I Heard a Rumor...

If you were up and about early enough this morning you caught my tweet regarding the latest trade rumor, Kevin Martin to the Dallas Mavericks. As we approach the league trading deadline in February, I’ll try to cover more and more of these, but I’m really only going to cover the ones that make sense and seem likely. Especially when they involve a player like Kevin Martin. I’m going to break this down into three parts: why the deal makes sense, the impact for the Kings and the impact for the Mavs.

Why the deal makes sense:

First and foremost, Tyreke Evans is not a PG no matter how much the Kings want to believe he is. He’s a 2 guard at heart and his style of play and scoring ability will be maximized when he is in that position. Kevin Martin is a 2 guard as well, he could play the swing man at 3 but that would expose him defensively too much. Thus the Kings have two starters at the same position. What they don’t have is a solid 3. Omri has been good, no doubt, but he’s too young and too raw right now. It’ll take some time to develop that game into something cohesive that everyone can work with. The Mavs on the other hand, have an expendable 3 right now, in Josh Howard. Josh Howard is an explosive player (when he isn’t hurt) that can drive the lane and score. His game would complement the Kings quite well. From the Mavs standpoint, putting Martin next to Kidd and Dirk gives an awesome opportunity to compete in the playoffs. Josh Howard for Kevin Martin with some peripherals tossed in seems likely to me.

Impact on the Kings:

Beno at the point, Tyreke at the two, Josh Howard at the three, Thompson at the four, and now you start to see a team coming together. Howard goes from a marginal fantasy player to a bona fide buy low player. The key will be striking the deal before the trade occurs but still, only when it is all but guaranteed to happen. Beno gets an upgrade too, considering his reinsertion to the starting lineup and the extra scoring option on the floor for him to dish to. Tyreke is Tyreke, a player that continues to prove he’ll go no later than the third round in drafts next year. Thompson is the wild card here. After such a solid start, he’s really hit a wall lately. I don’t see the deal impacting him negatively, but he does need to get his game in order.

Impact on the Mavs:

Martin gets inserted immediately at the two, and he and Kidd instantly form one of the best backcourts in the league. I know what you’re thinking, playing with Dirk means less shots and less scoring. That’s not so. Martin will leap into position as the number two scoring option on the team. He’s got a great spot up jumper and you know Kidd will find him often. With Dirk drawing defenders toward the middle, I can see great harmony arising. What this does do is seriously damage Jason Terry’s fantasy value. He’s going to see much less minutes, and will probably spell Kidd more than Martin. If you hold Terry and this deal begins to look imminent, you’re gonna wanna deal him off. Shawn Marion will stay as the swing man and do his new 10 points 9 boards thing, and nothing else changes.

Again, I’m waiting for some more confirmation. It’s still just rumor at this point. Rest assured on one thing, Mark Cuban has a big mouth and you’re going to hear a lot about this deal if it’s going to happen. I’ll try to stay on the ball with it, but if anyone out there hears something, let us know! For fantasy impact I really like buying Josh Howard. I think he’ll really shine as the number two scoring option in Sacramento. I also like Beno as a WW pickup, as he could produce north of 5 assists per game consistently. If I own Martin, nothing changes. I like the new role and expect him to do what he does best, score efficiently. I downgrade Jason Terry and if I’m an owner I’m trying to move him if possible. A Jason Terry for Josh Howard trade would be ideal.

Did I miss anything here? What do you think about this deal?