Forget Mike James, Sign Bobby Jax; Stro Trade; + Miles Trade

Table of Contents For This Post:
(1st) BJax
(2nd) Trading with NJ
(3rd) DMiles+4/JuHo+8 Trade
(4th) Draft Hopes + Plans, including Seattle's #10
(5th) Possible Line-Ups
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(1st) Sacramento Bee - http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/14269916p-15080874c.html
[registration required]

"Former Kings guard and free-agent-to-be Bobby Jackson has decided not to risk his next contract and won't play until he has signed with a new team. The guard, who has made it clear he has no desire to return to the Memphis Grizzlies, becomes a free agent July 1."

sorry for making a new thread. this had not been posted yet, and I honestly think BJax would be a better, maybe even cheaper, alternative to MJ-WHO-MJ. we all know how passionate of a player he is/was in Sacto, and though he's 1 inch shorter than MJames and once swung at TMac years ago, he has less of an ego than MJames [less clashing] and is not chasing the kinda green cash that MJames publicly is.
he is instant offense + defense + hustle off the bench or in the line-up, is a great shooter, and knows the importance of ball movement.
to me, the choice is clear. Vote Bobby Jax.
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(2nd)
Like a true CFer, i propose a Swift trade that many of you will laugh at, and some of you will agree with.

Scotty the Body Padgett did not get much playing time in NJ. We all miss Scotty, especially JVG. Scotty knows our system, having played here under JVG, and would provide that PF with Range that we need.

Padgett will make $1.8 million. We have a $1.6M TE. I propose that we trade for Padgett using the TE, and making up the difference in cash.
If that is unable to work [there could be a number of reasons], then let's not forget how horny the Nets are over Swift.

Swift will make $5.4M, and is a player that NJ STRONGLY desires, considering that they could couple him up with JKidd.
Padgett will make $1.8M.
Uncle Cliffy Robinson is a restricted free agent. NJ has a $2.5M team option on him. We would love him, as well, b/c not only does he have the 3-PT range that we want, but he also has the size/arms to play back-up 5. Let's not forget, however, that he's damaged/drugged-up goods.
That's where Antoine Wright comes in. He was a rookie from A&M that did not get much playing time, but was one of Vitale's Diaper Dandies back in undergrad. He will be due $1.57M next season.

NJ gets their fast-break-running 4/5 in Swift that they've been asking for, and we get their 'scrubs' [one man's trash is another man's treasure]. their best piece is probably Wright, just b/c he's a swingman that could be in their future plans.
if you check realgm.com, the Trade works (TradeID: 3181297).

Stro
fo
Scott Padgett
Cliff Robinson
Antoine Wright.

if needed, we could throw in something like a future 2nd or whatever.

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(3rd)
DMiles is due $7.75M next year [HoopsHype.com], and also has a long, hefty contract, PLUS is on his way out of Portland after his past tumultuous season with Coach McMillan. he can play the 2 and 3 easily, and has the arms to play a 4. he's the prison's version of a Lamar Odom, a Shawn Marion, or even a Boris Diaw. to me, he's like a shorter Garnett with huge attitude problems. if T-Mac weren't here, i'd say no to D-Miles. his problem isn't effort [like Stro] - it's behavior. and i think with Mac, D-Miles will be okay here.
JuHo is due ~$6.4M next year, has a contract that is a year shorter and millions less than Miles's, and could serve as a mature, calming influence in Jailblazer town.
RyBo is a FA, but he has a Player's Option which he would be dumb not to exercise, simply because no one else in the league will pay him more than the minimum. He is beloved to JVG, is owed ~$1M next year, and, honestly, is no offense + half defense + all hustle.

We get the #4 for #8 because taking DMiles off of Portland's hands, though they're losing a lot in talent, is addition-by-subtraction for them.

JuHo,
RyBo,
#8

for

DMiles,
#4.

this trade works according to realgm. (Trade ID: 3181341).

considering how much JVG was raving about Chuck Hayes in the last 'Breakfast with Coach,' it's clear that, with the re-signing of Hayes, either Juwan or Stro (or hopefully both!!!!) are on their way out.
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(4th) The Draft
Currently, we're picking 8th and 32nd. if the DMiles trade goes through, we vault from 8th up to 4th. with big players like LaMarcus, TT, Bargnani, Morrison, and Gay, i doubt that Roy will go in the top 2, and he cancelled his workout in front of Jordan and the Bobcats (#3) b/c he was hurt, so there's a pretty damn good chance that he will be there at #4.
1st Round Picks
Aldridge - i'm not impressed with LaMarcus at all. after watching his games in the tourney, he, to me, does not convince me that he's a big-time passionate player, as least not as passionate as someone like Morrison or Reddick.
Bargnani - it's likely he's going first anyway, as evident by the Raptors signing his Italian coach, but i'm afraid of the transition he'll have to make to the NBA game. i'm afraid his transition will be more slow, like Milicic, Skita, and Lampe, and less fast like Okur and Dirk.
Thomas - he has passion for blocking and rebounding, but he has about as much range as Chuck Hayes, and only has 2 inches on him. i like his motor, but i hate how he reminds me of a shorter Stromile with a range of 5 feet.
Gay - athletic specimen, but less passion than Stromile. no thanks.
Morrison - plenty of passion, great shooting, plenty hustle. i'm scared about the whole diabetes thing, but i wouldn't mind spending our pick on him. something tells me he's going to Charlotte at #3.
Roy - should be our pick. the knee surgeries (PLURAL) scare me to death, considering he's only 21y.o., but he's a 1st-class talent, and the most mature and NBA-ready prospect in the whole draft.
Marcus Williams - fat PG. did a pretty good job running things at UConn, but didn't strike me as someone worth more than late lottery/middle 1st pick.
Foye - short combo guard with girth. reminds me of Steve with more range, higher IQ, smaller hops, and maybe more control. i like how he can handle both guard spots, i'm afraid he may be too short for guards like Kobe and DWade, but i would not mind picking him anywhere after 9 [and after Brewer and Roy are gone].
O'Bryant - lol. we don't need him. the best thing he has going for him is that his last name is a mix of Shaq's and Kobe's.
Shelden - at first i didn't like him b/c i didn't think he was mobile enough. but now i feel like he's every bit as good as LaMarcus, probably even better, but he's just 2 inches shorter. he's a shorter LaMarcus, with more of an enforcer mentality. wouldn't mind picking him after the 9 spot.
Brewer - would love to pick him up at 8 or any spot after that. has everything but a pretty shot. we need this guy.
Carney - Brewer with a better shot, but with less passion. he can be all buddy-buddy with TMac as much as he wants, but we saw how that experiment worked out with Swift. no thanks.
Thabo - great physical specimen and international playing experience. sucks at shooting, and doesn't have a great handle. no thanks.
Rondo - athletic, but too short for my taste. true, BobbyJax is short as well, but we've seen him play over the years.
Alexander Johnson - i'm VERY intrigued with this guy. i would love to pick him up with a #15 or later pick. tremendous upside.
JJ Reddick - i value shooting a lot. hopefully his back and DUI scare everyone off, and he drops out of the lottery. sure, he's not THAT athletic, but he's still very capable, and he certainly doesn't suck. he's used to being the focus of the defense. i would get him at #12 or later if he's still there.
Cedric Simmons - i just plain like him. i'm too tired at this point to describe why he'd be good. great size.
Saer Sene - he's like Badiane, but better. i just can't describe how. i'd pick him up after #15, say around the mid-20s, if he's still there.

honestly, if we get the #4 pick, we have to pick Brandon Roy. he's perfect for us. we [or at least i] should hope/am hoping that: Gibson, Farmar, Sergio, O'Bryant, Thabo, Marcus Williams, and Carney all go high, with Brewer, Alexander Johnson, Reddick, Foye, Saer Sene, Cedric Simmons, and even Shelden dropping [and obviously Roy, as well].

Seattle's #10 Draft Pick
if they're offering this pick for cash, i say that we do it. if we have to trade Head for the #10 [which won't happen b/c they're trying to save money], i say that we have to do it.
with this extra #10 Pick, we could pick up Foye or Brewer, or trade down [possibly with cash + future 2nd rounder for NOLA's #12 & 15] for some combination of Reddick, Cedric, Alexander, and/or Saer Sene.
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(5th) Possible Line-Ups

right now, we're sitting at:
1: Rafer | Sura
2: Head
3: T-Mac | Bowen (option)
4: Swift | Hayes | JuHo
5: Yao | Deke
with Wesley & Bogans likely to be offered vet. minimum contracts out of our FAs.
we have a full MLE ~ $5+ million, a $4.2M TE, a $1.6M TE, the #8 pick [which hopefully becomes the #4 pick], the #32 pick, and the rights to V-Span [as well as Badiane, Kyle Hill, and Venson Hamilton].
*i hate to burst your bubbles guys [some of you], but i doubt that V-Span will come over. it has less to do with money, and more to do with competition - that EuroLeague Cup or whatever it's called will be held in Greece this year, so he wants to win it, and will likely not come until next year (after they win it this year).
our current line-up sucks.

with the DMiles Trade and Drafting of Roy and Novak/Millsap (#32), it becomes:

1: Rafer | Sura
2: BRoy | Head
3: TMac | DMiles | Novak/Millsap
4: Hayes | Stro | DMiles | Novak/Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Stro

with the Padgett TE trade:

1: Rafer | Sura
2: BRoy | Head
3: TMac | DMiles
4: Hayes | Stro | Padgett | Novak/Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Stro

with the Stro-for-Padgett/Cliffy/Toine trade:

1: Rafer | Sura
2: BRoy | Head | Antoine Wright
3: TMac | DMiles | Padgett
4: Hayes | DMiles | Cliffy | Padgett | Novak/Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Cliffy

with Seattle's #10 pick, staying put:

1: Rafer | Sura | Foye/Brewer
2: BRoy | Head | Wright | Foye/Brewer
3: TMac | DMiles | Padge
4: Hayes | DMiles | Cliffy | Padge | Novak/Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Cliffy

with Head/Seattle's #10 trade, just take out Head.
....

with Seattle's #10, trading down:

1: Rafer | Sura
2: BRoy | Wright | Reddick
3: TMac | DMiles | Padgett
4: Hayes | DMiles | Sene/Simmons/Alexander | Novak/Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Cliffy

that's already a pretty decent line-up - and we still have the full MLE and TEs to use on a PG.
i'm pretty sure Sura's done. if he isn't, then great, we/i will love to have him back. if he is done, however, i say we spend our MLE on BJax (NOT Mike James-WHO-Mike James) and on DWesley/Keith Bogans. that will give us some much needed stability in our backcourt.

our final line-up goes from:
1: Rafer | Sura
2: Head
3: T-Mac | Bowen (option)
4: Swift | Hayes | JuHo
5: Yao | Deke

to (drum roll)
1: BobbyJax | Rafer | Foye/Brewer
2: BRoy | Wesley/Bogans | Wright | Brewer/Foye
3: TMac | DMiles | Padgett
4: Hayes | DMiles | Cliffy | Novak/Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Cliffy
or
1: BobbyJax | Rafer | BRoy
2: BRoy | Wesley/Bogans | Wright | Reddick
3: TMac | DMiles | Padgett
4: Hayes | DMiles | Sene/Simmons/Alexander | Novak/Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Cliffy


i can't wait till next week.
feel free to start picking fights with my dream.

 

to get Portland to bite on the Miles/JuHo trade, we might have to throw in Head [instead of RyBo] to make the salaries match [and to make the talent gap smaller].

Juwan + Head + #8
for
DMiles + #4.

come to think of it, we may be giving too much. i'd like Portland to throw in #30 and/or #31. we'll see what happens.

 

"the much better player?" how is it that you define 'much better?'

"a career year" --> don't you mean "a contract year"

'publicly stated' that he wants to get paid a lot of money.

i agree that Bobby Jax is older, and that he's gotten injured in the past [while hustling], but i can also assure you that he's never been accused of ball-hogging or looking out for himself.
if i had to choose between using the ENTIRE MLE and MAYBE getting Mike James to take it vs. using the MLE on Bobby Jackson AND DWesley/Keith Bogans, i'll 'pass' on Mike James.

that's just me, though. (i have a feeling i'm in the minority.) too bad his public statement about wanting to be with his wife [in Houston] doesn't translate to "i'll take less money to be with my wife [in Houston]."

 

i will succumb to everyone's wishes of MJ.

if we:
- take Mike James with the full MLE,
- trade JuHo+#8+2007 2nd Rounder for DMiles+#4,
- trade Stro-for-Padgett+Uncle Cliffy+Antoine Wright,
- pick Brandon Roy at #4 and Millsap at #32
- buy Seattle's draft pick #10, and draft Brewer/Reddick,
- sign Bogans/Wesley for the vet minimum,
we get

1: MJames | Rafer | Head | BRoy | Sura
2: BRoy | Head | Antoine Wright | DWes/Bogans
3: TMac | DMiles | Padgett | Bogans/DWes
4: Hayes | DMiles | Cliffy | Padgett | Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Cliffy

that's a damn good rotation of 15 players. plus, we retain our two TEs, our rights to V-Span, and our 1st rounder for next year. now all you MJOF can rejoice.

 

damnit - i forgot to add Brewer/Reddick.

1: MJames | Rafer | Head | BRoy | Sura
2: BRoy | Head | Antoine Wright | DWes/Bogans | Reddick/Brewer
3: TMac | DMiles | Padgett | Brewer/Reddick | Bogans/DWes
4: Hayes | DMiles | Cliffy | Padgett | Millsap
5: Yao | Deke | Cliffy

that's 16 players. however, it's likely that either: (a) Sura will retire, or (b) Head will end up getting included in one of the deals.