Steve Nash is a Laker. Ray Allen is in Miami. And Deron Williams is helping the Nets move across the Hudson River.
No matter what your allegiance, the NBA free agent signing period is fun stuff — not including the Dwight Howard saga, with which our collective patience is wearing thin.
It’s a shame that we fans can’t enjoy the same kind of player movement drama at the high school level.
Or can we?
Through the magic of words, here are a few Hancock County basketball trades that make sense:
Eastern Hancock’s Victor Vincz for New Palestine’s Seth Cox and Ryan Curry.
Vincz, a five-foot-10 senior guard, led the county in scoring last year at 18 points per game, and he would give the Dragons the penetrating ability they lost with the graduation of Josh Penley. Eastern Hancock coach Aaron Spaulding has a history of bringing out the best in his big men (Caleb Kennedy, Devin Tharpe), and in Cox, Spaulding gets a 6-foot-10, 250-pound junior that would immediately dominate the Mid-Hoosier Conference. New Pal throws Curry, a 5-7 sophomore perimeter threat, into the deal to give the Royals some backcourt scoring.
Chances of this trade happening (if that sort of thing were allowed): 40%
For New Palestine, this transaction is all about winning now. Pairing Vincz with returning Hancock County Player of the Year and senior forward Michael Morris gives the Dragons the best shot at defending their sectional title. But, while I’m sure Spaulding would like to have Cox and Curry for a combined five seasons (compared to the one year the Dragons get from Vincz), it’s doubtful the veteran coach lets go of a kid capable of a 52-point game, as Vincz proved one night last winter.
***
This story appears in the print edition of Daily Reporter. Subscribers can read the entire story online by signing in here or in our e-Edition by clicking here.