So What's Your Plan? The Offseason Roster Construction Thread

[D-Loser25]

So TC who lauded the big combo of KAT and Rudy might bail on both. Just terrible roster management by TC. I know some of you are impressed with TC, but to me he's a fkkin idiot terrorist. Now, he apparently wants to get KD so bad, he's willing to throw anyone not named Ant, Jaden or Naz away to get a geriatric rental who has a history of leg and ankle injuries. Just not a sound roster construction method.

Yeah, hopefully just a rumor. I’d be fine with Randle, DDV and 31 for Durant, but anything beyond that, I’ll pass.

I was very skeptical on all of TC trades to date, and he’s proven to me that he knows his stuff. Gobert has worked out very well. Getting off of the Kat contract while getting 17 and DDV along with a solid placeholder for a year or two in Randle has proven to be a smart move. And getting NAW and Conley for DLoser!?!? That was his best move. I can’t really doubt the guy anymore - he’s proven himself to me at least

I'd call BS on flexibility if we traded KAT's deal only to turn around and trade for a 37 year old and give him a 2 year $120 mil extension.

I haven’t seen the latest rumor I guess. I’m more on board with trading a one year rental (Randle) for a better one year rental (KD) and I’d be willing to pay DDV and 31 for the upgrade. I’m not willing to pay 120 or anywhere close to that for another 2 years. Nope.

My theory is that we’ll hear a lot of KD rumors because TC wants Ant to believe we’re doing everything we can to get his guy. Lots of rumors of KD to MN - slim chance it actually happens

[KG4Ever]

Yeah, hopefully just a rumor. I’d be fine with Randle, DDV and 31 for Durant, but anything beyond that, I’ll pass.

I was very skeptical on all of TC trades to date, and he’s proven to me that he knows his stuff. Gobert has worked out very well. Getting off of the Kat contract while getting 17 and DDV along with a solid placeholder for a year or two in Randle has proven to be a smart move. And getting NAW and Conley for DLoser!?!? That was his best move. I can’t really doubt the guy anymore - he’s proven himself to me at least

I'd call BS on flexibility if we traded KAT's deal only to turn around and trade for a 37 year old and give him a 2 year $120 mil extension.

I haven’t seen the latest rumor I guess. I’m more on board with trading a one year rental (Randle) for a better one year rental (KD) and I’d be willing to pay DDV and 31 for the upgrade. I’m not willing to pay 120 or anywhere close to that for another 2 years. Nope.

My theory is that we’ll hear a lot of KD rumors because TC wants Ant to believe we’re doing everything we can to get his guy. Lots of rumors of KD to MN - slim chance it actually happens

Yeah, I'm fine with that trade. What worries me is trading Dilly who we gave up two potentially very nice future picks for, Shannon or Pick 17 PLUS Gobert who cost us 4 or 5 first rounders (if you factor in the swap and Kessler) for a geriatric.

[Lipoli390]

I'd call BS on flexibility if we traded KAT's deal only to turn around and trade for a 37 year old and give him a 2 year $120 mil extension.

I haven’t seen the latest rumor I guess. I’m more on board with trading a one year rental (Randle) for a better one year rental (KD) and I’d be willing to pay DDV and 31 for the upgrade. I’m not willing to pay 120 or anywhere close to that for another 2 years. Nope.

My theory is that we’ll hear a lot of KD rumors because TC wants Ant to believe we’re doing everything we can to get his guy. Lots of rumors of KD to MN - slim chance it actually happens

Yeah, I'm fine with that trade. What worries me is trading Dilly who we gave up two potentially very nice future picks for, Shannon or Pick 17 PLUS Gobert who cost us 4 or 5 first rounders (if you factor in the swap and Kessler) for a geriatric.

Including Dilly, TSJ or our #17 pick in a deal for Durant would be idiotic. I’d love to believe TC isn’t that daft. I don’t think he is but hard to know.

[Lipoli390]

If what we're seeing in these finals is the new NBA, Julius Randle will be a liability, as will Rudy. The frenzied defense with waves of players coming at you combined with quick double teams and larcenous hands is a big problem for both. You might be able to get away with having one on the court, but no way you can beat teams like this with both out there. We need multiple good to great ball handlers and active interchangeable parts on defense to compete going forward.

As I noted in my prior post, I think your assessment is spot on. But I’ll add that’s Durant doesn’t fit if the goal is to emulate OKC and Indiana. He spaces the floor better than Randle, but the current version of Durant is the opposite of what we’re seeing in the NBA finals - fast, high energy offensive movement, running the floor and aggressive in-your=face defense. That was never Durant’s game and this version of Durant at age 37 with a repaired Achilles is even further from that sort of player. I’m amazed that TC is even considering trading for KD.

[kekgeek]

I think Durant Is becoming extremely underrated on this board. He was 6th in the league in scoring and out of the top 231 players in ppg he was 18th in eFG% and was 7th in non post players in eFG% (outside of lavine Durant had at least 8 more FGA per game than the others 6 ahead of him). I get the age thing but he is still one of the best offensive players in the nba.

[Q-is-here]

I think Durant Is becoming extremely underrated on this board. He was 6th in the league in scoring and out of the top 231 players in ppg he was 18th in eFG% and was 7th in non post players in eFG% (outside of lavine Durant had at least 8 more FGA per game than the others 6 ahead of him). I get the age thing but he is still one of the best offensive players in the nba.

Ant was 4th in regular season points per game and Durant was 6th. And to your point, he is the most efficient volume scorer in the NBA after Jokic. 64 TS% is crazy good and a lot more efficient than Ant.

Perhaps Durant is aging like LeBron. Past his prime? Yes. Still really, really good? Yes.

The sticking point is how many post-Durant assets do we need to give up (meaning guys we would ideally like to still be here after Durant leaves the Wolves, like Dillingham, Shannon, etc.) and who of the "starting 8" is included. If one of them is Rudy, then we have an absolutely massive hole to fill and Connelly better have something else lined up to fill it.

[mjs34]

I think Durant Is becoming extremely underrated on this board. He was 6th in the league in scoring and out of the top 231 players in ppg he was 18th in eFG% and was 7th in non post players in eFG% (outside of lavine Durant had at least 8 more FGA per game than the others 6 ahead of him). I get the age thing but he is still one of the best offensive players in the nba.

Ant was 4th in regular season points per game and Durant was 6th. And to your point, he is the most efficient volume scorer in the NBA after Jokic. 64 TS% is crazy good and a lot more efficient than Ant.

Perhaps Durant is aging like LeBron. Past his prime? Yes. Still really, really good? Yes.

The sticking point is how many post-Durant assets do we need to give up (meaning guys we would ideally like to still be here after Durant leaves the Wolves, like Dillingham, Shannon, etc.) and who of the "starting 8" is included. If one of them is Rudy, then we have an absolutely massive hole to fill and Connelly better have something else lined up to fill it.

I am not sure losing Rudy creates a big hole. I think it may change what our range of scores are, but ultimately we are worried about winning games. We one 46 games the year before Rudy and have averaged 49 since his arrival. I think we could easily argue those three wins had more to do with Ant and Jaden maturing. If we trade for Durant I think it makes more sense to keep Rudy rather than Naz or Randle, but I don't think either direction is that devastating. I do agree with WW that it does make me question the KAT trade, which I already had a problem with. We won 7 games less this year without KAT versus with him.

[WildWolf2813]

Steven Adams just signed a 3 year $39 mil extension to stay in Houston, so if anyone considered him as a post Gobert option, he's off the board.

[Lipoli390]

I think Durant Is becoming extremely underrated on this board. He was 6th in the league in scoring and out of the top 231 players in ppg he was 18th in eFG% and was 7th in non post players in eFG% (outside of lavine Durant had at least 8 more FGA per game than the others 6 ahead of him). I get the age thing but he is still one of the best offensive players in the nba.

I’m not underrating him. I acknowledge that he was still a great scorer last season. But I’ll push back and suggest that some are looking at Durant through the rose-colored lens of Durant in his prime. So I rate him as he is — a terrific efficient scorer but with the following significant negatives:

1. He was a terrible defender last season, on the heels of four previous seasons of poor and steadily declining defense.

2. He has durability issues, having missed 20 games last season and at least 20 games in four of his past five seasons.

3. History has proven repeatedly that all great scorers (except maybe LeBron) experience a sudden decline in their scoring when they hit their mid to late 30s and you never know exactly when that big decline will hit.

4. His teams have not won since his two glory years many years ago with Golden State even though he’s played with good players. His Suns team didn’t even make the play-in tournament this past season. They were knocked out by the Wolves in four games the previous season. Before that, his teams (Suns and Nets) didn’t even make the Conference Finals until you go back before his Achilles injury to his time with the Warriors with Curry, Thompson and Green.

5. He’ll cost $54 million next season (way more than he’s worth right now in my view) and would either be a one-year rental or a huge cost burden with an extension.

6. It’s highly unlikely at his age that he’d be a significant contributor in two years when Ant and Jaden enter their prime.

So yes, he averaged an efficient 25 PPG last season. I’d certainly consider signing him as a FA if he were available and we had cap space. But I wouldn’t give up any valuable player or draft assets to get him, much less the assets TC will probably be willing to give up. If we’re going to trade valuable assets for a player who can help get us over the hump, then we should be pursing Derrick White or D’Aaron Fox. (I wouldn’t pursue Fox if it were up to me).

[Q-is-here]

Lip, Most of your points are valid around the Durant concerns, but you continue to call him a terrible defender based on a largely obsolete metric. Other more contemporary metrics have him anywhere from an average to well above average defender.

You either need to acknowledge these other metrics as providing a more balanced view of his defense or defend why the one you cite is better than the others.