Some real weird pulls from Hollinger here. Why would we be interested in yet another 6'4"ish shooting guard? We already have two of 'em. The point guards he suggested are pretty uninspiring, too. I guess I can see Reed or Eubanks as backup centers. Not exactly going to dance a jig if we get a guy like that, though.
Would be a terrible pick that we would regret by the end of year 2. Hope the Rockets aren't that stupid. Iko seemed to think they were leaning Scoot with #2 so I'll take that over Givony.
I know Iko gets grief for playing the access game with the front office (which look... the guy has a family to feed... I get it) but I absolutely believe him way more than Givony in terms of insider views of the front office. I think Givony, and other national media guys who aren't plugged in on a day to day basis with the front office probably see the Rockets likely pursuing a big name PG in free agency as well as a commitment to KPJ & Green along with the pressure to win next year so picking a more win-now player. All of that makes sense, and it's what I would likely think too knowing the dynamics from the outside. Miller at #2 for the Rockets makes sense. However the Rockets front office, and the Fertittas... simply might view Scoot as a star, and might also have personal reservations about the off-the-court stuff. We can't really assume any of that from the outside, and neither can Givony. Which is why I probably lean more on what Iko is saying here in this case unless it's a draft smokescreen that Stone is using Iko to play a hand of diversion. So who knows... nobody really, but lucking out to get #2 would be a good problem to have that guessing game to worry about at that point.
Even if you take out Harden, and plug in Van Fleet, or maybe a traded for Kyle Lowry, Mike Conley, or whomever.... based on what I'm seeing with the Play-In crowd, I really like the Rockets chances next year of taking a decent enough leap to be a play-in team that is kinda where OKC is right now. Could be a pretty fun Spring. Now October - February... things could be grim here in the GARM. But my guess is there will be a TON of Tank-Blazers types next Spring and avenues open up alot after February to build some momentum into the Play-In with a young team with a good coach and hopefully AT LEAST one of these youngsters looking like a future star.
Since the Rockets can trade into cap space, I’d be looking for them to possibly trade with teams trying to avoid large luxury tax payments. GSW are a prime example. Without a deep playoff run, or maybe even a championship, I expect them to start cutting salary. Andrew Wiggins for KJM + first rd pick is not out of the realm of possibility. We can offer them a dirt cheap replacement player and offer picks and salary relief. They might try to unload Poole first, but I wouldn’t bite on that one. There might be a few other similar scenarios out there for the Rockets to explore. The free agent market is spare. This would allow them to essentially buy players with their cap space rather than trade.
KMJ would be the Anti- Andrew, a full on offensive wing player while Wiggins has made a name shooting 3s and playing good defense.
I’m not really looking at it as KJM being Wiggins’ replacement, but KJM is quality and cheap. The goal for the Warriors is to chop off a chunk of salary. They are not going to get a player of KJ’s quality at that price anywhere. The Rockets could offer no players and two firsts. Then the Warriors have to go sign someone to fill that spot. That player would likely cost more and be less productive than KJ. I actually think the first proposal is better for both sides.
I like the idea of using an undervalued player like KJMjr to acquire a fixed level asset. On the idea of involving a pick - generally speaking the team dumping salary pays the price to do so. The Warriors might not want to include any 1sts, perhaps they see Poole plus firsts as their most attractive trade asset? They traded a stack of 2nds at the deadline too. Would they be happy to shed 20M in salary to have a look at KJ for a year (no picks involved?). They may well be! It gives them a year to check out what they have with their younger guys and reassess where to from here.
Wiggins isn’t your traditional salary dump. “Salary dumps” are usually marginal or useless players. He’s good enough that many teams would make some sort of offer. Many wouldn’t be desirable to GSW, but I think they’d have enough options that they wouldn’t have to attach a pick.
I agree he is useful, but who might be interested in taking on his salary and sending back almost nothing in return along with a viable player? Wiggins is being paid until 2027. Lots. To straight up dump his salary, a team would need $24mill of space to absorb him. AND be willing to have that kind of money (increasing by year) on the books for 4 years. There are only 8 teams who could actually take on that salary, and now we're thinking about which of those teams (a) wants to spend 24mill a year on Wiggins and (b) is willing to give something in return. As far as I can tell, the eligible teams are Rockets/ Spurs/ Jazz/ Magic/ Hornets/ Thunder/ Pistons/ Pacers. Ok, so there are definitely options for the Warriors in terms of ditching the salary and bringing back nothing more than a rookie scale in return - but I doubt many/ any of those teams are willing to pay big to get a nice defensive wing, who is useful to a team with 2 stars, but isn't the prime banana. You're right, it isn't a classic "salary dump" - so I agree, no way they would have to send a pick. I'm just suggesting we might not have to either? Looking at the teams, if I'm GSW, I'm not sure if I can possibly get a better return than KJM? Sure, there are nicer players, but considering whether teams are willing to move players/ whether those players have established themselves as a reliable contributor
Great. Now you've convinced me that we could get Wiggins for KJM straight up. I would not mind paying him that salary going forward. While he was not able to really be the guy on a team in the past, he would clearly be the best player on this team. And with the players we already have, along with this year's pick, we should have candidates to take over that role fairly quickly. Having someone like him around would accelerate their growth, IMO. It would be money better spent than anyone we could get in free agency. Use the remaining money to supplement whichever positions are deficient following the draft.
Haha! My opinion on the Warriors is that they are happy to pay the tax while they make money. They are making more than they lose, and so could care less about the tax bill. Wiggins is a bargain for them since he took less starting salary on his extension, and they NEED a defensive wing to compensate for Curry and Poole. Having said that, dream on - I think one of our major needs is a starting level elite NBA defender. Getting a Wiggins level salary would still leave enough cap-space to throw a max at someone (anyone!). Add Harden and Wiggins to our young guys - look out!
A wing that might make more sense than a Jaylen Brown/Mikal Bridges would be OG Anunoby. He probably costs a lot less in assets, and he's a year younger than those guys. Might be a way to get the deal done without touching Green/Jabari/Sengun or trading our own draft pick. Immediately improves our defense and 3P shooting, great mentor for Green and whichever of the two we end up keeping between Tari and KJ Martin.
This is a good take and why I think the Rockets should not be too anxious to go hog wild on mediocre free agents. I know Wiggins was just an example, but I don’t think we need to go after another wing at this point, unless it’s of the calibre as Bridges and even then I’d be hesitant to overspend. Patience for just the right deal or deals is the key.
