I was not a big fan of Thomas for the draft, with a lot of talent drafted prior to him, even though he was a TOP 3 pick in many mock drafts earlier in his year
Talent drafted AFTER him
Damian Lillard
Harrison Barnes
Terrence Ross
Andre Drummond
As I said on draft night, Lilliard and Drummond were the steals on draftnight and I do not know how so many teams didn't pick them up earlier, especially with Drummond
I even said that the on DEFENSE, Drummond was not far behind and could even be ahead of Anthony Davis but maybe some advanced STAT's didn't support my eye test
Many teams had PG's already for Lilliard so I can understand that a bit on draft night, without knowing what we know now
But Drummond was a safe pick to be a double double machine with D12 type athleticism/body, and many teams could have used a PF/C of that type of upside
I didn't think highly of Thomas as an undersized PF that wasn't a shooting threat as a lottery pick BUT if we are talking about signing him for NOTHING while our Offense is predicated on POST UP abilities
I think it is a no brainer, though there are a lot of teams that can offer him much more money than us
He is trying to figure out his best options for him and his family
I like the kid and I would not mind keeping him for a cap friendly contract on a 2 year deal *which would probably be best for him*
Whether he should join a contender, join a team with a PG that will get him looks *like with Clippers since Blake Griffen is out*, or even LA where he will get nearly as much attention as he would in NY if he does well
However, I would not pay north of 2.5m to keep him, there simply are a lot of PF's in FA in the summer, D League, NBA draft, and I think Orlando Sanchez could be brought up next year on a cheap salary if no one brings him up this year before that
I would probably just offer him the rest of the season, so we have no cap holds, not sure if he would even consider a 2nd year vet min with a player option
Thing is he is an undersized PF, while we could use that positoin on PF/C's, SF/PF, and more skilled PF, but at that price he would be a steal because he still has potential
Being cut and traded so many times, he will not take it for granted and I would bring in Rasheed Wallace to work on his game, rebuild this guy's confidence
I would prefer Thomas over Acey but again with this Summers DRAFT with so many BIGS and we have a chance to at least draft 1 BIG
I am very confident that Orlando Sanchez will be at least a rotational player and has done well in the Triangle while with our D League to execute in the system with Thanasis and Galloway
In addition to the draft, there is also Jason Smith, Lance Thomas and Lou Amundson *though I think he will continue his journey as a journey man*