MID-AUGUST SIGNING AND TRADE ANALYSIS August 19, 1999 Lorenzen Wright, who at one time was contemplating a job with the Lakers, instead went to the Atlanta Hawks in a sign-and-trade deal for two No. 1 picks. In Atlanta the player who command the most amount of playing time at forward is uncertain. Candidates are Wright, Alan Henderson, Grant Long, LaPhonso Ellis, and Chris Crawford. It would be wise to see if a player is emerging during training camp, but it seems as if none of these players will have great fantasy value due to the competition. The Orlando Magic traded center Ike Austin to the Washington Wizards for Terry Davis, Ben Wallace, Tim Legler and Jeff McInnis. Davis and Legler should end up as role players with little fantasy value provided they make the team. Ben Wallace should end up with significant minutes at the center position although his fantasy value may be limited by competition from Michael Doleac. Jeff McInnis should have a decent shot at earning substantial playing time at the guard spot but he you should wait to take him as a free agent if that happens. Considering the number of changes to the Magic lineup in recent weeks, predicting the eventual playing rotation is difficult at this point. It seems as if all of the trades have left the Magic with a ton of players, not all of which can make the team. I therefore would be hesitant about picking any of the Magic players other than Daryl Armstrong and Bo Outlaw. Derek Fisher has agreed to a seven-year contract worth about $30 million. He's expected to be the starting point guard next year and should average 30 minutes plus per game. Last season, competition with Derek Harper limited his fantasy value. This contract suggests that Fisher should be the man next season. But even with the additional minutes his fantasy value will not be too great because of a lack of scoring. He should though provide plenty of assists. The Knicks signed free agent forward John Wallace, a first-round pick of the team in 1996. His fantasy value should be limited as a backup unless a player such as Larry Johnson gets hurt. The Toronto Raptors re-signed center Michael Stewart to a six-year, $24 million contract. This is shocking for a player that averaged only 9.4 minutes per game with Toronto last season and scored just 61 points in 42 games. The Raptors were attempting to bolster their front line after losing John Wallace to the Knicks. If Stewart receives playing time commensurate with his salary next season he could be a productive fantasy player since he does have outstanding per minute shot blocking and rebounding numbers. His value will also be contingent on the outcome of the Charles Oakley situation. Free agent Vernon Maxwell signed a three-year contract with the Seattle SuperSonics. Although Maxwell had somewhat of a comeback season last year with the Kings he will not be a desirable fantasy player. One liability with Vernon is his poor shooting. Over his 11 year career, Maxwell has a 40.3 field goal percentage and has posted sub 40% marks over the past 6 seasons. He does not supplement his poor shooting with much from the other categories either. The Los Angeles Clippers re-signed forward Tyrone Nesby, matching the three-year, $8.9 million offer the 6-foot-6 forward signed with the San Antonio Spurs. Nesby may not see the playing time he received his rookie year due to the addition of Lamar Odom. Rik Smits who considered retiring from the NBA because of chronic foot pain, has decided to return next season, a newspaper reported. Smits has marginal fantasy value with two healthy feet because of a lack of rebounding and shot blocking for a center. The fact that retirement is even an issue with him makes him a player to avoid in your fantasy draft. Chances are he may be missing games next season because of his foot problems. The Cleveland Cavaliers added depth to their front court by signing free-agent forward Mark Bryant. When a player is considered at a 'depth addition' that is another way of saying he will have limited fantasy value due to a lack of playing time. New Jersey Nets re-signed 7-7 Gheorghe Muresan to a one-year deal shortly after waiving fellow center Rony Seikaly, who appeared in just 18 games for the team last season following an ill-fated trade. Muresan is a risky pick because he has missed most of the last two seasons with injuries. His fantasy value will be contingent on the number of minutes he plays during training camp. Shammond Williams signed a three-year contract Thursday with the Seattle SuperSonics. Last season Williams played in only two games for the Hawks before being waived in February. It is unlikely he will have any fantasy value next season. The Seattle SuperSonics have signed forward Ruben Patterson to a three-year contract. Patterson played 24 games last season with the Los Angeles Lakers, starting two. He should have no fantasy value next season. Tony Delk, a backup point guard with the Golden State Warriors, signed a multi-year contract with the Sacramento Kings on Monday. He should struggle for playing time behind Jason Williams and the recently signed Darrick Martin. The Chicago Bulls sent Brent Barry to the Seattle SuperSonics for guards James Cotton and Hersey Hawkins. The Bulls had just signed Barry to a six-year, $27 million contract last January. After a disappointing year for Barry, theBulls decided to go with a proven veteran in Hawkins. This trade should give a boost to the fantasy value of Hersey Hawkins who should be a more important part of the Bulls offense than he was for the Sonics. Philadelphia traded Harvey Grant and Anthony Parker to Orlando for Billy Owens. This represents the sixth team in Owen's career. He has potential, but as each team has found out, he does not live up to it. Joe Smith signed a one-year, $2.2 million contract to stay with the Wolves. The fact that it is just a one year deal should motivate Smith to put up numbers for a new contract. Free-agent Aaron Williams has agreed to a two-year, $2.3 million contract with the Washington Wizards. The Wizards' have lost Otis Thorpe, Ben Wallace and Terry Davis from power-forward position in the offseason although they have added Isaac Austin at center. Williams has decent per minute stats for blocks, rebounds, and points and he should get more playing time for the Wizards than he got with the Sonics. Washington Wizards guard Mitch Richmond reportedly has agreed to terms on an incentive-driven four-year, $40 million contract. Last season Richmond had the lowest scoring average of his ten year NBA career. Richmond, who is 34, showed signs of slowing down, but perhaps the icentives in his new contract will keep his performances and fantasy value from deteriorating any further. Playing next to assist machine Rod Strickland, Richmond saw his own assist average drop to only 2.4 per game last season down from a career average of 3.8. For this reason his scoring becomes even more important for his fantasy value. Seattle re-signed Vin Baker to a 7 year, $86.7 million contract. The contract contains weight clauses for Baker to receive the full amount. Too bad it does not contain some sort of performance clause. Baker is coming off a terrible year and was rewarded with a huge contract - what incentive is there for him to improve now? Not even representing his country this summer in the Olympic qualifying tournament inspired him to get in shape. I would avoid Baker in next years fantasy draft. Todd Fuller and Greg Foster have both left the Utah Jazz through free agency. On the surface this may not seem significant but it leaves Greg Ostertag as one of the only remaining center for the Jazz. In the past his fantasy value has been limited by the center by committee strategy in Utah. With his shot blocking and rebounding abilities he may have decent fantasy value next season with extended playing time. The Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic made a four-player trade, with Milwaukee sending forwards Chris Gatling and Armon Gilliam to Orlando for forward Danny Manning and guard Dale Ellis. This deal involves a number of mediocre fantasy players, but if anything, it should help Danny Manning's fantasy value since there will be less competition in Milwaukee for playing time. He remains an undesirable player though because of his injury history. To get a complete player rating report with a ranking of players customized to your league categories order The Hoops Klyce Player Rating Report. Previous Article Next Article Copyright © Hoops Klyce 2000 - All Rights Reserved Website Designed by Lelnet Failed to execute script '../cgi-local/ax.cgi': Win32 Error Code = 2