HEAT's Shawn Marion Involved in Trade Rumors

The latest rumor involving Shawn Marion has his services along with Marcus Banks headed to Toronto for Jermaine O'Neal. If this trade happens, it would benefit both teams.

The HEAT are in need of some height in their frontcourt. Their tallest frontcourt player is Jamal Magloire and his defense isn't that great either. There is no defensive presence behind Joel Anthony who has done an admirable job as the HEAT's starting center. Shawn Marion wouldn't be missed by the HEAT because they have so much depth at that position. The HEAT have Dorell Wright, James Jones, and Yakhouba Diawara can fill the potentially vacated SF position. Can you imagine the line up of Chalmers, Wade, James Jones, Haslem, and O'Neal? You could do worse. Jermaine O'Neal gives Wade another pick-n-roll buddy, a low post presence, and a post defender. However, the rub in this trade is the health of Jermaine O'Neal. He has been injured this season with those bothersome knees. If the HEAT make this trade, I think it signals that Riley couldn't care less about this summer's free agent class as O'Neal has a player option for more than $20 million. There is no doubt he'll exercise that option. This trade is a win for the HEAT, if O'Neal's healthy.

The Toronto Raptors would be getting a high energy player who can score in a variety of ways, rebound and defend. Shawn Marion can't shoot the three pointer with any degree of regularity. The move would allow the Raptors keep Andrea Bargnani in the starting lineup and go up-tempo more often. Marion is a huge upgrade at SF as Bosh has had enough of the errors made during the game.

Another possible trade partner is the Dallas Mavericks. Josh Howard is on the block and has been on there for quite sometime now. His admission about drug use doesn't help either. Shawn Marion for Josh Howard and another player? This could benefit both teams. As I said earlier in the post, Pat Riley doesn't care about this summer's free agent class. Josh Howard would give Dwyane Wade a much needed sidekick for this season and next. Howard could use the change scenery. The HEAT would still be short in the frontcourt but more potent offensively. The attention that Wade gets could result in Howard returning to his All-Star level. For the Mavs, they'll have Jason Kidd's and Shawn Marion's contracts expiring after this season. That is $38,552,000 coming off the books between. That doesn't include other contracts that expiring after this season. I think Marion would blossom playing next to Jason Kidd for obvious reasons and the Mavs could re-sign him after the season. The trade works out both teams.

NBA Rumors

As the NBA trade deadline nears, the rumors will start running rampant throughout the NBA. Some rumors will be true, while others will be false. Lets start with man called Starbury.

Stephon Marbury has been linked to the Celtics lately, even Garnett is signing off on a possible Marbury signing for the Celtics. The Celtics could certainly use his creativity and passing ability for their bench. The Celtics bench is having problems scoring. They do not possess any guard on the bench who can create for himself or others. Marbury would fill those voids and possibly play average to above average defense. I suspect that Doc Rivers and company will pass at this opportunity citing Marbury's attitude and how it could affect the team's chemistry. Since we're talking about the Celtics, Rivers has made it clear that he needs another big man. They do need some height. Patrick O'Bryant can't help them the way PJ Brown did last year. Big Baby Davis is short as is Leon Powe so getting a legit 6'10" or 6'11" player would do wonders for the Celtics second unit, especially in the rebounding department. Maybe a Jelani McCoy? I doubt they'll trade any of their pieces.

Speaking of big man, Joakim Noah seems to have wore out his welcome in Chicago, at least according to this journalist. Rick Morrissey, tell us how you really feel? Seriously, this guy has had enough of Noah and he wants him gone. Anybody need a 7 footer with an average all-around game? The Celtics say hello.

The Thunder have numerous pieces that contending teams could use such as Desmond Mason, Nick Collison, Earl Watson, Chris Wilcox, and Joe Smith. One writer has a list of possible trading partners for the Thunder. Here's the list:

Given what we know today, here are five attractive trading partners for the Thunder.

→Milwaukee: Charlie Villanueva and Tyronn Lue have recently been rumored to be on the move, with the Thunder named as a potential landing spot. The 6-foot-11 Villanueva creates mismatches with his inside-outside game, while Lue is a savvy veteran point guard who knocks down open shots and is a tough on-ball defender.

→Toronto: Anthony Parker and former Oklahoma State standout Joey Graham were reportedly included in a package that would have sent Earl Watson to the Raptors, and now former No. 1 pick Andrea Bargnani is reportedly on the trading block as well. The Thunder could use Parker and Bargnani’s perimeter shooting and Graham’s defense and toughness.

→Utah: With an abundance of shooting guards, and the Jazz potentially scrambling to re-sign big men Carlos Boozer and Paul Millsap this summer, sharpshooter Kyle Korver could be made available at a bargain price.

→Detroit: Arron Afflalo and Amir Johnson are young players who fill two pressing needs for the Thunder on the wing and in the post. The Pistons are high on Johnson, but the Thunder could sweeten the deal with a future draft pick.

→New Jersey: Oklahoma product Eduardo Najera plays with a toughness and defensive mindset the Thunder sorely lacks. Swingman Jarvis Hayes is a 3-point threat who could help off the bench.

Detroit could probably be crossed off that list though getting one of the Thunder's big man such as Joe Smith could prove to be the missing piece for Detroit. Toronto seems to be the best match for the Thunder as Anthony Parker and Stephen Graham could provide the scoring punch off the bench that the Thunder sorely need. The Raptors will probably want a creative scorer in return to compliment Jermaine O'Neal and Chris Bosh. I don't think the Thunder have what the Raptors would probably want in return. The other suitors seem unlikely to trade with the Thunder.

Camby returning to New York? Sure does seem like a possibility. That three way trade doesn't benefit all three teams and probably shouldn't happen. What are the Clippers going to do with Quentin Richardson? He's only healthy body which the Clippers do need at this point. His value doesn't equal Marcus Camby's value. If the Clippers trade Camby, get a good young player or a veteran with equal value. As for the Knicks, Mike D'Antoni, for some odd reason doesn't like David Lee. I guess it is because Lee is playing center for the Knicks and he's rather short for that position. Newsday has a report up about the Knicks, Blazers, and Clippers possibly going forward with a three team trade with names such as Sergio Rodriguez and the usual suspects being involve. Hopefully, Mike Dunleavy knows what he's doing and gets something of value in return for Marcus Camby.