Finestrg wrote:Wow, we're lucky LeBron had an off night last night. Looks like a completely different player tonight against the Bulls. Playing so much more aggressive, almost angry out there. 19 first half points.. Cavs up on the Bulls at the half in Chicago 58-52.

We'll credit our defense

Alec Burks, Jazz Agree Upon Four-Year, $42M Extension- yikes!

Ricky Rubio, Wolves Agree Upon Four-Year, $55M Extension- yikes!

Jimmy Butler Rejects 'Hometown Discount' Offer From Bulls, will be going to restricted FA

Reggie Jackson Determined To Find Starting Job In Restricted Free Agency (expected to look for $13-14mil per season).

Hmm- who would you prefer, Butler or Reggie Jackson?

At this point, I'd say our FA targets are:

C/PF's- Marc Gasol, Greg Monroe, Millsap

Guards: Reggie Jackson, maybe Butler, Afflalo, Mathews

Splat wrote:Lin had a good bounceback game with 17 pts and 9 assists. Kobe liked it. The lunatic said:

"You have to be able to assert yourself, especially on a team that I'm playing on -- especially on a team I'm playing on," Bryant said with some added emphasis. "Because I don't want chumps, I don't want pushovers, and if you're a chump and a pushover, I will run over you.

smackeddog wrote:According to Realm:

Alec Burks, Jazz Agree Upon Four-Year, $42M Extension- yikes!

Ricky Rubio, Wolves Agree Upon Four-Year, $55M Extension- yikes!

Jimmy Butler Rejects 'Hometown Discount' Offer From Bulls, will be going to restricted FA

Reggie Jackson Determined To Find Starting Job In Restricted Free Agency (expected to look for $13-14mil per season).

Hmm- who would you prefer, Butler or Reggie Jackson?

At this point, I'd say our FA targets are:

C/PF's- Marc Gasol, Greg Monroe, Millsap

Guards: Reggie Jackson, maybe Butler, Afflalo, Mathews

If you are a young wing with even a hint of upside, you'll likely get extended and make pretty good coin.

Very difficult to find good wings in the NBA. Positional scarcity drives a lot of the market for wings, just like centers are going to get paid, even ones with a lot of flaws.

Rubio is a case of timing. The TWolves just lost Love and it's unclear what they have with Wiggins and LaVine. Teams need to sell tickets. It's easy to say "Don't sign that guy" from the winning side, but you can't sell tickets if you don't have at least one recognizable face on the roster. Building a "winning team" and building a "marketable team" can be different things at times.

I don't think Rubio is a good signing, but that franchise also has to try to sell tickets. Try to sell advertising. Try to sell courtside seats.

Between Butler and Jackson, Jackson IMHO has the higher overall ceiling but Butler might be more accessible to an offer sheet situation.

If the Knicks simply conceded to make a "fun" roster and accept they are neither going to rebuild nor tank nor contend, they would have been better off coughing up two firsts , 2015 and 2017 and STAT for MCW and Thad Young (before Thad Young got moved), then vastly overpay Monroe and just run and gun with Melo for three years. Team would never contend, but at least fans would get an exciting run and shoot type offensive display each night.

At least Mark Cuban does that, at least when he knows he can't field a contender, he will try to field a "fun" team to watch for his fans.

CrushAlot wrote:

smackeddog wrote:According to Realm:

Alec Burks, Jazz Agree Upon Four-Year, $42M Extension- yikes!

Ricky Rubio, Wolves Agree Upon Four-Year, $55M Extension- yikes!

Jimmy Butler Rejects 'Hometown Discount' Offer From Bulls, will be going to restricted FA

Reggie Jackson Determined To Find Starting Job In Restricted Free Agency (expected to look for $13-14mil per season).

Hmm- who would you prefer, Butler or Reggie Jackson?

At this point, I'd say our FA targets are:

C/PF's- Marc Gasol, Greg Monroe, Millsap

Guards: Reggie Jackson, maybe Butler, Afflalo, Mathews

It will be an interesting offseason. Phil has said he wants to bring in a couple of guys. That might make the pool of players being looked at a bit bigger.

The problem with that is the impending cap rise- its added a few million per year to every players price tag

smackeddog wrote:

F500ONE wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:Rudez? Did they draft him or did they just sign him?

They signed him, and goo scouting by them

I mentioned over the summer Bird may have had his best offseason ever

Considering what happened to George and Lance

He got Miles-Stuckey-Damo

For the record I think all teams make the playoffs

As last year, except Nets although Pistons-Nets-Boston-Knicks

Could possibly sneak in with losing records

Their team is essentially over- they should never have let Lance walk over such petty issues. Miles, Stuckey and Damo doesn't come close to replacing him.

While Lance is an incredible talent and it

Would have served them well to keep him

Lance somewhat J.R. Smithed their season last yr

With all the immature stuff he was involved in

Seems like Lance's side is the one who had issue

Pacers offered 5yrs $44mil and were willing to go

As far as $50mil but Lance accepts 3yrs $24mil from Charlotte

Because the reasoning by his agent was 5yrs was too long a term

To be locked into at that rate,[although the offer was richer by yrs and overall value]

Thus his client wanted to enter free agency and play into

Another contract quicker receiving more money

He wants his client to enter free agency to take advantage of NBA CBA BOOM

H1AND1 wrote:

F500ONE wrote:

smackeddog wrote:

F500ONE wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:Rudez? Did they draft him or did they just sign him?

They signed him, and goo scouting by them

I mentioned over the summer Bird may have had his best offseason ever

Considering what happened to George and Lance

He got Miles-Stuckey-Damo

For the record I think all teams make the playoffs

As last year, except Nets although Pistons-Nets-Boston-Knicks

Could possibly sneak in with losing records

Their team is essentially over- they should never have let Lance walk over such petty issues. Miles, Stuckey and Damo doesn't come close to replacing him.

While Lance is an incredible talent and it

Would have served them well to keep him

Lance somewhat J.R. Smithed their season last yr

With all the immature stuff he was involved in

Seems like Lance's side is the one who had issue

Pacers offered 5yrs $44mil and were willing to go

As far as $50mil but Lance accepts 3yrs $24mil from Charlotte

Because the reasoning by his agent was 5yrs was too long a term

To be locked into at that rate,[although the offer was richer by yrs and overall value]

Thus his client wanted to enter free agency and play into

Another contract quicker receiving more money

He wants his client to enter free agency to take advantage of NBA CBA BOOM

Hold on a second. Stephenson led the league in triple doubles last season. Doesn't matter how much more the guy has to mature that hurts. And it hurts especially because they lost Paul George and Lance was their second option.

The guy is clearly a knucklehead but IMO he has shown at least the willingness to be mentored as is shown just by his progress from where he was as guy who fell to the second round due to maturity issues to where he is today. The Pacers made a huge error letting him go. He still has plenty of upside and IMO you dont let your triple double machines walk over a couple million dollar difference. Maybe stuff happened behind the scenes and Lance wanted to leave. Who knows. But if the Pacers let him walk they will probably regret it. And CJ Miles, Rodney Stuckey, and Rudez are not going to come close to replacing George and Stephenson IMO. 2 of those 3 guys are journeymen.

Hold on a second.

I already said it would have served them

Well to resign him, simply based on his upside and it clicking

But that's not what we're solely looking at

You're looking at what would it have taken to retain him

Since I brought facts from his agents mouth to the thread

And not opinion based mumble jumble, let's break it down even further

In order to keep Lance the Pacers probably had to make an offer well north

Of $50mil, maybe similar to what Hibbert received 5yrs $65mil

PG-13 is not a factor here, Bird is not responsible

For him breaking his leg in the Fiba World Games

Now ask yourself would you see it an absolute homerun signing Lance

With his risks at those figures vs locking in 3 quality players

Far less value next couple seasons, good job retaining Lavoy Allen

Too considering he was a late season pickup

PG returning next year or maybe even later this season

Either with a low seed playoff spot or pick coming in the lottery

And had Pacers offered Lance 5yrs $65mil

I know for a fact what kind of conversation would have transpired here

The point I was making Bird didn't lose Lance

Only to be left with a gaping hole

The main issue holding them back

Hill-West-Watson-George are all injured

smackeddog wrote:

F500ONE wrote:

smackeddog wrote:According to Realm:

Alec Burks, Jazz Agree Upon Four-Year, $42M Extension- yikes!

Ricky Rubio, Wolves Agree Upon Four-Year, $55M Extension- yikes!

Jimmy Butler Rejects 'Hometown Discount' Offer From Bulls, will be going to restricted FA

Reggie Jackson Determined To Find Starting Job In Restricted Free Agency (expected to look for $13-14mil per season).

Hmm- who would you prefer, Butler or Reggie Jackson?

At this point, I'd say our FA targets are:

C/PF's- Marc Gasol, Greg Monroe, Millsap

Guards: Reggie Jackson, maybe Butler, Afflalo, Mathews

Butler probably isn't an option

Bulls can still match offers, they want his market value established

That's how Krause operates for the most part

Afflalo at this stage Yuck Yuck Yuck

None of those guys put us in contention territory

not stars, but some good defenders and winners to help us take a step forward- no way we'll vault to contention territory in one offseason.

Bulls track record seems to be that they are tight with money and will often not go an extra couple of million (Ben Gordon, Deng)

Yeah Bulls can be frugal but you're

Talking about having to offer Butler a price tag

That they won't match, we're not trying to overspend just because

We still have a shot come 2016 too for free agents

We don't want Phil Jackson - - Joe Dumarsing his way to strike deals

In the end Bulls want Butler's market set before they

Make a move, if they have a great year he stays if not he could go

Deng bad example, they paid him 6yrs $71mil[what Josh Smith got] on his first deal

They chose not to give him $15mil/yr he asked for on his second deal

They also paid Rose D-Rose Max and Noah $60mil[what Hordford and Aldridge got]

They will pay for players they want but

Usually let market dictate what they should pay

F500ONE wrote:

smackeddog wrote:According to Realm:

Alec Burks, Jazz Agree Upon Four-Year, $42M Extension- yikes!

Ricky Rubio, Wolves Agree Upon Four-Year, $55M Extension- yikes!

Jimmy Butler Rejects 'Hometown Discount' Offer From Bulls, will be going to restricted FA

Reggie Jackson Determined To Find Starting Job In Restricted Free Agency (expected to look for $13-14mil per season).

Hmm- who would you prefer, Butler or Reggie Jackson?

At this point, I'd say our FA targets are:

C/PF's- Marc Gasol, Greg Monroe, Millsap

Guards: Reggie Jackson, maybe Butler, Afflalo, Mathews

Butler probably isn't an option

Bulls can still match offers, they want his market value established

That's how Krause operates for the most part

Afflalo at this stage Yuck Yuck Yuck

None of those guys put us in contention territory

Krause left the bulls in 2003.