The trade deadline came and went, and apparently we tried to get Walker Kessler. Reports suggest the Raptors offered multiple first round picks to the Utah Jazz for him. This is interesting because Kessler is quite tall, which is a trait basketball teams often prefer in their players.
I am not sure why the Jazz said no, or if they just like Kessler more than the idea of future draft picks. Draft picks are like a theoretical house you might build one day, while Kessler is a house that already exists and blocks shots. Sometimes you want the house that is already there.
The Center of Attention
Jakob Poeltl is back in the starting lineup for tonight's game against the Detroit Pistons. It is nice to see him there. He brings a certain stability to the floor, like a very tall librarian who is also good at rebounding.
We seem to always be looking for a center, even when we have one. It is like looking for your glasses while they are on top of your head. We have Jak, but we wanted Kessler, and before that we had various people whose names I sometimes forget.
Memory Lane and Mo Pete
Thinking about centers reminds me of the mid 2000s. There is a story floating around about a kid who argued with his daycare teacher that Morris Peterson was a better three point shooter than Chris Bosh. The teacher got upset, which is a funny thing for an adult to do with a child.
Mo Pete was reliable, especially with that one handed flick he did. He once caught a full court pass and hit a buzzer beater against the Wizards. Bosh was more of a mid range maestro, though he eventually learned to shoot from deep in Miami. The kid was probably right about the game winner logic.
Dealing with the Pistons
We are playing Detroit tonight. Every time we play the Pistons, I think about how cold it usually is in February. It is the kind of weather that makes you want to stay inside and look at trade rumors instead of actually doing things.
The Pistons are a basketball team that also exists in the Eastern Conference. We play them, the ball goes up, and eventually someone wins. Hopefully it is us, so the bus ride home feels a little shorter for everyone involved.
I wonder what happens to the draft picks we did not trade. They just sit there in a drawer somewhere in the front office. Maybe they stay in a digital folder. I hope they are being kept at a comfortable room temperature.