My thing is we had an opportunity to call up some good young talent and passed, instead opting to sign two throw-ins in a trade that we had just waived (something I don't recall seeing before). Now the roster stands at 15 again. I suppose we could turn around and waive these guys we just reacquired a 2nd time but you get the feeling we won't be doing that... Why the move to bring them back in the first place? And yeah, what the hell is a guy like Lou Amundson doing for us? What, he's gonna teach Quincy Acy how to hustle? Dude already knows how to hustle and he's got a better ceiling than Amundson...Now who's to say if we decide to go fishing for some young talent by the deadline, it'll still be there. If we wanted a guy like JaMychal Green, why weren't we proactive? Why haven't we gotten him in here already? Dude's a good player who's developed nicely in the DL and he definitely fits (our 4 spot will be wide open come next year). I don't buy that we may have made an offer and got rebuffed too btw as someone suggested the other day -- we would've heard something. Not how it works with these type of players anyway -- these DL guys that aren't tied to another team are all looking for work, desperate for a full-time NBA gig--I believe most of them are making $20-25k, that's it. There's no way any of them would turn down an NBA guaranteed deal. All due respect to BigCats but these couple of guys I've been talking about aren't band-aids. These are good young quality players that could help our future -- guys we could get at a rock bottom price, guys that we could pencil into a future rotation, guys we could revamp whole positions with at a time. Or at least audition to see if that's true. That would've been the right play for us right now. Instead we signed Lou Amundson. Yay!!
Quincy Miller I'm not too sure about -- I know many feel he's currently the top rated guy in the DL but I'm not sold. Seen him a few times now -- I know he's 6'10" and can shoot but he just looks a tad awkward out there. Robert Covington, last year's #1 rated DL prospect, is a similar tall/long SF who can shoot that just seems much more fluid and NBA ready to me by comparison. Philly got an absolute steal with that kid btw -- I think they gave him a 4-yr deal at a shade over $4mm total. Talk about money well spent. Look at the dividends he's paying now for them. Wow. Looks like he'll be a fixture there for years... I would love to iron out a similar deal with JaMychal Green -- let's go get that kid and lock him into a similar deal. Different positions (Covington's a SF, Green's a 4 man) but I see a player on a similar talent plane. No idea what we're doing. I wouldn't concern myself with cap holds on these young guys for next year. They're minimum level players. Covington gets paid a little over $1mm a year by Philly. I bet we could get several top DL players for less than that, although I like Philly's style -- why fool around with 10-day contracts? Up to me, I like several of these guys enough where I'd be comfortable signing them to multi-year guaranteed deals, similar to the one Covington signed with the Sixers.
We won't go get them but just for ****s & giggles, here are the players I'm most interested in for us (DL/playing abroad, etc.):
PF help
JaMychal Green - I think he could be a starting PF for nearly every NBA team.
Richard Howell - I'll continue to watch Acy closely but this is a similar 4 man I like a little more. I think he'd come cheaper than Acy's team option for next year too. Reminds me of DeJuan Blair.
Khem Birch - A dirty work, Keon Clark type that can rebound and has a big-time knack for blocking shots. Reminds me of Eric Moreland, the young big Sac. signed off his good SL showing.
Dwight Powell - I think this guy's a real jewel in the making. 6'10" athletic/skilled/NBA-ready PF. I think he'll be something better than Kris Humphries eventually. Nice job by Cuban getting him in the Rondo trade. If I'm Phil, I'd try to trade for this guy somehow.
PG help
Bryce Cotton - Love this little fella's game. He's quick, dynamic and he can really shoot. More complete game over Langston Galloway imo. Much quicker with better PG skills. Just as good a shooter...I'd grab this guy now and pencil him in as my backup PG for next year without hesitation (assuming we get a legit starting PG upgrade either in the draft or FA). 6' is adequate size -- smaller but not too small. Some websites list him at 6'1". Granted Cotton does look small but I'll take a 6' guy I know is more talented/more complete over a 6'2" guy that isn't any day.
Complete revamping of the 2G spot on the cheap
Kevin Murphy - Signed a deal to go play in China but he's obtainable. Nobody except Stephon Marbury decides to go play there forever. Murphy would be my starting 2G next year. 6'7", real potent scorer. Could be a tremendous 3rd/4th option in the offense for next year depending on how we retool.
Elliot Williams - Might turn out to be nothing more than a placeholder in Utah. He should spring loose. Talented, athletic SG.
Orlando Johnson - I like this guy -- I wanted him in the draft a couple of years ago. Young physical 6'5" 2G with a post up game and he can shoot/slash.
1/15/2015 1:23 AM