NBA Free Agency

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Uh-oh, this could get problematic for the Heat. Dwade apparently wants a max deal.


-Jason "if Miami won't pony up, some other team probably will. DWade makes ANYONE better" Evans

There were multiple reports yesterday, including from Woj, that came after this article was written, that reported the Heat and Wade were progressing on a deal (per Woj, a multi-year deal). I think this article is a little outdated. He may very well get max money this year, it's unclear exactly how they're going to put this together. But there frankly aren't many suitors left for Wade. I suppose the Lakers and Knicks if he wants to deal with that. Of course, nothing is done until it's done, but the general feeling from Miami beat writers (and Woj) is that whereas things looked pretty dicey a couple days ago, it now seems very likely that Wade will return. This isn't to suggest that none of this is problematic for the Heat. They will be subject to the repeater tax which places an exceptionally high tax burden for going over the cap 4 out of 5 years, meaning Arison will probably force them to move Birdman and/or Chalmers. It also jeopardizes their chances at luring a top free agent in 2016 should they decide to try to keep Whiteside. The Heat were trying to maintain a little more flexibility for 2016, but the Whiteside and Dragic moves kind of threw a wrench into everything, and now they have to satisfy Wade on top of that.

[Duvall]

So basically, the Bucks traded Ersan Ilyasova for Monroe.

Ilyasova has 2 years left on his contract at $7.9m and $8.4 mil.

Monroe got 3 years at $50m, but the 3rd year is player option.

Pistons win that deal



The interior defense will get shredded.

Who are the interior defenders if everyone is 6'9" or taller?

[COYS]

Not sure how the Hawks can pull a Spurs, as we are short one "greatest power forward of all time".

I should have been more precise. By "pull a Spurs" i mean "pull a 2014 Spurs." At that point, Duncan was still excellent, but not near his greatest power forward of all time level. Same is true for Ginobli and Parker. The Spurs won with truly excellent ball movement and the coming out party of Leonard. With quick guys like Teague and a hopefully improving Schroeder, Horford (who is probably comparable to the 2014 version of Duncan and would be a superstar without all the injuries), Millsap, and good three point shooters, the Hawks don't necessarily need an absolute top 5 NBA star to make it out of the east. We just need a good player who is the right fit, preferably at small forward. For example, I'd love to see what the Hawks could do by adding a guy like Gordon Hayward at small forward.

I definitely agree that it'd be easier to win a title with a full out top 5 NBA player. But the Hawks have so much depth that just simply managing to upgrade at small forward and then actually be healthy for the post season could be enough. Are they likely to beat Lebron, Kyrie, and Love? Probably not, but I do think the right upgrades give us a better chance than many predict.

Now, getting a guy like Hayward is almost certainly not going to happen. And, while I've liked the Hawk's offseason so far, I don't think we've managed to do enough to get over the hump. In fact, we might take a step back (the small forward situation is a little precarious). But I'm still holding out hope that our front office has a trick or two up their sleeve. They have definitely earned the benefit of the doubt after the past two years.

[SoCalDukeFan]

The Lakers also suffer from the delusion that they are the only team in town. (During the Sterling era, they were). Players interested in LA will talk to the Clips first.
Native son Paul Pierce returns home to play for Doc on a cheap veteran deal. (Maybe KG is next? Anyone still have Ray-Ray on speed dial?) #ThrowbackThursday

My guess is that Pierce to the Clips is more about Doc than anything else.

Lakers should be in a good position in the lottery in next year's draft and Kobe's contract is up. If they stink up Staples then maybe Jim Buss will leave. Ryan Kelly may get lots of PT.

I wonder if Kareem can still go up the floor.



SoCal

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Per Woj, the Heat are now trying to meet with LaMarcus Aldridge.

[Turk]

So basically, the Bucks traded Ersan Ilyasova for Monroe.

Ilyasova has 2 years left on his contract at $7.9m and $8.4 mil.
Monroe got 3 years at $50m, but the 3rd year is player option.
Pistons win that deal

I beg to differ. Ilyasova is a 4, Monroe is a 5. Jabari will eat into Ilyasova's minutes, so they traded Ilyasova at top of his value. Monroe is an upgrade over Pachulia and Henson at center. Even if Detroit wins on money, Bucks win on fit and talent.

And I humbly suggest the interior defense won't be so bad either. Bucks were a plus last season on defense, and with all those octopi on the perimeter, it's going to be tough to get the ball inside in the first place. I like everything Milwaukee has done so far. (Sixers, are you taking notes?)

[Mabdul Doobakus]

And according to David Aldridge, Riley and LaMarcus ARE meeting this afternoon in LA, after a second Lakers meeting. No idea what Riley is doing here, but per everyone on Twitter, some kind of sign-and-trade would be the only way to make this work. I've seen Deng, McRoberts, and Whiteside mentioned as possible trade bait. Don't know enough about LaMarcus to say how I feel about dealing Whiteside for him.

Anyway, all of this seems like a long shot.

[CDu]

And according to David Aldridge, Riley and LaMarcus ARE meeting this afternoon in LA, after a second Lakers meeting. No idea what Riley is doing here, but per everyone on Twitter, some kind of sign-and-trade would be the only way to make this work. I've seen Deng, McRoberts, and Whiteside mentioned as possible trade bait. Don't know enough about LaMarcus to say how I feel about dealing Whiteside for him.

Anyway, all of this seems like a long shot.

I can't see why Aldridge would prefer a sign and trade that strips down Miami's roster over going straight to a better team anyway (San Antonio) and also without needing the trade.

[Edouble]

I can't see why Aldridge would prefer a sign and trade that strips down Miami's roster over going straight to a better team anyway (San Antonio) and also without needing the trade.

Riley might sell Aldridge on a younger front court, possibly present him with a better five year plan than an aging Big 3 + Leonard.

I wonder if the Heat front office could possibly convince Wade to take less money again, if they get Aldridge.

[Turk]

[From NBA Draft thread - figured the offseason moves go better here...]

Great trade for the 76ers, if they actually want to get better. Landry and Thompson are both decent bench pieces who can contribute for 15-20 minutes a game. The problem is they are each going to get paid $13+mil over the next 2 years and the Kings want to use that money to bring in someone like Rondo or Wes Mathews. Stauskas didn't do much as a rookie, but is still young and promising. The 76ers also got the right to swap first rounders with the Kings for 2 season, so, if the 76ers suddenly get good or (more likely) if the Kings suddenly tumble far down in the West, the 76ers could get a better pick out of it. That's how the Hawks moved from 29th to 15th in the most recent draft, in a swap with the Nets.

-Jason "it is painful to watch, but from a strategic standpoint I think the 76ers have made some smart moves lately. When will they be ready to try to win though?" Evans

I love this move too. Sixers have been acquiring cap space for exactly these types of desperation moves by struggling mediocre teams trying to squeak into the playoffs or placate a grumpy all-star like Boogie. The Sixers gave up less than nothing for this move with the two Euro-stash guys. With the chance to swap first-round picks, all Sam Hinkie has to do to win this deal is make sure that the Sixers will be better than the Kings within two or three seasons. I'll take that bet against Sacramento any time. And for those Sixer fans who can't quite bring themselves to partake of whatever it is Magic Sam is smoking to believe in the current roster incarnation of his "vision", I believe most of them would rather take their chances with Hinkie for another season or two, and would not trade places with Sacramento under any circumstance.

As for the actual players, anything Landry or Thompson can provide will be a bonus. Thompson is a Camden kid, so he has that going for him, and he can be additional insurance in case Embiid winds up like Greg Oden. To me, the worst case is that some of the surplus PF's and centers get flipped for a few more second round scratch-off tickets in 2018-19 or 2019-20. Any asset is better than nothing, right?

So the biggest unknown is Stauskas. I must confess he had me hooked at "Sauce Castillo". Sauce steps into a big gaping hole in the Sixers lineup as a shooting guard, among such luminaries as Tony Wroten, Hollis Thompson, JaKarr Sampson, and the arthritic Jason Richardson. I like Sauce's chances here, especially when you consider he had three coaches in Sacramento last year, and he gets the chance for some consistency with Brett Brown.

There are only two ways the Sixers lose on this deal: one of the Euro-stash guys turns into a legitimate NBA starter (I say no), or if Sacramento can outmaneuver the Sixers so that they don't swap picks (and if Rondo or Wes Matthews are how they plan to achieve that, I say no to that too).

[Mabdul Doobakus]

I can't see why Aldridge would prefer a sign and trade that strips down Miami's roster over going straight to a better team anyway (San Antonio) and also without needing the trade.

Yeah, you may be right. But it's easier to ascend in the East than it is the West, as the 2014-15 Spurs can surely attest.

Aldridge would first need to decide that he wanted to join the Heat, and then the Heat would have to find something agreeable for the Trailblazers, but the Blazers wouldn't really be in position to make big demands. Either Aldridge signs as an FA somewhere and Portland gets nothing, or they figure out a sign and trade, and Portland at least gets something. If I'm Miami, and Portland insists on either Winslow or Whiteside, I say no.

Again I haven't seen much of Aldridge, but I get the feeling that he and Bosh have fairly similar skill sets, so I'm not sure how much he even makes sense for Miami, if it means Miami has to give up a lot. In fact, I'm not sure Deng and McRoberts aren't better compliments to the existing talent than Aldridge is.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Riley might sell Aldridge on a younger front court, possibly present him with a better five year plan than an aging Big 3 + Leonard.

I wonder if the Heat front office could possibly convince Wade to take less money again, if they get Aldridge.

I'm not sure how much any of this affects the Wade situation. The beat writers on Twitter suggest that the two have little to do with each other. Even if Wade leaves, it doesn't mean the Heat have more money to spend on Aldridge. I think they'd be over the cap or at least close to it anyway. It all has to do with Bird Rights and confusing salary cap rules.

[Kedsy]

Lakers should be in a good position in the lottery in next year's draft and Kobe's contract is up. If they stink up Staples then maybe Jim Buss will leave. Ryan Kelly may get lots of PT.

The Laker's pick in next year's draft belongs to the 76ers, unless it's top 3.

[Kedsy]

[From NBA Draft thread - figured the offseason moves go better here...]



I love this move too. Sixers have been acquiring cap space for exactly these types of desperation moves by struggling mediocre teams trying to squeak into the playoffs or placate a grumpy all-star like Boogie. The Sixers gave up less than nothing for this move with the two Euro-stash guys. With the chance to swap first-round picks, all Sam Hinkie has to do to win this deal is make sure that the Sixers will be better than the Kings within two or three seasons. I'll take that bet against Sacramento any time. And for those Sixer fans who can't quite bring themselves to partake of whatever it is Magic Sam is smoking to believe in the current roster incarnation of his "vision", I believe most of them would rather take their chances with Hinkie for another season or two, and would not trade places with Sacramento under any circumstance.

As for the actual players, anything Landry or Thompson can provide will be a bonus. Thompson is a Camden kid, so he has that going for him, and he can be additional insurance in case Embiid winds up like Greg Oden. To me, the worst case is that some of the surplus PF's and centers get flipped for a few more second round scratch-off tickets in 2018-19 or 2019-20. Any asset is better than nothing, right?

So the biggest unknown is Stauskas. I must confess he had me hooked at "Sauce Castillo". Sauce steps into a big gaping hole in the Sixers lineup as a shooting guard, among such luminaries as Tony Wroten, Hollis Thompson, JaKarr Sampson, and the arthritic Jason Richardson. I like Sauce's chances here, especially when you consider he had three coaches in Sacramento last year, and he gets the chance for some consistency with Brett Brown.

There are only two ways the Sixers lose on this deal: one of the Euro-stash guys turns into a legitimate NBA starter (I say no), or if Sacramento can outmaneuver the Sixers so that they don't swap picks (and if Rondo or Wes Matthews are how they plan to achieve that, I say no to that too).

Pretty sure the Sixers got a top 10-protected first round pick in this deal, too. In 2018 or 2019. Makes the deal even better.

[Turk]

The Laker's pick in next year's draft belongs to the 76ers, unless it's top 3.

Beat me to it. So the Sixers are free to win as many games as they can this year and it won't hurt them; Lakers are bad but they won't be one of the three worst.

Magic Sam for the win!! Anybody else want some of this funny-tasting purple Kool-Aid?

[Kedsy]

So the Sixers are free to win as many games as they can this year and it won't hurt them

Well, the Sixers still have their own pick too, right? If they end up in the bottom three and the Lakers pick is, say, 5th, then that combined with Miami's (top 10-protected) and Oklahoma City's (top 15-protected) picks would give the Sixers a pretty decent haul in the 2016 Draft.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Wade deal is done. 1 year, 20 million. Seems like a good compromise for both parties. Heat maintain some flexibility in 2016 (which is good for Wade too, if he wants to win...Heat aren't going to completely screw him), Wade gets a little more money than he would've had he opted in.

Supposedly this deal had to happen BEFORE any kind of Aldridge sign-and-trade, which I'm sure is still a longshot.

[BD80]

... I know the Russell instead of Okafor pick is not confirmed as a bad deal, but if they don't wind up with Aldridge, it's going to guarantee that the Lakers will be in next yea4r's lottery -- even with Kobe back near healthy.

Can you imagine playing with Kobe on a team that wins less than one-third of its games? Ouch.

Who are the interior defenders if everyone is 6'9" or taller?

I beg to differ. Ilyasova is a 4, Monroe is a 5. Jabari will eat into Ilyasova's minutes, so they traded Ilyasova at top of his value. Monroe is an upgrade over Pachulia and Henson at center. Even if Detroit wins on money, Bucks win on fit and talent.

And I humbly suggest the interior defense won't be so bad either. Bucks were a plus last season on defense, and with all those octopi on the perimeter, it's going to be tough to get the ball inside in the first place. I like everything Milwaukee has done so far. (Sixers, are you taking notes?)

Hopefully, the "trade" is a win/win, as Monroe was not a fit with Andre Drummond. It is definitely a win for the Pistons.

Offensively, Monroe and Jabari will mesh beautifully, particularly with the perimeter players having the length to make direct entry passes. Monroe is really good at finding cutters with crisp passes for easy baskets.

Defensively, all the perimeter length in the world won't help bail Parker or Monroe out once they are out of position on the block. They will each pick up fouls at a brisk pace against teams with adept post scorers.

Well, the Sixers still have their own pick too, right? If they end up in the bottom three and the Lakers pick is, say, 5th, then that combined with Miami's (top 10-protected) and Oklahoma City's (top 15-protected) picks would give the Sixers a pretty decent haul in the 2016 Draft.

If only the 2016 draft had the talent the 2015 draft had. There is a reason teams were willing to trade 1st round picks in next year's draft.

[Turk]

Well, the Sixers still have their own pick too, right? If they end up in the bottom three and the Lakers pick is, say, 5th, then that combined with Miami's (top 10-protected) and Oklahoma City's (top 15-protected) picks would give the Sixers a pretty decent haul in the 2016 Draft.

Forgot about the OKC pick - too many to keep straight. Yes, the Sixers still have their own 1st rounder. I'm thinking the Lakers might wind up in the bottom 3 and keep the pick, though. Miami and OKC should be in the playoffs, so I'm guessing the Sixers will most likely have 3 first rounders next year: their own (top 10), and two in the 18-25 range.

I found the site below that summarizes the pick situation for all teams (needs to be updated for this week's deals). I giggled at the "credits" and "debits" column titles, but after a while, the pick conditions and trade histories were so complicated my head started hurting. With the exception of the 2016 protected picks that could slip to the next season, the Sixers have ZERO extra picks in 2017. How did Magic Sam let that happen?!? I presume he will be addressing that shortcoming in the next round of moves...

http://basketball.realgm.com/nba/dra...rafts/detailed

[Kedsy]

There is a reason teams were willing to trade 1st round picks in next year's draft.

Perhaps, but I don't think so. All three draft picks were originally 2015 picks, but the teams that traded them were protected (Lakers top 5; Heat top 10; Thunder top 18; and before the season all three of those teams seemed likely to finish better than the protection level). In other words all three picks almost went to the Sixers this season. So I don't think the teams trading the draft picks had the intent you attribute to them, though I suppose it's possible they all tanked a little toward the end of the season to avoid losing the picks.