My thoughts on trading up to near the top of the draft

I think you can make that call about Trevor this upcoming season. He could serve to be very important for this team if Yao comes back healthy which is a big if at this point or Morey is able to land a PF/C that commands a double team. Trevor was starting to actually play pretty good once the ball was out of his hands.

 

Not as good as Chase......sorry, I think Chase is better than Trevor right now.

Especially when you consider contracts.

DD

 

I'd rather have Chase than those two, too, but I'd trade him for value.

 

DD, every draft pick is a risk. The #1's, the #2's and all the way down. Chase was a risk. Landry was a risk. How else did they fall to us? They were seen as a bigger risk than the guys above them in the draft. As you know, I'm a huge fan of Air Bud. I think he has a lot of potential. I think he has the tools to take himself to a higher level. He may become a star at some point. We simply don't know. Morey saw something in him. He saw something in Landry. Wouldn't you trust Morey to make a pick with a greater benefit to the team if trading Chase allowed him to move up to a player that fills a greater team need and that he also sees as someone with potential equal or higher than Budinger's? I would. It would upset me to lose Chase, as it upset me to lose Landry, but I trust Morey's judgement.

 

That's because his figures are not all that outstanding. He's a solid player for sure, but look at the rest of his draft class:

Demarr Derozan - 8.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 48% FG, 21.6 mpg
Jrue Holiday - 8.0ppg, 3.8 apg, 44% FG, 39% 3pt, 24.2 mpg
Ty Lawson - 8.3 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 3.1 apg, 50% FG, 41% 3pt, 20.3 mpg
Darren Collison - 12.4 ppg, 5.7 apg, 47.7% FG, 40.0% 3pt, 27.8 mpg
Omri Cassipi - 10.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 44.6% FG, 36.9% 3pt, 25.1 mpg
Rodrigue Beaubois - 7.1 ppg, 1.3 apg, 51.8% FG, 40.9% 3pt, 12.5 mpg
Taj Gibson - 9.0 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 1.3 bpg, 26.9 mpg
Toney Douglas - 8.6 ppg, 2.0 apg, 45.8% FG, 38.9% 3pt, 19.4 mpg
Dejuan Blair - 7.8 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 55.6% FG, 18.2 mpg
Jonas Jerebko - 9.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 48.1% FG, 1.0 spg, 27.9 mpg
Marcus Thorton - 14.5 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 45.1% FG, 37.4% 3pt, 25.6 mpg

I've left off the major successes, obviously. No need to include Evans, Curry, or Jennings. The point is these guys will not all be superstars. In fact, most of them will not be stars, period.

I don't even get why you're comparing him to an 18 year old, rookie Kobe Bryant. If anything, doesn't that reaffirm that it would be better to trade a steady guy like Chase for an unaccomplished, high-ceiling prospect? Did the Lakers made a mistake by trading an all-star center for an unproven teenage SG? Swing for the fences, my friend.

 

So, whaddya think, Deck? Would you trade CBud + #14 for #5?

 

Sure last year he was and we all know that. The upcoming season could be a different story. How much of an impact will Chase have next year playing with a big man? We saw Trevor was pretty darn good playing with Pau Gasol and Bynum.

I'm not saying Trevor is better than Chase but I think he'll play a lot better with the upcoming season.

 

Or he could be Steve Kerr... Kerr had a good career...

 

Let's see, Chase sitting at the 3pt line, or Trevor?

Chase driving down the lane on the dribble or Trevor?

Seriously, Chase all the way, he should be starting by mid year, IMO.

DD

 

Yeah... Chase could be starting by mid year or he could be still on the bench... At this point no one truly knows. He could be Steve Kerr or he could be Larry Bird.

But seriously, I would only trade Bud for an elite star.

 

My point is not that Chase has to become the Alpha dog but that we don't have an Alpha dog. Past winners are Tim Duncan and team, DWade and Shaq, Kobe and team, Pierce, Allen, Garnett and team. I don't think you can get there with Brook, Martin and team. We need to trade whoever we have to try and get that guy you build around. Then you go back and refill with "and team" fillers. I don't want to give up Chase but I would not take anyone off the list if I can get an Alpha dog.

 

OK, who after the first two picks is that alpha dog?

Who?

That is 100% my point....and you know what? Aaron Brooks could be that Alpha dog....Yao Ming could be that Alpha dog....sometimes you have to let that alpha dog develop.

Exactly what I have been saying.

DD

 

If the guy Morey sees as the answer to our need for a big, a huge need for this team, then yes. I'd hate to do it, but Morey gets paid to make those judgements. I'd rather not, if we can avoid it.

 

Yep... at this current moment we don't have a Alpha dog. That's why it's important for Morey to make the right trades/draft picks to build this team. He's done a great job.

 

CBud + #14 won't nearly get it done in aquiring the #5 pick. It will take alot more than that. The top 5 players in Chad Fords recent tier system Tier #1 Wall, Tier #2 Cousins, Favors, Johnson and Turner are considered to be potential All-Stars down the road by all the teams Ford as spoken with.

 

How about we trade Budinger and Brooks for Demarcus Cousins?

 

You are just being purposely obtuse.

As are Hill and Budinger, as said by Morey.

DD

 

Do you have a link for this quote? I also heard Phoenix was kicking themselves for not taking Budinger, who would be perfect for their system. I think he'd be a top 15 pick in this year's draft.

 

DD, i get where you are coming from. When Chase figures it out( which he showed flashes of doing towards the end of last season)he will be like a Rudy Gay type of player. If he were to incorporate a little defense, he would be like a poor mans McGrady. Truthfully, the prize pick last season was Jermaine Taylor. Towards the end of the season he had three successful starts and strong play throughout. Next season will be his breakout year, trust me. I feel he will avg 15+ all season. His defense was starting to pick up as well. Towards the end of the season it was obvious just how good of a draft we had last season. Next season, if they are not traded, it will be like having our own T-Mac and Rudy Gay on the team.

 

I know you have and I agree with you to extent. Right now I would say you think Chase could be this guy...




And I think he could be Steve Kerr with driving ability.