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O'Neal and Ford Trade

According to every major sports news outlet, the Pacers and Raptors have agreed in principal to send Jermaine O'Neal to Toronto in exchange for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, cap filler (possibly Maceo Baston), and the #17 pick.

In real basketball terms, I believe this to be a win-win deal. Both players are injury risks, but if O'Neal is healthy/rejuvenated on a new team he could team with Chris Bosh to give the Raptors one of the best frontlines in basketball. Likewise, the Pacers and O'Neal had to move on from each other and for Indiana to get a potential impact starter at PG, a borderline starter/role player at C, and a useful draft pick (three years ago they got current best player Danny Granger with the #17 pick) in exchange for an injury-prone player with a huge contract is a nice haul.

Fantasy-wise, this trade could be even more of a win for all involved. O'Neal moves more to center, playing closer to the basket on defense which should lead to more rebounds and blocked shots. Bosh and O'Neal together is a nice high-low offensive combo, which should open up each to score well at better efficiencies. Jose Calderon no longer has to battle with TJ Ford for minutes, which makes him a likely top-5 fantasy point guard next year. And even someone like Andrea Bargnani, who in theory loses time to O'Neal, could be better off because he no longer has pressure to be something that he's not (i.e. a center) and instead can concentrate on doing what he does well (perimeter shooting, playing off other good scorers).

Ford could be in for a very big roto year next season. He is now the primary ball-handler in the Jim O'Brien offense that made Jamaal Tinsley a roto stud for the first half of last year. Ford is a better penetrator, better distributor, and better scorer than Tinsley which should make him a great fit. The only thing that Ford may lack is a consistent 3-point shot, but last season Ford showed signs of developing that shot, and in O'Brien's offense he is likely to shoot a LOT of treys which would add another roto dimension to his game. The presence of a true PG should also help both Granger and Mike Dunleavy Jr. as scorers on the wing.

It is rare that a trade appears to help out both teams in both real-life and fantasy terms, but on the surface I would say that this deal would be good for all involved. I would bump each player up a few notches on your fantasy draft sheet in the fall based upon their new locales.