If Dampier refuses to sign an MLE contract longer than one year, would you still sign him? It would be basically renting him for one year because it would be difficult to get him to re-sign next summer. We wouldn't have his Bird rights or even partial Bird rights (after a 2 yr contact). With huge expiring contracts, it wouldn't be too hard to get a replacement center, though.

Why do you feel it would be difficult to resign him after a year. I thought that once he's our player, we can pay him more than the mid-level.

I would definitely rather take Erick for one year. If he does sign an MLE contract, I don't think it will be for 1 year though. I think the minimum amount of years he will sign for is 2 so we can give him a big raise after that if he plays well. Even if Baker says he won't take the LLE, I would still sign Dampier. Dampier is just a better fit for us.

[Edited by - s3231 on 08/10/2004 17:24:37]

Posted by Bonn1997:

The most we could give him a year from now would be six mil, whereas if Dampier removes many doubts and has another awesome season, I think some team will give him more than a contract starting at $6 mil

Exactly, thats why we need to get him to sign a 2 year deal.

Posted by simrud:

Whats wrong with having him for just a year, better then not having him at all and signign some scrub to the MLE for 3 years like Baker.

If Baker's surgery helps him return to the 15/7/1/1 player he was for the first 1 1/2 months of last year, then he's far from a scrub. He'd actually be the best low post player we've had since Ewing.

I wish that happens to Baker, but I don't beleave in magic especially when it comes to the Knicks. Things usualy go bad or middle of the road, not the best possible scenario. Don't get me wrong, i'm rootin for Baker, but I just can't expect anything out of him. I mean the fact that a heart surgey is used as a positive when talkin bout the guy says volumes by itself. NBA ball takes an extreme physical tall on the body, and here is a guy who almost drank himself out of the league, and just had a heart surgey. It would be an awesome fairy tail story if he comes back at 15pts 8bds 1blk 1stl a game, but sadly, in real life the odds of are slim to none. But damn I wish that happens.

Dampier. I don't care whether the Knicks sign Baker or not.

Anyone know the answer to my question about having to use the MLE twice on Dampier?

Baker is still such a shot in the dark. We don't really know any of the details of this surgery, anything about the recovery time or how severe his original condition was. That's in addition to his well known question marks and the fact that he's old and his skills are in erosion anyway. I'd much rather get Dampier and would only even approach Baker with more than the LLE untill I was absolutely sure Dampier wasn't gonna take the MLE.

The Baker who played for Boston early this year was definitely decent and I'd take that for 3 mil. Still, Baker is not that great of a rebounder for a guy his size and has always been a little soft on the defensive end. I really want to focus more on a defensive presence from our center...