Is TJ Ford Still A Possibility?
It is a secret to no one that follows the NBA that the Cavaliers are in dire need of a point guard. While many of you have given your support to Delonte West in that regard, it seems that if we could get a solid option at the ‘one,’ West could bump over to the shooting guard and provide a flexible option from the wing.
While names like Baron Davis and Kirk Hinrich continue to float around in the rumor mill, the Toronto Star’s Doug Smith lists Cleveland as one of the teams in talks with the Raptors for point guard T.J. Ford.
The Star piece is primarily aimed at the talks that are reportedly going down between the Raps and the Indiana Pacers. Not surprisingly, the Pacers are still attempting to alleviate themselves from the $40+ million that they owe Jermaine O’Neal over the next two seasons. They’re set to move on without Jamaal Tinsley, but the fact that they own the 11th overall selection makes obtaining a solid guard a bit easier.
This is where the other teams come in. But would Ford be a good fit here?
If you ask me, we not only need our point guard to be a distributor (which Ford definitely is, as seen by his career average of seven assists per game), but we also need a scoring threat – especially from long range – which isn’t exactly T.J.’s forte. Sure, he has the occasional big nights, but he’s a career 12 points per game guy. And while his field goal percentage has improved year-over-year, he’s still hovering at 43 percent as a whole.
And while his turnover rate is a bit alarming (3.3 per 36 minutes), what may be more of a concern is the two neck injuries that he has sustained over his four seasons. He’s missed an average of 19 games per year for a bevy of reasons, but the obvious big detractors were his rookie campaign as well as last season. Is this something that we should be willing to risk? Not if I had any say. If I’m going to risk injury to a point guard, he better be giving me B-Diddy numbers.
So where does this leave us? Perhaps nowhere different than we were a week ago. The rumors will continue to swirl up until draft day, and odds are that we’ll see something that hasn’t even been dreamt to this point. But for now, I’m thinking that Ford should be crossed off of the Danny Ferry wish-list.
(via Indy Cornrows)
Is Ford Bound for Indiana? [The Toronto Star]
June 24th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
Agreed, 100%. Also, I think West will probably get roughed up by the majority of 2 guards in this league. Keep looking Danny.
June 24th, 2008 at 4:46 pm
West would be a good backup guard, he can play the 1 or the 2 and get significant minutes. There would still ideally be time for Gibson though, I for one think he has a lot of potential but even if he doesn’t, he is a dead eye from long range as we all know. Ford would definitely be an upgrade and if we could get him as well as another really good player who could create his own shot or is a good shooter or w/e, then Ford’s worth becomes much greater in my eyes because he is a good distributor and we wouldn’t need him to average anymore than 12 a game. Still though, not my first option, especially considering the injury problems. Draft Mario Chalmers!
June 25th, 2008 at 8:38 am
I agree with your assessment. Seriously, can we stay really far away from any talks involving Jermaine O’Neal?
That contract looks to be one of the worst in NBA history, doesn’t it?
Michael Redd looks like a bargain compared to Jermaine.
June 25th, 2008 at 8:44 am
I’ve read a few things about Anderson for Al Harrington from the warriors with us swapping draft picks as well. I read that some where last night, don’t know if there is any truth to it, it would be interesting though to say the least.
June 25th, 2008 at 8:48 am
Delonte West IS the answer at the point guard. Unless you could get a premier guy. The playoffs showed what West is capable of. I think that adding a 2 guard who can score constistently is the biggest for this team as it is configured right now. I like Brandon Rush. If you look at a 3 guard rotation of West Gibson and Rush, it wouldn’t matter what combination you have in there because you would always have shooting and ball handling. Maybe there is no ideal point guard there but come on, Lebron is going to handle the ball most of the time anyways. From the guard SPOTS we need some assists, some scoring, and some defense.
June 25th, 2008 at 9:07 am
Jay – agreed, and I dont think that Ford can be considered a “premier guy.”
June 25th, 2008 at 9:43 am
Here’s hoping LeBron is NOT handling the ball most of the time next year. Not sure I could handle a repeat of this season’s offense.
June 25th, 2008 at 11:16 am
I wouldn’t mind trying to trade for one of Portland’s multiple talented point guards, maybe Jarrett Jack. Price would not be as steep and he is still a quality player
June 25th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Scott, you’re right, keep TJ Ford far away from this team. he’s the exact wrong PG for this squad, as he’s undersized, can’t play much D, can’t shoot, and has basically no chance of going a full 82 + playoffs. other than that, i love him…
July 1st, 2008 at 4:58 pm
[...] morning, Waiting For Next Year pointed to some chatter that suggests that Cleveland has showed interest in Raptors point guard T.J. [...]