Tex, how did you decide how many "poors" to use before Robert Horry? I think once you went beyond two, you may as well be describing Christian Ast (too soon?). I agree that Rio more than had his moments with the Heat, he just chose a bad time to completely fall apart. Now he gets to employ the one of the most annoying and overused cliches in sports, "play with a giant chip on his shoulder".
Fisher is a pro, but I think it's incontrovertible that if he had not ridden shotgun on all those Lakers titles (and, to be fair, hitting more than his share or ridiculously unlikely/utterly irritating pressure threes) his career would have ended years ago. Brooks put him on the court as some kind of winning talisman more than anything else. Championship aura goes a long way, and Chalmers's career earnings will be permanently enhanced by his association with the Miami Heat during the right seasons.
Fisher was president of the PA through some pretty tough times. Seemed to comport himself very well, and not just with the media, but with the media is important too. Jackson knows the extent of Fisher's leadership qualities, his character, and his ability to comprehend the game and communicate about it. Fisher seems to grasp essence, and Jackson knows that he is getting someone whom he can communicate with and trust to handle the job.
I don't see Chambers standing in Fisher's shoes on any level.
Kyrie is about to get even richer...the Cavs are apparently flying to NJ with a max offer.
They are used to the flight having attended so many recent lotteries (bazinga!)
Not quite sure I agree with you there. Granted, I am far from an authority on the subject, but a quick search of Christian devotionals written by Oswald Chambers, the famous Scottish Baptist minister, reveals a number dedicated to "essence." His wikipedia page certainly suggests he was at least decent as a leader as well.
Well, it's all but official, Kyrie's gonna be a Cav for the long term: http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/11...ract-extension
I really enjoyed the 2 threads about the Bucks with Jabari and the Jazz with Hood, so perhaps we can discuss the Cavs here. The reported details on the deal are 90 million over 5 years. I'm glad to see him stay in Cleveland, but I'm honestly surprised that he's chosen to pass up the experience of being a free agent. I guess he's staying true to Uncle Drew and keeping it old school. Our boy just got paid big time. Congrats Kyrie!
I'm not sure what experience you're referring to, but Kyrie got more money than anyone else can give him. I think the only thing surprising was that he signed on for the full 5 (not clear whether there are options as part of the deal), but that may have been Cleveland's condition for giving him max money.
Just be you. You is enough. - K, 4/5/10, 0:13.8 to play, 60-59 Duke.
You're all jealous hypocrites. - Titus on Laettner
You see those guys? Animals. They're animals. - SIU Coach Chris Lowery, on Duke
I am quite intrigued at Lebron leaking that he wants a max deal. His off the court earning dwarf everyone else in the NBA, so his basketball salary should be less important to him than, for example, Bosh.
I strongly suspect that he, Wade, and Bosh all figured out how much money they would each get under new deals to both make them happy and keep the team in position to pick up some quality depth. I won't be all that surprised if Bosh and especially Wade end up taking biiiig pay cuts to give the team more room to get some complimentary players. I think there are scenarios where those three (plus Ray Allen and Haslem) could come in with total salaries around $50 mil and still give the Heat room to sign a free agent for the mid-level exemption ($5+ mil a year) and the lower exemption ($2+ mil a year).
Of course, what the Heat really need to do is get lucky and find a Miles Plumlee hidden somewhere. Rim protectors are at a premium!
-Jason "I think Melo's destination is a lot more interesting to talk about than Lebron -- Bronbron is staying in Miami for probably two more years at least" Evans
Why are you wasting time here when you could be wasting it by listening to the latest episode of the DBR Podcast?
Looks like the Lakers have found their next big man to add to that proud legacy.
The Lakers have given Ryan Kelly a $1-million qualifying offer, making the former Duke forward a restricted free agent.
Kelly was selected by the Lakers with the 48th pick in the 2013 NBA draft.
After a slow start as he recovered from April 2013 foot surgery, Kelly become a regular contributor this season, averaging 8.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks a game after the All-Star break.
Good for Ryan. In a situation like this, where the current team puts a very low (but qualifying) offer on the table, could we expect other teams to see if they can get him for a bit more? And/or for more years? Kelly's gotta be worth more than a one-year $1M deal now that he's proved his NBA bona fides, doesn't he? Is the LA offer just to get that ball rolling?
Lakers will have 7 days to match once someone else has made an offer.
Typically the biggest free agents get all the early attention and help set the market. Then everyone else eats. But Kelly's deal might be small enough, and as a stretch 4, to get him a deal earlier in the free agency season.
I heard that, too. (I think it was Brian Windhorst who said it on Lowe's podcast, just to give proper credit.) Amazing. People want LeBron to take less "because he doesn't need it," even though he often already has and even though every metric tells us he is waaaay more valuable than the current max salary. Jordan negotiated for $30 million per season back in the mid-90s, and he didn't need it either. Respect is meaningful, and in sports the prime way a team shows respect is with money.
I was just referring to the experience of being wooed by other teams. Even though point guard is an extremely deep position in the NBA, I suspect there would have been a HUGE market for Kyrie from contending franchises looking to upgrade next year. Many people i think would enjoy the process of visiting these NBA cities and listening to what each team has to offer. (Basically what Carmelo is doing right now)
Kyrie's contract is going to be possibly the best 5 years of his playing career in terms of production, leading right up to his prime, and he was smart to demand the max. This is huge win for the Cavs, locking up Kyrie a year before hitting free agency. They now have way more to bait in front of free agents next summer. If David Blatt shows that he's a capable coach in this league (I believe he will be), there's a nice spot on this roster for a star next summer to come play with Kyrie and Andrew Wiggins. I also think Anthony Bennett will have a MUCH improved year coming up. Despite their managements best efforts to sabotage their own team for the past 3 years, the Cavs' arrow is trending solidly up. Imagine if we had Andre Drummond instead of Dion Waiters . . . . sigh.