The Voice with Jovan Brkic

Movin’ On Up

Published by Jovan Brkic on July 12, 2009

If anybody thought the pitiful shape of the economy would slow down transactions in the NBA this off-season, they were sorely mistaken. A lot of significant signings and trades have been going on, and as you can imagine, I have a thing or two to say about them.

Hedo Turkoglu is coming to Toronto, and will earn about $53 million over 5 years. I don’t dispute that Turkoglu is a talented player, but I’m a little concerned about how much Bryan Colangelo spent on him. After having a true breakout season for Orlando two seasons ago, Turkoglu followed that up with a rather disappointing effort this past year. His points and shooting percentages dipped considerably, and he committed just under 3 turnovers per game. And while everyone knows he played well against Cleveland and LA in the playoffs, they quickly forget his struggles against Philly and Boston. The way I see it, Turkoglu caught fire at the right time and made people forget about his up-and-down season. I’d have no problem with him coming for $5-6 million a year, but 10 is a lot. Nonetheless, he should feel at home pretty quickly given Toronto’s large Turkish community. His slow feet on defence will also help him fit in with the team right away. All jokes aside though, Turkoglu has a lot of potential and I wish him the best.

The Raps have also made a couple other significant moves. First, they’ve signed Andrea Bargnani to a long-term extension, which is smart in my books. He improved greatly last year and has a bright future ahead of him. They’ve also traded Shawn Marion and Kris Humphries to Dallas for Antoine Wright and Devean George. Marion had to be moved for financial purposes after the Turkoglu signing, but overall it’s not a bad deal. I’ve liked Wright’s game since he played college ball. He’s a hard-nosed player with a good shot, and he’ll fit in well if the Raps bring him in.

My main man Shaq is a Cavalier. I think it’s a good move for Cleveland because they had nobody to guard the likes of Dwight Howard. They still need some help on the perimeter, but Shaq is definitely a short-term improvement. The only question now is whether he’ll be known as Shaqalier or the Big Witness.

Boston has signed Rasheed Wallace to a two-year contract. ‘Sheed is one of my favourite players of all-time, but sadly I’ll be forced to cheer against him this year. Coincidentally, Kevin Garnett is my least favourite player of all-time, so anybody who plays on his team immediately goes in my bad books. As much as it hurts me to say it, I think Boston can go all the way now after this signing.

The Pistons made two excellent signings with Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva. This is a team that desperately needed an injection of youth and talent, so what better way than to sign these two stars? They should be valuable members of the team for years to come.

Artest to the Lakers? I’m not so sure about that one. Artest is a beast of a man and a great defender. But can his rough offensive game translate into the smooth, triangle offence the Lakers run? Since Artest is taking Ariza’s spot in the lineup, he’ll have to knock down his open looks as consistently as Ariza did. The only problem is I don’t know if Artest can do that. He isn’t a finesse player, and shooting isn’t his forte. I’ll be interested to see how Phil Jackson and company help ease Artest’s transition into the Lake Show. What people have to understand is that when you play for Phil Jackson, it’s not how talented you are that counts, it’s how well you fit into his system. He’ll either be a big success or a huge bust. There’s no middle ground here.

I like San Antonio’s moves. They picked up Richard Jefferson and Antonio McDyess, solidifying an already dangerous team. I think the Spurs are one player away from being the best in the West. They were going after Rasheed Wallace but came away empty-handed. They sorely lack a good big man to play beside Duncan. Could the Spurs possibly grab Camby from the Clippers?

Vince Carter is going home to play with the Orlando Magic. At first glance it’s an excellent move for Orlando. They also get Ryan Anderson, a big man who can knock down 3s for Stan Van Gundy. But as we all know, the second Orlando hits a bump in the road, Vince will sulk and that’ll be the end of their title hopes. After LeBron, I’d have to say that Vince is the most gifted basketball player I’ve ever seen. He just doesn’t strike me as a guy I’d want to have on my team if I’m making a push for a title. Then again, the nasty dunks he’ll throw down alongside Dwight Howard just might be worth the trouble. It’ll be sick, wicked and nasty in Florida this year!

Speaking of sick, wicked and nasty, Jamal Crawford will be suiting up for Atlanta this upcoming year alongside Mike Bibby and Joe Johnson in the backcourt. I don’t know how they’ll share the ball, but those three players are dynamite. Atlanta could become the Golden State of the Eastern Conference pretty fast. They’ll never win anything important, but you’ll always get your money’s worth when you watch them.

And now for the stupidest move of the year: Cleveland re-signs Anderson Varejao for a 6-year contract which, with incentives, can reach up to $50 million! FOR WHAT?!? All this guy does is bob around with his long arms and grab a few boards here and there. Am I the only one who thinks he’s one of the worst big men in the league? He’s physically weak, he has no offence, and he doesn’t even block shots! 50 mil for 7 rebounds a game and nothing else? What a waste of money. I put Varejao’s value in between the value of the team bus and the mesh sacks used to carry basketballs. What a joke.

There’s a lot more brewing as far as free agents and trading goes, but these are the transactions that got me the most excited (or irritated). I hope everybody’s having a great summer so far, and I’ll talk to you all soon.

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