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Windhorst: Timberwolves offer Bledsoe max deal. What does it mean for Houston?

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by bmd, Sep 19, 2014.

  1. qetwr111

    qetwr111 Member

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    How does Minny suddenly get MAX money available? I swear, when those fools throw out rumors like this, it makes their front office look so dumb
     
  2. ROXTXIA

    ROXTXIA Contributing Member

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    Phoenix doesn't want a sign-and-trade for what Minnesota has or is offering.

    And what, it goes to the media that Minnesota is willing to pay max money to another team's point guard (who, I admit, isn't quite worth it) but not to its own "beloved" point guard (who also isn't quite worth it, but what the hell)?

    Not a great signal to Ricky Rubio: "Yeah, we LOVE you. [pause] Thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis much."

    http://www.startribune.com/sports/wolves/275853901.html

    ESPN.com and a Phoenix television sports anchor each reported Friday that the Timberwolves are prepared to pay restricted free agent Eric Bledsoe the four-year, $63 million maximum contract he has sought without success this summer from the Suns.

    But it’s not that simple. The Wolves are well over the NBA’s salary cap and can’t make such an offer without first reaching a sign-and-trade deal with the Suns to acquire one young star point guard while they do the same negotiating dance with their own, Ricky Rubio.

    The two teams are believed to have had trade discussions concerning Bledsoe for months, when the Suns pursued superstar Kevin Love before the Wolves traded their three-time All Star to Cleveland last month.

    The Wolves owe the Suns their protected first-round draft pick next summer and could sweeten a trade proposal by reducing or removing restrictions that will defer the pick to 2016 if the Wolves draft among the top 12 teams in June.

    They also have a $6 million-plus trade exception that could apply toward balancing salaries if they absorb Bledsoe’s new $15 million-plus average salary.

    But agreeing on the other pieces could be problematic.

    The Suns are not believed to be interested in neither center Nikola Pekovic and his $12 million salary nor Rubio. The Suns already have point guards Goran Dragic and Isaiah Thomas, and they’d be back in the same situation they are with Bledsoe, negotiating with a player who believes he’s worth a maximum salary. (There’s no indication the Wolves are willing to trade Pekovic or Rubio, anyway.)

    The Wolves likely will be unwilling to trade any of their top young players — Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, Gorgui Dieng — the Suns might want, and can’t trade Anthony Bennett or Thaddeus Young, who were acquired in the Love deal, for at least another month.

    The expiring contract of guard J.J. Barea and veterans such as Chase Budinger, Corey Brewer or Kevin Martin won’t get the deal done, either.

    The Wolves could play Rubio and Bledsoe in the same backcourt, much as the Suns did with Bledsoe and Dragic last season. But with Rubio also seeking a max contract, doing so would involve paying big money to players who naturally play the same position.
    Bledsoe reportedly has refused the Suns’ four-year, $48 million offer, and the two sides are in a standoff that will result in Bledsoe becoming an unrestricted free agent if he decides to play this season under a $3.7 million qualifying offer.

    The Wolves and Rubio also are a good distance apart on negotiations toward an extension of the rookie contract he signed in May 2011. If the two sides do not agree by Oct. 31, Rubio will become a restricted free agent next July.
     
  3. qetwr111

    qetwr111 Member

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    Cannot combine a TPE with players to balance salaries in a trade. Come on, man. How do fans know more about the CBA than these so called experts?
     
  4. don grahamleone

    don grahamleone Contributing Member

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    The Suns and Wolves are crazy regarding the Nikola Pekovic part. A) The Suns are crazy for not being interested because he's a solid center, great rebounder, and centers of that caliber are worth a ton and B) For the Wolves, why on Earth would you give up your anchor for a duplicated position?

    Both teams are incredibly stupid if that article is true.
     
  5. basketballholic

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    Unfortunately Pek is a gigantic zero defensively. The most important skill that a center needs in today's NBA is the ability to defend the paint. Pek gives you nothing. So I totally understand why some teams don't want him. He needs to be paired with an ultra-athletic shot blocking 4 that can shoot the 3-ball. Those guys are very rare.



    Wolves would give Pek up because they're paying him $12 million per and they ain't winning. The basic problem they had last year that prevented them from winning games was their lack of D in the middle. That's Pek and Love mind you. Wolves should want to move Pek and just give the position to Dieng. Dieng has great defensive potential as well as a good face up offensive game. And the wolves are young and growing. Pek is most likely on his way out somewhere, perhaps Atlanta or perhaps Portland or perhaps even Indiana. He doesn't fit in Minny any longer with the direction they are headed.
     
  6. don grahamleone

    don grahamleone Contributing Member

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    <iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/sT-n1AAleXA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

    You might be right about willingness to deal him, but he does alright in the post. He's not a rim protector, but he's an okay rebounder and he's a solid scorer at center. He certainly isn't pushed around because he's strong as an ox. I thinks he's about 5th-7th in the league in scoring at the center position. It depends on who you call a center (Cousins, Al Jefferson, Anthony Davis, Al Horford)

    I stick to my statement on them being fools. Minny was +8 with him on the court afterall.
     
  7. JayZ750

    JayZ750 Contributing Member

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    While I think it unlikely that the Suns get a better return than Pekovic... I can at least understand an argument that Pekovic is somewhat of a sieve defensively, and with him and Love, etc. it's not like the TWolves made the playoffs either... so why commit to 4 more years at $12 million a year.

    Basically my point on Pekovic argument would be it's as much a guard driven league these days as anything, in the front-court we know defense is most important followed by an offense skill set that includes some outside shooting (3 point) and being excellent on garbage type points.

    Pekovic is good, but his strengths are not those.

    If the Suns were to agree to the Pekovic trade, I'd argue they should just have agreed to sign Bledsoe to a max deal in the first place. There is DEFINITELY the injury history... BUT if the dude could just put in a first half of the season uninjured at last year's pace, the Suns likely get a better offer in return than Pekovic, even if it is more of a young player/draft pick and cap space type return.
     

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