thedoper wrote:It is really difficult to get off of an overpaid player. I assume if they could have extended Dlo at a reasonable, even more tradeable extension they would have. The reality is most likely that Dlo still overvalues himself and therefore wants to test the free agent market. Extending DLo at a bloated price would be the worst outcome of all scenarios, which is why Im fine to get off of him now. We aren't winning the championship this year, better to consider 2 or three moves that can use that Dlo money in the next 2 years.
1. Minnesota's likely operating over the cap for the foreseeable future so even if D'Angelo Russell is slightly overpaid or signed at a "bloated" price by X amount on his next deal it won't be all that significant. Obviously, don't give him another max contract, and it has already been reported that he would sign for less than that, but the difference between $25-million and $30-million annually, for example, when you're already above the cap isn't that meaningful in reality. It's also not the worst outcome of all scenarios. The worst would be trading him for a player(s) that has a lesser on-court impact and trade value, and are unable to get much use out of them now or in the future. See: Kyle Lowry.
2. What is it about extending D'Angelo Russell at fair market value that makes the organization incapable of using his salary differently in the future? Rather, do you feel that Russell at age 28, 29, or 30 will have fallen off a cliff and be unplayable? Will he be so bad and/or so overpaid -- despite an annually-increasing salary cap -- that Minnesota's unable to move him, if need be?
The bottom line is that extending or re-signing Russell doesn't prohibit or restrict anything. It would retain their financial flexibility with the cap slot while having a good player on the roster that fills multiple roles while still being able to tweak the roster in the future if/when they need to.
