Assuming we take Ming, why not Trade KT and the 15th to move up a few spots and take another project/huge upside kind of guy who can play more than one position. I love KT , he is a hard work with great footwork but he is a PF and an undersized one at that. Griff could at least simulate a 3 and Taylor has the size to simulate a 5, well at least against the less talented and smaller centers in the league.
There's only a few guys in the draft I would want to trade KT + the 15 for ... Butler(fat chance) Tsiki(a possibilty, but probably not) Dunleavy(fat chance) and maybe Woods. otherwise I'd just be happy keeping KT and drafting best available player(not necessarily a sf either). Since Orlando seems in love with Amare, you think they would trade Miller for KT + Amare if he falls to us with the 15? I think they would(esp if they think Hill really is coming back) considering their frontcourt is crap right now.
Why wouldn't I want MM? He is a good starting calibur sf already and still has potential to grow. He would add perimeter shooting which this team really needs, contribute immediatly, and still fit in with the agegroup of the team's core.
I think that either Woods or Butler will fall to #10. If Rudy can start making friends with Pat Riley I see a trde of KT and Tierre Brown and 15 for the #10 pick on the horizon. I think that the foreignors will go higher than normal because no one wants to pass up the next Nowitzki or Gasol. If we cant swing that trade or there both gone, I would take Nachbar.
Mike Miller would fit right in with this team. But I don't think Orlando is convinced Hill will be 100%.
KT is going to be a great player, in my opinion. None other than Gary Payton said that KT is going to be a star in this league... So, if we trade him, I want to get someone with similar upside. That being said, I believe he is too short for the West, with all the big Power Forwards we have. But, he would do great in the East. He has some considerable value in the market, so I think we need to trade him to someone in the East, who has value, and can give us someone who would do better in the West. A center, preferably, or a SF. So, we need to find a team from the East, who has an extra center or SF who needs an up and coming PF. One team would be Cleveland. They need a PF, and have 2 extra centers in Mihm and Diop. Diop was injured most of this last year, and might just be who we could get. I don't think his injury is worth worrying about. If Diop is for real, he would be great for us. Its my opinion, Thomas has turned out to be about the 8th best in his draft so far. So, since Diop was pick #8, that would be about fair compensation. In light of the injury, that would make it even more, and Thomas will be an immediate help, compared to Diop being a project. Other comparable value players could be Ron Artest, Corey Maggette, Marco Jaric, Hidayet Türkoglu, Jamaal Magloire, Rodney White, Brendan Haywood, Mamadou N'diaye, Morris Peterson, etc. As far as our #15 pick goes, I believe one of the good guys we want will slip to our spot, hopefully Hilario, Stoudamire, Tskitishvilli, Woods, Haislip, Ely, all should eventually become starters. So, lets see who falls... If we packaged KT with the #15, we could move up to maybe the 10-12 spot... but would that player be any better than the one we end up with at #15? I don't think so... If one of the top 6 picks fell down to 10-12, such as Butler, Gooden, or Woods, that team would be thrilled they were able to nab that player, and probably wouldn't trade the pick. After the top 6, the next 10-12 players are on a relatively similar level of quality. So, I don't think trading up a few spots will make that much difference in this draft. Now if someone traded KT for a #10-12 pick straight up, THEN we could get 2 quality players, and that might be worth it. But our best bet will probably be after we've drafted a good player at #15, and if we want to package KT and that player, and get a good veteran starter, that would be the time to do it.
Actually, I think Miller is available. They started Garrity at the end of the year and played just as well, if not better. Miller already seemed lost in the rotation with McGrady and Garrity, so what do you think it will be like when Hill is back? Plus, with Ewing and Grant gone ther frontcourt is practically nonexistent: they have Steven Hunter, Andrew DeClercq, and Don Reid. Wow. Shedding Miller for KT and a center with the #15 (maybe Amare, maybe Marcus, maybe Jennings) wouldn't be out of the question. And our need for a small forward would be filled.
Thats a good deal. If we could somehow nab Miller with KT and #15, then pick a Ming who can come to training camp, we'd be very good. But I doubt the Ming thing would work out. I think Hilario will be a better C in this league than Ming. He has a prototypical body, incredible quickness, and strength like hell. his shot is really nice. Needs a little technical work. Some footwork, some shooting technique. That's all.
8th best? That is an exaggeration, but he would have been picked in the lottery if everyone knew who the busts would be. I think Diop is going to be a bust, I wouldn't trade KT for him.
