Which deal(s) do you like best

[Monster]

Yes, Charlotte absolutely is a great destination for Rudy. My thought has always been using Rudy-to-Charlotte as a way to aggregate draft picks and players in order to make a run at Giannis, so it would be some combination of players and assets from our existing roster AND players and draft picks from Charlotte.

The Hornets have two mid first round picks this year and potentially up to three 1st rounders next year. I doubt they have room for all of those picks on their roster when they are looking at becoming a serious contender in the East.

Having said that, is there a scenario where you trade Rudy to Charlotte as a standalone deal without flipping some of those assets for a big name like Giannis?

That's what I proposed above.
Trade Rudy, gain draft capital, free up cap space for a free agent signing.

The reason I like doing something like this isn't necessarily to go younger and draft a bunch of kids. You could do that, but I'm more interested in liquidating assets so that you can make an aggressive move when the opportunity presentes itself.
Dallas acquired Gafford and other extremely valuable role players that year at the deadline and went on a finals run.

Minnesota can't guarantee the same opportunity but it shows what patience can do. this scenario also gives Naz and Jaden the chance to scale up and show what they can do. We don't know exactly how high they can really go when given the opportunity but I'm absolutely exhausted with hearing how great these guys are and then watching them get reduced to make room for a guy like Randle

Well, you admittedly left a lot of details out of your proposal(s). You have IHart as the replacement for Rudy, but how do you know OKC doesn't pick up his option? They are far more likely to let Dort walk than IHart IMO.

Are you proposing we hold those two 1sts from Charlotte, draft the BPAs in each spot, and then eventually move them when the opportunity presents itself? Trading Rudy for 1sts, holding them, and then not getting iHart would be a big risk!

My thought, which is also a little fuzzy LOL, is if we can't aggregate Charlotte assets in a trade for Giannis, then we do something like this:

- Rudy to Charlotte
- Grant Williams, Josh Green, Moussa Diabate, and picks #14 and #18 to the Wolves.
- Picks #18 and #28 + Randle to rebuilding Team X for Very Good Vet Player Y. May be it's Irving. May be it's Zion. May be it's Trey Murphy, etc., etc.

It's sort of a balanced approached of getting a quality draft pick (#14), a young and cheaper vet Center to start (Diabate), and some decent depth at PF (Williams) and SG (Green). Now can we pry a really good player from someone if we attach two 1sts to Randle??

When I was doing some reading about Grant Williams fans were saying some good things about Moussa Diabate when he ended up playing more. His stats look pretty good. I don't think he would be a throw in. If you like VORP both he and Kalkbrenner put up some impressive numbers there. Maybe we should be looking for the next Moussa Diabate who the Hornets signed as a 2-way guy from the Clippers.

While I think it's possible that while the Hornets want to take a step forward they might value those 2 younger centers more highly going forward than it may seem on the surface. If Beringer and Rocco had contributed as much as those 2 guys to a winning team we would be talking about how we need to move Rudy because we have the future on the roster!

[Q-is-here]

That's what I proposed above.
Trade Rudy, gain draft capital, free up cap space for a free agent signing.

The reason I like doing something like this isn't necessarily to go younger and draft a bunch of kids. You could do that, but I'm more interested in liquidating assets so that you can make an aggressive move when the opportunity presentes itself.
Dallas acquired Gafford and other extremely valuable role players that year at the deadline and went on a finals run.

Minnesota can't guarantee the same opportunity but it shows what patience can do. this scenario also gives Naz and Jaden the chance to scale up and show what they can do. We don't know exactly how high they can really go when given the opportunity but I'm absolutely exhausted with hearing how great these guys are and then watching them get reduced to make room for a guy like Randle

Well, you admittedly left a lot of details out of your proposal(s). You have IHart as the replacement for Rudy, but how do you know OKC doesn't pick up his option? They are far more likely to let Dort walk than IHart IMO.

Are you proposing we hold those two 1sts from Charlotte, draft the BPAs in each spot, and then eventually move them when the opportunity presents itself? Trading Rudy for 1sts, holding them, and then not getting iHart would be a big risk!

My thought, which is also a little fuzzy LOL, is if we can't aggregate Charlotte assets in a trade for Giannis, then we do something like this:

- Rudy to Charlotte
- Grant Williams, Josh Green, Moussa Diabate, and picks #14 and #18 to the Wolves.
- Picks #18 and #28 + Randle to rebuilding Team X for Very Good Vet Player Y. May be it's Irving. May be it's Zion. May be it's Trey Murphy, etc., etc.

It's sort of a balanced approached of getting a quality draft pick (#14), a young and cheaper vet Center to start (Diabate), and some decent depth at PF (Williams) and SG (Green). Now can we pry a really good player from someone if we attach two 1sts to Randle??

When I was doing some reading about Grant Williams fans were saying some good things about Moussa Diabate when he ended up playing more. His stats look pretty good. I don't think he would be a throw in. If you like VORP both he and Kalkbrenner put up some impressive numbers there. Maybe we should be looking for the next Moussa Diabate who the Hornets signed as a 2-way guy from the Clippers.

While I think it's possible that while the Hornets want to take a step forward they might value those 2 younger centers more highly going forward than it may seem on the surface. If Beringer and Rocco had contributed as much as those 2 guys to a winning team we would be talking about how we need to move Rudy because we have the future on the roster!

Yeah, I think the matching salaries we'd get back from Charlotte are quality pieces and would give us some real depth. Rudy is still the best player in the trade of course. Charlotte would still keep Kalkbrenner, who is on a rookie deal for a couple more years. Diabate will likely become a lot more expensive after next season.

[Phenom]

Rumors have Charlotte interested in Sabonis so there is some fuel for Charlotte doing some center hunting.

[Monster]

Rumors have Charlotte interested in Sabonis so there is some fuel for Charlotte doing some center hunting.

The Kings are an interesting team for this off-season. They have a bunch of players that are worthwhile but also make a chunk of money. Sabinis is a guy teams would really want. Lavine is good but overpaid but some team might be cool taking him back in a deal where they are sending out money. Same with Derozen, Monk and Hunter. It feels like they are one of those teams that's not really going anywhere but other than Sabonis I'm not sure what they are gonna trade to get much to help them build going forward. Maybe they can get a little something for Hunter...but he ain't cheap for this upcoming season and has problems staying healthy.

Meanwhile Eubanks might not be a bad depth guy to sign cheap if we needed a vet if we traded Randle and or Gobert.

[Phenom]

Rumors have Charlotte interested in Sabonis so there is some fuel for Charlotte doing some center hunting.

The Kings are an interesting team for this off-season. They have a bunch of players that are worthwhile but also make a chunk of money. Sabinis is a guy teams would really want. Lavine is good but overpaid but some team might be cool taking him back in a deal where they are sending out money. Same with Derozen, Monk and Hunter. It feels like they are one of those teams that's not really going anywhere but other than Sabonis I'm not sure what they are gonna trade to get much to help them build going forward. Maybe they can get a little something for Hunter...but he ain't cheap for this upcoming season and has problems staying healthy.

Meanwhile Eubanks might not be a bad depth guy to sign cheap if we needed a vet if we traded Randle and or Gobert.

If Sabonis is moved there might be a world where the Kings would be open to swapping one of their perimeter guys for Julius. LaVine or DeRozan would be lower on my list but it might come to that.

[AussieWolf3]

Rumors have Charlotte interested in Sabonis so there is some fuel for Charlotte doing some center hunting.

The Kings are an interesting team for this off-season. They have a bunch of players that are worthwhile but also make a chunk of money. Sabinis is a guy teams would really want. Lavine is good but overpaid but some team might be cool taking him back in a deal where they are sending out money. Same with Derozen, Monk and Hunter. It feels like they are one of those teams that's not really going anywhere but other than Sabonis I'm not sure what they are gonna trade to get much to help them build going forward. Maybe they can get a little something for Hunter...but he ain't cheap for this upcoming season and has problems staying healthy.

Meanwhile Eubanks might not be a bad depth guy to sign cheap if we needed a vet if we traded Randle and or Gobert.

If Sabonis is moved there might be a world where the Kings would be open to swapping one of their perimeter guys for Julius. LaVine or DeRozan would be lower on my list but it might come to that.

The kings are just a roster full of guys where the idea of them is significantly better than what they actually are.
Hell there's a part of me that would love to see Sabonis on this roster, but he's just too flawed a player at his price tag. That's even more true with LaVine and Rozan

[Monster]

The Kings are an interesting team for this off-season. They have a bunch of players that are worthwhile but also make a chunk of money. Sabinis is a guy teams would really want. Lavine is good but overpaid but some team might be cool taking him back in a deal where they are sending out money. Same with Derozen, Monk and Hunter. It feels like they are one of those teams that's not really going anywhere but other than Sabonis I'm not sure what they are gonna trade to get much to help them build going forward. Maybe they can get a little something for Hunter...but he ain't cheap for this upcoming season and has problems staying healthy.

Meanwhile Eubanks might not be a bad depth guy to sign cheap if we needed a vet if we traded Randle and or Gobert.

If Sabonis is moved there might be a world where the Kings would be open to swapping one of their perimeter guys for Julius. LaVine or DeRozan would be lower on my list but it might come to that.

The kings are just a roster full of guys where the idea of them is significantly better than what they actually are.
Hell there's a part of me that would love to see Sabonis on this roster, but he's just too flawed a player at his price tag. That's even more true with LaVine and Rozan

Sabonis would be pretty cool on this roster but I agree that he isn't worth what it will cost both in salary and assets to get him. He is basically the only vet that's probably worth anything.

Lavine at almost 50 million this season on an expiring deal is just a ton of money. DeRozan is still a pretty effective offensive player but acquiring for Randle doesn't make a ton of sense. Hunter is an interesting buy low guy but the Kings might try and see if they can rehab him themselves to get something for him. Monk is kinda interesting although overpaid for what he is. I could see him maybe being a decent fit here. He has a player option for the following season so that makes me less likely to be interested.

I texted my friend that's a Kings fan. He said they should just trade everyone older than Murray for what er they can get. I agree with him. Fortunately they do have a total of 3 draft picks this year the lowest being a mid 2nd round pick. They definitely have a chance to add some young talent in a few weeks but it's seems to me they have a long way to go to build up their roster although moving Sabonis should get them something worthwhile back.

[60WinTim]

If Sabonis is moved there might be a world where the Kings would be open to swapping one of their perimeter guys for Julius. LaVine or DeRozan would be lower on my list but it might come to that.

The kings are just a roster full of guys where the idea of them is significantly better than what they actually are.
Hell there's a part of me that would love to see Sabonis on this roster, but he's just too flawed a player at his price tag. That's even more true with LaVine and Rozan

Sabonis would be pretty cool on this roster but I agree that he isn't worth what it will cost both in salary and assets to get him. He is basically the only vet that's probably worth anything.

Lavine at almost 50 million this season on an expiring deal is just a ton of money. DeRozan is still a pretty effective offensive player but acquiring for Randle doesn't make a ton of sense. Hunter is an interesting buy low guy but the Kings might try and see if they can rehab him themselves to get something for him. Monk is kinda interesting although overpaid for what he is. I could see him maybe being a decent fit here. He has a player option for the following season so that makes me less likely to be interested.

I texted my friend that's a Kings fan. He said they should just trade everyone older than Murray for what er they can get. I agree with him. Fortunately they do have a total of 3 draft picks this year the lowest being a mid 2nd round pick. They definitely have a chance to add some young talent in a few weeks but it's seems to me they have a long way to go to build up their roster although moving Sabonis should get them something worthwhile back.

Malik Monk is a backup plan in my mind if the Wolves are unable to nab a bigger name. But Quickley and Dejounte Murray are my personal favorites (assuming Derrick White is off the table).

[Q-is-here]

The kings are just a roster full of guys where the idea of them is significantly better than what they actually are.
Hell there's a part of me that would love to see Sabonis on this roster, but he's just too flawed a player at his price tag. That's even more true with LaVine and Rozan

Sabonis would be pretty cool on this roster but I agree that he isn't worth what it will cost both in salary and assets to get him. He is basically the only vet that's probably worth anything.

Lavine at almost 50 million this season on an expiring deal is just a ton of money. DeRozan is still a pretty effective offensive player but acquiring for Randle doesn't make a ton of sense. Hunter is an interesting buy low guy but the Kings might try and see if they can rehab him themselves to get something for him. Monk is kinda interesting although overpaid for what he is. I could see him maybe being a decent fit here. He has a player option for the following season so that makes me less likely to be interested.

I texted my friend that's a Kings fan. He said they should just trade everyone older than Murray for what er they can get. I agree with him. Fortunately they do have a total of 3 draft picks this year the lowest being a mid 2nd round pick. They definitely have a chance to add some young talent in a few weeks but it's seems to me they have a long way to go to build up their roster although moving Sabonis should get them something worthwhile back.

Malik Monk is a backup plan in my mind if the Wolves are unable to nab a bigger name. But Quickley and Dejounte Murray are my personal favorites (assuming Derrick White is off the table).

I was listening to Dane and Britt the other day and there was an entire struggle session on the PG position. Dane talked through the fact that a younger version of Mike Conley that is gettable is like trying to find a dodo bird. So then he shifted to the plethora of combo guards that are out there that could play PG. But even within that group, there are some that are more point guard-y than others. Dane views Ayo as a combo guard, but not far along on the PG continuum. I personally think he's better at it than NAW or DDV were.

The bottom line is that nearly any name you can think of that could start at PG carries some major risk, cost, and/or known flaws: Irving - Age and injury; Suggs - can't shoot and turnover prone; Murray - on the decline?; Quickley - is he worth the cost?, etc., etc.

I continue to go back to that Memphis roster and feel like there are multiple lower risk/lower cost guys that could be excellent guards off the bench and easily play with either Ant or Ayo in the backcourt. It's not the nirvana at PG we may all want, but Ayo + [insert Memphis ballhandler] may be enough to relieve Ant from primary ball handling duties.

And if we happen to free up some $ via a Randle and/or Rudy trade, Collin Gillespie is someone worth checking out as a high floor, high-IQ 3rd guard.

[Q-is-here]

....the other thing I will add from that Dane/Britt podcast is the notion that may be we don't need a clearcut 2nd option with such an alpha dog in Ant as #1. I think this is partially a way to rationalize dealing Randle without getting the equivalent production in return at some other position.

I would point to the Knicks as an example. Who is their 2nd option? Not that long ago it was KAT. Now it seems like it's OG. We know Bridges can fill it up at times too.

Same thing with OKC. Who is OKC's 2nd option to SGA? Last year it was JDubs. But this year it alternated between a few guys. Heck, during the playoffs Jared McCain was their 2nd option on some nights!

May be we don't need an alpha 2nd option, but simply spread it around based on matchups and who has it going. Jaden, Naz, and Ayo all have the ability to put up 20+ on any given night (especially if Naz is starting). Shannon off the bench has the potential to be far more potent offensively than NAW ever was a couple years ago.