I can't find the offseason thread and MLE targets havent really been discussed much so I figure I would see who is most popular fit wise. Try and limit your top three choices. Lets assume our roster stays exactly the same and no big trades are made. Doesnt have to be the whole MLE either. My top 3 would be a backup SG: Ray Allen, Mike Miller, or Kyle Korver (I know I know, but he shot 50% from 3!)
I don't see anyone at interest. Except for Haslem. This guy could fit in man...He hustles and is always willing to do the dirty work. With a decent jumper too.
Take Korver off that list. I voted for Miller, Felton (he will get more than the MLE though), and Allen (same as Felton). Maybe even Brendan Haywood. If you are going to use it to sign someone, sign the best players just like the NBA draft. Always go for the best players. Figure out what works and trade later.
Haywood would be an ideal backup for Yao. I would give him the full MLE even though he will be 35 at the end of a 5 year contract. However, true centers are at a premium so you would have to risk it, even with his reputation as being kinda lazy. He would still get 20-25 mins per game next year and probably at least 20 or so over the remainder of the contract even if Yao stays healthy, since I doubt they will use Yao for longer than 30 mins per game. I would also have offered Gortat the full MLE last year but he turned us down. In hindsight I'm glad he didn't lock us up for 7 days because we would probably have missed out on Ariza then. On that list I would offer Ray Allen the full MLE but 2-3 years max. Korver is shooting lights out but I can't stand the little guy, specially since he plays with the Jazz. Mike Miller I'm not sure about, he has declined and we already have our own Mike Miller with C-Bud. The other Miller, Brad, I would take but not for a 5 year contract. 2-3 tops and I would rather use LLE. As for the rest of the players they wouldn't approach full MLE for any of them, not even Outlaw.
Thank you larsv8! Finally a thread worth discussing!! I like Mike Miller. He's a good shooter who'd fit well on this team...
I know you can never have too many decent shooters on a team, but I honestly don't believe there is a need for Miller on this team. Not when you have Martin and Budinger playing close to the same positions.
Actually, if we really don't do anything big in the offseason, the MLE is virtually useless to this team. Yao's backup will come from the draft. And we're basically 2-deep at every position. Unless a player suffers an injury in the offseason, we have no need for MLE-level players. The only reason why the MLE may actually matter is in case we send away several players in a trade. If Budinger and Hill leaves for Bosh, then Ray Allen may be a good option, for example. But as they stand right now, the Rockets have no need for simple rotation players.
Good player, but on our team I wouldn't give him the full MLE. I wouldn't give Kyle Lowry the full MLE either and even though Felton is better than Lowry I wouldn't give him full MLE if we can keep Lowry for less. Now, if we lost either Lowry/Brooks due to a trade I would gladly give him the full MLE. Hopefully that trade would address our backup center issues, like Bosh that could slide from the 4 to the 5. However, as we are currently constructed, I wouldn't give him full MLE.
Am I missing something, or is Taylor somehow ahead of Battier and Budinger now on the depth chart? Even dismissing Martin, what team can't function with 3 guys rotating the SG/SF spots?
Youre right... I guess I am sorta breaking my own rule here but in the back of my mind I feel like either Ariza or Battier wont be here next year
We already have Trevor Ariza, Shane Battier, Kevin Martin, and the Black Joe Johnson. Why do we need to sign another 2/3 when we have plenty? It's already hard to distribute the minutes among those 4 players and people want to add another 2/3. If we were talking about a 2/3 on or near the level of Wade/Kobe or at least an upgrade to what we already have, then it wouldn't be a bad idea to add another wing. However, it would be better if we invest in someone with size, like Brendan Haywood.
Not to dismiss the thread,but alot of guys can be elimated by why? Why would allen and haywood take the mle money to backup someone when they can start? Same can be said for felton also. Why do you need korver,outlaw,and miller when martin and ariza are starting and chase and shane are on the bench already? Now if the team loss ariza,shane,and chase via a trade, i would give outlaw the mle.
