THIS. Ah. This. I have never understood this rebuttal." PHX already has plenty of draft picks." Draft picks are currency, you can never have enough currency.
That quote from cyberx is so obvious but so exactly the point. Phoenix isn't handing over Dragic, despite what some people may foolishly believe. Also, even if they are willing to give up Dragic, do people really think they're locked in on the Rockets as trade partners? You don't think they'd ask around other teams to gauge the best offer, one that could surely trump ours?
intresting. but sounds like speculation from your source, obv he hasn't heard anythng thats the concrete info we should take from this.
Houston might not have anything PHX wants. But another team might want what Houston has to offer and have a key piece that PHX wants.
What would PHX want? To me, young players with potential and picks. The deal with Dragic is this.....a team that really wants him but isn't in competing mode can just wait until free agency next year to offer him a big contract. A team that's currently competing likely doesn't have a ton of tradable assets. Houston is somewhere in the middle. We aren't really "all-in" yet on winning, and we have some good assets to pick from. Also, we're a team looking for a PG, unlike 90% of the rest of the league.
Which team will offer what for Dragic, considering the circumstances (last season before he can opt out of a player option year)? The one that got reported is Roy Hibbert-- who struggled in the 2nd half of last season, is owed $15M+/year and, like Dragic, a player option year for 2015-16.
Houston Receives: Goran Dragic Phoenix Receives: Terrence Jones (Potential to be a big-time player) Nick Johnson (Arizona star) OR Isaiah Caanan (D-League Star) Alonzo Gee (non-guaranteed) NOP Pick (Almost guaranteed lottery pick) Phoenix could turn their players and picks into a nice good player down the road, akin to what we did for Harden. They'd need a legitimate big-man. Rockets would lose a great player, but get an even better one. Lot of pressure on Motie to become the stretch 4 we need. Would need to pick up another 7 footer to back-up Dwight; not sold on Dorsey. Okafor available?
The Suns want a star, you know, like Dragic. They're already oversaturated with young players and picks.
The one that got reported was instantly turned down, showing that Phoenix is, in fact, not handing over Dragic for just anything just because he's soon to be a FA. The Pacers offer was a bad one, so that's not surprising. They're going to want solid value for an All-NBA player, and frankly, I believe Phoenix could easily find a stronger offer than what the Rockets could put together. I could certainly be wrong, and I'll gladly accept looking like a fool if that's the case, but I'm highly skeptical. That's all I'm saying.
I do think saying dragic is "an all nba player" is a little misleading. Did he rightfully receive it this year? Yes But when you consider that rose Westbrook rondo were out because of injury, it puts proper context on WHY he was on there. It's like when everyone freaked out saying "why would the 76ers trade an all star in holiday!!!!!" It's because he wasn't really an all star he made it based on injuries. Don't get me wrong I love dragic and wanna see him here, but he has gotten a little overrated this season. He can't lead a team in the playoffs, not can he even be the 2nd best player on a title contender
1st.....I don't think you can be oversaturated with young players and picks. Outside of star players, they are the most valuable commodities in the league. Easy to trade and can have enormous value under the right circumstances. 2nd.....Dragic is good, no doubt. But he's not a star in the same vein as Lebron, Durant or Harden. Players better than Dragic: Melo Lowry Rose Noah Lebron Love George Horford Bosh Wall Curry CP3 Griffin Cousins Nowitzki Harden Howard Marc Gasol Anthony Davis Parker Durant Westbrook Ibaka Lillard Aldridge Almost any team in the league would take these players over Dragic. That doesn't mean Dragic isn't a very good player....but he's not the best player on a championship team (perhaps not even a 2nd best player). If PHX decides he is THE GUY and commit major money to him before acquiring another star or two, they will be in for a long stretch of mediocrity.
