Like teammate Monta Ellis, Warriors center Andris Biedrins' name has been in and out of trade rumors for quite some time. New Warriors coach Mark Jackson addressed the Ellis trade rumors immediately, but Warriors brass has been less definitive about whether Biedrins will be with the team. Even with Biedrins on-court shortcomings the last few years, apparently he still has some value and, allegedly, the Portland Trailblazers is the latest team interested in his services.
The original Biedrins rumor had the Warriors and the Houston Rockets exchanging Biedrins for former #2 overall pick Hasheem Thabeet and former #9 pick overall Jordan Hill. In his online chat, Comcast Sports Network Bay Area Matt Steinmetz suggests that the Trailblazers are interested in Biedrins in exchange for Marcus Camby:
Comment From Eric B
Is there any truth to the Biedrens for Marcus Camby rumor?I said this on TV the other day and believe it. Not only does Houston have some (a little) interest in Biedrins, but Portland does also. Keep in mind Portland has had devastation on their front line over the years -- Oden Przybilla, Pendergraph, all of those guys got hurt. They are thinking depth up there.
In that final sentence, Steinmetz, perhaps unintentionally, equates Biedrins with "depth." Let's break down that for a second. If it is an issue solely of age, then yes, Biedrins may be the player the Trailblazers should target given how age matters in how players recover from injuries. But looking at the durability of both players AND production from the last three years, it is somewhat even. Both played 59 games last season and the season prior (09-10), Camby was by far the more productive player playing 74 games and averaging 7 points and about 11.5 rebounds. The season prior to that, the season Biedrins went down with his devastating abdominal injury, both players played the 62 games and both averaged about 11 and 11 (advantage slightly in Biedrins favor).
So what kind of "depth" do you get with Biedrins? Trading Biedrins for Camby doesn't seem to provide the Blazers that much depth if your subtracting one of your steadiest rebounders in the process.
However, Camby only has one year left on his contract at $9 million. Getting rid of Biedrins disastrous contract at $9 million over the next three seasons makes perfect sense for the cap flexibility.
So, if you're the Warriors, sounds like a done deal, right?