If Nash, an AARP member, can get 3/36 and Dragic can get 4/40 and Lin can get 7 to start then just how much is Lowry worth on the trade market?
Lets make the stakes higher. Morey has to sign Lin or Dragic. That is a major failure if he doesnt now. That sounds fair. I will give Morey a tiny pass if he signs Lin. How about them apples? Lets make stakes for when Morey comes through and doesnt for not on to keep tabs. Starting now you win a argument finally if he lands Lin at least. Maybe is able to get Goran back somehow. Thats fair. I gave you the upper hand this time.
Lin deserves 6 to 7 mil. He is a solid PG to have as a starter for most teams. Plus the main reason teams would pay that much or more is just in it to fill seats
If Lowry hadn't aired dirty laundry, he'd be worth a good deal more but his public announcement of being trade or 'coaching changes' sours not only the Rockets position in moving him but his own value, since few teams want a troublemaker as their PG.
I haven't seen enough of Lin to feel comfortable giving him that type of money. In the couple of games I did see I thought he was playing like garbage. Turnover prone and out of control. Ish Smith v2.0
- Nash is a proven 2 time MVP. He's worth that money. - Dragic wants that much; he's not necessarily getting that much.
From the ownership standpoint (certainly a big marketing consideration)...how many of the two million Slovenians will it take gravitating toward the Rockets for Dragic's presence to compare to the tapping into the Asian fan base already established by Yao (for Lin/for the Rockets/for the NBA)? Les has probably directed Morey that if we can't get 'er done with Dragic we'd better get 'er done with Lin. Secretly (or not), Les has got to have set that as a priority. One of those guys (Lin or Dragic) will be back on the roster...and I have to bet Les would rather have Lin than Dragic at this point.
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Honestly I don't understand this argument -- it's not hypocrisy to me. It should be well known by now that in the NBA, liking a player or not liking a player is not independent of his salary and expected role. It has nothing to do with bias, jealousy or hatred, but rather there is a finite amount of space you can use and money you can spend, especially a team owned by Les Alexander, who avoids the luxury tax like the plague (yes I know he paid it last year, but only because his last minute trades came up less than a million short). If this wasn't the case, then everyone would be applauding the great move by the Nets to get Joe Johnson ... but given his outrageous salary, there are many claiming it was a mistake by the Nets. What... they don't like Joe Johnson the player now? I highly doubt anyone here would balk at adding Jeremy Lin to this team at a low cost. Instead, if they're actually offering the money they were extending to Dragic (potentially $8M a season), then you can bet Lin is going to be looked at by Rockets fans under a more powerful microscope. IF the Rockets pull out of the Dragic chase and make a big offer to Lin, then they will have let Lin walk for nothing in order to keep Dragic, then let Dragic walk for nothing in order to pay a large sum to get back Lin. Lin is a good player who is a little on the slow side, very turnover-prone and possibly had his numbers inflated by Mike D'Antoni's sets. Paying that much for him totally smacks of a move to market to China and re-open those sponsorship opportunities.
Yes, it does (or "would"...depending on how it plays out). But trying to be objective about it (and not seeing it purely from my point of view as a fan), from the ownership standpoint it would sure seem to make sense for the overall good of the organization as a business. I couldn't objectively blame them for that. I'm sure they'd couch it under both filling a need on the roster and helping the organization on multiple levels beyond the basketball court -- and I bet they would openly admit to both motivations, if asked.
