A Danny Ferry Sighting

Cavs Swap

First, let me congratulate Danny Ferry for finally shuffling the deck – which is what he did in this 11 player trade completed at 2:59 p.m. – one minute before the NBA trading deadline passed yesterday.

No, he did not acquire a running-mate for LeBron James. Scottie Pippen in his prime, one of the game’s 50 best players of all time, will not show up in Independence – site of the team’s new lavish practice facilities. In fact, Cavaliers did not even add an all star caliber player in this mass exodus of bodies.

However, what they did get is the following:

Ben Wallace is still a solid defensive presence in the post – something this corner has been begging for Cleveland to add since the organization mistakenly decided to re-sign Big Z several years ago. We stated at that time you could not win a title with Z and Gooden as your two starting post players. Z is now basically a 7-3 jump shooter while Gooden is too inconsistent and not good enough defensively to off-set Z’s lack of mobility at the five.

As we have pointed out time and time again, on most nights, you rarely saw both of them on the floor at crunch time – and that tells you all you needed to know. Mike Brown preaches defense and getting ‘stops” down the stretch – and actually means it. Those two rarely made plays at that end of the floor that warranted being out there together with the game on the line.

Teams often had a free pass to the basket against the Cavaliers. That should change with Wallace in the blocks. Remember, the Cavaliers are not getting the Ben Wallace that won the league defensive MVP award several years ago. However, if Big Ben can give them 25 minutes a night of high-energy, solid defensive post player, that will go a long way toward making the team better and lowering the opposition's shooting percentage.

Secondly, Wallace will allow the Cavaliers to play quality post players one on one come playoff time instead of having to double-down all the time. If you want to advance in the East, you must be able to handle Kevin Garnett in Boston. Wallace will allow Cleveland to play him straight up – thus keeping a body on the Celtics’ other perennial perimeter all-stars. Having a post defender that doesn’t need much help is huge in the post-season, when the game slows down and execution in the half court is paramount.

A disclaimer – I was never a Wally Szczerbiak fan coming out of college and am still not enamored of his overall game. He has had the NBA career I thought he’d have – he can score the basketball but can’t do much else. However, he’s a good fit with Cleveland.

Why? Because anyone that can shoot should be thrilled to join a team with 23 – especially at this stage of Wally’s career. All pretty boy has to do is stand on the wing and wait for the doubling of LeBron. When the ball rotates his (Wally’s) way, shoot it. That should not be hard for the Miami (Ohio) grad to do.

Wally could be to Cleveland what Robert Horry has been to several teams. His career numbers indicate he should be another solid 25 minute a night perimeter fit for the Cavaliers.

As for Joe Smith, you have to be a real NBA fan to appreciate this guy. Smith does everything relatively well and is consistent performer who coaches trust.

Smith can shoot, defend, is a solid rebounder and has a high basketball IQ. He will be solid coming off the bench and will fit into Brown's playoff rotation immediately.

Notice a them here – the Cavaliers haven’t really added anyone who they can lean on heavily in terms of minutes played. What they did was add some true pros - guys who will understand their role and play off of James. These are veteran players who are hungry for a ring, should fit in nicely and appreciate the opportunity they have to play with a future Hall of Famer.

And in Wallace’s case – he actually has something to prove – that he wasn’t a bust after leaving Detroit.

I haven’t covered Dante West for one simple reason – I have not seen enough of him to give you an evaluation. Those of you who know me personally, understand my first commandment when it comes to sports – if I haven’t seen them, I won’t comment on them.

All I know is he’s (West) young, can play the one or two and has already been shopped around several times even though he’s only three years into his career.

Again, playing with James should speed up West’s development. His career numbers to date indicate he can knock down an occasional perimeter jumper. We’ll see. With Gibson out with an injury and Hughes off to Chicago, West should get major minutes right away – the Cavaliers have little choice. So we will be watching and evaluating his play along with everyone else.

In total, we admire Ferry for realizing the previous group was not going to get it done and for finding someone to take Hughes’ contract off their hands. For a variety of reasons, Hughes simply was a bad fit. It didn't work so a change was necessary. We also felt Gooden had to go once Andy V. was re-signed and stated so. We had hoped the deal in question would bring Batman a “Robin-like” talent in return. However, we do believe, given time, this move will make them better.

How much better remains to be seen. The team does lose some athleticism in the trade, but that should be off-set by the consistency the players bring in return.

The Cavaliers are physically and mentally tougher inside with Wallace on the roster. Wally should help spread the floor even more – especially when Gibson returns. And Smith is a versatile pro’s pro who can still play.

We are told by Danny Ferry, long-term, the move does not affect the team’s cap room flexibility. That’s good. As for the short-term – it should make for an interesting late winter/spring in Cleveland.

Think about it – what’s the down side to this move? None.

All you’ve done is move the chess pieces around looking for better chemistry while adding a guy with a handle (West), a shooter (Wally), a good post defender (Wallace) and a solid veteran (Smith).

Remember – we said a long time ago they (Cavaliers) only had three keepers – 23 of course, Andy and Boobie. Those guys are still present and accounted for. This move certainly won’t hurt and it is likely to help for the reasons stated above.

You finally showed up Danny and I understand the logic behind the move. And by the way - glad to finally hear from you.