MS wrote:So is it fair to say that Donnie ****ed the franchise as bad as any GM this offseason?

Lee would have taken 8/8.5 long term you can bet on it regardless of what his agent says. Now he is playing himself into a 12 million a year player and chances are we lose him outright to the Nets/Thunder.

We needed a point guard in the worst way and he drafted a guy that can't play on a lottery team. I have to imagine Ty Lawson pushing the ball full speed would really benefit Lee/Gallo/Chandler. Jennings big miss obviously.

We needed a post presence and Douglas isn't a point guard and can be found any where. See Affalo. Blair is looking like a very nice prospect.

I just don't see what this team is doing. I like some of the pieces I don't want to lose lee because the kid is a fringe allstar without a true number 1/2 playing on this team.

Walsh had always been a value guy. The only # we care about in Lee's contract is the first one.

fishmike wrote:Lee will be back here next year. You know Walsh's patterns as a GM and you know that. I suspect they offer him 6/$70mm and he takes it. That puts him at $9mm next year and with the max 10.5% raises his contract looks like this:
9
9.95
10.99
12.14
13.42
14.83

i'm hoping we can do that contract but start it at $7M or $8M

He is a smart player that is ever improving and his stats are always under valued. He is your third wheel like many championship teams. Everyone complains he is not a starting, but he can do just about everything outside of playing defense. That's why it was puzzling. His stats are a mirror of boozer for the most part who was getting 12 per season. That's why last year was the perfect time to extend him.

It's not like his contract wouldn't have been tradeable at that price. Either. I couldn't understand why someone like Ariza signed for a bargain contract in today's NBA. You can get a solid player some years for less. That was another guy walsh should have really went hard after and packaged Chandler # 5 to move up and get a guy we really needed long term.

djsunyc wrote:i think he's okc's #1 offseason target, they have no bigs...

they had cap room last off-season and didn't approach him when he was RFA.

fishmike wrote:
I may have confused you w/ McK1. I know a few people were posting a lot of at the notion of Lee getting the kind of contract that every good frontcourt player in the NBA eventually gets.

you are still confused and should continue searchin for whoever said about what kind've money Lee will command

djsunyc wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

djsunyc wrote:i think he's okc's #1 offseason target, they have no bigs...

they had cap room last off-season and didn't approach him when he was RFA.

probably afraid the knicks would match since the offer last summer would be considerably lower this summer.

how many RFA's get signed w/o teams matching at his salary level? not too often it occurs.

don't understand why people here ignore the history of restricted free agency in their assessment of Nate and Lee's value around the league.

fishmike wrote:

MS wrote:I never said he was a mid-level player. I have just been impressed at the constant improvement in his game. Everyone has hatred towards his limitations. People were ****ing on his jumper last year and this year it's becoming automatic. He is one of the few people I really respect on this team. Someone that has always gotten it and has been a good soldier year after year. Misused and mistreated until recently.

He is a smart player that is ever improving and his stats are always under valued. He is your third wheel like many championship teams. Everyone complains he is not a starting, but he can do just about everything outside of playing defense. That's why it was puzzling. His stats are a mirror of boozer for the most part who was getting 12 per season. That's why last year was the perfect time to extend him.

It's not like his contract wouldn't have been tradeable at that price. Either. I couldn't understand why someone like Ariza signed for a bargain contract in today's NBA. You can get a solid player some years for less. That was another guy walsh should have really went hard after and packaged Chandler # 5 to move up and get a guy we really needed long term.

I may have confused you w/ McK1. I know a few people were posting a lot of at the notion of Lee getting the kind of contract that every good frontcourt player in the NBA eventually gets.

Ariza is a good example of how you can get good value cheap on the wings. Big, skilled, smart and athletic guys 6'9 and over are NOT common and they command $$$. Guys that are 6'4-6'8 are a lot more common. Ariza, CDR, Morrow... there are cheap talents out there to be had. Best thing you can do is scout and buy extra picks, or pluck a role player from another team you hope is ready to expand

I still don't think he is worth $12M. I don't think Boozer is a great example of a $12M player cause he is on the block and teams aren't lining up to get him. Meanwhile, Millsap signs a 4 year 32M offersheet with Portland that is front-loaded and Utah matches anyway, even though they have Boozer for another year. Then look at Troy Murphy, his $12m contract is as untradeable as any in the NBA. I understand the sentimental love for Lee, but giving him $12m or more is going to Allan Houston us all over again. Market price is $8-9M.