I seriously doubt you'll see Houston's amnesty clause used during the life of this CBA. Cap room to offer Deron Williams a max deal can be acquired without getting rid of Scola, and his contract is probably too valuable (enough years left at a reasonable salary) to just get rid of without a trade. I really only see it being used if any player has a career ending injury, sort of like Portland did with Roy. Before Howard decided not to opt out of his contract I would have said differently, but I doubt there's two guys worth the max in this FA class. I kind of expect Dalembert to return for his final year, Camby to be signed to a 4 year deal, CLee's offer to be matched and him be re-signed for 4 years, and to compete with another team for Dragic, potentially re-signing him. I haven't really put much thought into what trades might occur, but that's what I think the FA period will look like for Houston. Of course this is all moot if Deron Williams decides to sign here.
Your right Patterson hasn't shown to be a dominate player like everyone thought he could be, I think he's a good player but just a role player at best. I can't wait for Motiejunas to come over either but I'm not wagering the future on him right now, I just don't see the point of drafting a PF with Scola and Patterson still here. I'll even go as far as to say Robinson may be out of reach and will likely go top 3 the way he's playing in the tournament but could see Sullinger within reach but for me I'd hate to see Morey draft another undersized PF over a guy like MKG (would be happy with Barnes as well) and Morey has shown to go BPA regardless of position. You've stated that we have good SF's not great so you always look to upgrade positions to make the team better. We've had C problems for years and Morey still hasn't drafted one. But I believe Leonard could be that guy over what we have in old men Dalembert and Camby. Also as for big men go Drummond would be nice but would be a gamble cause to me he's shown to be inconsistent like our ex-teammate J. Hill. Regarding Pau yes he's a proven all-star but also one that is on the decline and I don't like his contract or his label of being soft. IMO and I think our best shot at aquiring him was the trade Stern shot down. They've showed now that they want Lowry but we're unwilling to give him up and I'm glad they didn't. This not only helps us rebuild but keeps us competitive now and for many years with young talent. IMO a line-up of Lowry/Lee/MKG/D-Mo/Leonard is better than Lowry/Lee/Parson/Sullinger/Gasol going forward!!
How many centers come into the league ready to play????? Very, very few. Leonard, while having potential, is not ready for more than spot minutes. He doesn't upgrade the team. And while MKG may be an upgrade, he's not enough of an upgrade over what we already have. The quickest way to make a team better is to upgrade the worst position. That position is the center position followed by the PF position on this team. We need multiple two-way bigs, at least two of them...and one of them needs to be an All-Star caliber big. The only big men in this draft capable of stepping into an NBA lineup and helping immediately are Davis, Sullinger, and Robinson. Those guys will immediately be rotation players playing 30+ minutes per game. And all three players have a chance to be superstars. While MKG may become a superstar, him becoming a superstar on this team as currently constructed won't help us as much as one of those other three guys becoming a superstar on this team. MKG is also going to need development time. He can't shoot the three at this point. His game is not well-rounded enough to be a superstar. While I think he will be a decent NBA player, I'm not convinced his game is going to amaze at the NBA level since there are so many good 2s and 3s already in the game. Bigs are an entirely different story. I maintain if we move up substantially in the draft, it is for one of these three guys....Davis, Sullinger, or Robinson. Either that or we are angling to combine a high pick with other talent to get back a premier NBA-established big.
A lot of variables still out there. How the remainder of the season and playoffs play out will be important in determining what opportunities are available. First and foremost, the results will determine which star players (if any) becomes available either because they are disappointed in their team and demand out or because their teams are disappointed in their current roster. For example, a flameout by Orlando and LA Clips will make more likely for Dwight Howard and CP, each with 1 more year left on the deal, to demand a trade (again). A bad showing by the Nets will make Deron Williams look to sign elsewhere. A flameout by the Lakers in the playoffs, on the other hand, might make the front office reconsider dealing Gasol. Daryl Morey preys on the disappointment of humans.
