The Artest Move: What Would Happen if it Happened?

For those of you that haven't read about it for the past year or so, Ron Artest wants out of Sacramento, and he wants to play for a winner. Recently, there's been decided interest in going to join Kobe and company down in LA for the year, of course, provided that the Lakers can afford him. Deciding not to opt out of his contract makes him one of the more affordable defensive stops in the NBA for only $7 million on the remaining year in his contract. If you haven't already, check out John Ludden's analysis of the situation here. So what do I do if I were Lakers GM? Odom for Artest. Money doesn't work straight up, so take Kenny Thomas too, this he's owed $8.5 million over the next 2 years and Sacramento wants to get rid of him anyways, all that for Odom's $14 million remaining.

Here's my breakdown on how the trade works. Honestly, I think that $17 million for Ronny Turiaf is along the lines of some sort of major bank heist, seriously he's not worth it. However, Golden State has been so distraught over the loss of Baron Davis they've been throwing money around like there's no tomorrow (seriously, $50 million for Corey Maggette?). If I'm the Lakers' GM, I give up Ronny Turiaf, and then trade away Odom, it works out better for the Lakers for sure. Of course this is all assuming that Andrew Bynum comes back and picks up where he left off. Now, if he doesn't, letting go of Odom and maybe Turiaf will look like a colossal mistake, but I think it's a risk I'd be willing to take. Here's why; with Bynum coming back Pau Gasol slides over comfortably to the PF position, meaning Odom is either an SF now or he comes off the bench to back up Gasol. I prefer the latter simply for one reason, and one reason alone, Odom can't shoot for beans. Seriously, for a guy who's going to get the ball a lot less, you want someone that can catch and release, I really don't trust Odom reliably any more than like 8 feet away from the basket. Phil Jackson has also reported that he would rather start Vladamir Radmonovic at the three, the guy who can do nothing except catch and shoot (perhaps not as well as Jason Kapono), over Odom at the 3. The biggest problem with that, is simply that Radmonovic is an even bigger defensive liability than Odom. Artest solves both of those problems, he's got a fairly consistent shot, pretty legitimate from 3 pt range, and he's extraordinarily defensively tenacious. Some argue that you give up Odom's rebounding and passing, and I would argue first, with Bynum and Gasol both on the floor at the same time, how many rebounds do you seriously expect Odom to get? I also anticipate with the triangle offense locked around Bryant, Gasol, and Bynum, can you really expect Odom to get enough touches to make his passing that much more effective in the game? If Sacramento wants to throw in Kenny Thomas, all the better, he may not have the energy of Ronny Turiaf, but he's a heck of a lot better rebounder. As for locker room issues, let me remind you that Phil Jackson coached Dennis Rodman to 3 championships. So the only question that remains is, is Sacramento willing to trade one of their best players to not only a conference rival but also a division rival as well? (aka have Sacramento given up on making the playoffs next year? aka is the Sacramento front-office as dumb as Memphis's?)