The NOP pick and Donatas Motiejunas are two of the most discussed trade assets around these parts. So, I am wondering which one of them people value more. If a trade partner gives you the choice between giving up DMo or the NOP pick in exchange for the same return, which would you choose? Keep in mind that whichever one you keep, you can still trade him/it in another deal.
For the Rockets dmo is definitely worth more. For other teams...depends. A rebuilding team might prefer the pick
Every team in the league would value DMO more unless he had said that he wanted a max , he was injury prone or demanded a trade. These can lower the trade value but he hasn't. The draft is only top heavy and really after the top 6-7 picks it doesn't matter much if you pick 14 (nop) or 20. Maybe in another draft the NOP would have more value but in this one it's not even a question. So any team in the league INCLUDING the Suns and the Rockets value DMO more than a late lottery pick in a crapshoot draft.
How is this even a question? We are a win-now team and D-Mo is already a valuable rotation piece for us. Picks are unknown quantities, and especially when you consider Morey's lackluster track record in the late lottery (Patterson, Morris, Lamb), D-Mo has to be the no-brainer choice here.
You need to weigh up the opportunity cost of both assets, a non max player ceases to be a major asset the moment he gets paid a non rookie salary, so if your goal is to build assets (and listening to the words out of phoenix's FO very recently, it is what they're doing), not so much, if your goal is to win now, of course the more developed good player is worth more. Moreso than that, draft picks are the leagues most valuable assets because you can use them to get any type of player, whereas the player themselves is a fixed type commodity (which is why point guards don't get much, almost everyone has them, so very few need them), bigs are more valuable obviously due to scarcity, but they're a lower liquidity, and if you're trying to trade for that rare genuine star, you need to have the very specific assets that the other team wants. That's basically the mechanics of trades, 2 teams value different things so try to meet in the middle, which is why it'd be basically impossible for the thunder and rockets right now to hit a trade other than some cap maths trade, both teams want the same thing.
If the pelicans struggle in the back half of the season, it could be a top 10 pick. There's lots of guys who are solid players drafted 10 or so. McGary #21 Lavine #13 Payton #10 MCW #11 Adams #12 Giannis #16 Dieng #21 Jones #16 Sullinger #21 Klay Thompson #11 Kawahi Leonard #15 Nikola Vucevic #16 Tobias Harris #19 Jimmy Butler #30 ^^ That's the same draft class. I'd take the #10-13 pick. Its entirely possible to draft a future all-star if you do your research right.
The pick will be converted THIS season so any trade for "stars" needs to happen this summer. There is no stars in the market or at the end of their contracts who want out that will make the NOP pick a good trading chip. DMO has outplayed the expected return and productivity of a average 14 pick right now AND has another cheap year in this contract . Plenty of time for a new team to evaluate him and flip him. Even Hinkie with his tanking and full frontcourt would prefer DMO at this point because for a young center you can take back two firsts instead of one in a bad draft.
I'd say unless you're dealing with a contender, the other team would surely take the pick. For a bad team, DMo is effectively under contract for 1 year, since this year will end in lottery anyway. The pick will be under contract for 4 years starting next season.
Dmo ceases to be an asset in 1 year, he's never going to be a star, good player yes, star no, there's hundreds of good players on fair contracts, and that's if he doesn't get Parsons'd. That pick is an asset for at worst 1 year, probably 3 and potentially 9+.
So what if you don't find a "skilled 2-way 7 footer"? Kawhi Leonard, Paul Millsap, Draymond Green, Jimmy Butler and plenty of other guys are not "skilled 2-way 7 footers" but they are better than DMo is (who is pretty good, but no where near elite). You don't have to be 7 feet tall or have pretty post moves to help your team win.
Simple enough. The pick should be offered as part of a package, which doesn't include D-Mo. The pick has more intrigue in theory than D-Mo.
So you bash Morey as you compliment Morey, who drafted D Mo in the same range of the draft you speak of (late lottery to 20's). Lamb got us Harden. No Lamb, no Harden. OKC wanted a young 2 guard in the deal. It's that simple. And Patterson and Morris are useful to their teams. Nobody thought they were stars and they aren't.
