Why do teams prefer draft picks versus provent talent such as Scola or Martin

Younger & cheaper. It's still a young man's game.

 

Primarily because teams with draft picks are usually rebuilding and do not want a 31 year old or a 28 year old veteran who fit in better at teams in a win now mode.

 

I don't think it's that, really. The cheaper part, somewhat. I think the core of it though is that every team is out to pick up a superstar, and Martin/Scola are known not to be superstars and everyone feels pretty confident they never will be. With draft picks, at least there is a chance of getting one.

 

because it's a few million a year for 4 years and control of the player for effectively up to 7 years.

 

lets see...

take my chances on landing a star that gets paid peanuts for 4 years or take 2 players that can't even lead their team to the playoffs?

hard choice..

 

If this Rockets team had CP3. They trade him along with everyone else on the roster except for Martin and Scola. All they get back is Lamar Odom.

Would you consider this a good deal? That's essentially what the Hornets got in that failed trade.

 

Stern watches everyone else except the Rockets.

 

I think there a myriad of factors as well but proven players like Scola and Martin can breakout and lead a team to success in the playoffs under the right circumstances , the right system, supporting cast, team setup. Its like what happened to Zach Randolph in Memphis, with the right surroundings he became an elite player that led his team to a fairly successful playoff stint. Then there is Ray Allen who was thought to be a defensive liability when he was playing with the Sonics but under the right surroundings in the Celtics he was a very tough defender. I think Martin or Scola , under the right environment, can be a vital cog for a particular team with a particular system that complements their styles. They are already doing it for the Rockets , we just need a durable big man who can alter shots and rebound.

 

Martin gives up as many points as he scores. Its a wash.

I'm sure some contending teams would love to have Scola.

 

because most of the teams having no hope to win. 2nd tier stars wont help them other than screwing their chances of landing better picks at the expense of huge cap room.

 

See: Oklahoma City

 

Teams that have young guys that are already good will look to add that proven veteran player and they sometimes have picks from other teams that are sucking, that is the kind of deal Morey will be looking for I believe.

DD

 

answer: arrogance
Everybody thinks theyre gonna draft the next Jordan - look at all the people on this board who want us to tank, so we can draft a 'superstar'.... cause there's no way WE would draft an Olowakandi or Thabeet or Jordan Hill or Flynn or Eddie Griffin....
The NBA, more than any other professionalsport is predicated on 'potential' rather than proven ability...
Plus teams that want a proven veteran are typically making a championship run, and therefor dont have high draft picks....

 

If Scola or Kmart were making $3-$5 million per year instead of ~$10 mil, they'd be higher in demand. The rookie scale makes draft picks the best way, financially, to add depth.

 

Probably for the same reason so many people on Clutchfans want to trade away Martin and Scola in hopes of getting picks and starting over. The grass is always greener on the other side. They assume whoever the team picks is sure to be better than Martin. The pick is a magic bullet - it'll land the Rockets a Dwight Howard or a Chris Paul. All we have to do is tank! But the reality is top picks don't all work out that way. Many of these top draft choices won't ever be as good as Kevin Martin is now. Tanking is just as likely to extend the period of mediocrity (or worse) for even longer. Meanwhile, the team has stockpiled guys who were picked by other teams with the very picks these folks covet, and kept Martin and Scola at the same time. This team is full of guys who could develop and become the kind of player people are willing to trash the team to acquire in the draft. No guarantee they will, but the chances seem about as good as the players they'd be taking a chance on in the draft. Tanking is stupidity.

 

I promise Morey gets offers for Scola all the time, just not deals he wants to accept. Scola needs to be the 6th man for a contender and he would work wonders for them coming off the bench and out hustling anyone else on the court.

Martin is wanted also, but Morey isn't going to sell low. Mark Cuban, who many of ya'll think is the best GM/Owner, would do anything for Martin if he had the opportunity and I promise if the Magic had anything outside of Dwight we'd care for they would trade it for him in a second. Didn't we turn down Gortat for him?

 

This. Drafts generally produce one superstar level player, many produce none, and at most you get three, MAYBE four if we're talking a historic, 1984 type class (next year, at best, is closer to 1996 imo).

If we blow up the team completely and do really well in the draft, it's still MORE LIKELY that five years down the road we'll have a team with a bunch of good, but not great players, fighting for a 6-8 seed in the playoffs. It's incredibly rare to land a Duncan or a Hakeem in the draft.

 

i guess successful tanking is directly proportionate to the quality of general manager that you have. The OK City GM is widely respected as among elite GMs. But if you have Khan as GM then forget about tanking.

 

because a boat's a boat, but the mystery box could be anything. It could even be a boat!