[CBS Sports] Howard no lock for Lakers; interested in Rockets

I still don't see how making it know that a player is available tells you anything other than...the player is available.

Hypothetically, let's say that the Rockets know for a fact that LA won't do a SnT for Howard. So, in order to get the cap space to sign him outright they need to move Robinson for no salary in return. What would you do? I would let everyone know that he was available and then take the best offer.

I'm just not seeing how shopping Robinson means anything more than trying to be in a position to make a max offer.

 

Couldn't they trade humphries expiring contract to someone by throwing in multiple draft picks? That puts the $4m away from dumping. As for the sign and trade, once LA realizes Dwight will walk, maybe they'll be willing to take back Lopez in a straight up trade (with one minimum contract added in). Don't know how hard it would be for them to unload the last $4m.

 

They way their contracts are structured, this would be hard to do. They'd have to SnT to LAL Lopez + 2 min' ish contracts they have at $788k each, maybe all 3 due to the $490k caphold issue (unless LAL gives some even lower salary guys w/ Dwight). But before this, they'd have to move Humphries WITH Teletovic and Marshon Brooks.

So their team after Dwight would be:

Deron, JJ, GWallace, Reggie Evans, Dwight Howard...CJ Watson, Kris Joseph, 5x min. roster charges = $76.7M. Oops, still over. So they'd have to move even more for free...but hard since CJ Watson + Kris Joseph not enough. Maybe Evans w/ CJ Watson for free, though add 2 more roster charge spots...might have to move all 3. That would leave them with only FOUR players at $74M ish LOL. That is dumb.

So they'd have to instead try to move Wallace's $10M along w/ Humphries, or move to immovable Joe Johnson. All for free. This ain't happening lol.

 

Could they? Yes. You can contrive a scenario where getting any player from team A to team B is possible.

Is it likely? No.

Like I said before, if LA loses Howard then the strategy is likely to fill out the roster 1 year deals to mimimize the salary committment next offseason. Nash would be their only player under contract next season. They could use he stretch provision on Nash to reduce his cap hit to $3M . That would leave their payroll at $3M + 11 incomplete roster cap holds for a total salary of around $8.5M.

They're envisioning luring Lebron to LA and they using the remaining money to sign a 2nd star and a 3rd near star. Really similar to what NYK tried to for Lebron's last free agency.

Theoretically it could work but it's still a long shot. The ultimate dream for LA would be to get rid of Gasol and completely tank the season and then end up
winning the lottery and getting Andrew Wiggins to use as bait to lure Lebron to LA.

 

I wouldn't bet on that. I don't think LAL will get either one...perhaps Royce. I think Morey will find more value for TRob elsewhere. Hence the public auction.

 

What would I do? I wouldn't announce an auction for him. I'd be working privately to cut a deal for TRob. But...if I already had an offer from someone for TRob then I'd be looking for a better one. The team that makes the most sense in this scenario is the Lakers. Mitch tells Morey if Dwight wants to go to Houston, he'll take TRob in a sign and trade.

The idea that the Lakers won't do a sign and trade is preposterous. If they can get a fat TPE and even one player, it's better than Dwight walking for nothing. Let's think logically and like a team GM would think. There are obviously things Mitch wouldn't do in a sign and trade (for example take on long-term salary or a bad contract) but if he is worth 2 cents (which he is) then he'll be glad to do a sign and trade and salvage something for Dwight. In fact, Mitch will and probably already has worked on 3 and 4 team scenarios where he could possibly move Dwight out in a sign and trade and get a player like Danny Granger on a 1-yr deal with Houston sending salary out to Indy.

The things that makes the most sense of Morey putting TRob on the market is that he already knows he can move him in a sign and trade transaction for Dwight. He's looking for something better.

 

Don't matter til July.

 

Is is feasible for us to acquire Brook Lopez in a three team S&T that would send Dwight to BKN, Omer + T-Rob and picks (from BKN) to LAL, and Brook Lopez to HOU?

 

What you are describing is very possible, including the Lakers taking back the extra salary to get the Nets under the apron if the Nets indeed find a team that will eat Humphries for them.

Here's the problem: What team is going to want to take on Humphries into their cap so early in the off season when other better transactions might be on the table?

You could make the case for the Hornets I suppose since they want to lose. Nets give them $3 million for future second rounders now and then give them another $3 million after hte moratorium to take on humphries. But I don't think it would work. Because there are other teams like the Rockets who could give them smaller salaried players with mroe potential and give them cash besides.

The odds of the Nets being able to unload Humphries are very very small.

 

If you want to wreck the franchise, sure.

Thankfully, Morey isn't an idiot, so no, it isn't.

 

I don't understand why he would "wreck the franchise". He would be under a great coach who would teach him everything he needed to know. He could teach him how to use his height to gobble up more rebounds. I do get that for a 7 footer he isn't the greatest rebounder, but he is still young and can improve. If we got him and then signed Millsap to go with him, we'd be a legit 4th seed. If we started T-Jones, we'd probably be 6th seed (assuming he'd be in the front court with Lopez).

 

Because giving big dollars to non-elite players is how you become Denver/Memphis, and that's exactly what Morey is trying to avoid. You're exactly right... we'd be in the 4-6 range, with no viable way to make the next leap. Basically a slightly nicer version of the mediocrity treadmill.

Brook Lopez is not a star. Paul Millsap is not a star. If the Rockets can't get Dwight or Paul, the best move is to retain the cap flexibility going forward and try again for a legitimate star at the next possibility.

 

Even if this were possible (it wouldn't be because Nets will almost certainly not be able to move $16M+ worth of crap prior to this SnT), why would we help a situation where Dwight gets sent to BKN? Okay okay, assuming Dwight was going to BKN no matter what, I'm not sure I want a 7+ footer who has an injury history and rebounds like a SF. If teaching how to rebound were so easy, urrbody be doing it. Guy would have been in the league for 5 yrs, is 7 ft and collects fewer rebounds than his height. Come on, he ain't learning to rebound when he comes here.

Might as well say JSmith will come here and suddenly learn to never take bad, ill-advised shots. Wow he'd be pretty awesome then!

 

Howard no lock for Rockets; interested in Spurs, Nets

 

I can see where your coming from here! Who would you prefer to acquire? I mean obviously LeBron is the main target, but the likely hood of him in Houston is like 1 in a million

 

I'm not a huge fan of saving cap room for 2014 just because there aren't that many stars that would realistically come here. Our best shot really is this summer. That being said, why would we do a long term deal that mires us in mediocrity? Shoot, we can just sign Josh Smith alone and accomplish that.

Hard to say what happens a yr into the future, which is why flexibility, if we lose out on Dwight, is better. Who would have guessed Harden would have been available? Maybe LMA and POR suddenly hate each other in 9 months. Who knows. I would rather then do a 1 yr rental of Bynum or Gasol, esp. if LAL amnesty Gasol or something.

 

I am completely on the Gasol to Houston bandwagon. I feel he would contribute to this team very well. I, however, would prefer LMA on this team. But I live in Portland, and trust me, LA isn't going anywhere soon.

 

I don't think he's leaving POR before his contract is up either, but who knows? I know he is from TX and really would like to come play for Houston (if fan reports are to be believed, ones who ask him to play here lol). There are other possibilities I am sure; just overlooking at the moment. Point is to not get tied down to becoming a 4th seed for the next 3 yrs.

 

Year before last he was a double double. His contract is coming off the books in one year. If Brooklyn offered two firsts and $3m, and you were under the cap but needed salary to get to the 90% level, wouldn't you consider it? Esp. If prokhorov called you and said, hey I've got a business opportunity for you in Russia. How about one of your non-basketball companies do a jv with one of my non-basketball companies in Russia? All it would take is a favor...

 

Yes, I'd consider it. But only after the other major deals had gone down. I wouldn't consider it July 11th. I'd want to see what other deals manifested themselves first.