Now that Rivers has shown himself to be a good bench player, I wonder if we can get away with dealing Gordon (without a pick) for a good player on an expiring contract rather than dealing Knight and our first for a mediocre player on an expiring contract. We can save the pick, and then maybe in the summer that pick and Knight (who would at this point be partially productive and an expiring contract) can actually help us make an upgrade again. Trading Gordon could land us an expiring with a minor asset. Let's say something like Gordon and Melo for Zach Randolph's expiring contract and Skal Labissiere. If we re-rout that to another team, won't we get something better than Knight + 1st gets us? All teams see the first rounder as simply the price of absorbing Knight and therefore they're only willing to send back a worthless player. I'm impressed with how this team has held it together without Gordon's range shooting. I thought for sure his absence would have a catastrophic effect. But with Paul returning soon and another shooter coming back in such a trade, I think we would be fine. The other thing is, I think Knight will be a perfectly fine 4th guard next season, and possibly later this season. Harden/Paul/Rivers would play most minutes anyway. We can live with Knight for 10 minutes imo and adjust that based on competition. Which would you prefer?
Rivers is playing great, but Gordon averaged 18ppg last season. Rivers is averaging 12, and it’s such a short stint that his 3pt% is higher than his ft%. Not saying he’ll regress horribly, but Gordon is proven (in playoffs too), I’ll go Gordon all day.
Nobody is gonna give us a player better than Gordon for Gordon so might as well hold on to him. There really is no point. Knight and a first at least gives them a first so maybe a tanking team can give us a useless vet for that. Something like Carroll, Batum, or James Johnson. All players worse than Gordon but possibly available for a 1st.
How about Knight and 2 or even 3 first round picks? But it’s going to take a 3 or 4 teams to get a starter. Preferably one that can play 3-4 and small ball 5.
I totally agree with you that no one is going to give us a better player than Gordon. Knight plus a 1st may not have real value except to a lottery team. That is going to be hard to pull off. A buyout for Carroll would be nice. Batum is playing like trash. I like James Johnson, but Riley is most unlikely to give him up for Knight and even an unprotected first.
No. Is that for Kevin love? I think we need 3 point shooter like Thomson. We don't need 2 points shooters and those players who need to hold the ball for a long time to get statistics like Anthony. We only trade those players which MDA will not use for it like Anthony etc
Streaky as he is, Gordon has proven that he will continue to attack aggressively no matter the circumstances. That's huge when things slow down in the playoffs and teams start forcing the ball out of James' and Chris' hands. I'd be hesitant to move him for anyone who doesn't bring those same qualities to the table.
The problem is, no one will give us that for Knight. Brooklyn will not take on salary, they want to compete in free agency. As for players who are not expiring, I doubt Rockets/Tilman are interested in that. They will seek at least partial cap relief, so players like Batum or James Johnson are likely out of the question. We don't need a better player than Gordon for Gordon. We just need it to be a better return than Knight and 1st.
How about we keep Knight, then after that we keep Gordon, and then flip Chriss if we need forward assistance. All trades must improve the team or they aren't the type Morey should make.
There is very little chance of moving Knight. I thought he was starting to make some progress... Chriss plus a protected first and Clark or Ennis is the best combo that can be offered, but I wouldn't do that for a UFA. I would be willing to do it for Portis, but will Chicago bite? Addendum: I didn't look up Portis' defensive stats before writing this post. They aren't good at all. I thought he would be a better defender because of his energy and length. I would pull Clark out from my suggestion and offer Ennis plus a low 1st rounder and Chriss for him.
I don't know about multiple picks man. This season has made me realize: 1) We're hanging on by a hair. We can't assume our best players will be as good next season as this season. What if we never win a championship in the Harden era? How many teams get a Harden to build around? If we're stuck, we got to spend. If we can't spend, we got to take risks. If the team think Knight might be sufficient as a 4th guard in a couple of weeks time, then living with Rivers/Knight as backups to Harden/Paul is a more than acceptable situation. Living with House/Ennis competing for starting minutes on a contender, while we have no backup PF except Clark who is not ready. Let's be real here, is there a chance GS won't exploit the hell out of that? 2) I don't think Tilman is willing to go into repeater tax even though it's the most logical way to beat a Warriors team in a brilliant financial situation, and I don't think Morey will trade multiple picks unless we're getting a top 15-20 player. The most likely scenario is we trade Knight and 2 2nds or 1 first for someone on an expiring contract who can barely play backup 4. I think they need to take on a bit more risk. Teams may not believe in our pick, but Gordon is a proven commodity. If we're upping the ante, I'd rather go Gordon and a 1st than Knight and 2 firsts. Gordon is not a zero, he can help the Kings make the playoffs. A .500 team adding a 6thMOY candidate on a good contract is a significant improvement.
If you dun win championships, at least win 2 or 3 games against GSW. Make it interesting in consecutive years. I'll have to see what Cousins brings to the table first.
There's no point aiming for 2 or 3 wins imo. If I were Harden and I felt/heard that, I would be out in 2 minutes. Patience doesn't win championships anymore.
What can Houston get from the Kings in return for Gordon and a 1st? It would have to be someone really valuable. It beats Knight and two first rounders I admit. That's too risky for the future as you have pointed out.
If it were Gordon and a pick I'd look at it differently. Get what you can from a team that can use Gordon now (say Labissiere and Randolph), and then send Labissiere and our pick to Atlanta for Taurean Prince? Atlanta seem to have given up on Prince becoming a star, but believe he's going to be an excellent role player who will get a good contract. We don't even have to pay him till he's an RFA in summer 2020. Don't know if Hawks would go for it, but you get the idea, we would be able to get a positive while maintaining very solid guard depth with Rivers/Knight.
There is no guaranteeing a championship or a Finals berth. We have a shot, a decent one, all most can ask for. Again, has to be seen if GSW can stay healthy and Cousins make an impact. Provided we can stay healthy and PJ and others not going tired.
That's the option I was looking for. I'd rather trade our picks (which won't be good anyway) than trading EGo. As someone pointed out, when things get rough, he can bail us out by going agressive to the rim. My ideal scenario would be trading BK + 2 or 3 first round picks for a starting caliber 3/4 who can shoot the 3 and play switching defense between the 2-4 positions. Don't ask me who that would be, that's Morey's job!!!! =)
