The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, December 5, 1994 - *Not all NBA trades are working as hoped Men's spikers defeat Spartans in five sets Newsday It's a convenient excuse and it's a common one: When new players join new teams, both sides need time to *adjust. That's what you'll get from the Miami Heat, Atlanta Hawks, Golden State Warriors and Washington Bul- lets, the biggest deal-makers of this very young NBA season. That's what you've been hearing for the last 11 days or so because these teams, aftermaking major trades, have looked miserable, especially last week. From last Sunday to Friday, *they were a combined 4-6, and the Warriors needed overtime to barely escape becoming the Los Angeles Clippers' first victim. So maybe it's not too unrealistic to ask this: Will all four teams benefit from those deals? Let's take this on a case-by-case basis: Heat: Lost Rony Seikaly, Grant *Long and Steve Smith. Gained Billy Owens and Kevin Willis. Prognosis: No one's suffered harder than the Heat in the post-trade era. Miami absorbed a 35-point beat- ing from the Magic, was ambushed at home by the Sacramento Kings and was waxed by 18 in Charlotte. The Heat has been magnetized to the bot- tom in the East. Did the Heat, a playoff team last Oseason, make trades just to get differ- ent bodies? It sure looks that way. Coach Kevin Loughery, who al- most moved elsewhere himself dur- ing the offseason, is desperate to find a workable starting unit. Owens, swapped for Seikaly, hasn't played 30 minutes since the trade and isgrum- bling about being a sixth man. The Willis-John Salley-Glen Rice front *ine doesn't seem better than the Rice- Long-Seikaly line of last year. And Miami, which also lost Brian Shaw to free agency, hasn't found a reliable replacement at the point. Salley, one of only two starters remaining from last season, said: "I am planning to stay positive, even though some negativity is creeping into this team like gangrene in a wound." Warriors: Lost Owens and Chris Webber. Gained Seikaly and Tom Gugliotta. Prognosis: Webber was everything Googs isn't: an intimidator, shot- blocker and clever inside scorer. He would have been a perfect comple- ment to Seikaly. Instead, the War- riors have another mid-range shooter who's susceptible to off-nights. But *given the tight situation caused by Webber, the Warriors could have done worse. Bullets: Lost Gugliotta. Gained Webber. Prognosis: You can't blame Webber for the Bullets' sudden slide. But maybe the Bullets have been hurt more by the loss of Googs than they've been helped by the addition of *Webber. They lost a shooter and, when Rex Chapman struggles (he scored a total of 15 points in two games last week), Washington suffers in the halfcourt game. Still, the Bullets hardly are a fin- ished product. "Once they get a legit lead guard and a center," said the Lakers' Sedale Threatt, "they'll have all the pieces to the puzzle." Hawks: Lost Willis. Gained Smith Wand Long. Prognosis: They're strictly a fi- nesse team whose fortunes depend on defense and how many fast-break baskets they get. On some nights, Long can match Willis' offense, but he isn't the same rebounder and may be a better sixth man than starter. The addition of Smith allowed Stacey Augmon to move to small forward, where he is better equipped to play. Still, the Hawks appear headed for the big slide that many predicted. That's because their real loss wasn't Willis, but Danny Manning. The Phoenix Suns were vulner- able at center, having sent Mark West to the Pistons, and yetthey still weren't willing to match Detroit's offer sheet for Oliver Miller last summer. Now you know why. Suns officials were deeply dis- turbed about Miller's lifestyle. A Phoenix woman claimed Miller sexu- ally assaulted her during a party at Cedric Ceballos' home, and not long before that, Miller's wife accused him o~f hatn he~r Rncth rhniras we~re the image business - witness Grant Hill - but they're also coming off a disastrous season. They need promis- ing players, and that's why they grabbed Miller, warts and all. Neither Miller nor his most recent accuser will talk. The Pistons believe Miller. "I know everything there is to know about it," general manager Billy McKinney said. "I've talked to the authorities and nobody's concerned." In other words, while there is smoke, the Pistons don't see fire - unlike the Suns. Around the league: During the Bulls-Jazz game Nov. 25, Bulls coach Phil Jackson pulled Karl Malone aside, wanting to know why he was still on the floor with Utah up 30. Malone replied: "At least I go in the game when my coach tells me to." ... Although Pacers assistant Gar Heard likes new point guard Mark Jackson, he isn't so sure the Pacers are better off. Heard said: "Haywoode (Workman) was our starter last year and he was very aggressive. He played defense. He didn't look to score and he kind of set the tempo of the game. Mark is still making the adjustment. Mark is not going to be the defensive player Haywoode is, but our point guard has to set the tempo and right now Mark is trying to find his identity with the team. This is not the same team as the end of last year. The aggressiveness just isn't there." By JAMES GOLDSTEIN Daily Sports Writer It didn't matter what lineup the Michigan men's volleyball team used. The Wolverines won even whenthey were out of their positions. Saturday night in Burton, Mich., a scrambling Michigan team defeated Michigan State in a tight, emotional five setter, 9-15, 15-11, 9-15, 15-13, 15-13. The win was Michigan's second over the Spartans this season. Previ- ously, the Wolverines beat their cross- state rivals in another tough five set contest during a preseason tourna- ment in Lansing. Once again, the win didn't come easily for the Wolverines. Michigan began slowly and ap- peared rusty after stepping onto the court for the first time in two weeks. The start was not the only problem for the team. "In the first game, we were cold and people were not communicating with each other," outside hitter Kevin Urban said. "We had a complete communica- tion breakdown in our passing game." The explosiveness of the Spartans' serving game also was another source of frustration for Michigan. Michigan State employed a heavy jump-serve barrage which stunned the Wolverines. Michigan was never able to regroup and watched the Spartans close out the game in convincing fashion. The second game consisted of: more than just digs, sets, and kills. An' intangible came into play that could have led the Spartans to take control' of the match. The Wolverines put in a lineup that placed several players out of their natural positions - an attempt to: match the powerful Spartans. The re- sult, however, was not what the play- ers had prepared for. By mistake,. Michigan gave the referee a lineup sheet that listed the players incor- rectly. Once that happened, the Wol- verines were stuck with this lineup. Instead of spelling doom for the Wolverines, Michigan coach Jenni- fer Slosar thought that this folly made the team try even harder. "Even with the lineup change, they, were forced to focus 100% of the time," Slosar said. "This was the best I've seen them play yet. They kept a level headA and knew what they had to do." The final three games were gruel- ing for Michigan as it was forced to: withstand the Spartans' significant height advantage, yet the Wolverines prevailed with an impressive defense' and timely serves. On match point, Michigan's Chad# Engel accidentally fell to the floor.: While sitting on the court, he used hid knuckles to knock the ball into the air; Captain Stan Lee took it from therd and put it away for the victory. That was just the kind of night it wa Warrior Rony Seikaly (top) and Indiana's Mark Jackson play for new teams. ~~ _r -I, ,I ~1 ax 4.2 Merrill Lynch Cordially invites all seniors interested in interviewing for a full-time position to submit a resume and cover letter to the Career Planning & Placement Center from December 5 -January 5. The appropriate contact persons are listed below. Investment Banking Analyst Program Greg Margolies Debt & Equity Intern Program Sara Karlen 1 I - I.r 0 ' r "11 T 1