A Deron Williams and Kobe Bryant backcourt, with Andrew Bynum in the paint. That team could be very dangerous.
Apparently, Deron Williams has thought about it.
In an article where he says the Lakers and Magic need to do a Bynum for Dwight Howard swap, Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated drops some interesting knowledge about D-Will.
A source close to the three-time All-Star said he would be interested in joining the Lakers, though it would have to be via a sign-and-trade deal. (Lakers point guardRamon Sessions, who was acquired from Cleveland at the trade deadline, has a $4.5 million player option for next season.) The source said Williams’ preference, however, is for the Nets to improve the roster sufficiently enough that he can feel good about staying put rather than fear a repeat of this season, when they finished 22-44. As for Dallas, which sacrificed its best chance to defend the title by preserving salary-cap space last summer in anticipation of this free-agent class, the source said of the Mavericks: “There’s no longevity there.†If owner Mark Cuban can clear enough space to sign a worthy sidekick for Williams, though, then maybe he’d join his hometown team after all.
As Amick said, Williams to the Lakers would have to be a sign-and-trade, and under the new CBA that new deal can be for what he would get as a free agent from a non-Bird rights team. (Meaning, no more of whatCarmelo Anthony did and get the hometown max deal and the new home.)
The Lakers are shopping Pau Gasol around this summer, would the Nets be open to a Gasol for D-Will sign-and-trade? It’s better than the nothing they get if he goes to Dallas. That said, if I were the Nets, I would demand Bynum in the deal, not Gasol.
What the Nets really want is to get one of those top three spots in the draft lottery, then use that to help facilitate a trade with Orlando to bring Howard to Brooklyn. Then Williams re-signs and Jay Z is happy… well, happier. You have to think he’s pretty happy most of the time.
Whatever happens with D-Will, he wants to get it wrapped up before the Olympics so look for it to move quickly after July 1. Until then, it’s all speculation.
WRITTEN BY Kurt Helin & FULL STORY HERE
