thedoper wrote:Ive already made the point that we dont have enough for Simmons, but if Lillard was the swap that would be way too much for Portland to give up. McCollum and another asset would be the play for Simmons if I was Portland. I know Lillard has whined about wanting Portland to get better and seems like he might be planning his exit but hes a way better asset the Simmons.
If I were the Sixers, there's no way I'd consider trading Simmons for McCollum. The Sixers are in a full win-now mode with Embiid. Although Embiid is relatively young, he has physical issues that suggest his time at the top of his game is limited more than most. Replacing Simmons with Lillard to play with Embiid and Harris would make the Sixers a favorite to win the East next season - assuming Embiid stays healthy. I can see why Portland might not to the swap. The key would be the other assets Portland received from the Sixers (or a 3rd team in some type of three-way). The Sixers also have some good young players like Thybulle and Maxey. They have all of their own 1st round picks until 2025. They have two second round picks this year - their own and the Knicks. So perhaps there's some package of additional assets Portland would consider adequate. After all, Simmons is no slouch. One thing I'm absolutely certain of is that Morey won't trade Simmons for McCollum no matter what else Portland might offer.
leado01 wrote:Would anyone else have interest is a Rubio/Kuzma swap?
I'm not big on most of the proposed trades I see floated online but the Google machine floated this one to me last week and my immediate reaction was "yes."
It's a nominal upgrade from Juancho that allows us to develop Sleepy at the 4 and shop a reasonably attractive Juancho contract.
I've always felt Kuzma has underperformed, and while he would still be a 3rd/4th option in most circumstances I love his length and scoring prowess (as well as rebounding) alongside Beasley on the 2nd team once McDanial develops
I would think we would have to add something more to make it work plus I doubt that the Lakers would want to take on more Salary this year. Im curious would you consider trading Beasley in a deal for Kuzma? Like you I had actually been thinking about Kuzma as a option at PF this weekend.
First of all, I wouldn't consider trading Beasley for Kuzman - not for a second. Kuzma's not all that impressive and there's a reason the Lakers are shopping him. I don't think we'd have to give up anything more in a Ricky for Kuzma swap. The Lakers really need a playmaking PG and they're been pretty open about that. The question for the Lakers is whether they can acquire a better PG than Ricky. If they can, then they'll do what it takes to get that player. If not, then I'm sure they'd take Ricky for Kuzma. If I were Rosas I definitely wouldn't offer anything else except maybe the 2022 2nd round pick due from Philly. The Lakers won't mind paying the $4M differential between the Ricky and Kuzma contracts. That's nothing for them and they don't have cap space either way.
If up to me, I'd pass on Kuzma. He's not the type of big we need. He doesn't bring much to the defensive end. He's not a shot blocker or a particularly good rebounder and he doesn't add any toughness. He also appears to have an ego that outstrips his talent. I'd rather keep Ricky and his expiring contract while also re-signing Vanderbilt and signing RHJ. If we can parley Ricky into acquiring Steven Adams without giving up McDaniels or Naz Reid, then I'd do that deal.
If we are genuinely looking at Gallinari and giving up players to get him I'd say we're willing to consider Kuzma. His rebound rate is higher than Gallinari's and like Wiggins, his defensive effort reputation is based on his first few years in the league and not on The Lakers coaches view of his current skill set.
It's not a blockbuster, but it does provide us an upgrade at the 4, a decent 2 way player, and potentially a guy with a chip on his shoulder since they brought LeBron in and changed the trajectory of his career.
lipoli390 wrote:
monsterpile wrote:
leado01 wrote:Would anyone else have interest is a Rubio/Kuzma swap?
I'm not big on most of the proposed trades I see floated online but the Google machine floated this one to me last week and my immediate reaction was "yes."
It's a nominal upgrade from Juancho that allows us to develop Sleepy at the 4 and shop a reasonably attractive Juancho contract.
I've always felt Kuzma has underperformed, and while he would still be a 3rd/4th option in most circumstances I love his length and scoring prowess (as well as rebounding) alongside Beasley on the 2nd team once McDanial develops
I would think we would have to add something more to make it work plus I doubt that the Lakers would want to take on more Salary this year. Im curious would you consider trading Beasley in a deal for Kuzma? Like you I had actually been thinking about Kuzma as a option at PF this weekend.
First of all, I wouldn't consider trading Beasley for Kuzman - not for a second. Kuzma's not all that impressive and there's a reason the Lakers are shopping him. I don't think we'd have to give up anything more in a Ricky for Kuzma swap. The Lakers really need a playmaking PG and they're been pretty open about that. The question for the Lakers is whether they can acquire a better PG than Ricky. If they can, then they'll do what it takes to get that player. If not, then I'm sure they'd take Ricky for Kuzma. If I were Rosas I definitely wouldn't offer anything else except maybe the 2022 2nd round pick due from Philly. The Lakers won't mind paying the $4M differential between the Ricky and Kuzma contracts. That's nothing for them and they don't have cap space either way.
If up to me, I'd pass on Kuzma. He's not the type of big we need. He doesn't bring much to the defensive end. He's not a shot blocker or a particularly good rebounder and he doesn't add any toughness. He also appears to have an ego that outstrips his talent. I'd rather keep Ricky and his expiring contract while also re-signing Vanderbilt and signing RHJ. If we can parley Ricky into acquiring Steven Adams without giving up McDaniels or Naz Reid, then I'd do that deal.
leado01 wrote:If we are genuinely looking at Gallinari and giving up players to get him I'd say we're willing to consider Kuzma. His rebound rate is higher than Gallinari's and like Wiggins, his defensive effort reputation is based on his first few years in the league and not on The Lakers coaches view of his current skill set.
It's not a blockbuster, but it does provide us an upgrade at the 4, a decent 2 way player, and potentially a guy with a chip on his shoulder since they brought LeBron in and changed the trajectory of his career.
lipoli390 wrote:
monsterpile wrote:
leado01 wrote:Would anyone else have interest is a Rubio/Kuzma swap?
I'm not big on most of the proposed trades I see floated online but the Google machine floated this one to me last week and my immediate reaction was "yes."
It's a nominal upgrade from Juancho that allows us to develop Sleepy at the 4 and shop a reasonably attractive Juancho contract.
I've always felt Kuzma has underperformed, and while he would still be a 3rd/4th option in most circumstances I love his length and scoring prowess (as well as rebounding) alongside Beasley on the 2nd team once McDanial develops
I would think we would have to add something more to make it work plus I doubt that the Lakers would want to take on more Salary this year. Im curious would you consider trading Beasley in a deal for Kuzma? Like you I had actually been thinking about Kuzma as a option at PF this weekend.
First of all, I wouldn't consider trading Beasley for Kuzman - not for a second. Kuzma's not all that impressive and there's a reason the Lakers are shopping him. I don't think we'd have to give up anything more in a Ricky for Kuzma swap. The Lakers really need a playmaking PG and they're been pretty open about that. The question for the Lakers is whether they can acquire a better PG than Ricky. If they can, then they'll do what it takes to get that player. If not, then I'm sure they'd take Ricky for Kuzma. If I were Rosas I definitely wouldn't offer anything else except maybe the 2022 2nd round pick due from Philly. The Lakers won't mind paying the $4M differential between the Ricky and Kuzma contracts. That's nothing for them and they don't have cap space either way.
If up to me, I'd pass on Kuzma. He's not the type of big we need. He doesn't bring much to the defensive end. He's not a shot blocker or a particularly good rebounder and he doesn't add any toughness. He also appears to have an ego that outstrips his talent. I'd rather keep Ricky and his expiring contract while also re-signing Vanderbilt and signing RHJ. If we can parley Ricky into acquiring Steven Adams without giving up McDaniels or Naz Reid, then I'd do that deal.
It's worth remembering that the baby Lakers before Lebron were actually pretty decent on defense. I'm not sure he is a bad defender although I don't watch Lakers games really. Lol
I Lip was right and the Lakers really would deal Kuzma for Rubio another benefit would be dropping a few million below the Lux tax which means the Wolves would have options to add to the roster. They could sign a vet backup PG and sign a more defensive big. Maybe Kuzma starts or maybe he plays a lot of minutes some with a bench unit. Having him being able to play as a big SF would be a benefit too. Supposedly Thr Lakers are offering Kuzma to try and get Buddy. I'm not sure the Kings are gonna bite on that.
Honestly if the Lakers included something extra I would actually consider a Beasley for Kuzma deal. It balances the roster and while I am a big fan of Beasley and his potential the reality is he isn't proven and while Kuzma might have some issues with attitude Beasley has some issues off the floor. Neither guy is proven to be an above average starter. Kuzma is actually cheaper so again it would help with the Lux tax situation a little although not as much as the Rubio deal. I'm not sure the Lakers would have enough to sweeten the deal for me but I don't think it's a crazy idea. Wait I thought Kidman was a better 3 point shooter...ok the Lakers need to sweeten the deal more. Lol I agree with Leado that Kuzma COULD have more to show than he has. I've also gotten the impression from way afar that Kuzma has actually been a good teammate the last couple years and fans actually really like the guy. I could be wrong on that though. I don't think the Wolves would do a Beasley for Kuzma deal and I'm cool with that.
PorkChop wrote:If Beal is traded then Westbrook is the next Wizard to go. I see no reason for them to hold onto him. Time for a full rebuild.
Looking around at what teams have matching contracts the Heat might be able to make something happen and I could see them being interested. I wonder if Westbrook ends up by himself if he says &@$& the league and tries like hell to win with whatever is left in Washington or if he would be willing to take some sort of buyout so he could sign with another team. I wouldn't be shocked if Westbrook did the former. I know Westbrook has his issues but that guy is ready and willing to ball and despite his flaws is a pretty good basketball player.
Guard with pretty big price tags that are likely available:
Westbrook
Wall
Kemba
Not as big price tag but probably available:
Bledsoe
Rubio
There are a number of PG FA this year it will be interesting what the price tag is for those guys.
I see nothing about Kuzma that makes me want him here. I haven't really focused much on him recently but there is quite a bit of talk a few years back about what a bad defender he was. His offensive numbers stagnated the past couple years. It also sounds like the Lakers are desperate to move him to unload his contract. He may be a poor man's Beasley, but no need to tie up money in a pedestrian talent or give up anything of value.
Kuzma is the poster-child of the "not every promising young player improves" axiom. I think a lot of folks were really high on him after a very solid rookie year. And after four seasons, that still might be his best season. He's not a bad player, but not sure what problem he helps solve for us at that price.
Q12543 wrote:Kuzma is the poster-child of the "not every promising young player improves" axiom. I think a lot of folks were really high on him after a very solid rookie year. And after four seasons, that still might be his best season. He's not a bad player, but not sure what problem he helps solve for us at that price.
Yep. He's a below average defender who looked like he was going to be a really good offensive player. Having plateaued for the 4 seasons since then, he's not a guy worth trading for and he makes no sense for the Wolves.
thedoper wrote:Ive already made the point that we dont have enough for Simmons, but if Lillard was the swap that would be way too much for Portland to give up. McCollum and another asset would be the play for Simmons if I was Portland. I know Lillard has whined about wanting Portland to get better and seems like he might be planning his exit but hes a way better asset the Simmons.
If I were the Sixers, there's no way I'd consider trading Simmons for McCollum. The Sixers are in a full win-now mode with Embiid. Although Embiid is relatively young, he has physical issues that suggest his time at the top of his game is limited more than most. Replacing Simmons with Lillard to play with Embiid and Harris would make the Sixers a favorite to win the East next season - assuming Embiid stays healthy. I can see why Portland might not to the swap. The key would be the other assets Portland received from the Sixers (or a 3rd team in some type of three-way). The Sixers also have some good young players like Thybulle and Maxey. They have all of their own 1st round picks until 2025. They have two second round picks this year - their own and the Knicks. So perhaps there's some package of additional assets Portland would consider adequate. After all, Simmons is no slouch. One thing I'm absolutely certain of is that Morey won't trade Simmons for McCollum no matter what else Portland might offer.
You're right that Simmons for McCollum probably wont get it done. They would have to add other significant assets. I just wouldn't trade Dame at all if I were Portland, definitely not for Simmons straight up, and I would really like Simmons on the Wolves. I think you're also right that with Morey at the helm, the cost for Simmons is going to be high.