one factor that might get them here in ny is the fact that the west is too darn deep.... coming to the east would increase their chances if advancing.

Could melo, dragic and Wesley lead the 2015 knicks?

EnySpree wrote:Would you invest your money in that back court? Dragic showed the Knicks alot of respect with his words about possibly coming here in the offseason. Wesley has a good thing going on in Portland....

one factor that might get them here in ny is the fact that the west is too darn deep.... coming to the east would increase their chances if advancing.

Could melo, dragic and Wesley lead the 2015 knicks?

would love to get those 2 at the right price.

However, coming to the knicks will NOT increase their chances of advancing.

Might be a good idea to start a thread on Wednesday

On how we can get sign De'Andre Jordan

H1AND1 wrote:Honestly I didn't know much about Matthews besides the fact that he is a stout defender. Until he killed us last night and his offensive numbers look great. Portland would be crazy to lose such a nice young 2 way guard but if he wants to come here then great! Id be happy.

My biggest knicks wish besides winning the Lotto is finally getting free agents who aren't totally worthless on defense.

My wish as well. 2-way players.

There is a good chance that both players re-sign with their respected teams but the market for those two positions is fairly small. Grizz, Clipps, and Hawks are probably the main competitors for Wesley. Teams chasing after Dragic will probably be Kings, Bucks, Lakers, and Houston. That is some stiff competition.

Knicks1969 wrote:Why Dragic when we can draft a younger more athletic version?

With that theory,
You could just about say that for EVERY POSITION and PLAYER

First off, PG takes the longest for rookies and younger players to develop, while many do not

There simply is too much variables to adjust to, look at how long it took for John Wall to develop his game to where he is now, and how many losing seasons it took despite having a clear cut NBA body from the start and physical abilities

Some other PG's to consider that took at least 2years + before they were able to contribute despite the skillsets and NBA bodies they had include

Curry
Westbrook
Rhondo
Lowry
Dragic
Bledsoe
Conley
Jrue Holiday

-Develop an NBA body and matching up with opponents in all positions where they are all physically dominant when compared to NCAA
-The shot clock with limited time to get set for a good % shot
-DEFENSE, without the ability to play zone and more 1v1 is required
-NBA 3pt range

Think and look back and see how some of the better PG's were in the first couple of years and some with rings and you will realize many of them struggled early on in this careers, especially their rookie season and earlier years

-Nash
-Billups

Are 2 players that struggled much finding the switch to PRO's was completely different

Nash was given up by The Sun's who originally drafted him, then was given up in Dallas where he developed in with Dirk, and then was MVP for 2 years when he was paired with the right coach, system, and team mates
Billups was moved much and given up on by many teams before he was able to land in Detroit in the right situation/team that fit his skills and idenity

Most importantly, draft picks are limited so while we have a lot of needs to fill
We currently only have 1 draft pick, so is that the route we really want to go, considering CA was expecting to have a team ready to contend by this summer?
Unless we somehow acquire more picks which are highly unlikely to land us a 1st rounder in this years draft (outside of trading CA)

The PG is essentially a leader/manager on the court
PG has to adapt physically, mentally, be able to defend on a PRO level with ALL STAR PG's, has to become a leader, adjust to the NBA style of play, learn a completely different system, how and where his own team mates like to have the ball and adjust to play on and off the ball

In general, the first season is for them to get a taste of the NBA and get a sense of the differences
These guys were once able to dominate with their speed/quickness/strength or whatever their abilities are but that isn't the case when they go to the NBA
When developing a rookie PG, are they ready to even play the first year, if not the learning begings in practice and in the weight room
IF not, they will have to get a NBA body first or gain the speed/quickness, players like Lavine/Exum/Smart/MCW are all on teams that are rebuilding therefore they can learn o

Of recent history, Lilliard is one of the fastest to develop/contribute on a high level with consistency, and he still improved much by his 2nd year
If they have a NBA body and skills like Lilliard, then you can get the PT early, create and make mistakes and work hard on improving them
He is the only PG that of recent that was able to come in right away and contribute on a high level, having a player of LA caliber also helps who can score from eveywhere on the court and shoots 50% and not just dunks

Tony Parker is another player that was able to develop rather quickly, was able to contribute consistently on a high level
I think he might have won his first ring as a rookie but he was not initiating the OFFENSE till much later in his career and he elevated his game his 2nd signifigantly

Though Parker came in the league with a great system and HOF players in Duncan/Robinson and also Steve Smith
Also had a great DEFENSE but now we are talking about the earliest a PG could contribute is by year 2-3 with great consistency

There simply are not many PG's that ever come in contribute right away like Lilliard and Kidd
While other positions, they can contribute right away like Anthony Davis, their growth by year 2-3 would be signifigantly greater if they put in the work to do so
And I think that is something we are looking to draft, someone that could contribute right away with some minutes but still have a high ceiling

yellowboy90 wrote:

djsunyc wrote:blazers owned by a billionaire. they will pay whatever they need to pay. unless you are planning to throw the max at someone like wes, don't expect him to pick another team over portland.

It is a long shot but if they max out LA and give him a Bosh contract and give Wesley and Lopez near $20M collectively they will be capped out going forward. They can trade or let Batum come off the books but Lillard will be looking for a Max extension so they'll still lose flexibility. Depending on their performance in the playoffs their is a great chance that it is a route they are willing to take.

Yeah, there is a lot of players in Portland that want to get payed and their payroll isn't low right now
I think they will pay Lilliard MAX and unless LA is willing to take less, I think they are forced to pay him too

Wesley Mathewws is a big part of Portland's sucess on both OFF and DEF, they will like to keep him but I am sure there is a number that they would not like to pass

I don't think Lopez is not guaranteed to return though, in fact, I think it is unlikely, mostly depending on if he is willing to come back at a discount, the payroll of the team, and how serious his injury is
I think he is on the bottom of the Blazer's priority

With the development PF/C's of Freeland also a RFA, Meyers Leneard *also has a 3pt shot now too*, and Chris Kaman as a nice veteran with a team option at 5m

Battum has not played well this year but he has been playing through wrist or/and finger injuries on his shooting hand which has had a big effect on his game
He virtually was flirting with triple doubles on a nightly basis last season, with a combined steals/blocks of 5, using his length, and 2-3 treys a night

He has great length/size/athleticism/with many versatile skill sets, playmaking abilitities
Battum surely has to step up his game and bring more consistency if Portland is going to be a contender in the tough Western Conference

I do believe that Lilliard has to be leader of the team though, while LA could be the leading scorer of the team

LA is a great scorer and shooter, now with the ability to hit 3pters if left open
He shoots nearly 50%, despite shooting many shots from right inside the 3pt line

He isn't known to be a "stretch 4/5" because he doesn't take many 3pter but he shoots right inside it for his entire career while still having the ability to post up and score inside the basket and mid range as well

I would be very surprised if Portland doesn't offer him what it takes to resign him because if not I fully expect Morey to offer him the max possible
Houston has many unguaranteed contracts and players that they do not have to give the qualifying offer to
IF Morey was willing to give Chris Bosh a MAX contract, I surely would do so with LA

They do have draft picks that he could use to off load salaries if needed however, with the core they have right now, they have a lot of players that he could continue to trade with value
Terrence Jones is a player that probably is done with the acquisition of Josh Smith with his injury, I am sure someone will take a chance on him given a reasonable offer

EnySpree wrote:Would you invest your money in that back court? Dragic showed the Knicks alot of respect with his words about possibly coming here in the offseason. Wesley has a good thing going on in Portland....

one factor that might get them here in ny is the fact that the west is too darn deep.... coming to the east would increase their chances if advancing.

Could melo, dragic and Wesley lead the 2015 knicks?

Not ideal in my opinion because I think Phil prefers to build with bigs.

If we get Okafor, Towns or WCS these 2 might work.

I have a preference for Butler over Matthews and while I like Dragic would prefer another big via free agency.