Camden wrote:Who was it that I had arguments with about Tristan Thompson vs Anthony Bennett?
Cam, you look bad when you make posts like this. We always seem to hear about those things you may have been right on. Better to be humble than to have us start throwing all your inaccuracies in your face.
I know the things I've been wrong on, and I'll be glad to share them. Cavs being the top team in the East, Stauskas being a contributor out of the gate (though, I think there's a lot of hope) and Minnesota being a 40-win team this year with the help of Young. I'm also way more right than I am wrong, however, and this board is for discussion. What's the point in having debates at a current time if you're not going to have a conclusion to them and see who's right? I don't see anything wrong with that.
Camden wrote:Who was it that I had arguments with about Tristan Thompson vs Anthony Bennett?
Cam, you look bad when you make posts like this. We always seem to hear about those things you may have been right on. Better to be humble than to have us start throwing all your inaccuracies in your face.
I know the things I've been wrong on, and I'll be glad to share them. Cavs being the top team in the East, Stauskas being a contributor out of the gate (though, I think there's a lot of hope) and Minnesota being a 40-win team this year with the help of Young. I'm also way more right than I am wrong, however, and this board is for discussion. What's the point in having debates at a current time if you're not going to have a conclusion to them and see who's right? I don't see anything wrong with that.
No one's gonna ever give u the credit u seek when u r always patting urself on the back. Debates can be a learning tool rather than an I'm right your wrong thing if u allow it.
Cam, I was firmly in the TT court as well. Bennett, even with upside, did/does nothing for me. He is clearly a man without a position...not just because of height/length, but by the strengths and weaknesses of his game. Just not a fan. There was a reason the Cavs gave up AB and not TT.
Hicks123 wrote:Cam, I was firmly in the TT court as well. Bennett, even with upside, did/does nothing for me. He is clearly a man without a position...not just because of height/length, but by the strengths and weaknesses of his game. Just not a fan. There was a reason the Cavs gave up AB and not TT.
Ya. It's called TT has the same agent as Lebron and Bennett doesn't.
I looked at the question in the poll as: who would I actively shop for a possible trade before the deadline? My answer was Pek, Martin, Thad, Mo and BUDINGER, although I wouldn't expect to trade all five. Here's my thinking on each:
1. Pek -- Pek isn't much use to us. He's constantly injured and I think it's clear he'll never be physically able to be anything close to a full time player. Moreover, he biggest weakness, defense, is the thing this team needs the most. At $12 million per year for 4 more years hrs a terrible asset for this young rebuilding team. Unfortunately, at that price and with his physical problems, it will be hard to find a team willing to give us anything of value in return. So although I'd actively shop him, I wouldn't expect to find a taker. The hope is that some playoff bound team out there would see a big low-post scorer like Pek as a key to contending for a title. Perhaps the Thunder or Cavs. But I'm not sure what our return would be.
2. Martin -- I do think we could get a reasonable return in exchange for Martin. As contenders see the playoffs approaching the idea of adding a shooter/scorer of Martin's caliber becomes increasing enticing. And his contract isn't toxic like Pek's.
3. Thad -- I think a number of contending teams would consider Thad an attractive addition down the stretch as a so.id bench player who can force turnovers and put up some points.
4. Mo -- He should be a very attractive addition to a contending team. He wears out his welcome wherever he goes after a while with his horrible defense and gunner mentality on the offensive end. But he's a perfect fit in the short run as a ginger off the bench going into the playoffs. He's an attractive 7th man/scorer with the bonus of an expiring contract.
5. Budinger. He has been a decent 3-point shooter in the past, has some hops and is still young. So maybe some team will see what Kahn saw in him and give us something of value in return. On the other hand I wouldn't bank on it. Yet, no harm in shopping him.
What sort of assets would I want in return? Realistically, we're not going to get a veteran any better than the ones we'd be giving up. So we'd have to deal for future picks in the hope we could ultimately parley those additional picks with our own picks in exchange for a consequential veteran on draft night. Or perhaps we could get a talented young head case in the mold of a D. Waiters. I don't have any thing specific in mind at the moment. I'd like to believe Flip took a run at getting Waiters in exchange for one or more of these assets, but who knows.
How about Pek to the Thunder for Perkins? We get the benefit of a salary dump while the Thunder get I side scoring punch and rebounding help for a title push. Pek's defensive shortcomings would be masked playing next to Ibaka.
Or how about Martin to the Bulls for Dunleavy and Snell. We dump salary and the Bulls get another scoring threat/shooter for their run at a title this season and next.
lipoli390 wrote:How about Pek to the Thunder for Perkins? We get the benefit of a salary dump while the Thunder get I side scoring punch and rebounding help for a title push. Pek's defensive shortcomings would be masked playing next to Ibaka.
Or how about Martin to the Bulls for Dunleavy and Snell. We dump salary and the Bulls get another scoring threat/shooter for their run at a title this season and next.
I have always thought that would be the team to take pek, pek needs to play at least a month without problems for the thunder to do that trade and I don't know if pek can
Guys I dump for free: Pek - Bud - AB - Thad
Guys I trade but want return: Martin
Look, no one is giving value for any of the 4 guys in the dump column. Pek was a bad deal the day we made it. And now it has gotten worse...why....because he is following the same trajectory he was on BEFORE we resigned him. Injured a ton. Guys of his size just don't age well....and he was a problem right off the bat (See Brook Lopez for another example). While I think Thad is certainly a heck of a lot better than the player we have seen the past month+, my biggest fear is that he activates his option next season. There are just so many better things we could use for that $10M. I wouldn't chance it, and I would deal him for anything (i.e. 2nd rounder). He should have value to a playoff contender, but again, he won't get us anything of real value in return.
I like Martin to Bulls as Lip mentions, but I feel like they are not going to add salary as they will need to levy a max deal to Butler next season. They are at $62M for 8 guys next season before Butler's deal. They may take a hit next season knowing the TV deal goes in following year, so who knows. That being said, I think there are a lot of teams that will be interested in Martin, provided he gets healthy. He has a reasonable deal, and as others have pointed out, provides a superior skill as a scorer.
I guess I would try to tie Bud to any deal for Martin if at all possible.
bleedspeed177 wrote:Cam, If the Kings offered Stauskas for LaVine today would you make the trade?
I would, and I know that may get scoffed at on this board. I still think Stauskas could be a heck of a player, and at worst he's a floor spacer who understands the game. Now, I do like LaVine and his potential, but I think he's a bigger gamble.
