This team needs the following issues addressed ASAP:
(1) Another rebounding big, preferably a guy 6'10" or better --- I've heard Jason Thompson's name mentioned by some -- he could be OK but he's still all about potential at this point. He's only getting 14 mins/game on the Sacramento Kings..Bottom line---I'm not into dealing away any of our assets AND taking on any sort of salary for someone that's not a sure thing. I wanna save that for the best sure thing out there that may be available at some point soon -- see point 2 in a sec). Just gimmie a dirtywork, blue-collar guy that's gonna tear down rebounds like they're going out of style. That's all I'd be looking for -- dedicated rebounder with center height and some defense in an affordable package that makes sense for us..Chris Kaman would be PERFECT and I think the Clippers would be open to dealing him---too bad we just can't be saddled with that $12.2M pricetag for next year..6'11" FA C Dwayne Jones continues to be the best option. Where is Josh Boone right now? Anyone know? He'd be nice too--would supply a lot of the stuff Turiaf does..He'd be my #2 guy followed by exploring a trade with Toronto for either Reggie Evans or better yet Joey Dorsey (Evans is playing well for them and they might want too much however which is why I's inquire about Dorsey who could probably be had at a much better price). I want a solid rebounder for the right price. Our price. And there are options out there. This needs to be addressed. We see now how thin our frontcourt is if someone goes down..Razor thin..Today we lost Turiaf and who knows for how long and I almost had a heart attack when Amar'e hit the deck there and had to come out for a few mins.. Too bad about Randolph man -- this kid could've helped today but it looks like D'Antoni's just not gonna play him. I would've started him today in the 2nd half. D'Antoni's just a little too concerned about his own job security to play this kid right now..That may be why he stopped playing him when he was struggling a couple of weeks ago..Whatever--go get me Dwayne Jones ASAP then.
(2) We need another go-to reliable scorer if you even wanna call Amar'e our 1st one. Someone who we can count on to go get 20+ ppg. Gallinari is just not that guy, sorry to say..He's a support player. Felton could be and basically is the defacto 2nd scorer right now but he has other resposibilities that he needs to be concentrating on (that's not to say I don't want Felton to look for his own offense--I do)..Hearing rumors on hoopshype about Knick interest in Iguodala -- I'm not sure about that. Pretty good player, would probably make us a little better but just look at the cost--his contract is terrible..That move wouldn't make us into a contender which is why I'd pass--and that needs to be kept in perspective...Again, I'm not really interested in parting with our best young players and draft picks for players who aren't sure things along with their bloated salaries..We've been down that road before.. See this rediculous deal Denver gave Al Harrington in the off-season--what was the point of that??? Harrington doesn't help them get by the Lakers and quite a few other teams out west. And now they added a cap-crippling contract...I like AR and think he could excel here but this coach ain't gonna play him right now for whatever reason--I understand he was stinking it up a little bit but so has Gallo & Mozgov yet they've been given the room to grow and work through their troubles..Why hasn't this kid been given that treatment? He's more talented than both of those guys. Hey, if Mike's made up his mind that AR's done here, it wouldn't been the worst thing in the world if we included him in a trade but that trade's gotta be for a sure thing. Melo's one of the few guys out there that's worth taking on that kind of money to pair up with Amar'e in order to get serious and make a real no-nonsense playoff run. Other than that, I'm hesitant on whoever else might be available..There are some other expiring contract-types out there that can score the ball (Jamal Crawford, J-Rich, Michael Redd who's still hurt I believe, Z-Bo) but I'm not convinced any of these players would propel us to the level where we could justify giving up young players &/or picks in order to bring here (these guys would all probably be rentals for the rest of the year anyway and then we'd be down some important trading chips for when the time came)..Melo's more than worth it however imo. Melo is an elite level player plus he's a good 4-5 years younger than these other guys anyway. It might be time to get serious about trading for this guy...Just try & keep Fields out of the deal if possible. That's all I ask..And if it took Fields, you still do it reluctantly. Maybe try and get Aaron Afflalo back in the deal then.
(3) We really could use another smart ball distributor for when Ray has to sit...With Ray running the point, we're OK for the most part; Ray & TD together we're OK; it's when Ray has to sit down that the offense comes to a crawl and begins to stall..I listed this 3rd for a reason because I don't hate TD and still think as far as backup PGs go, overall he's still decent. Just a bad decision-maker..Plays hard and he's quite effective in spurts but he just doesn't have the best IQ in the world to play that position and it becomes a problem at times, esp. when combined with other issues (lack of rebounding, lack of a 2nd primary scorer, T/Os, poor 3-pt shooting, etc.)..I think we might be able to do better if we shop around. I want them to take their time with this one though -- #s 1 & 2 are still much more important imo. In the meantime give Rautins a chance and see what he's got...My buddy said it well last night: he said he wishes Donnie would just go to MDA and say 'you're my guy Mike, you're not going anywhere' thinking Mike would relax a little and give AR and Rautins a chance to see if they could answer some of these questions first before we ever gave up on them or did something else rash. I agree with that..See if some of the answers can come from within first this way you know for sure. I'm a firm believer in that. Mike might not be however, despite what Donnie has said recently about Mike being his 'partner' in all this. Mike might have to sit down with Walsh & Dolan and both guys might have to offer him their personal reassurance. Only then can we even think about the possibility of seeing if guys like AR and Rautins can help us.
