Subscribe Feed (RSS)The general manager of the Pistons certainly knocked the Northwest Division out of kilter when he gift-wrapped Chauncey Billups for the Nuggets and allowed them to flush Allen Iverson.
I was one of the few people who picked Portland to win that division, believing the Blazers to be deeper, bigger, better-shooting and just overall more talented than the Utah Jazz. The Nuggets, with A.I. floating around gunning up shots, weren’t really a factor in my mind. Oh, a decent team, but I doubted they would make the playoffs.
Since the trade, I haven’t seen Denver in person. But on the tube, they look pretty legit with Billups scoring, spreading the ball around and getting them organized at both ends of the court. This was a serious leadership boost for the Nuggets. I’ve always felt George Karl needs a commanding presence at point guard more than a lot of coaches. He kind of lets his teams go on offense and gives the point guard a lot of responsibility for the outcome.
Billups is fully capable of accepting that task. And now, as well as the Blazers are playing, it’s going to be tougher to win the division with two good teams to beat. I believe Portland is still better than Denver — again, bigger, stronger and deeper. But it’s going to be a real war now.
Thanks again, Joe. I mean, it’s OK to mess up your own team but why did you have to put your fingerprints all over our season out here?
Tags: Allen Iverson, Chauncey Billups, Denver Nuggets, Dwight Jaynes, Joe Dumars, Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz
So true. I realize getting Iverson helps get DET under the cap, but I was still surprised at home many pundits thought the Pistons ended up the winners in that deal. Billups is just what the Nuggets needed, and Iverson has never been what any team needed. Thanks a lump Joe.
We still owe Danny Ainge an annual fruit basket for the deal he made which allowed the Blazers to get Brandon Roy. The Nuggets-Pistons deal wasn’t nearly as one-sided as that one. It took Kevin McHale to help undo that whopper.
maybe joe will kick us prince for outlaw and scraps to make up for it.
Who guessed what Brandon Roy might become. I sure did not. I wondered why the Blazers went after him. Here was a kid who spent 4 years playing college ball. his freshman stats not that good. by his last year he did pretty well. But still hardly the makings on an NBA All-Star
However I did not see that many games he played on TV. but suppose Kevin Pritchard saw hin in several games.
Now he plucked Fernandez, Batum with lower picks for this years adds. I guess he as an eye for talent, as opposed to Whitsitt.