I Had a Dream...

I had a dream...

That Michael Jordan had taken Satan's offer to trade Elton Brand for the number one pick in the 2001 draft. Jordan, the Wizards general manager, passed on the trade offer from the Bull's Jerry Krause to draft sure-fire all-star Kawame Brown. With Jordan, Elton Brand, and Richard Hamilton the Wizards would have had a legitimate shot at a finals appearance. Instead Jordan was forced to carry the entire load, missed the last part of the season with tendonitis in his knee, and retired to be fired from the general manager's position.

I had a dream...

That the Denver Nuggets drafted Amare Stoudemire instead of Nickoloz Tskitishvili and drafted Carmelo Anthony. The Nuggs then signed Gilbert Arenas instead of Andre Miller. The Nuggets were the best team in the west with their unmatched trio of stars. Instead the Nuggets run in place, unable to drop back to the lottery to secure a post presence, nor able to break through their
ceiling and enter the upper echelon of the west.

I had a dream...

That the Cleveland Cavilers drafted high school super-athlete Josh Smith in the 2004 draft instead of nonathletic, injury prone, bust guaranteed Oregon star Luke Jackson. With LeBron James and Smith manning the wing positions the Cavs never considered signing the great Larry Hughes. Instead they used that money to sign a competent point guard. With Smith and a point guard who can both shoot and pass, as opposed to neither of those things, LeBron wasn't coasting during most games and wasn’t making me think of the next Kevin Garnett instead of the next Oscar Robertson/Magic Johnson/Michael Jordan comparisons.


I had a dream...

That the Atlanta Hawks had drafted DeRon Williams or Chris Paul, instead of Marvin Williams. M. Williams was a clone of several player on their roster while D. Williams and Paul were head and shoulders above anyone else on the Hawk's roster. The Hawks had Paul/D. Williams, Josh Smith, Josh Childress, Joe Johnson, Zaza Pachulia, and hope of crawling out of the lottery. Instead the Hawks run in place while Williams and Paul both begin what
might be Hall of Fame careers.

I had a dream...

That the Orlando Magic had not traded Tracy McGrady for Steve Francis and Catino Mobley in the summer of 2004. With McGrady, Dwight Howard, and Jameer Nelson the Magic would be the clear cut favorites to win the weak Eastern Conference. In one episode of Seinfeld, Jerry wanted to return a sport jacket purely out of spite. For the same reason the Magic chose to get rid of McGrady. Now the Magic are desperate for a veteran leader who can create his own offense. Instead they are probably two years away from championship contention (if they fill their T-Mac size hole by then.)