Go After Odom

With the Bulls in desperate need of frontcourt help, this blogger proposes an option that was discussed on this blog before the season started.  Now that Kirk Hinrich and Lakers forward Lamar Odom are both back from injury, why not attempt to trade Hinrich for the disgruntled Odom.  Odom is coming off the bench for the first time in his career, probably in his life, and is averaging far less minutes (26 per game) than in any other season.   Last season, when forced to play power forward, Odom showed that he could be a dominant inside presence.  He showed the ability to score on the block and rebound much better than he had in the past.  He’s also a fantastic passer, and if the offense were run through him in the post, he’d be able to kick the ball out for open jump shots better than most big men.

The Lakers would probably be open to at least considering such a swap.  Odom isn’t a huge part of the team’s game plan and Hinrich would be a major upgrade over Jordan Farmar.  Hinrich isn’t a pure point, which works just fine Phil Jackson’s triangle offense, and his perimeter shooting and slashing would benefit the club greatly.  Another player, such as Cedric Simmons, would have to be thrown into the deal on the Bulls’ end to make the trade work financially, but this would not be much of an issue.

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