NBA: Stephen Jackson Dealt to Charlotte
ESPN is reporting that the Bobcats have agreed to send Raja Bell and Vladimir Radmanovic to to Golden State in exchange for guard Acie Law and disgruntled swingman Stephen Jackson.
With Gerald Wallace pacing the Bobcats in scoring with 13.7 points per game Jackson is a good pickup in terms of the skills he brings to the table. The ‘Cats need a scorer and when Jackson is properly motivated and in his happy place he is a 20 point a night scorer.
However, where this trade has an extremely good chance of blowing up in Larry Brown’s face is the fact the Bobcats are 3-6 and Jackson previously stated for the record that he wanted to play in Cleveland, New York, or one of the three Texas teams. He has no interest in playing for the Bobcats, so, it remains to be seen what the Bobcats are going to get out of Jackson.
It is somewhat surprising to me that Brown would agree to part with one his favorites in Bell for a mercurial player like Jackson, but, to Brown’s credit he has a history of getting great play out of hard cases like Jackson. He managed to keep Allen Iverson in line for the most part and got Rasheed Wallace to accept the team first mantra in Detroit and he became a key part to the Pistons championship run under Brown.
Given Don Nelson’s aversion to playing any defense at all it is somewhat surprising that he would agree to take a player like Bell who actually prides himself on his defense. In fact Bell is probably a better defender than scorer, but, was a solid scorer in Mike D’Antoni’s run-and-gun system in Phoenix.
Radmanovic is a guy who never lived up to expectations after leaving Seattle and Brown has never had any use for players who cannot do anything other than shoot the ball. He should thrive in Nelson’s shoot first ask questions later system.
One can only assume that Law was thrown in the deal to balance out the exchange in salaries as the Bobcats already have Raymond Felton and D. J. Augustin monopolizing the minutes at point guard right now. However, Law is the type of guy Brown loves at point guard. He is a big sturdy player for the position who can defend like Eric Snow and Chauncey Billups whom he coached in Philadelaphia and Detroit respectively.
It is an intriguing move to say the least but one that could be as toxic as it could be successful given the main personality involved. The Warriors are merely happy to get a couple of warm bodies for the toxic Jackson while the Bobcats are willing to roll the dice that he can be that primary scorer the team has been lacking since it dealt Jason Richardson to Phoenix.
