Yeah, they would have to seriously overrated Thompson in the Lakers front office. I do think he gets the conversation started, but at the end of the day there is just too much salary needing to get moved to a third team that I dont see it being worth it for any other team but the Warriors.
i think there are 3 assumptions here, (1) teams like Houston will wait until the last minute when he signs with some team, even if they are told no, (2) no team with cap space would like Lee compared to available free agents, (3) the free agent field won't get thinner due to guys getting huge contracts from places they like, like the one Boozer got from the Bulls before LeBron's 'decision'. I don't know that these assumptions are necessarily true.
I never argued that a sign and trade is possible, btw. In fact, I argued the opposite in this thread. I think the Lakers would be silly to do a sign and trade because (A) they are the team that can offer by far the most money so they should play this to the end, a la Brooklyn with D-Will, and (B) they wouldn't be going anywhere without Dwight and with Kobe injured, so adding Klay and/or Lee might as well cost them a top 5 pick in possibly the strongest draft since LeBron's. I'm also not arguing that Dwight might choose the Warriors. Frankly, I don't give a **** what he may or may not do, there's been too much of that topic. I think he's staying with LA, but who knows, and I don't care. I'm arguing that the Warriors may have the flexibility to remove their "terrible" contracts, if that need arose. There were claims in this thread that since they are at 75 mil next year, they are Brooklyn-like, and I disagree. I think you are going out of your way to dismiss the trade value of the GSW pieces. Picks in 20s may not have huge trade value, but saying that it's "almost negative" is going way too far. And whatever your opinion may be on Klay Thompson, if there was any truth whatsoever to the rumors of Thompson as a core piece in a Harden trade, he should have some trade value. As for David Lee, he's a bit overpayed and flawed, but he's still coming off a very good healthy season where he was a top 30 or so player in the league, and he has an offensive skillset and style that should age very well. I'd be stunned if they have to add something to move him, as suggested in this thread.
The picks are guaranteed contracts for players that have maybe a 15% shot at even becoming rotation-caliber on a contending team. Not very helpful. Thompson was significantly more valuable this time a year ago, when he was rumored in the Harden deal. He was a lottery pick in the 2011 draft and had a pretty solid rookie year (PER of 14.9). Since then, his PER has dipped significantly along with his FG%, 3-FG%, FT% and assist rate. I wouldn't call him a bust, but it's a concerning trend line, and I'd wager a lot that his perceived "upside" is nowhere near what it was last summer. I agree with you on Lee, but with one disclaimer: after Dwight Howard signs and the top PF tier goes off the market. I don't see many teams willing to commit their cap space to Lee when more attractive options are theoretically available. Perhaps when the well has run dry, but not beforehand.
and yet every year teams use such a pick to cut 3-5 mil of salary off their books, like Memphis this year or several teams last off season. "almost negative value" is taking it way too far. I suspect Klay's value may be lower than it was last year. That said, he's visibly improved on the defensive end and after the horrific first month or so, his scoring was more efficient than during his rookie year. Lee -- besides Dwight and Paul, i'm not sure other options are that much more attractive. It depends on the makeup of the team, I guess. And again, there's a ton of teams with significant cap space this year.
If Dwight starts demanding he wants the 5 year max, immediately it gives the Lakers leverage. At that point S&T becomes the only realistic option, and teams have to start giving up serious assets for Howard. Lakers will play hardball for Dwight. Golden State could do a deal of Harrison Barnes + a draft pick + Bogut (to balance out the salary) for Dwight. Bogut is an expiring so it still leaves Lakers clear, and they end up with an exciting SF in Barnes whose a great fit in D'Antoni's system. Bogut could be flipped easily too since he's an expiring....they could turn Bogut into another nice asset. GSW then builds around Curry-Thompson-Howard.
If Dwight wants the 5 years, then he re-signs in LA (and maybe demands a trade later in the contract if he wants out). Otherwise, he gets 4 years(maybe 3 with an opt out).
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>To my knowledge, Dwight's camp has never given slightest indication he wants to join the Warriors. The GSWs should accept that & move on.</p>— Tim Kawakami (@timkawakami) <a href="https://twitter.com/timkawakami/status/338030590479716352">May 24, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
