Jazz Deal Ronnie Brewer to Grizzlies for 2011 Draft Pick
After all the Boozer rumors that swirled around espn.com this morning, at the last minute it was Ronnie Brewer who was sent packing…
Memphis has expressed interest in Ronnie B all season long, so I guess it wasn’t a huge surprise, but I’m sure there are many out there who were extremely taken aback by this news – However, I must admit, it caught me slightly off guard as well.
Based off of a lot of the instant reaction I’ve seen across the twitterverse, there doesn’t seem to be too many fans of this move. After being told the Jazz were only going to make a move if they felt it made the team better, I can see why there are some fans who feel mislead, but while I have always liked Brewer, I can’t say that I feel this move is going to really hurt the Jazz in the long run.
The first thought that comes to mind is that this is purely a salary move – and one that is going to save the Jazz quite a bit of money this year. Again, in these times, that fact cannot be overstated.
Beyond dollars and cents, let’s look at this a little further. Before this trade the Jazz had Ronnie Brewer, Wesley Matthews, CJ Miles, Kyle Korver and at times Andrei Kirilenko basically playing the same position. This brought some great depth, but it was simply hard to find minutes for all of these guys. Korver was facing constant DNPs, fans were clamoring for more Matthews, and the pure fact of the matter is that Brewer’s numbers have slipped significantly. Since the beginning of January he’s scored in double digits 5 times, while scoring in single digits 16 times. His average minutes per game have gone down every month since the start of the season as well, and bearing that in mind, the fact of the matter is that the Jazz have started playing much better as Ronnie’s minutes have gone down and others’ have gone up.
As far as the trade pick goes, it’s important to keep in mind that the trade is protected (I’m curious to see how protected it will be), but even though they’re having a solid season this year, the Grizzlies are never a bad team to have a draft pick from.
Anyway, these are just my knee-jerk thought to this trade.
Personally I’m very interested to see what guys like Matthews and Korver make with extended minutes, but most of all I’m very interested to hear what you think about this trade? Are you going to miss Brewer? Do you think the Jazz should have made any other moves? Do you think this trade was purely to clear up the confusion of having two Ronnies on the team?
Sound off!
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Justin
I've been a Jazz fan for well over two decades now, and I can safely say that my fandom only grows with each passing year. Yes, the Jazz have the power to ruin my mood for longer than I should probably allow, but they have also been responsible for some of the fondest memories I've had throughout the course of my life. To those of you who have found the ability to read through any of my long-winded Jazz rants in their entirety, I say a fond and sincere thank you.
19 Comments
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February 18, 2010
This trade doesnt make any sense at all… If you are going to trade someone for a salary dump, trade Miles, he makes 3.7 million and would save them more money than Ronnie. Plus, Ronnie has the intangibles that no one on the Jazz has.
February 18, 2010
when at 2:27 i recieved a text from espn saying “grizzlies acquire G ronnie brewer (9.5 ppg) from jazz for first-round draft pick” i nearly wept. what is the reason for this trade? ronnie is our most versitile player (aside from maybe ak) so im not a big fan of this trade
February 18, 2010
Nic,
You make some interesting points, one thing to keep in mind is that there was a demand for Ronnie Brewer by the Memphis Grizzlies, whereas I haven’t heard of anyone that was interested in taking CJ Miles for a draft pick. So while that may have saved money, you still need someone to make that trade.
I’m interested to hear what the intangibles you see Brewer bringing that no one else does.
February 18, 2010
Oh, and Ben, I’m curious to know how “plays good D, but has almost no offensive game outside of 2 feet of the rim” makes him the most versatile player the Jazz have?
February 18, 2010
As long as it doesnt jack up the good chemistry that we have going now, im all for it. We had way to big of a log jam at that spot. With more minutes, hopefully Korver, Mathews and CJ can get in a good groove as we go down the stretch. I will miss Brewer though……
February 18, 2010
Nate — I totally agree with you. I am nervous to see how that affects team chemistry, since it has been so high lately. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see about that one…
February 18, 2010
Its tough to see the Brew Crew go, I think he was my foavorite Jazz player. Kevin O’Connor is and architect hopefully this is a blessing in disguise.
February 18, 2010
He brings a toughness that has bought him respect around the league… He has been in the top 10 in steals for most of the year, and is our only “real” defender that can spell Andre. While Matthews is a good defender as well, he lacks the height and the long arms that Brewer has. This isnt the end of the world, but I dont think that anything needed to be done. I guess we will have to see how Matthews steps up. (Assuming he is the one to take over the starting role.) Which he should do, in my opinion.
February 19, 2010
Nic, just heard Ben Bags say on the radio that Memphis did not want CJ Miles.
February 19, 2010
Yeah, that much is obvious. CJ’s contract is bigger, so they’d much rather trade Miles than Brewer. Simply put, there was no market for Miles.
I gotta say.. Brewer is a class act for sure, but I just don’t see this being as devistating as people are making it out to be. How many times in this winning streak have we seen crunch time minutes go to Matthews for defense, or CJ (and very recently, Korver) for some offense and floor spreading?
I really do like Ronnie B and his chocolate milk commercial, but I just keep having visions of the Lakers playing 5 on 4 defense in the playoffs last year.
February 19, 2010
Ronnie Brewer looks like a cartoon moose. I will miss him.
February 19, 2010
I like the trade for two reasons. This was (likely) Brewer’s last year in Utah anyway AND there just weren’t enough minutes for 4 two guards.
I don’t think we would have made an effort to match the offers over the summer anyway (he was/is a restricted free agent). Even though Brewer was underpaid this year (currently at 2.7M, and in line for a 3.8M qualifying offer next year), he was/is sitting on a big raise starting next year, and we already have a cheaper version of Brewer named Wesley Matthews. I agree with JD that Brewer was a class act.
My main concern is that CJ “I never saw a shot I didn’t like” Miles will fill his void. I’d like to see Matthews start and Korver step up his minutes as well.
February 19, 2010
I hate this trade. A lot of players in this league play night in and night to pad their stats; most really don’t care about playing good team basketball. Brewer is an excellent teammate and cares more about winning than his stats. He’s our best player around the hoop and is one of our only good defenders. Our chances of getting someone better then Brewer in the future are miserable. Sad, sad, sad day to be a Jazz fan. Not to mention, we will almost never see a cool dunk anymore.
February 19, 2010
Great deal by Kevin O’Connor to get rid of brewer, saves lots of money, and more playing time for Wesley.
February 20, 2010
versitile as in hes always around the rim like you said and hes a great defend. i didnt say he could shoot
February 20, 2010
I know, I’m just saying that versatile would mean he can do a lot of things, and really, I looked at him as a good lane defender (Matthews is a better on ball defender in my opinion), a good slasher and decent finisher, but really not much else. So instead of versatile, I saw him as fairly limited.
He’s not even going to be starting on a mediocre Memphis team.
February 20, 2010
this is all true. i am just not a big fan of o’connor, i look to rip him at every turn if i can haha. but i am glad to see wesley potentially getting more mins gotta love how that kid plays.
February 21, 2010
Trade sucks, bring Ronnie back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
April 24, 2010
Trade sucks, bring Ronnie back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!