Rumor: Sixers Targetting Troy Murphy and Jason Richardson

by Atma Brother ONE on Dec 13, 2006 10:03 AM PST in Rumors

It's always fun to see The New York Times get in on the NBA action and rumor mill. They are held to the highest journalistic standard in the land. When they write something, people listen- err, read. Here's a selection from their piece today Owner Says Kings Are Out of Iverson Running by Liz Robbins that's pertinent to Warriors Nation:

The Warriors' second-year guard, Monta Ellis, has been compared to Iverson, and Golden State seems hesitant to relinquish him. A swap for Baron Davis may make the most financial and basketball sense, but it could also hinder Ellis's backcourt development.

Executives at two N.B.A. teams with knowledge of the Sixers' interest said yesterday that the Sixers were targeting Warriors forward Troy Murphy, as well as guard Jason Richardson. Richardson has a knee injury and Murphy did not play last night because of a sore right foot.

If the Warriors did in fact move TMurph and JRich, Mullin and Higgins would be flat out admitting that their core just wasn't good enough to compete in the West. It's something most of us have thought for some time now.

On the other hand, Billy King and the Sixers would be very wise to target these two current Warriors. Sure, TMurph's contract is excessive, but in the East, especially the Atlantic division, he could do some serious damage. JRich, well I don't have to tell you how good he'd be when fully healthy in the East.

The AI Rumor Mill:

99% of rumors never happen, but 99% of them are fun to talk about!

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sigh......

Murph could be a very good player in the east, possible all-star material. And I don't mind getting rid of him.

It's hard to think of getting rid of Jason Richardson. Until this year he felt like the superstar face of the franchise, the heart of the team. With his knee hurt, Monta developing, and B-Diddy playing like the all-star he can be, that's all been lost, and I guess it comes down to, will he ever be the same? On this team, and with that knee, will he return to a leader/superstar/explosive/25ppg player? Cause if he won't........well.....leave an E-40 CD in your locker for AI I suppose......

Even if it's the best move, I WILL cry if we trade j-rich...

on the other hand, the bball lover in me is grinning at the thought of Rodney Carney, Andre Igoudala, and Jason Richardson playing together. Talk about poster night every quarter...the whole dunk contest could be made out of sixers.....

DAMMIT LOWELL COHN, why'd you convert me...

by bradyk2 on Dec 13, 2006 10:12 AM PST 0 recs

suspect...

i'm not really sold on an iggy, carney, richardson combo. perhaps i'm conflating their skills, but it seems like starting three 2-guards is similar to atlanta's overload of 3s. i feel that philly wouldn't necessarily want more of the same, ala Atlanta, cuz ultimately, whos going to lead the team?

by dj fuzzylogic on Dec 13, 2006 12:43 PM PST up 0 recs

This is getting a little out of hand

I enjoy a good rumor as much as the next guy, but there has been more than 10 posts in the last 24 hours on this subject. The Warriors are in. The Warriors are the top contenders. The Warriors are definitely out of the running. At this point every single player on the Warriors except like Matt Barnes have been mentioned in rumors.

Also, with a new post for every rumor the discussion can never get going. I suggest doing some type of giant merge or just keep one sticky post on top with the latest updates.

by Jud Booshler on Dec 13, 2006 10:21 AM PST 0 recs

You make a good point

But I know many people use RSS feeds to track GSoM. If there isn't a new post, they'll miss out on the latest in their readers.

Trust me I wish there were a better alternative. I'll keep thinking.

At this point every single player on the Warriors except like Matt Barnes have been mentioned in rumors.

I noticed that too. I really give the Warriors players a lot of credit for coming out and playing so well last night.

by Atma Brother ONE on Dec 13, 2006 10:43 AM PST up 0 recs

honestly...

the only rumor with real credibility si the one with b.d. and biedrins for iverson and hunter (with one missing warrior name). the reason that one sounds credibel is it just makes the msot sense for both teams, as long as it doesnt involve ellis. i'm sticking with that one and just riding things out until the official announcement hits espn.com (and gsom's) frontpage in huge bold letters.

good luck to u warrior nation!!

by gsdubz on Dec 13, 2006 12:51 PM PST up 0 recs

actually, that foursome works

as is on the trade machine, but trading Beedy now seems even more insane than trading Monta ...

by hardcore on Dec 13, 2006 1:01 PM PST up 0 recs

absolutely

Loosing B'Drins to land AI and Hunter would be a certifiable disaster. Something akin to trading Mitch Richmond for Billy Owens, but WORSE. B'Drins is our only serviceable center, and he fits perfectly with Nelly's system. Further, he has huge upside and we're only seeing the beginning of it now.

I'm gonna be REALLY pissed if we lose B'Drins.

by Jeremy Belvins on Dec 13, 2006 1:10 PM PST up 0 recs

Yup

While I can't get on board with the "Monta is untouchable" thing, I can agree that trading Biedrins would be a big mistake. We have seen him develop slowwwly before our eyes and it would be sad to see him go. Good big men like him are very hard to find..in my opinion much harder than a scoring guard like Monta. My number one untradeable would be JRich, but Bee-drich is number two.

by Jud Booshler on Dec 13, 2006 1:28 PM PST up 0 recs

Why?

Getting AI would make the team more exciting, but doesn't get us anywhere near the playoffs. If Baron is traded to get him, then who's the distributor? Who gets others involved? If you trade others to get him, and play Baron and AI together, who guards the 2? And both of those guys need the ball in their hands to be effective.

I'd rather see us work on resolving the Foyle situation (even if it means giving up a pick) and letting Monta develop.

by Carney04 on Dec 13, 2006 10:24 AM PST 0 recs

this one is fun!

http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=10~2381~2175~194~1013~2995~1002~366&te ams=20~20~20~20~4~4~9~9

RIP mAC dRE aka aNDrE mACAsSi aka MuHaMMeD I-E aka pILL cLinToN

by jmefrisco on Dec 13, 2006 10:24 AM PST 0 recs

:( This is very upsetting.

I don't want AI. >:o

If you take a look out of your windows, you can now see Dallas, TX. Quite the site, no?

by coma on Dec 13, 2006 10:45 AM PST 0 recs

KNBR reported

narrowed to final four teams are minn, denver, indiana and boston i believe is what they said.

by Athletix Man on Dec 13, 2006 10:46 AM PST 0 recs

Do it!

The Dub's have sucked for years...

Baron
Monta
AI
Biedrins
Diogu
Dunleavy
and yes Foyle are a team to be dealt with!

by bigcity7 on Dec 13, 2006 10:50 AM PST 0 recs

Given the MANGNITUDE of the AI trade rumors...

You should keep the RSS as it is...

I can't think of a bigger star ever joining the W's than AI -- THIS IS FREAKIN HUGE!

by bigcity7 on Dec 13, 2006 11:11 AM PST 0 recs

No Thanks

I don't think Allen is "the answer" for us. Let's get this team healthy and get some wins. I don't want Iverson coming in here and stagnating the offense. Thanks anyways

Big Tone

by tadams1080 on Dec 13, 2006 11:17 AM PST 0 recs

To be honest

I really don't want to see JRich moved. He's put his heart into this franchise, he's a "True Warrior" if you will.

Iverson may very well us into the playoffs but in 2 or 3 years he's gonna fizzle out, and then what?

by jonathan on Dec 13, 2006 11:21 AM PST 0 recs

brain-spinin-dizzying

to many posts to keep track of!!!

Nelson better be intimately involved in this decision for the good of this season and beyond

If we don't unload at least one bad contract in all off this, and lose JRich, ouch ...

this is our chance to unload Dunleavy, what happened? I can understand no one taking Foyle, but would you rather give up Murphy than Dunleavy? And why not give up MP?? His value will be less to us later when (hopefully) we need $space to lock up Beidrins

by hardcore on Dec 13, 2006 11:21 AM PST 0 recs

If King wants JRich

make it Dunleavy package

Philly is only in the driver's seat if we let them - they are the ones holding the hot potatoe not us!

by hardcore on Dec 13, 2006 11:23 AM PST up 0 recs

great idea!

by dj fuzzylogic on Dec 13, 2006 12:45 PM PST up 0 recs

I want something like this happening

http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=261~2750~1013~1018~1002~366&teams=9~16 ~20~20~9~16

by racsan on Dec 13, 2006 11:29 AM PST 0 recs

niiiiice

but I think Minn is only interested if they can pair AI & KG ... and, no unloading Dunleavy?

by hardcore on Dec 13, 2006 11:36 AM PST up 0 recs

No one really wants him

+ he has BaseYearCompensation which costs even more money this year if we trade him. Trying to keep it a bit realistic...

by racsan on Dec 13, 2006 11:39 AM PST up 0 recs

Precisely!

If they want JRich, and have to move AI, the cost is taking Dunleavy as well. We don't have to trade for AI - but Philly has to.

I see all this as a golden opportunity to unload two heavy 5 year contracts and add an All Star with one 3 year contract. But one of those contracts better be Dunleavy's or Foyle's (no chance) with either Murphy OR JRich, but no way do we give up both TM & JR and be left stuck with Dunleavy's $$$.
That's just stupid. So is including Beidrins.

Dunleavy + JRich for AI works on the NBA trade machine, for what that's worth (I don't pretend to be the capmeister but if the base yr comp was prohibitive, the trade machine would flag it.)

by hardcore on Dec 13, 2006 12:39 PM PST up 0 recs

HEAVEN!!!!!

Is where I would be if any one of these 3 trades went thru. I would hate to lose JR,but getting KG would be a god sent.
PG Baron
SG Ellis
SF MP
PF KG
C Beans
How could this line up miss the playoffs?

by Psion on Dec 14, 2006 1:10 PM PST up 0 recs

I said it before and I'll say it a MILLION TIMES!

J-Rich is probably the only Warriors (scratch that... Diddy, Ellis and Beans can jump on the boat too) that I wouldn't trade. This is just like letting go of Giambi or Tejada... all they wanted to do was play for the A's and was looking for a decent deal... not the ones they got by their respective teams right not... I see Richardson in the same light. All he wants to do is turn this franchise around... He's not Gilbert Arenas, and he's not the overpaid role player Jamison... He IS the FACE of this organization. Do you all remember last year's off-season where most of the talk of the town was about J-Rich giving up his role as the main option on the Warriors? He did so gracefully too... stating on multiple times that it was Baron Davis' team and that he just WANTS TO WIN. Then all of a sudden Davis doesn't play up to par (it was Monty... damn that Monty) and an injured J-Rich was left to save the team all by himself... ALL BY HIMSELF. Dunleavy didn't help him last season, Davis was out, Ellis was still developing, Murphy was Murphy, and Fisher was... better than normal but still Fisher. If Mullin trades Richardson now I will be more depressed than when they traded Tim Hardaway for some cat named Bimbo... BIMBO? Yes, Bimbo. This so reaks of the Mitch Richmond trade of '91... I can feel it.

by mightymadskillz on Dec 13, 2006 11:36 AM PST 0 recs

I agree....

I completely agree with madskillz.....however, as much as I love J-Rich, at some point you have to question where you're going when you've lost 12 seasons in a row. Like they said when Artest was up for grabs, sometimes you might run into players who aren't great people, and don't show a great name for your team off the court, but it is a business, and at some point you have to make sacrifices to win, as unfair as it is to certain players.

the opposite may be true here. I hope not. Go J-Rich. Go Warriors.

by bradyk2 on Dec 13, 2006 11:54 AM PST 0 recs

well, conversely,

I really hate taking in players with the kind of baggage that Artest brings with him. I feel like we dodged a bullet with that wanksta. AI is also pretty high profile, but at least he's not a head-case, who fancies himself as a rapper. By the way, have you heard Artest's music? There's nothing worse than jocks thinking they're musicians.

by Jeremy Belvins on Dec 13, 2006 12:59 PM PST up 0 recs

AI is a rapper too!

A.I. was a rapper long before Artest. A.I. had an album coming out but David Stern jumped in it and it was never released. However, you can find it leaked on the internet. I completely disagree with that last line "There's nothing worse than jocks thinking they're musicians". If that's what they want to do then let em' do it. No need to hate on someone trying to make their paper. There are many professional athletes who are musicians. Look at Barry Zito. No one says anything about him?

by ON THE RUN on Dec 13, 2006 1:06 PM PST up 0 recs

Actually I nearly mentioned Zito

And people do say plenty about him. After Barry's worse season ever, he was able to turn things around, and credited focusing on his game in place of his music/acting career as making all the difference. There were article and blogs all the time by people who'd long grown weary of Zito's lack of focus. His fantasy of becoming a rock star was largely attributed to said lack of focus.

And, yeah, I know AI dabbled in music too, but I thought he had largely put that behind him. Anyways, Artest spent an entire season off where he did little else other than talk about his non-exististant music career.

But, oh yeah, the reason I didn't mention Zito is because this is a BASKETBALL blog. I'm not even sure how many people here are A's fans.

by Jeremy Belvins on Dec 13, 2006 1:15 PM PST up 0 recs

zito, who plays a guitar...

everyone a rennaisance man these days. maybe that's j-rich's problem. he's too focused on basketball.

the warriors are like the insecure would-be romeo, who wants the glamorous woman who will treat him like dirt and ignores the solid lady right next to him...

(or something. after reading forty AI trade speculation articles today, i'm going a bit fuzzy...)

All-time Oakland Warriors starting five: Hardaway, J-Rich, Mullin, Mr. Mean & The Chief

by OaktownWarrior on Dec 13, 2006 1:55 PM PST up 0 recs

Basketball Blog...

I only named Zito as an example because you said "There's nothing worse than jocks thinking they're musicians." Jocks from what I remember isn't defined only by Basketball Players. As far as that Ron Artest saga goes...The guy was suspended from the league for almost the whole year. What else do you want him to do? Atleast he found ways to use his spare time due to that over excessive suspension. Other than all of this, Artest is still one of the best ON THE COURT.

by ON THE RUN on Dec 13, 2006 4:45 PM PST up 0 recs

Artest

"The guy was suspended from the league for almost the whole year. What else do you want him to do? Atleast he found ways to use his spare time due to that over excessive suspension."

Artest asked during the season for time off BEFORE his suspension to do the CD. The Pacers pointed out that he was getting paid to play basketball during the season not make music.

by Ace Fury on Dec 13, 2006 7:23 PM PST up 0 recs