Yes. Agreed. Just think of this. DeMarcus and Harden will make combined maybe 10% more than Howard will make by himself if he takes a full max deal offered to him next summer. And you can't really trade Howard without him wanting to go. This is why I would advocate a trade for DeMarcus now or as soon as possible because it does set up an interesting dynamic next off season if Howard opts out. Now you have leverage with Howard. He can walk or you re-sign him for a reasonable salary....DeAndre Jordan money. If he walks, you've got DeMarcus to plug in in the middle and then go after Durant with cap space.
We simply do not have the assets for Cousins in my opinion. I don't necessarily agree that the Kings see DMo (who is on the last year of his contract and could be a brief rental) as a someone that is worth more than a high lottery pick. However, I'm really high on willie cauley stein's defensive potential and he would fit really well next to DMo. Maybe the Kings go for it, and gamble on DMo with a max contract going into 2016-2017.
Doesn't matter whether DMO nor DeMarcus is worth a high lottery pick or not. The Kings want to win now. If they trade DeMarcus they're gonna want a player. Besides Boston doesn't even own a definite high lottery pick. They just made the playoffs and added to their team this off season. And the only unprotected picks they have are the Brooklyn picks. So if Sacramento trades for those picks they're taking a huge chance that everything they get from Boston is a pupu platter. Remember we're talking about an in-season trade here, a trade possibly made sometime between now and the next trade deadline. Not a trade done after next season when lottery positioning is set.
He probably isn't going anywhere but it's a situation worth watching. If he does force Sacramento to move him we could become a big player for him. The other situation to watch is Durant in OKC. He could force OKC to move him as soon as Dec. 15th.
Several pages of Cousins. Nothing to do with KJ. People taking pot-shots at eachother. this thread sucks now
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5w8wAtjgxT0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> Starting @7:20 ... the potential. Gotta love this guy's potential.
Close your eyes, reopen them slightly and squint through the little crack....do you see Dennis Rodman?
Even if players are extremely unhappy in their current situations they tend to ride out the contract before leaving (not always, I know). Or their management says, "Let's hold onto him, let's see if we can win big, we'll convince him to stay, and when we don't convince him, it'll look like we tried so that the fans will hate him more than us."
The odds of Durant or DeMarcus getting traded this season are small. But they're a lot greater than the odds that Lebron, CP3, Blake Griffin, DeAndre, LaMarcus, Duncan, Marc Gasol, and a ton of other superstars getting traded. Kinda like a batter hitting .300. The odds are small he'll get a hit in his next at-bat but they're a lot greater than the odds Mendoza will get a hit in his next at-bat. So, you watch for those things. The superstar players we should watch for a possibility of a trade during this coming season are: 1. KD 2. DeMarcus 3. Jimmy Butler 4. Melo (a lot less likely than the first 3 but he could decide he wants out) 5. Derrick Rose (if you still consider him a superstar) 6. Russell Westbrook (if Durant decides to leave and tells OKC he is leaving, they might decide to move RW for maximum asset value). These are the most sensitive and tenuous team situations. The odds of any of them being traded midseason are small. But they're a lot greater than the odds of another superstar not on the list being traded midseason.
