Joe Smith

The L.A. Lakers made their big tax-saving move back in December, when they traded Sasha Vujacic and a first round pick to New Jersey back in December, in a trade that was so predictable, even an idiot like me could predict it. The Lakers also received Joe Smith in that deal, a minimum salary player with no contributions left to give on the court; it was subsequently predicted by the author that Smith too would be dealt, his one year minimum salary contract being easily tradeable due to its ability to be absorbed by any team, even those over the cap, via the Minimum Salary Exception. However, for whatever reason, this did not happen.

Incidentally, Smith, if he plays for the Lakers, will be playing for his twelfth different NBA franchise. This would tie him for the all-time record along with Chucky Brown, Tony Massenburg and Jim Jackson.

Additionally, it is incredibly likely that he is dealt again, for he is surplus to requirements in LA and is nought but an expensive cheerleader, costing the team about $1.5 million when luxury tax payments are included. Smith earns the minimum and thus will be easy to salary dump - the Bulls' 2012 second rounder, obtained in this trade, could be used as incentive for any recipient team, as could good old fashioned cash. If Smith plays for the Lakers, is traded somewhere else later on, and winds up playing for them as well, he will be the new record holder. However, to do this, he'll have to be traded to either Boston, Charlotte, Dallas, Houston, Indiana, L.A. Clippers, Memphis, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Orlando, Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento, San Antonio, Toronto, Utah or Washington. There's also a good chance that he doesn't even play for the Lakers and sticks at 11. Start hoping, though.

Simmons played in the Nets' first 18 games last season, then played in only 5 more the rest of the way. He was injured; rather, he was DNP'd, hoping for a trade or a release that never came. Simmons's production has fallen off wildly over the years, but he was genuinely good once, and retains a good jumpshot. If he can stay healthy and if he hasn't lost too much of his athleticism, he's a logical candidate to make the team (which has no real backups to Richard Jefferson at small forward), in theory becoming the next Bruce Bowen/Keith Bogans type for the Spurs, who apparently are contractually obligated to have at least one wing player each season who mustn't take a dribble.

Smiling Joe is fresh from the worst season of his career, when he played only 592 minutes and shot less than 40% for the Hawks. Worryingly, it was also the season in which he passed the 1,000 regular season games mark, not good for a man with a history of knee problems. There's a possibility that this was a blip, but it's more likely to be a worrying sign of an irreversible decline, considering his age (35).

Joe Smith - Smilin' Joe is a scoring option, armed with a good mid-range jumpshot, hook shots with both hands, and an impossibly chipper demeanour. He is certainly not the player he once was, and probably wouldn't even be the player that he was once after reinventing himself from the player he was once, either. This is evidenced by the 40% he shot last season for Atlanta, scoring 194 points on 193 shots. Yet if we're willing to overlook last year as an anomaly, then Joe has something to contribute offensively.

Joe Smith - Smith can still stick the jumpshot and hit turnaround lefty hook shots. He will probably continue to smile about it, too.