Orlando is not a contender - that's 1 reason why Dwight wants out. Backing up their position - maybe. Backing up their position AND another position - at least one of them is going to get burned in a series against a true contender (most likely Bud at the SG).
Art, If we trade for Dwight and Dwight walks, we will be able to sign 2 max free agents.....if we want to. I'm not saying we will. I'm saying we will have the ability to sign 2 max free agents. The point was that we will have all sorts of cap room and all sorts of options on how to use it.
Most true contenders don't have as good of benches as you seem to think. It's rare to have a player like Harden coming off the bench in the NBA. You mostly see Budingers and Hills out there as bench players. And often they are asked to back up multiple positions because teams simply don't have enough players of that level to have one for each spot. The Rockets are blessed with such an unusually deep team that we have rotation-quality players who don't play at all barring injury. Don't forget we also have Turk in this scenario, a combo forward. I mentioned before that I think Bud and Hill are better players, but if the minutes were too high for them or they were having a bad game, Turk could step in.
Too rich for my blood. If we trade Lowry, there's no way we should have to take on Hedo as well. Dalembert, Martin, Scola, Bud, Hill for Howard, Hedo, fillers OR Dalembert, Lowry for Howard, fillers If that's not enough for the Magic, then oh well, have fun with the center who rebounds like a guard and plays no defense.
There's not 2 max FA worth signing besides Dwight and you would have to amnesty Scola to free enough room for the 2nd max. 23 million is on Turk and Scola.
^ ^ ^ I tend to agree that Howard should be able to be had for less, if he's traded at all (a big 'if'). But I think it shows that we could overpay for him and still have a contending team.
Agree to disagree - but you never wager more than you can afford to lose in a bet. I can almost guarantee you will be sorry more than 1/2 the time.
There may not be. But I think I'd throw a max deal at Gordon because he COULD be worth it and it would force Stern to have to pay him or lose him for nothing. And I think I'd throw big money at Asik because he is a big and can be traded and he might turn out to be great. Or I might go back to New Orleans and play nice and tell them that if they trade me their lottery pick and Okafor for a little bit of nothing that I will leave their boy Gordon alone.
Read that Melo has said he wants out of NY he and Amare dont play well. Just a thought he is a super star but he maybe more of Tmac than Stud
Candidates for max deals: D-Will (21.5 PER) Gordon (18.5 PER last season) Lou Williams (21.8 PER) Nic Batum (18.3 PER) Roy Hibbert (18.5 PER) I know some of these guys are kinda pushing it for offering max deals, but I wouldn't be shocked to see any of them get it. There's also another whole tier of guys who will be under max but probably over $10M, including young guys like Brook Lopez, Javale McGee, and veterans like Gerald Wallace, Steve Nash, etc.
DWill is a max guy. Gordon is a max deal gamble, but probably a good gamble, provided he gets healthy. Lou Williams is not worth but a third of a max deal. Nic Batum would be a nice risk for about $10 mill per. And Hibbert is way overrated and will be way overpaid. Don't even want him. He's only worth MLE money on an extended deal. In the same class as Dally, except younger.
trade Lowry for Gasol trade Martin and Scola for Smith sign Aaron Brooks Bring Donatas Goran/Brooks Lee/Brooks Parsons/Bud/Morris Patterson/Morris Bear/Donatas
Let's say 58 is the cap. 20 is spent on Turk and Scola leaving 38 for the rest of the team subtract 2 for your remaining guaranteed contracts and that leaves you 36/2 = 13 and you'd have to release Lee to do that. That leaves you a team of Turk, Scola, Smith, Parsons, Bud and 1 max FA with 1 10 million FA - and no Lee. Gordon would be overpaid at the max but I would agree that I'd at least give it a shot. But that money isn't coming from Stearn's pocket it would be the other owners you'd be pissing off. And you still don't have another player to throw that money to without greatly overpaying. And again, I don't see Turk, Scola, Smith, Parsons, Bud, Gordan and Asik (best case scenario that you got them) - no money left for Donuts or Llull – as anything more than a hodgepodge team that is destine for another 14th pick at best.
Dwill is not leaving. Gordan I'd throw an offer to but I think you will be overpaying if he's your max player. The others are just ridiculous that you'd even consider any of them as a max player.
That is only 1 option. Now, what's another option? And another? And another? With cap space comes a myriad of options, too many to count.
But until you stop spending 20 million on Turk and Scola - you don't have enough options to put together a contender.
Said this in another thread, don't want Melo! He doesn't play defense! Defense wins playoff games. When has Melo played on a team that made it out of the 1st round? Besides, Melo's James Dolan's boy. He ain't leavin' Da Garden.
