Plenty of names will be floated around in the next week-plus as the NBA trade deadline approaches on March 15th. Over the next week, I am going to take a look at which players are likely to be dealt and what teams might be interested in acquiring said player. Stephen Jackson seems to have already worn out his welcome with the Milwaukee Bucks and could be moved.
In his first season in Milwaukee, Jackson hasn’t exactly fit in with the Bucks and head coach Scott Skiles. He has battled injury but even when healthy, has seen his playing time dip as of late. Jackson recently had a brief but poignant rant on Twitter saying, “If u call wanting to earn your money and wanting to win a “Headcase” then I’m that. Been a great teammate for 12 yrs. Ask anyone.” A change of scenery would greatly benefit Jackson and I’m sure the Bucks would love to find a suitor for his services.
Possible Suitors:
Minnesota: The Timberwolves have been searching for a veteran scorer on the wing and could use a player with Jackson’s ability and experience in their attempt to get into the post-season. The Bucks could be interested in an offer that included Wesley Johnson and Darko Milicic. Johnson would give them a young wing player to replace Jackson while Darko provides a true center to help fill the void in the middle left behind by the injured Andrew Bogut. Michael Beasley’s name has been floated around in trade rumors as well so maybe a deal including Beasley would interest
New Jersey: There has been some talk that Jackson and Dwight Howard are interested in playing together so if the Nets want to increase their chances of landing Howard, rolling the dice and trading for Jackson might help their cause. An offer of Anthony Morrow and Johan Petro would save Milwaukee some money, give them a young scorer to replace Jackson, and some needed size in the middle. It would also allow New Jersey to keep their cap space, draft picks, Brook Lopez, and Mehmet Okur’s expiring contract which would all be valuable in an effort to land Dwight Howard either before the trade deadline or via free agency this summer.
Orlando: If Howard truly is interested in playing with Jackson than the Magic should make a run at him in hopes of trying to re-sign Howard. However, Orlando doesn’t have a whole lot of trade-able assets. Would a package of J.J. Redick, Earl Clark/Daniel Orton, and a draft pick get the job done? It would depend how desperate Milwaukee is to get rid of Jackson. I’m guessing they would be able to field a better offer from some other team.
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft on the web.
You can follow him on Twitter at DavidKay_TSB.