re: General NBA Links

First, I love this type of discussion. You're making very good points and many, many that I don't really disagree with. So thanks for engaging in a good way.

quote:

---

CHI is afraid(for some reason) of paying the tax which is why they ditched deng.

---

Chicago is a big market that acts like a small market. LA dumped salary this year too. I think that's more of a "we're not going any where, so why pay extra money."

quote:

---

Memphis/Indy got rid of guys they didn't really need(gay sure in the hell ain't worth what he is getting paid imo

---

I wasn't talking about Gay, but the Ellington/Speights straight salary dump they made before Gay. That got them under the cap and sent away their only reliable 3 pt shooter.

quote:

---

MEM got allen(a pretty sizable cog)/Indy got Dwest /SA is always doing some sort of shrewd FA move.

---

Those are support pieces- 4th, 5th or lower type guys. You certainly have to make smart decisions, but those moves don't mean much if theses teams hadn't nailed their cores largely through the draft.

quote:

---

I like monroe and suprisingly jennings(who's played better than expected imo) the only odd piece is smith.

---

Yeah. I was probably too harsh. A GM with any sense might be able to do something. But I don't know if they reup Monroe to the max he wants this summer. That's a big piece they might lose.

And I agree on Charlotte. Their defensive turnaround gives me hope that the Pels can do the same next season. They have been a top 10 defense all season. Astounding.

quote:

---

As soon as some of that salary they have expires,they should have enough space(and a top 5ish pick) to go along with a solid core of Burke/Hayward/Burks/Favors/Kanter to attract a few FAs.

---

They will likely take about $10M+ of that to resign Hayward and the Favors extension ($12M/YR) kicks in too. They still have plenty of room though. It's all about that core developing for them. There is promise, but the Favors/Kanter pairing has not been good, albeit in limited time.

quote:

---

They also can get more money there than in the other cities

---

That's true, but really the kicker is a guaranteed 5th year. If that doesn't mean as much to them, it's basically a wash in terms of money.

Say OKC hasn't won a title by the time Durant hits FA. Durant is hearing the same nonsense James heard before he won a title.

LAL hits on their draft pick (Wiggins, Exum, Parker, whomever it's LA, they likely will hit) and gets Love. They sell Durant on winning in the premier NBA franchise. They guarantee they will do whatever it takes to win a title. He can make up the $ as a star in LA. They've got one bona fide star and a budding one. That's a tempting offer for a guy thinking more about his legacy as an all time great than a few extra million.

quote:

---

trading 2 first rounders for nash definitely is.

Ferry had a long time to construct a shitty roster but failed miserably

---

I don't know about that. The Lakers were expecting to be in title contention. Two firsts were likely in the 20s. Most people laughed at PHX for giving Nash away for nothing at the time. It was a gamble on Nash's health, Howard staying, and Kobe staying healthy. The lost on all 3. The moves weren't indefensible though.

Ferry built a team that was winning 60+ games every year. He made some bad bets with Hughes, Jamison, and Shaq. He probably should have pulled the trigger for Amare when he had the chance (if the rumors are true). I think Mike Brown killed them more than anything else.

quote:

---

From what i heard they would've kept harden if he played defense

---

That's interesting. It sounds like it has some truth, but also a lot of spin. I think they picked Ibaka over Harden because of defense/variety and he was a lot cheaper. I don't think they ever entertained keeping both at the prices each guy deserved. Regardless, the return was mediocre for a first team All NBA guy.

Re: Gordon and McGee- that's sort of the point. The moves were defensible and even made a good deal of sense at the time. But they just haven't turned out well at all. Be it injuries, poor use (even Karl was flabbergasted by McGee), whatever. I don't think you kill a gm for just missing in hindsight. Not every move works out.