would be sick… but we would have no bench.

MAYBE a bench of Diop, Bass, Stack, Jones, vet PG? Other than Bass and a touch of Bass and Diop here and there, this bench sucks.

But I dont think we can even do a Terry and Damp for Jer and Quisy can we? Do the contracts match up on that?

I think the best deal, is to use Stacks expiring contract to get Quisy this next year, in hopes that Indiana will release him and pull a brent barry.

I still like the Hinrich and Gordon for Terry and Stack deal the best though that I think you suggested in another post… But again, thats only even worth looking at if Avery goes there.

What I wanted was your opinion. Actually I can see every reason why you’re not convinced Artest is a good fit, or a good short term risk. I’m not surprised, nor am I turned off by it. I do think that Carlisle may push for the guy, and Nelson and Cuban may feel the short term risk is worth it.

I find it interesting so many people are hot to trot for Jermaine O’Neal, and I’ve yet to really undestand why. I’m not sure why O’Neal would be more attractive, unless you’re dumping Damp and Terry to do it. That is understandable.

Now, and this is fairly simple, I think Michael Redd doesn’t give you much of anything you don’t have to a limited degree with Terry. I especially think he doesn’t help in any matchup that can keep Dirk more of a rebounding threat on that end of the floor. Redd is every bit as expensive as O’Neal is, and worse will clog your cap in 2010 for a run at LeBron.

Honestly, and the reason I would do this trade from my end is for several reasons. One is that the Kings type of team doesn’t benefit from what Artest does best, and doesn’t have the type of talent that would balance what Artest doesn’t bring. Artest isn’t a particularly great rebounder, and the Kings suck at rebounding (especially at the 4). They aren’t great defensively with Artest either. The fit isn’t quite there, and the talent isn’t there to win at a level Artest would prefer. I think Dallas has all those things that would attract Ron in the first place: Carlisle, Dirk, the rebounding, and the fact that he could get some shots for the Mavs. He’s a one on one player.

The reason I don’t bring up trade rumor’s like Josh Howard for Ron Artest is they’re so hard to fathom. The only reason i said anything is that Sam Amick said something, and if Sam hadn’t, I wouldn’t have ever bothered to begin with.I would personaly have settled for Artest for Kleiza/Najera/Jr Smith at the deadline. I’d be ecstatic to have Howard because he can defend, and rebound better than Artest, and he’s fresh blood for a team that needs some.

As far as questions about the future there are always questions such as that. Either way thanks for the reply. And last but not least I understand total skepticism about the move especially long term. However, and I think this is a rather large but, there is a shelf life on how good this Mavs team will be wtih a young (overall) Lakers squad, a Suns team that could re-load quickly, and a Jazz team that could knock on the door sooner than later. The West is tough, and winning this year, or next, is always a tough propisition. I’m not sure there is any magic elixir other than rolling the dice and going for it. However, unlike Jason Kidd, I’m not sure the price is as steep for Artest as it is any of the other options you’ve mentioned.