Sorry Corey
Day 1 of the 2008 free agency market saw a big winner and a big loser. The winner was the Clippers who added an elite point guard and put themselves into the thick of the playoffs picture out west. The loser was Corey Maggette who was hoping for a raise but instead will now have to take a pay cut. Because the Clippers renounced Maggette's rights and now have signed Davis, there's no way that they can or will agree to a sign and trade. With that possibility gone, there's only a few teams that can Maggette more than the MLE and I doubt any of the able teams are going to be willing to pay Corey what he was hoping for. The one team that might make it happen is Golden State but I just don't think, with half of their roster floating around as free agents, if they would really be willing to spend that much on Corey.
So what does that mean?
It means that Corey's loss is about to become some contenders gain. If Corey can't get paid, you'd think he'd want a shot at winning (which he hasn't done much of in his career). The Celtics have made an offer out to Maggette but personally I'd rather wait for Posey. If we can't re-sign James, I'd rather split the money between a good big man and a cheaper swingman. Corey is a hell of an offensive player but he struggles on defense and I think it's important to have someone who can body up LeBron on the bench.
So where would the best fit be?
Phoenix could use a small forward but they'd probably be better off looking for someone who could help out defensively. Utah might have the personnel to mask Maggette's issues but I can't imagine Jerry Sloan is going to want to put up with Corey's less-than-cerebral game. San Antonio wouldn't be bad but, again, Maggette might be an issue on the defensive end. I could see a lot of open drives to the hoop after Manu flops and Maggette misses his rotation. The Spurs seemed hesitant to go after Maggette last year (for Brent Barry and Beno Udrih) and I don't think anything really changed with Corey over the past season. Detroit might be an interesting fit but I'd think that Corey would want to be a starter since he didn't seem thrilled in the 6th man role in Los Angeles (then again, backing up Tayshaun Prince is a lot different than sitting behind Quinton Ross). The knocks out Houston as well.
The perfect place for Corey Maggette to go could be Toronto. Anthony Parker could grab the tougher defensive assignment and Chris Bosh and Jermaine O'Neal would be backing him up. The only other team that I think could be as good a fit would be Dallas if they do indeed deal Josh Howard. But I can't see Corey waiting around for that to happen.
Can Bryan make it happen?
