The hotspot for old shooting guards to retire, who would you pick out of this group (assuming Houston/Finley get waived) and they would come for around the same price.
The only one I would consider is Finley and that is mainly because he was a big part of Dallas defeating us in the playoffs. I would prefer us to take no more geezers on this team. We are already the oldest team in the league.
Great shooters retain their ability to hit shots well into their later years. Players like Sprewell and Finley who relied more on their athleticism don't have anything left when they age. Houston will still be draining open threes ala Bullard for another 3-4 years however hobbled and slow he may be. At the right price and in limited minutes, I'd love to have him as our 3 point specialist.
Assuming they all would come here for the same price, Finley. He's the youngest and he doesn't come with the potential risks of the others (Sprewell/lockerroom cancer, Houston/injury risk). Realistically though, I think Houston is the only one that would come here under the right terms (cheap contract, backup role). I wouldn't pay any of them more than half the MLE and I definitely wouldn't start any of them. I don't see Finley and Sprewell accepting those terms. At this stage in their careers, all 3 are similar to Wesley. They're too old, slow, and broken down to be chasing around the Ginobili's, Kobe's, and Ray Allen's every night. But under the right circumstances (like backing up a young inexperienced 2-guard), they can still contribute.
Finley would be a great backup swingman. He can play defense and can fill it up when he's hot. I'm not convinced Houston can be much of a player after being out so long. He would be an asset if his shooting touch is still there but I can't see giving him more than a 2 year contract at the vet minimum. Just say NO to Spree; not a chance. Let his family starve on the millions he already has in the bank. Life is tough.
Now now, Wesley actually did a pretty good job chasing around those youngsters last year. Until the playoffs.
GRANT HILL IS WAY BETTER THAN ALL THREE. HE CAN PLAY POINT, SG, SF AND HE'S THE BEST REBOUNDING SF IN THE LEAGUE. HE'S ALMOST AS VERSATILE AS TMAC. I DON'T THINK THE MAGIC WILL CUT HIM THOUGH
Finley. I think Finley is stronger..more athletic..and a good shooter. That's all we need. He's a good shooter too. I hope we get him to play with Tmac and Yao. THen we need a point and another power forward plus a good bench..DEKE, BARRY, JAMES! Maybe Padgett comes back.
from Hippieloser: People here are forgetting that. Although I have to admit the last month of the season it seemed like more often than not he was more of a liability than an asset. But before then he played the best/quickest/tallest 2's in the league and was continually praised by JVG and CD. I know we were exposed in the playoffs, but I still don't know what happened to this guy. He either just was worn out or there was some injury that made him look like he didn't even know what he was doing.
Nothing happened to Wesley. His lack of height was just exposed in the playoffs with 6-6 guards posting him up. Wesley would be a mainstay on this team if he was 6-4 to 6-7 because of his defensive play. He gets the most out of his body. He's strong as a bull. He would be an Artest type defender with a bigger body. Can't change height though.
Finley had a good year. In fact, I don't think it's fair to put him with Houston and Spree. He's not quick enough to handle the Manus, Kobes, and Allens, but he did a respectable job on TMac when he was on him (a LOT better than Stack, and better than Howard imo). He's not capable of handling the 40+ minutes he used to, but I think he's got a lot more in him than people think. He's coming off a 16 ppg season on a 58 win team where he shot better than 40% from 3. I'll take it. If Dallas cuts him, which I don't think they will, I think we'd be silly to not offer him a significant part of the MLE. His biggest faults are he's got several years left on a fat contract that he likely won't continue to produce at this level. At 3-4 mill, plus taking him from a competitor, he's a downright bargain.
Finley just turned 32, I wouldn't consider him an old SG coming here to retire. Cuttino Mobley also wasn't an old 2-guard coming here to retire. On a side note, Finley's numbers were pretty freaking good last year. 15.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.6 apg, less then 1 turnover per game, shot about 41% from 3pt range, 43% from the field, which is ok by today's standards, is unconscious from the line and plays defense and runs the floor. I'd take that old geezer every day of the week!
Jim Jackson used to give us similar numbers, but we were still unsuccessful with him because even though he was a good spot up shooter, he was incapable of doing anything else on the floor but take spot up jumpers and he was too slow to guard most perimeter players. Plus, come playoff time came, he ran out of gas. Finley is very much the same. Finley's age may be 32, but his body is broken down like a player in their mid-late 30's. All of those seasons he spent playing +40 minutes a game every season have really caught up to him. At this stage in his career, Finley is best suited in a role similar to JJ's in Phoenix or Brent Barry in San Antonio. To provide some instant offense off the bench. He's not a starting caliber player on a championship team anymore. That's why Dallas is releasing him.
