Left feeling April foolish, worst NBA deals of 08-09

April Fools day may be over but this season has left several NBA franchises feeling foolish due to poor choices made in player acquisitions this past year. We at “The Puns” have put together a list of the five worst player signings/trades that have left their teams wishing someone would yell APRIL FOOLS in hopes that it never happened.

5. Allen Iverson / Detroit Pistons – Denver gladly took Billups and his all-star caliber PG play and leadership off the hand of the Pistons for team chemistry killer AI, whose skills have diminished but ego has not. The only redeeming feature of this deal is Iverson’s expiring contract that will allow Detroit to be a major player in this summer’s free agency market.

4. Corey Maggette / Golden State – While Maggette is a solid player, I question why a team already loaded with SG/SF’s would spend $49 mill. over five years on another while ignoring glaring needs at PG and PF.

3. Jermaine O'Neal /Raptors and Heat – The Raptors were so happy with their trade for O'Neal that they traded him before the trade deadline for Shawn Marion and his expiring contract. Even in Miami where Oneal is filling a huge need at center the Heat are only one game over .500 since the trade. O'Neal is a long way from playing anywhere near his salary which is the 4th highest in the league.

2. Elton Brand / Sixers – The Sixer’s will make the playoffs this year but have little to show for spending their precious cap space on the player they hoped would help them to compete with the Eastern conference elite. Another injury plagued year for the veteran low post scorer that struggled when he was healthy trying to find space in the paint. The Sixers are the worst three point shooting team in the league allowing teams to collapse into the paint. The Sixers need a healthy Brand AND to make moves to improve their outside shooting if this signing is to pay dividends down the road.

1. Baron Davis / LA Clippers – Brand stunned the Clippers by bolting for Philly after believing they had their dream All-Star PG and Center combo ready to sign. Baron kept his word and signed into what turned into the most dysfunctional team in the league. Davis showed little of the leadership and fire he had displayed at Golden State the last few years and as always missed a good number of games from injuries.

Next week we will look at the top five veteran player acquisitions for the season

Detroit Pistons at Orlando Magic Game Preview

It's time for your Orlando Magic to battle their bugaboo, a desperate sliding Detroit Pistons team. Let's get it started.

• As we know by now Rasheed Wallace will play tonight but Terry Foster of the Detroit News is calling for the Pistons to cut him.


• Chris McCosky of the same Detroit News tell us that maybe it's time to bench Allen Iverson and start Richard Hamilton considering their 4-12 record with Rip on the bench.


• Kudos are due to our very own Dwight Howard who received the NBA's Community Assist Award for the month of January.


• If you have always hated the space bar yet love Adonal Foyle we learn from the National Post's Outlandish section that he pulled an ad in yesterday's Orlando Sentinel to thank the fans.


• Senior V.P. of the Magic Pat Williams swung by the Herd yesterday to discuss his new book and the possibilities of Dwight Howard becoming an all-time great.


• NBA.com tells us that Rafer Alston has fit in just fine with his new teammates and that he sometimes misses his AND1 roots.

Detroit has won 7 out of 9 regular season games against Orlando and 8 of their last 9 playoff games but are on an eight game losing streak. Something has to give!!

Perhaps There Was An Age Where Men Dreamed of the Possibilities of Outer Space

Everyone wants to talk about the all star game selections, it seems, with one of several stories being that the Magic got too many players in the game, that Mo Williams and Al Jefferson were huge snubs, and what the hell is David West doing there. All valid questions and concerns, I suppose, though the whole debate of who should or shouldn't be an all star seems ridiculous in a world where Allen Iverson is going to start in said all star game seems at best silly and at worst a complete waste of time.

It seems ludicrous to me that people would put serious stock in all star game appearances when the starters are voted in by fans, and the average basketball fan is only as knowledgeable as the various things shouted at them on 8am Sportscenter once a week. That's why Allen Iverson gets voted in over Devin Harris and Joe Johnson: people don't know any better. And if we're going to continue to have that kind of popularity contest once a year at the season's midpoint, why give it any kind of merit in terms of player v. player comparisons? It's not like the all star game itself has any integrity to begin with.

For all of the NBA and the media's constant harping on the "defense wins championships" motto, like a 64 year old hooker in Vegas who's still turning tricks because, well damn, it's all she knows how to do, they still make a big deal once day a year out of a game that promotes the idea that if you act "big" enough, you'll never have to defend in your career. I have no problem with an exhibition game where players show off their athleticism, and attempt to pull off overly elaborate superstar plays. That's fine. But if that's what you're going to do, do it. I guarantee that Rudy Gay could come up with much flashier plays than Tim Duncan, and if you're going to present the all star game as an exhibition of Sportscenter highlights, don't pretend the game itself has value.

After all, it's not like anyone thinks the winner of the allstar game is the best conference anyway.