BONZI WELLS TO NEW ORLEANS FOR BOBBY JACKSON
The Houston Chronicle reports late tonight the Rockets have traded Bonzi Wells and Mike James to get Bobby Jackson from the New Orleans Hornets, pending league approval. The Memphis Grizzlies were a minor part of the deal with players that you don't know nor care about.
Our first take is that this deal works out great for both teams. Bonzi Wells was never really a fit in Houston primarily due to his run-ins with previous head coach Stan Van Gundy (he sat out the entire second half of last year). He is a 2-guard with the ability to knock down jumpers but has an above-average post game and makes a defense pay for smaller lineups.
Putting him an an already athletically stacked New Orleans team indicates that they're not satisfied with just being upstarts this year....they're making moves to win this year.
They give up a player in Bobby Jackson that doesn't really have a place on the court with Chris Paul since the 2 of them present a very small backcourt. Jackson has had a sort of misplaced career having come off the bench on those loaded Sacramento teams. Those who watched him and Mike Bibby play in Sacramento always argued which one should have been the starter, despite Bibby being a deadly player during those years.
Jackson will be reunited with his former coach in Houston. He isn't the freak he used to be but still carries more quickness than most players in the league. While he will initially back up "Skip to my" Raefer Alston but after watching Alston for years we wouldn't be surprised if this isn't a job share real soon. Jackson brings a one-on-one component that Alston simply doesn't have.
Bonzi Wells will be brought in possibly to replace the struggling Morris Peterson. Peterson's best year's are behind him and while he still has the ability to score at an NBA level shooting the ball, he cannot take the ball to the rim anymore. Bonzi brings a dimension to New Orleans that should scare everyone in the league. If you play small against New Orleans they will outrebound you to death, without losing anything too much on the defensive end. While teams can still play small guards against Chris Paul, the 2 guard is going to need to be able to defend the post, or be manhandled by Bonzi. The move puts 4 legitimate scorers on the floor with Chandler being the only liability, if you can call him that.
I tend to wonder when this dream is going to end. The teams in the Western Conference just continue to get better and better.
Our first take is that this deal works out great for both teams. Bonzi Wells was never really a fit in Houston primarily due to his run-ins with previous head coach Stan Van Gundy (he sat out the entire second half of last year). He is a 2-guard with the ability to knock down jumpers but has an above-average post game and makes a defense pay for smaller lineups.
Putting him an an already athletically stacked New Orleans team indicates that they're not satisfied with just being upstarts this year....they're making moves to win this year.
They give up a player in Bobby Jackson that doesn't really have a place on the court with Chris Paul since the 2 of them present a very small backcourt. Jackson has had a sort of misplaced career having come off the bench on those loaded Sacramento teams. Those who watched him and Mike Bibby play in Sacramento always argued which one should have been the starter, despite Bibby being a deadly player during those years.
Jackson will be reunited with his former coach in Houston. He isn't the freak he used to be but still carries more quickness than most players in the league. While he will initially back up "Skip to my" Raefer Alston but after watching Alston for years we wouldn't be surprised if this isn't a job share real soon. Jackson brings a one-on-one component that Alston simply doesn't have.
Bonzi Wells will be brought in possibly to replace the struggling Morris Peterson. Peterson's best year's are behind him and while he still has the ability to score at an NBA level shooting the ball, he cannot take the ball to the rim anymore. Bonzi brings a dimension to New Orleans that should scare everyone in the league. If you play small against New Orleans they will outrebound you to death, without losing anything too much on the defensive end. While teams can still play small guards against Chris Paul, the 2 guard is going to need to be able to defend the post, or be manhandled by Bonzi. The move puts 4 legitimate scorers on the floor with Chandler being the only liability, if you can call him that.
I tend to wonder when this dream is going to end. The teams in the Western Conference just continue to get better and better.
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