@WojYahooNBA: The Denver Nuggets have reached agreement on a three-year, $15 million deal with free agent J.J. Hickson, league sources tell Y! Sports.
who would you say is a better player now, Faried or Hickson. Does this move MAYBE, make Faried available. wonder if theyd bite on Omer for S&T with Brewer and Faried lin/beverely Harden/Garcia Parsons/Brewer Faried/Jones Howard/Motiejunas and add the Chuck Wagon
watching so many teams without a superstar committing salary and destroying all their flexibility to be good but not great opposite of Morey/Hinkie approach
Hickson might start at center. No way Faried becomes available. His ceiling is much higher than Hickson's.
He'll be a quality backup for Faried and McGee. Does this take the Nuggets out of the running for Ellis?
Agreed. I don't get it - this guy is solid yet this is like his 4th team in his young career. Dude's numbers are slightly better than Asik's.
Some teams out there, still believe they can develop one of their young talents into a superstar ... instead of paying $20 million for one. Imagine that.
The difference is that he is not a rim protector. The Rockets defense were roughly 6.4 points per 100 possessions better with Asik on the floor vs. without him (105 on, 111.4 off) The Blazers' defense were roughly 1.4 points per 100 possessions worse with Hickson on the floor vs. without him (110.9 on 109.5 off). Raw +/- even over the course of a season is not the be-all-end-all of player evaluation tool, but I think here it captures the spirit of things. Asik was a difference makers, discouraging drives and contesting shots. Hickson didn't do these things as well. Racking up stats doesn't mean you are making a difference.
Right. I understand one guy is a quality defender and one is not. The Asik comparison was meant for perspective. Look at the double-double leaders for the past season. He's 7th overall and surrounded by players that make wayyyyy more than $5M per year.