Oh and I must mention that it is unlikely that either will want to resign w/ Denver. McDyess I believe has an opt out in 2 years and LaFrentz is always getting ragged on, y would he wanna resign w/ ya'll. Might as well get something or nothing. U might be able to get better players from other teams, but not that good of a draft pick.
If we would have just pursued McDyess more instead of Pippen. We wouldn't have to try and trade for him now and we wouldn't be trying to get rid of Cato and his contract. Someone might have aready posted this, but hey, it still bugs me that the Rockets didn't decide on McDyess.
Another good reason why the Rockets should have signed McDyess instead of Pippen...... NugzFan wouldn't have to deal with all these trade proposals
I agree with most that was said by Op, except 1. The idea that Taylor is the final piece kind of got me . What team would Taylor be the final piece of the puzzle? Its not 1 team in the west, if healthy he could even start for except ours. Looking at the East, where there is a void of 4's, what team could he put over the top? Other than the Bulls, thats probably the only team he could start for. I agree about the commodities and some trade scenerio's , but the taylor thing got me.
i'll give you one - the san antonio spurs. seriously. OP can confirm this, i'm sure. big dave has become a problem in san antonio in that he is RIDICULOUSLY inconsistent and his game is RAPIDLY depleting. adding motay and moving duncan to center next year would be perfect for them. duncan can stay down low. motay can pop that 15 footer all day long. it would give them back their 1-2 scoring punch after they bow out in the 1st round of the playoffs this year. steve smith has already said he wants a contract extension beyond this year, and the spurs have shied away. in houston, his dead eye shooting (best pure shooter in the nba) and veteran leadership would be HUGE assets. in fact, i'd move him to starting 2 guard and move cat to the bench. with the recent emergence of greg popovich's head from his ass (finally deciding to play charles smith and stephen jackson), the spurs have had a much needed dose of shooting and athleticism. that dose - coupled with the fact that a) they KNOW they aren't winning the west or even coming close to it this year; b) they have to keep tim happy or he might bolt in 2 and c) dave's downward spiral might be enough for them to shake things up this year. they have ABSOLUTELY ZERO tradeable commodities outside of steve smith and malik rose. if you could pry those two from the spurs (and it might be possible), i'd make that deal.
oh, and as for unloading mooch aka "the little dribbler" just refer to my signature. even last night i thought he played a terrible game as a point guard.
1. Appreciate repost Rocket 03 – Originally I was attempting to add my say in a thread that graduated to a Rashard Lewis “possibilities” discussion. 2. I hate to rehash old wounds but, Dice decided on the Nuggets after (in his words) a “confused, unsure” period of reflection following his heavy pursuit that summer (98). He eventually was contacted by NVE and a few select others and he decided on going to Denver. Up to that time in his career, Antonio was not very mature with dealings concerning money and talent management and had to be guided quite a bit. In a last ditch effort the Suns sent Jason Kidd to help him “decide”. Some media reports stated Denver literally kidnapped him and kept him isolated while other offers were being sent his way (including Houston) via his friends in Denver. CD is on record as saying they went after him with a vengeance, but subsequently Diceman called Houston from Denver and said he would sign with the Nuggets the next day. During that season’s allstar weekend he was quoted as saying he liked all the offers from teams and was impressed with some franchises, “especially the guys in Houston”, but that “Denver is the only team I considered after (going there to see his friends) that week”. He stated he was happy he had made the choice he made. CD has stated since that they felt no one except Denver and Phoenix was in the running from early on. In short, we didn’t lose for lack of effort, just that Dice chose to go elsewhere. 3. Leebigez – IMHO Maurice Taylor will have an impact on any team he plays for during the next five-six years. I have seen too much of his talent and a willingness to display that talent to think otherwise. His relatively comfortable but not outlandish contract makes him even more desirable. Ask yourself if Utah wouldn’t like to field a “double PF” set, a la Spurs to prove that point. Speaking of the Spurs, who do you think they would like to stick in there with Duncan when Mr.Robinson’s worth starts to decline (and I’m talking right now). Chicago would kill for him right now. Seattle needs some diversity in offense and a Rashard Lewis –Maurice Taylor attack would be deadly. (Maybe that’s the same reason we see drawing Lewis here to go with Mo and Griffin would expand everyone’s game). I can absolutely guarantee that MoTay’s offense would be sought in hyperdrive by Pat Riley if MoTay was healthy right now. There are few teams that would not like what he brings to the game. Comfortable shot selections from 16 and out, with a soft step baby drive from 12 feet and in. Decent to above average FT's (and he gets lots). An excellent passer who understand the game very, very well. All at a bargain basement price tag. Don't be fooled by his laid back manner .... he's game. Sorry, partner I’ll stick by my statement. 4. Sorry Verse didn't read your post until I sent mine. - You are uncanny in that you just posted my assessment of the Spurs exactly. It is mindless to sit and comment on the woes of a successful team like the Spurs while ours is falling far short of our earlier expectations ..... but, they are heading for a lot of trouble. They always were a team that consistently had short sight. They have a bunch of talented dogs, and yet, they are still yapping at the door. Playing with fire when it comes to contracts. Personally I think Tim is gone to Florida when the time comes. Robinson will be kept in Spurville only because he would have worked (unworked?) his way out of a position elsewhere. As you pointed out Steve Smith and Malik Rose are the only guys available for sale after that. And Steve Smioth will opt for our cardiac kids in a heart beat. Rose will go east.
IMHO Pops, Steve Smith does not have a place on this team. Another old, oft-injured, expensive, molasses-slow shooter is not going to help our fast break or perimeter D. Aren't Walt and Glen enough already???
What do you mean oft-injured? He's played in 72-82 games a season in 7 of the last 8 seasons & he's played in all 36 games so far this year. He's hitting 49% from the field & 57% from 3pt land this year & has been a consistent 44/36%+ shooter throughout his career, while averaging 34 mpg.
thanx pops. hey, what is the real reasoning behind the spurs affinity with jesus parker in your opinion? to me, its a elaborate marketing ploy. the spurs (and spur fans) are cocky and arrogant, but not COMPLETELY stupid (well some of them are ). i think management knows that tim's likely to leave san antonio and they need to have other stars propped up. maybe those other "cardboard stars" will be enough to get tim to stay, who knows? probably not, but the spurs have to have some "stars" in place when tim leaves (esp. with a new arena coming up). if tim's gone (and i think it's a 70% chance he's leaving along with antonio daniels, his best friend) the city's in the crapper - new stadium or not. but the management needs to give the city some reason to show up to the games after tim's gone. thus: jesus parker. thus: sean "the ultimate homer" elliot doing the color commentary on tv. thus: rumors of avery johnson coming back to the spurs after denver contract is expired. as for tim and the rox, i get a stiffy thinking of tim and eddie griffin in the front court together. i wouldn't care if it took trading steve or cat away, either. hell, take both of them and give me antonio daniels. Antonio Daniels Oscar Torres Rashard Lewis Eddie Griffin Tim Duncan that's an nba championship team. however, my gut tells me that if tim leaves, it'll be to orlando (w/tmac). i can't see him leaving san antonio and "going to the enemy". but who knows? he's married, has a house in san antonio, and has been happy. maybe he's not opposed to sticking around in texas... what are you feelings about tim choosing to "go to the enemy"? PDG, steve smith is money. 100% healthy his entire career. great leader. walt's gone soon anyway. trust me when i say i'd put him as our starting 2 guard...especially if we got rashard. francis smith lewis kt eddie cat/cato/rice off the bench? i'd take that as an improvement.
Steve Smith wouldn't hit 57% in Houston. You have to remember they have Duncan and Robinson openning up the outside shot. We need an inside presence that requires a double team. With Eddie, Francis, Mobley, Rice we have the outside threat already. IMO McDyess is the perfect complement to the 4 we already have. With McDyess we can go back to the offense that won us 2 championships.
One quick post before class.......When we get Rice and MoT back from injury (or if we were to trade Mo for another player (ie Lewis)) then I worry about there being enough shots on this team to help these players improve and to allow for everyone to stay involved/happy? We have heard all kinds of talk about Steve needing to take more shots, but does anyone see his attempts are going to drop drastically once these players return. I think that having all these options are great and could make us a legitimate contender in the near future, but I worry about chemistry.
Then I stand corrected on this point, although he did only play 2gms in '95 and missed 14 outta 50 gms in '99. Nonetheless, we can all be assured as soon as he laces up in a Rox uni he is sure to start going down from all kinds of random ailments and injury!!
Have you heard (even once) any of the players complaining about not getting enough shots this year? The only place that I've heard complaints about players not getting enough shots is on this board. I wouldn't worry about the shots being an issue or the team chemistry. The chemistry is still developing, because all the injuries have prevented us from getting all the intended starters out on the floor at the same time. Mid-way through next year, we should have a real good idea if the current, & possibly soon to be acquired, players will mesh together.
Well, I won't argue that last part, but I believe that you misread the part about the '95 season. He played 78 games for Atlanta & was traded to Miami, where he played 2 more games for a total of 80 games. The 98/99 season was the one that he had a severe injury in. Here's the link to his career stats at NBA.com. http://www.nba.com/playerfile/steve_smith/career_statistics.html YEAR TEAM G GS 91-92 MIA 61 59 92-93 MIA 48 43 93-94 MIA 78 77 94-95 ATL 78 59 94-95 MIA 2 2 95-96 ATL 80 80 96-97 ATL 72 72 97-98 ATL 73 73 98-99 ATL 36 36 99-00 POR 82 81 00-01 POR 81 36 01-02 SAS 36 36 Career 727 654
Damn...I stand corrected again! Anyways, I'd rather have a more defensive-oriented player at the 2 to make up for Steve/Mooch on the perimeter. I'd rather leave any roster changes for big men and see if Torres can improve his defensive skills over the summer. He already has the requisite anticipation, footwork, and desire to eventually play solid D.
I'm glad to see MoT receiving high accolades in this thread! I'm also a little pumped about the idea of bringing a guy like Rashard Lewis to the team. I'd be willing to part with Moochie & even KT to bring him in, although I have no idea how a team like Seattle could use the Mooch. I've seen T. Brown play a little this year, and I think he's just as serviceable off the bench as a guy like Mooch ... and for a much smaller price tag. If some team out there wants the Mooch, then that's great. I'm sure there are many teams out there who want KT, and as much as I'd hate to part with him, he's probably our best trade bait right now. Hell, I'd take a guy like McDyess too. Either of those guys (him or Lewis) would add a wonderful extra dimension to this team. But personally, I'd prefer Lewis, 'cause I see our biggest concern right now is at the SF position. 3-way trade???
With Radomanovich and Mason, I don't think the SOnics are too worried about the SF spot. Vin Baker and Calvin Booth are concerns though. Booth wasn't playing well when he wasn't injured, and Baker isn't producing. Maybe they'd like to land Mo T, who they were battling us to sign last time around. Maybe Mo T and a first round pick for Rashard Lewis? Thoughts? Personally, I think they'd get a better deal from the Knicks. They can probably get Sprewell. That would keep Payton there too. Would improve the Knicks' flawed team too, because Sprewell is more suited to play SG. Booth Baker Mason/Radomanovich Sprewell Payton That's a killer backcourt.
