For Sale - Part II (Young Talent)

(This will be a tad bit more serious than the first one)

Unlike the expiring contracts, we would be much less inclined to trade away the young talent that we've worked so hard to acquire and develop. Another bonus for these guys is that they come relatively cheap, so they fit in the cap very well. However, for the right price, some of our young talent would be available for trade - either straight up in small deals, or in a larger package.

Marcus Banks - Teams likely covet him for the same reasons we drafted him. He's a tough on the ball defender and he might be one of the top 5 quickest guys in the league. Much has been made of how hard Doc is down on the kid, thus making him even more available. Personally, I don't really buy it. I tend to think that Doc is hard on him because he's was a PG and he knows how long it takes to get it in this league at this position. Banks may never be a star, but he's got the tools to make it work for a long time. All he needs is to get the head right, and a steady dose of GP and Doc is helping his game. Then again, if Doc really is convinced he's not PG material, now would be the time to sell high.

Jiri Welsch - Jiri is a Danny guy, so much so that he wears his old number. But speaking of numbers, there are too many 3's on the roster, so anything could happen. Some also wonder if Jiri would be a better fit in an offense that lets him find open areas to pop and shoot, rather than a movement and fast breaking style. Again, I wonder how true that is. When a good offense is working, it takes advantage of everyone's strengths. If Jiri can't get going soon, it might be time to wonder if he ever will. Its not that he's played badly, per se. Its just that he never really seems to play really well either. I guess the bottom line is that he just doesn't have the upside of Allen or the sheer talent of Davis. So nobody would be shocked if he was the odd man out.

The Untouchables (not for sale) - The fastest way to get Danny to hang up on you is to bring up Al Jefferson in trade talks. Everything you hear about Delonte West points to everyone in the organization being head over heals for him. Kendrick Perkins is probably the shakiest one on this list, but he's a talented big man with long arms, a nose for the ball, and several lbs. that he's learning how to throw around.

Young talent is not easy to give up, but you can only build so much young talent before you become a youth league team. If the players are special, you hang onto them and wait for them to become your next star. If they aren't, you can either let them become role players, or package them to another team for a veteran that can help you.

Update: Umm, yeah, I was just testing you guys to make sure you were paying attention. That's it. Ok, I'm an idiot. (if you can picture Farley interviewing Paul McCartney in your head, that's me right now "stupid, stupid, stupid") Yes, of course Allen is one of the untouchables. I will now go back to doing idiot things and mumbling incoherently.