Warriors Could Trade Entire Bench for One Player

By JOE KUKURA

Updated 10:43 AM PST, Fri, Feb 6, 2009

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In the wake of last night's shockingly easy Warriors win over the Phoenix Suns, the cut-ups over at Golden State of Mind are boggling a Suns/Dubs trade scenario.

Read more about the game here.

Here it is: The Warriors could acquire All-Star Amare Stoudemire using six -- count 'em -- six of their lesser-known players.

The Suns would actually be able to field an entire starting line-up with the players in this trade, plus one guy for the bench.

Chris Mullin -- you out there? I say get this baby done right away.

NBA trades are funny that way, general managers pay almost no consideration to the actual talent of the players they exchange.

It's all about salary, and the salaries have to pretty much match.

Great players are traded for a pile of garbage all the time, because the value of the garbagey players is measured in when their contract expires to create to salary cap space.

ESPN.com has an ingenious little web application which those of us who have nothing better to do can sit and create these salary-matching scenarios.

If you've got some brilliant trade idea cooked up for your NBA team of choice, you can test the players in mind to see if the salaries match.

If not, you tinker by getting other players in the mix until the trade works.

You'll be more confident than ever that you'd be a better general manager than the guy who actually is running the team.

Stoudemire trade rumors come up so frequently that you figure Phoenix has some intention to move him out.

Click here for the latest rumor.

The Sun's have to be shocked at their sudden mediocrity, and it's encouraging to think they're ready to hit the panic button.

Of all the Warriors who would be shipped out in this trade, only Biedrins is a regular starter.

You keep Monta. You keep Stephen Jackson. You keep Crawford and Maggette. You just pretty much lose the whole entire bench.

Biedrins would have to then ostensibly have to play behind Shaq -- but hey, that's they're problem. We'd be getting Amare Stoudemire!

Hey everybody, look at us, we could be getting Amare Stoudemire!

Joe Kukura is a freelance writer who has a "no trade to Phoenix" clause in his contract.