Ahhhh, isn't that sweet, a past spurs hero monikered member backing up Pops... Go Spurs Go! go to an early exit from the Lakers or Suns in the playoffs this year...teehee
Don't just make up stuff. I never said Swift would be great and I told you Battier was average. I said Pau was as good as Yao 3 -4 years ago and he was but don't think for a minute I didn't want this or felt it was the right move. Heck, I was on board before the trade and knew what kind of deals were going to be available for him unless you wanted to take on some bad contracts. Clutch, tell me how does cutting costs and trading Gasol make the team more attractive to sell? Nobody ever has an answer for that question. Hey but keep on keeping on, I am sure Houston is locked and loaded for another playoff flop.
Assuming Memphis does actually spend all of the money they cleared with this trade. When is the last time an impact player has outright signed with a new team? The NBA collective bargaining agreement is clearly designed to keep teams with their current team (Bird rights.). In recent history, I can think of guys like Chauncey Billups (who only initially signed in Detroit for the MLE -- would not need to clear cap), Gilbert Arenas (odd situation, 2nd rder coming from a bad team), Steve Nash, and Ben Wallace moving teams in free agency. I'm sure there are more guys I'm forgetting, but I don't think many impact guys move from their current team to another in the existing structure of the NBA. It makes it even harder when the team is really bad and in an extremely small market. I like Memphis and enjoy visiting the city, but it's not a place that guys are clamoring to live in as NBA pros.
I don't know if the Rockets are going to make the playoffs or not but I know Memphis is relying on getting the future Greg Oden,Dwight Howard,Lebron James etc to bail them out. Even if they do get a player of that class it's going to take time before they get out of this mess.
Are you serious? Using your own logic, this was a good trade for Memphis, correct? You've gone on and on about how it benefits the long term future of the Grizzlies. If it's a good trade, then why would it NOT make it more attractive to sell? It's blatantly obvious what makes getting rid of Gasol does for an owner trying to sell the Grizzlies. Simply put, the Grizzlies have never made a yearly profit in their time in Memphis. Heisley is not making money while holding onto the team. By having less salaries to pay, it's more likely, in the short term, that the team loses less money (attendance in Memphis can't get much worse, can it?) by paying less salaries. That in and of itself makes the team more attractive to a potential purchaser. They will have the ability to come in and start from scratch....all while having LESS financial obligations. This could drive up the selling price of the Grizz. Pretty simple, right? I think I've probably been less critical of this trade than anyone else on this board. I don't think this was a GOOD trade, but not really a terrible trade for the Grizz. The outrage with this trade is that Gasol got sent to the Lakers. Point blank. People would NOT be bashing this trade nearly as much had they gotten the exact same deal from, say, Sacramento or Charlotte. Most fans and NBA personnel are just pissed because the Lakers are now a big threat to win the title for many years to come.
The outrage is that Pau was sent to a borderline contender for almost nothing when better deals (talent-wise) were there to be made. The outrage would have also been big if the Spurs, Magic, Celtics, etc would have involved.
It's funny, isn't it. How the loss of an avergage player-- and a few even less significant pieces (which other recent ex-Grizz are playing a greater role than Battier does right now for their current teams?) caused the team to go from at least in the playoffs to crap.
I think your reasoning is like most, they think people are paying $300+ million for an NBA team as an investment. It is and it isn't. However, there is a difference in stripping it down to nothing and trying to get salaries in line to be fiscally responsible. Since the Grizz have been in Memphis, Heisley has been paying the luxury tax. That is just not a position the Grizzlies can be in, especially for a team barely making the playoffs or out of the playoffs altogether. Unfortunately, we couldn't give Swift away and Brian Cardinal is untradeable also. However, less salaries does not drive up the price of an NBA team. Good players do. I agree. I think people are jumping the gun on the evaluation before seeing what the Grizzlies do with their cap space.
It happens. However, being in the playoffs and losing time and again in the first round is not really saying much...is it.
But if you don't have good players, potential buyers would rather see less salary so they can mold the team to their content while not taking such a big financial hit.
Who's backpedaling? (spelling isn't a strong point with Spurs fans huh?) Certainly not me when I said Pops is a hypocritical whiner who would do that deal also if he had the parts to do it. Let me spell it out for slow people (ie. Spurs fans): Pops is a hypocritical whiner because if he had the opportunity to trade trash (the rest of the team outside the big 3) for Pau, he would do it also. He also knows the Spurs will get slapped around in the playoffs because of the trades, that's why he's b1tching and moaning. D-o....y-o-u.....u-n-d-e-r-s-t-a-n-d.....n-o-w?
Memphis should have traded him to the East. That's just a dumbass move on their part, they basically helped create another elite team in the West. Thanks a lot, Chris Wallace.
Gasol is a star. He proved it in the World's game. Outside him, who else Griz got right in the short Franchise history? Wasted a 2nd draft pick on Swift? 10 mil or so on MM? The Gasol trade is a salary dump, pure and simple. It wont benifit Memphis unless you draft well or pick up a good free agent, which are very unlikely. At the end of the day, it is a mistake for NBA to set a team in Memphis that doesnt want to compete.
You never know Gay could be a star. No one thought that T-Mac was going to be a star when he was traded to the Magic.
I think he is going to become a very good player, but possibly just short of an all star because his ball handling ability isn't of a high caliber. But I admit I might be wrong.
