[Izulde]

Philadelphia 76ers receive:
PF Tyrus Thomas

Chicago Bulls receive:
SF Kyle Korver
Philadelphia 76ers 2011 1st round pick

What this means for the 76ers
Thomas is a fantastic young PF. 25 years old, he's showing that last year's breakout season was no fluke, averaging just over 18 points and just shy of 8 rebounds along with 2 and a half blocks a game. With Thomas and SF Andre Iguodala, Philadelphia now has a dynamite forward pairing.

What this means for the Bulls:
Korver's an expiring deal at $5.5 million a year and the 76ers selection is likely to be a mid-late 1st rounder. Apparently Chicago has decided to throw in the towel on a title defense and is going for a rebuild.

Advantage: Philadelphia
While very good to great players such as Thomas often don't bring back their full value in trading, Chicago is the defending champion and to trade away a building block of their future for very middling value is just stupid.

Defense paves the way for an initial 93-80 victory over Golden State. Defense and Chauncey Billups, who scores 36 points in making it look easy.

Unfortunately, we fall apart in a critical double-header, dropping to Utah 107-96 despite 39 points and 4 steals from Ben Gordon and 18 points and 12 assists by Chauncey Billups and falling to Minnesota 98-84 even though we had solid performances from Ben Gordon (30 points), Chauncey Billups (11 points, 12 assists[/b] and Shaquille O'Neal (13 points, 10 rebounds).

We rebound to beat Cleveland 106-102 and even our record for the month. Lebron James scores 48 on us, but Chauncey Billups scores 24 and dishes 11 assists, Shaquille O'Neal puts up 18 points and 18 boards and Peter John Ramos and Paulinho Buboltz score 11 and 10 points respectively with the second team.

Another high-scoring affair, another close win, 120-115 over the Nets. Shaquille O'Neal has his best game in a Nuggets uniform with 31 points, 12 rebounds, an assist, 2 blocks and 2 steals, while Chauncey Billups gets 22 points and 12 assists and Paulinho Buboltz continues his hot sub-scoring with 16 points.

One last doubleheader kicks in before the All-Star break and we split it, blowing away Atlanta 115-88 behind Ben Gordon's 36 points and 12 points from the bench off Jared Jeffries and falling to Charlotte 102-90 despite 17 points and 10 assists from Chauncey Billups, a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds from Shaquille O'Neal and 10 bench points from Leroy Wright.

So we're 33-20 at the All-Star break, two games ahead of the Timberwolves, a well-cushioned eight in front of the Trailblazers. We've got the narrowest lead of any of the current division leaders, but that makes sense given how good our division is.

The Sophomores beat the Rookies easily, 95-80. Paulinho Buboltz started at SG and was awful, going 1/5 for 2 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal and 3 turnovers before fouling out. He played 26 minutes, though. Leroy Wright got named to the reserves and was much better: 3/5 for 8 points, 2 rebounds, an assist, steal, and a turnovers in 19 minutes.

In the real All-Star Game, the West crushed the East 105-88. Carmelo Anthony ironically won Game MVP for the losing side. My players continue to get screwed, as Ben Gordon and Chauncey Billups both made the team, but neither one of them got to play.

Kelvin Moody started at PF for the West as he continues to have the greatest success of all the Utah Six. Recently traded Tyrus Thomas made the East team as a reserve.

A nice article came out in Sports Illustrated the week of the All-Star festivities detailing yours truly. Here's an excerpt.

Striking Gold With the Raffle GM

Three years ago, Jestor received the chance of a lifetime in winning the New York Knicks One Year, One Dream GM raffle. He instituted wholesale changes in the team, firing Isiah Thomas and his staff and jettisoning Eddy Curry in a blockbuster trade that brought in Ben Gordon. He also passed on Kevin Durant in the draft, trading down in a stunning move and eventually winding up with Joakim Noah.

Although many Knicks fans thought he'd done a lot to rejuvenate the stale franchise, Jestor's contract was not renewed at the end of the year. A two-year journey through the NBDL followed, first with the Anaheim Cats, then with the Austin Mammoths, where he turned each team into a playoff franchise and a legitimate contender for the NBDL championship.

His success in the NBA's minor league drew the attention of Stephen Crenshaw, the Denver Nuggets owner, who'd recently fired the front-office staff following a disappointing first-round exit the year after their first NBA championship.

But the task before Jestor was far from an easy one.

Superstar Allen Iverson was already ruled out for most of this year with a torn knee tendon. The entire roster with the exception of Carmelo Anthony was either out of contract or going to be out of contract within the next two seasons, including Marcus Camby, who'd been a fine-playing mainstay in Denver's frontcourt.

The Raffle GM struck quickly, dealing Anthony to, of all teams, the Knicks for Gordon, Noah and a trade-up in the draft, receiving the 6th and 29th picks for the 17th. Jestor swore that he would turn the Nuggets into winners with his hand-picked men of Gordon and Noah.

He also traded Nene Hilario and a 2nd round pick to the Detroit Pistons for veteran point guard Chauncey Billups.

Although the Billups deal was largely celebrated, the Anthony swap generated outrage and anguish among Nuggets fans, furious blog writers moaning that Jestor had already destroyed one franchise and was now well on his way to ruining another.

But then a funny thing happened.

The team didn't miss a beat, despite wholesale changes to its roster and four brand-new starters in Billups, Gordon, Noah and free-agent signee Shaquille O'Neal (Kenyon Martin was the lone holdover starter) and stand at the top of the Northwest Division at the All-Star break with a 33-20 record.

Gordon is tied for 7th in the league points per game at 25.9 and Billups averages 5th in assists with 9.4. Together, they form the most dangerous backcourt in the league, with the possible exception of Dwayne Wade and Ray Allen in Miami. Shaq has been a steady, critical presence inside and Martin and Noah, though very much under the radar offensively, have been terrific defenders, frequently shutting down the opposition's top scorers.

But what is just as important as Jestor's moves to bolster the team for the here and now is what he's done to prepare Denver for the future. Gordon is under contract for the next three seasons at a bargain basement price for a player of his talent. Billups is signed through next season, which will give top pick Paulinho Buboltz, the extremely promising, but raw Brazilian teenager time to learn and develop. Leroy Wright, the Nuggets' other 1st round pick, has been a real find, coming out of nowhere to become a dynamic three-position frontcourt player and a key part of the reserves as the team's 6th man.

Denver could also be potential players in the free agent market, depending on what Jestor does about the expiring contracts of Martin, Iverson, Noah, and O'Neal. Jared Jeffries, obtained in the Anthony trade, certainly won't be back. If he decides to release all the expiring contracts, and indeed there's some evidence from sources within the Nuggets organization that he will, Jestor could be well under the cap and a key player this summer.

There's a lot of season still to be played, but with just 43 days to go until Iverson returns and Denver's fantastic play in the first half of the season, there's every reason to believe that the Nuggets could be contenders for gold again at the end of the year.

At the very least, the Raffle GM has stayed the course of recent success with a team that has no Iverson and Anthony, but does have Gordon, Jestor's chosen one, as its top scorer.

In fact, the greatest sign of Jestor's shrewdness and judge of talent might be the following statistic: The New York Knicks, who received Anthony in that trade and gave up Gordon and Noah, hold the NBA's worst record at 5-48.

***End Excerpt***

Nice writeup if I do say so myself.

It's not a pleasant return from the All-Star break as we fall 100-90 to the Boston Celtics. I blame the SI article jinx. Can't blame Ben Gordon who scored 41 points or Chauncey Billups, who had 19 points and 11 assists, though.

We snap out of the funk with a 102-79 pulverizing of the Grizzlies led by Ben Gordon (21 points), Chauncey Billups (23 points) and Leroy Wright (12 bench points).

There were four deadline week deals. I considered getting involved to try and see if I could improve the team, but I didn't want to cut into Leroy Wright's playing time, nor did I want to risk ruining the great chemistry we've developed.

Nonetheless, that didn't keep others from being active, including the team that's chasing us for the division.

Milwaukee Bucks receive:
SF Luol Deng

Chicago Bulls receive:
C Dan Gadzuric
Milwaukee Bucks 2011 1st round pick

What this means for the Bucks:
Deng has a history of injury problems, including a torn MCL last season. He also has a great amount of talent, but one that he's never been able to fully realize, in part because his injury woes have kept him from getting into a rhythm. Still, he's only 25, signed for four years at a reasonable rate and becomes the Bucks' new starting SF.

What this means for the Bulls:
Gadzuric is $7 million of expiring contract and the first round pick appears to be a late 1st round selection. Nothing terribly exciting here for Chicago.

Advantage: Milwaukee
It's a relatively low-risk, potentially high-reward gamble for the Bucks. If Deng pans out and flourishes in his new surroundings, he could be a core player for Milwaukee the next several seasons. If he doesn't, he'll still be a respectable player as he is now.

Minnesota Timberwolves receive:
PF James Augustine
Orlando Magic 2011 2nd round pick

Orlando Magic receive:
PG Javaris Crittenton
SG Raja Bell

What this means for the Timberwolves:
The T-Wolves clear out the log jam of backcourt youth they had and get another young, if wholly unremarkable 26 year old signed for the next few seasons for their frontcourt, a youth injection they badly need. The 2nd round pick will be a relatively high one, as Orlando is pretty bad this year.

What this means for the Magic:
Bad news for Crittenton, who gets absolutely buried on Orlando's roster to where he's inactive. The move translates into $4 million in expiring contracts for the Magic, which, along with a lot of the other deals going out the window, will give Orlando room to play with in the summer.

Advantage: Draw
Both teams get a very small benefit from the swap. You have to feel sorry for Crittenton, though, who honestly isn't a bad-looking player and just needs an opportunity to showcase his skills.

Milwaukee Bucks receive
SF Andres Nocioni
New York Knicks 2011 2nd round pick

New York Knicks receive
PG Smush Parker

What this means for the Bucks
Nocioni is an extremely versatile player, able to slot in at every position save center. He'll serve as Milwaukee's 6th man as they continue to fight to maintain their division lead. Most importantly, he's an $8 million expiring contract, something that could prove critical as the Bucks try to find money to sign free-agent-to-be Michael Redd. The 2nd round pick also translates into 2.1, barring any sudden surge by New York.

What this means for the Knicks
The Knicks trade an $8 million expiring contract and the probable top pick in the 2nd round for a $7 million expiring contract that's buried deep on their bench. Makes a fan wish for the days of Jestor.

Advantage: Milwaukee
The Bucks improve themselves, both for now and the future with this deal. New York actually worsened, if such a thing is possible.

Minnesota Timberwolves receive:
PF Drew Gooden
Detroit Pistons 2011 2nd round pick

Detroit Pistons receive:
SG Kevin Logan

What this means for the Timberwolves:
Gooden's a three-position player who will give Minnesota veteran frontcourt help and a big-time rebound gobbler on the Timberwolves' second unit, something the team was sorely lacking in their reserves before acquiring him. They also get a high 2nd round draft pick.

What this means for the Pistons:
He's buried on the bench right now, but Logan's a pretty promising prospect if he can get some more playing time and is a potentially nice piece for the Pistons' rebuilding project. However, it's arguable that they could've gotten just as good a player with the 2nd round pick they gave up.

Advantage: Minnesota
Very nice move by the T-Wolves as they attempt to catch the Nuggets in the Northwest.

I'm not happy about Minnesota's smartness and I'm even less happy with our heartbreaking 115-112 loss to the Hornets next game. Ben Gordon busted his ass with 45 points and Chauncey Billups played well with 15 points and 13 assists, but I'm left wondering if maybe I shouldn't have made a move to strengthen the bench after all.

We end February by beating up on the hapless Hawks 98-71. Chauncey Billups and Ben Gordon are the bird-bashers with 29 and 25 points respectively as our defense totally shuts Atlanta down.

34 days until Allen Iverson comes back and we're still two games in front in the Northwest at 35-22. San Antonio is tops in the West still at 43-13, but the Lakers have been on fire lately and have shot up to 34-21, within 3 games of Phoenix. The Purple and Gold are going to be deadly in the playoffs, I have a funny feeling. Eight teams with winning records in the conference, the confounding Trailblazers just missing the 9th at 27-28. I really wish I could figure out why Portland isn't getting it done. They're a really talented team.

Toronto at 43-13, Boston at 42-15 are the clear class of the East. Milwaukee's holding a five game advantage in the Central over the 28-27 Cavaliers. The Bucks may be looking great in the regular season, but they're missing a legitimate PG and that's going to kill them in the playoffs just like it did last year. Charlotte still dominates the Southeast by eight and a half, but the Wizards have clawed their way to 28-27 and the Heat, who really make me nervous, are 29-29, which is enough to give them the 8th and final playoff spot at the moment.

Lebron James leads still with 34.2 points a game, Michael Redd at 30.6. Ben Gordon's 6th at 26.4. Chauncey Billups is 5th in assists with a 9.4 average, Chris Paul alone in double-digit dishes (10.8).

Greg Oden heads up boards per game with 13.8, Yao Ming his closest competitor at 13.2. Andrei Kirilenko leads in blocks with a slipping 3.7, Elton Brand #2 with 3.1. I see Kelvin Moody's 4th with 2.7. Gerald Wallace is the lone 2+ steals a game at 2.1 average.

I don't see Mateen Yeaton anywhere in the rookie list, which disturbs me. He broke his toe, so the Pacers have him stashed down in the D-League. He'll be back in about a month, thankfully, as his 15.8 points per game is still tops among the rookie class.

I have to say, Kyle Jordan is impressing me. I'd dimissed most of the rookie centers as rot before the draft, but Jordan is averaging 7.8 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks a game for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Those are great numbers for a rookie and I'd even venture to say that the frontcourt of Kevin Garnett, Kelvin Moody and Jordan is just as worthy of attention as the more-heralded Raptors frontline.

That's not to say that I'll be wearing a K. Jordan jersey anytime soon. Mike he's not and besides, I'm still enamored with Yeaton, who's still a great story with the Pacers.