Sources say that Hedo Turkoglu, the now fallen-from-grace Raptor, has expressed interest in returning to Sacramento. Apparently the deal is simply a straight-up swap of Nocioni for Hedo.Hedo? Wearing purple and white again?
Gulp.
Please, don't let this happen Geoff Petrie. Please. Hedo back with the Kings is a bad idea. B-A-D. Here are several reasons why:
1) Don't confuse the success of the Kings in the early 2000s with Hedo's quality as a player. That team was stacked. Super stacked. Starting 5? Mike Bibby, Doug Christie, Peja Stojakovic, Chris Webber, Vlade Divac. The bench? Bobby Jackson, Jim Jackson, Hedo Turkoglu, Keon Clark, Scot Pollard. Gerald Wallace was even on the team but didn't see any play time because the Kings were so deep. That is a great roster, 1-11. But, really, Hedo was just one small fraction of that squad. With or without him, they would have gone the same distance.
2) Also don't confuse the success of the Orlando Magic last year with Hedo's quality as a player. This is a common phenomena and an even more common mistake people, and especially GMs, make. Players that play deep into the play-offs recieve increased TV time, and as a result, we see them in action much more. Hedo's stint of play that went all the way to the NBA finals in 2009 gave him immense media burn, which lead to people overvaluing his skills, and allowed him to ride this wave of overexposure to a grossly disproportionate contract with Toronto.
3) By taking on Hedo, even if the Kings give up Nocioni's contract, Sacramento would have to accept his 5 year, $53 million contract. The Kings just did everything in its power to shed those bloated contracts from poor decisions of yore (looking at you Kevin Martin and Kenny Thomas). Why get back into a monetary bind?
4) Not to mention, this last season he's displayed both a pattern of arrogance and a disturbing dearth of work ethic. He took games off, went out on nights before games, and ate junk food before tip-off. All the while logging one of his worst statistical seasons ever (11 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists). If he comes to the Kings he'll bring all that baggage with him. Don't know about you, but that's not exactly the kind of attitude I want him to dispense to a very young Kings squad. Tyreke already seems like he might have a troubled career ahead of him (with his recent speeding fiasco and the drive-by allegations from the past), and this type of attitude on the team won't help. Look at it this way: there's a reason he was excommunicated from Toronto.
5) Where does he fit in the system? Hedo's touted as a "point-forward," meaning he needs to handle the ball to be most effective. Sorry dude, we already have a great Point Guard. If you relegate him to the small forward spot, what then? Does that mean we're giving up on developing Donte Greene and Omri Casspi?
So, in short, he's not that good, he's overpaid (sitting on cap space is OK!), he'll be a bad influence on the younger players, and he doesn't fit in the system. Ya dig?
As bad as Noc is, a straight up one-for-one swap for Hedo is so freakin' stupid, I can't even wrap my head around it. They're very similar players, except Nocioni is slightly less offensively potent and slightly better defensively. And way cheaper. If the Raptors thought about throwing in someone like DeRozan, then maybe it would be worth it. But right now? Hell to the no. That engorged contract makes it super lopsided.
But I can still see it going down. The Kings are the most under-attended franchise in the league, and I'm sure the Maloofs would do anything to get people back into Arco. I can see the advertisement campaign now: "Come watch Past King Great Hedo Turkoglu play where he got started!" Can't you just picture it?
Sigh. I sure can.
Ball
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