certainly spice up the summer.
Portland are just about the only team with the cash Odom wants, but do the Blazers want Lamar?
Let us hope that the answer is yes, or we may be relegated to a summer of truly mind numbing proportions.
