How the Pelicans Could Trade Tyreke Evans
Trade #2: The Jonas Brothers
Pelicans Receive: Jonas Valanciunas, OJ Mayo
Feb 10, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas (17) dunks against the New Orleans Pelicans at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
Bucks Receive: Tyreke Evans, Jeff Withey
Raptors Get: John Henson, Bucks 20th pick in the 2015 draft
Why the Pelicans do it:
Omer Asik is a great rebounder and defender but it seems like this Pelicans roster is focused on becoming an offensive team, and playing with athleticism and pace.
Jonas Valanciunas is a fantastic young center who fits the Pelicans age window a lot better than Asik, and he’s already blessed with a skill set that would fit really well next to Anthony Davis.
Jonas Valanciunas averages 16.5 points and 11.9 rebounds while shooting 78% from the free throw line. That kind of stat-line coupled with his already advanced post arsenal makes him one of the best 23-year-old centers in recent memory.
Valanciunas could grow with Davis for the next decade, while Asik is getting dangerously close to his 30s.
OJ Mayo on the other hand could take the backup minutes Tyreke was responsible for and provide some bench clucking. He gained some weight a season ago, and seemed disinterested in competition, so the league and the Bucks specifically simply gave up on him.
Mayo is a talented player and could be revived by the Pelicans, but even if he just plays like he has the past two season, he would still be a valuable addition.
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Mayo averaged 17.1 points and 4.2 assists last season and has a career three-point percentage of 37%.
He’s nowhere near the playmaker and creator that Tyreke is, but he can space the floor significantly better and would cost less than Tyreke. He’s a chucker, but having one of those on our bench isn’t a bad thing in limited minutes.
Tyreke was a good signing when this roster was young and needed offense to be created, but Davis is more than capable of being a 1st option now and leading the offense by himself.
Getting Jrue Holiday back, and then surrounding him and Davis with better shooters, and a young low post threat would be fantastic for the Pelicans offense going forward.
Why the Bucks do it:
The Bucks have built a beautiful defensive culture. They have multiple 6’8″-6’10” players who are versatile enough to switch pick and rolls, and can go small while still remaining defensively effective.
Where they are lacking as a team is on offense, specifically with creation and playmaking. The Bucks have such impressive spacing and versatility that Tyreke Evans would be able to succeed and play to his strengths.
Their core of Middleton, Giannis, and Parker doesn’t include a clear distributor, and Michael Carter-Williams is looking worse and worse as a starting NBA point guard. The reason the Bucks traded for Carter-Williams largely because he resembled a young Jason Kidd who is their current head coach.
Tyreke Evans is closer to Jason Kidd then MCW will ever be.
During a five game stretch this season where Tyreke was the primary starting point guard for the Pelicans and Anthony Davis was out he averaged 16.6 points, 9.2 assists, and 4.2 rebounds on 48% shooting from the field and 35% from deep.
Prime Jason Kidd averaged 16.9 points, 10.8 assists, and 6.8 assists on 46% shooting and 36% from deep.
Now Tyreke Evans is nowhere near as good as prime Jason Kidd, but they do have a similar play style.
They’re both bulky tall guards who struggled with three-point shooting early, and excel at getting into the lane and bullying smaller guards to distribute or score. If there’s one coach who will understand Tyreke’s game, and help him suceed, it’s Jason Kidd.
The Bucks will also be able to get out of OJ Mayo’s contract, a player their fan-base has grown to detest.
This trade has them losing John Henson, who is a solid rim protecting center, but reports have come forward which suggest the Bucks are looking at going after either Brook Lopez or Tyson Chandler, making Henson less important to their rotation.
They would get also Jeff Withey, who is a serviceable backup for either of those free agent centers.
The Bucks made the playoffs due to their progressive defense and offensive spacing.
The struggled on the offensive end, specifically because they went through stagnant periods and lacked a powerful offensive creator. Tyreke is a great player when he fits, and he would fit in perfectly in Milwaukee.
Why the Raptors do it:
Jonas Valanciunas is a great player, but for some reason the Raptors don’t trust him.
Head Coach Dwayne Casey continuously pulls him out in the 4th quarter, and his minutes have been in the 20s his entire career. Valanciunas isn’t really a rim protector as well, and it seems like Casey is looking for that at the center position, instead of a european offensive low post offensive specialist.
In this trade the Raptors get a young athletic rim protector in John Henson, and a valuable first rounder. Casey wouldn’t need to clash with Valanciunas, and he would have the athletic rim protector he always wanted to finish games with.
There’s also a good chance Sam Dekker, Bobby Portis, or even Kelly Oubre Jr. could be available at 20 if his stock continues to drop.
Pairing one of these rookies, especially Oubre Jr. with John Henson, Kyle Lowry, Demar Derozan and Amir Johnson could help the Raptors develop a serious defensive identity.
Nov 2, 2013; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan (10) passes the ball as Milwaukee Bucks forward John Henson (31) and forward Khris Middleton (22) defend during the third quarter at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
John Henson’s career per 36 minute averages are 15.0 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 2.7 blocks. Anthony Davis also averages 21.2 points, 10.2 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per 36 minutes for his career, so minus his offensive skills they average the exact same amount of rebounds and blocks.
Henson’s defensive impact is comparable to one of the best in the league, and he could hold down the center position for the Raptors for the next half decade.
Tyreke isn’t easy to move. He doesn’t fit on just any roster like some generic three and D players do, and he needs a certain amount of freedom to succeed.
Though it’s a challenge to do so, once you put Tyreke in a favorable position he is an amazing offensive player. Very few players in the league have his combination of size and ball handling ability, and he’s still a top five finisher in the entire NBA.
Odds are the Pelicans decide to keep their shrink-two, but a smartly timed move before the 2016 cap increase could yield serious benefits long-term…..