Newz Forum: BASKETBALL: T-Mac deal done!

HOUSTON (AP) - After more than a week of discussions, Orlando's Tracy McGrady and Houston's Steve Francis will be switching places. Francis met with Orlando Magic officials on Tuesday, paving the way for a multiplayer trade that would include NBA scoring leader Tracy McGrady.

Francis' agent, Jeff Fried, had said if all went well during the meeting with Magic general manager John Weisbrod and other team officials, a deal could be announced as early as Wednesday.

It turned out to be even earlier.

According to broadcast reports, the trade has the Rockets sending Francis, Cuttino Mobley, Kelvin Cato to Orlando for McGrady, Juwan Howard, Tyronn Lue and Reece Gaines.

When reports of a prospective deal came out last week, Francis balked at leaving Houston for rebuilding Orlando. But Fried said a talk between Francis and Weisbrod after Thursday's draft helped alleviate some of the All-Star guard's concerns about joining the Magic.

Fried said Weisbrod convinced Francis that the Magic could improve quickly with the additions of No. 1 draft pick Dwight Howard, a 6-foot-11 high school star from Atlanta, and point guard Jameer Nelson, the 5-11 point guard from St. Joseph's who won virtually every college player of the year award last season.

Francis was also impressed that the Magic wanted to make him the centerpiece of the rebuilding franchise.

"I think that he certainly believes in what John is trying to build," Fried said. The Magic "could well have gotten almost any player in the league for Tracy McGrady. Steve felt pretty pleased with their reasons for talking to him and what his role might be in the rebuilding process."

McGrady had vowed to exercise the opt-out clause that goes into effect at the end of next season.

So the Magic traded McGrady, the NBA's two-time scoring champion, because they didn't want him to leave without the team receiving compensation - like Shaquille O'Neal did eight years ago.

Francis, a three-time All-Star, averaged 16.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists last season to join Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson and Grant Hill as the only players in league history to average at least 15 points, five rebounds and five assists in each of their first five years.

Francis, Mobley and 7-5 center Yao Ming led the Rockets to the playoffs last season for the first time in five years. Houston lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round.

But Francis, who flourished in an up-tempo offense for the past four years, was put on the summer trading block after posting the worst numbers of his career in new coach Jeff Van Gundy's slower-paced offensive scheme

The funny thing with this one is that if it weren't for everything going on with Shaq and Kobe, this would be the biggest deal of the year and everybody would be talking about it.

Because there are still bigger and better deals to take place, it makes this one seem so small in comparison.

Personally, I think that Orlando got a bit of a better deal, but I won't know until Juwan Howard gets going. He's the guy who will make this trade look really good for one side, and really bad for the other.

I was hoping by some miracle the Magic would be able to land Yao. Once again the Magic have a new team, maybe this time it wont get broken up before they learn how to be contenders together.

Agreed.

It's nice to see the Magic take charge of a free agent situation. Hopefully Nelson, Mobley and Francis can form a formidable guard rotation.

Now, if only Gooden and Hill can have injury-free and high-quality years...

i dont think hill is gona come out and get injured again....he has been out for awhile just so he could become totally healthy. thats why he kept getting reinjured b4, he was coming back too soon. Francis, Hill, nelson, mobley, gooden, and D howard sounds like a damn good roster to me.

is everybody going to over-look the Rockets new addition? They have gotten one of the best Gaurds in the league and now they have one of the best comboes in the whole league in Yao and T-Mac. Granted the Magic do look like they have a better team this season, but do you take that team in the Magic or the new Rockets?

Originally posted by Ben
is everybody going to over-look the Rockets new addition? They have gotten one of the best Gaurds in the league and now they have one of the best comboes in the whole league in Yao and T-Mac.

True, but look at what they had to give up to get all of that.

if you had your own team, and could make that kindof deal, would you?

Well I look at this trade not really as how strong either team ended up but how much each team improved.

Houston was really just one piece away from looking dominant anyways, but Orlando needed a total overhaul to contend again.

With this trade the players from Orlando last year that honestly just gave up hope by the All-Star break are gone with some fresh new faces.

Add to this Grant Hill's hopefully returning healthy and Dwight Howard contributing as a rookie, and this team should at least make a low seed in the playoffs immediately. Hell this is the eastern conference, and since it looks like the Nets may break up that leaves only two teams that are locks to be strong every year.