re: Unrealistic expectations

quote:

---

I know this has been answered before but how much money did the hornets save from acquiring rashard Lewis and what would be some wise moves to do with that money?

---

Buying him out saved $10m this year. We've already made all the moves we can make from the buyout. The trade freed us of the $22m combined that Okafor and Ariza were making NEXT season. Depending on whose options we pick up next year (Lopez all but certain, Vasquez HIGHLY likely, Aminu very iffy, Henry and Warrick will be let go) we will definitely have enough money to go after one of the smaller max guys, or players in the $13m range (Iggy, Al Jefferson, maybe Josh Smith). Having money for a bigger max guy like CP3 or Bynum isn't a sure thing. Unfortunately, in terms of players we could realistically get, next year isn't a very good FA class. SGs are solid, SFs are pretty bad, and PG/C is top heavy (CP3, Dwight, Bynum), with CP3 being a long shot to return and the other two likely unwilling to ever play in NOLA, regardless of how much we offer and how good our team is.