After losing out on Ray Allen and Michael Redd, the Cleveland Cavaliers have finally landed their shooting guard. NBADraft.net is reporting that Washington Wizards guard Larry Hughes is headed to the Cleveland Cavaliers for a deal that averages $12 million a year. However, while the articles notes that the deal runs through 2012, under new CBA rules players can only receive a five-year deal if they are signing with a new team so the deal can only run through 2010. Last season, Hughes had his best season as a pro averaging 22 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 2.9 steals
I actually think Hughes might do better than he did last season with the Wizards. LeBron will share the ball and Hughes will gladly take it. Is it better than signing Redd or Ray? Probably not but you're saving 3-4 mil each year and you get a player that plays offense and defense.
man, i hope somebody's around to catch all the drool coming out of mobley's mouth right about now if this is true. hughes' numbers are damn impressive, but he and $12M/yr just don't belong together.
That is some insane money. But that's what happens. Redd's signing was for some ridiculous cash, you know? So now Hughes had leverage. At least Simmons is still available (we'll see for how long).
That's ludicrous. This is what happens with cap space in the NBA, you end up blowing it on Larry frickin' Hughes.
I think Simmons will end up in New Orleans or stay with LA. Cat will go to Denver or the Clippers (if simmons leaves) or Houston if we strike out with all of our PF targets.
So basically we have Mobley and Simmons at the SG position now...with Denver, Utah, the Clippers, and a bunch of other teams that can only offer the MLE. And both of these guys just watched two guys get fat contracts that probably weren't quite worthy (Redd, Hughes). I sure hope the Rockets don't resort to bringing in Finley or Sprewell, unless they are dirt cheap (minimum). Stick with Wesley before we overpay those guys.
Cleveland was starving for a dead eye shooter to pair with Lebron... they drafted Luke Jackson, traded for Pavlovic, traded for Welsch and they shore up the hole at shooting guard by signing a career 27% 3-pt shooter.
IMO, Hughes is one of the most overrated players in the league. Besides the fact that he is not the brightest......he gambles way too much on D, has atrocious shot selection, and is terribly selfish especially on the break. Plus he has a very streaky outside shot. Cavs management is completely inept. I fully expect Lebron to bail when is contract is up now.
Wow. Looks like the Cavs wanted to grab what was left before it was all gone. Definitely overpaid, though. It might not be too bad if they pick up a sweet-shooting PG with a scorer's mentality (like Damon Jones). Lebron is like T-Mac in that he doesn't need a conventional PG, just backcourt mates that can bring the ball up, and maybe create a little. Jones, Hughes, and Lebron might not be too bad.
Well he should fit right in with Lebron, who always goes for a highlight reel steal too. Having ball-hawks on defense isn't inherently bad. And when you have two guys that can play the passing lanes, that will put a lot of pressure on the offense. But you do need good defensive rotations or a savvy shotblocker (who can avoid foul trouble) to cover for those gambles. I suspect Bron and Hughes will lead the league in steals and be lauded as a defensive force. But whether that can actually lead to good team defense and wins remains to be seen. At the very least, the Cavs should make the playoffs. The trio of Lebron, Hughes, and Big Z should do just as well or even better than Arenas, Hughes, and Jamison.
What's with all the hating on this dude? He posted 22/6/4/3 last year and was on the all-defensive FIRST team. For a shooting guard, he has very good ball handling skills and can attack the basket with ease. I know that his shooting is a problem, but this dude can flat out score (stackhouse in his prime). When you put this kind of offensive PLUS defensive threat on the floor, 5 years at $60 million might not sound bad after all. I think this is a very fair deal. If you told me that Larry Hughes would get this deal last year, I would probably laugh and cease the conversation, but this year he proved his worth throughout the season. This is the same thing that happened with Jason Richardson. I thought 6 years at $73 million for richardson was way too much, but considering how he blossomed last year, he might have gotten the max this year. Most of you think that Bobby Simmons should get around a 5 year $45 million contract. If that's the case, then Hughes should at least deserve $3 million more per year. Come on guys, don't just hate the damn player cause he sucked for 5 years and finally broke out these past 2 years.
Errr... unless I somehow missed the link, here it is: Larry Hughes to Cleveland And if this is true, that is truly an absurd number, especially for the Cavs to be paying him. I was expecting something around $8.5 mil per... but $12 mil? Come on... $12 mil for a guy who can't complement King James with a little 3-point shooting? This is why I didn't want us to pursue the guy... he was a poor man's Mcgrady. And now he gets to be a poor man's Lebron! Yay! Seriously, what is Cleveland thinking? They won't take long to regret this one, if the report is true.
Hughes is a good player but not near as good as fit as Redd and Allen for the Cavs. Some nights they will have it all rolling and forget it, but others they are going to have their brickfests with no dead-eye you can alwats count on. I think they would have been better off with 8 mil year for Simmons in a long term deal for the same for Mobley in a shorter deal. I think those guys would thrive off James more than Hughes would. Personally I am not convinced Cleveland is all the great a destination. Sure Lebron is a great talent and great individual player, but he could be a hybrid of Kobe and Francis. Whether he becomes the kind of half court force to win the late season games and make his teammates better (in the half court) is no sure thing. Who knows, if Bogut is the real deal and Ford comes back, Milw could get in the playoffs. Certainly they would have an OK future. And Seattle, they were the 3rd seed in the West last year and they have lots of good young players that allow Allen to thrive. It isn't like those guys stuck with a truely hopeless team like the Hornets.
He got more money than he deserved, but it was worth it for Cleveland because not getting him would have been a disaster. Hughes had a career year playing next to Gilbert Arenas. He may be even better next year with LeBron on his team.
