Here's the deal. IT has gone from semi coveted player to someone who has been seen as a problem in the locker room. All while trying to come back from injury. If he pulls the buy me out card or the I refuse to sit card this is going to do nothing for him except take dollars off any potential deal he has coming this summer. Bad injury...check...Bad attitude...check.... there goes deals from any team looking to build or to contend. However, if he comes in and produces for a young team that is starting to experience success and helps them experience more success that could equal either a big pay day or even the opportunity to help take the Lakers to the next level with whomever comes to town this summer. It is absolutely in his best interest to be the dude who shows up, has a great attitude, and is above all productive in LA. I certainly hope he turns it around and can find that fit in LA. Even as a sixth man he could get paid. If he chooses to "play hardball" and not come off the bench, so be it. Let him sit there and continue to hurt his chances to earn big this summer.
Low risk high reward. If he behaves and makes shots he will play until the end of the season. if not, he will be burried. Either way, I would be shocked if he gets more than 50% of the max he thinks he deserves. Only a very desperate team would pay him more and even then, there is zero chance its going to be a max. Its sad when scrubs like Evan Turner, Noah, Deng or Mozgov make 3 times as much money as IT but it is what it is...you must be lucky to hit the right window.
Great to hear that Magic/Rob smoothed things over (for lots of reasons). We're not going to bury him on the bench. Isaiah is likely to start early on with Ball out still. Once Ball comes back, we'll still surely play Thomas 30 minutes a game or so. He's going to get plenty of opportunity and in this PACE offense, he's going to put up tons of shots and have great opportunities to shine for FA. Now that his agent has backed off his threat, I'm feeling much more confident about this addition. I'm eager to see what Thomas brings offensively to this team. Frye isn't a defensive stalwart, but he's got some veteranism about him. I'm excited.
The truth is we traded for cap space and one of the expirings happened to be IT. Sadly that's how low his value is right now. Amazing how things change because I would have traded a couple of our kids for IT, who was a MVP candidate around the same time last year.
I would think they told him if it works out that they would give him a 1yr-team 2nd type deal at a sizable amount like KCP’s 1yr. But only if they don’t get their 2 all stars. If we struck out in all star free agency I wouldn’t mind giving IT $15-$20MM for a year. It’s way more than he’s ever received in one year.
I could see us striking out and then signing him to a one year "max" deal and resigning Julius. And on to 2019...
This is exactly how I see it. It's an amazing opportunity for IT. He was losing $$ every Day he was festering in Cleveland. Now he has the chance to show the League that he's healthy & still a dominant player. He'll get PT here. This also allows the Lakers let Lonzo take time with his rehab & not be expected to play big minutes when he returns. Heck. We've been dying for a go to clutch guy too.. People forget that IT led the League in 4th Quarter scoring a Year ago.. Couple this with the fact that the Lakers also dumped the Salary they needed to & this is a major Win Win...
Everybody seems down on him but weren't everyone asking for a veteran point guard? lol The FO has delivered an All Star and an All NBAer. I'm gonna root for him to succeed
I think it’s height discrimination. If IT were 6’3” and up, he’d probably be more accepted. His offensive potency is top notch.
Also considering that IT is a "namer" and a previous All-star, we're the ones that RECEIVED a (weakly protected) 1st rounder in this climate all while dumping salary. That's f***ing amazing! Huge ups to the FO...seriously! This has to show players that Boston is savage when it comes to loyalty. Granted, IT's "Brinks truck" comment rubbed some the wrong way, but the way Danny did IT can't go unnoticed. To a lesser extent, they did Rondo, Paul and KG the same way. Their most noticeable free agent is Al Hortford (hardly an All-star if it weren't for him playing in the lEast) and now Hayward (Stevens connection). I'd be surprised if free agents willingly head over there unless massive money is thrown at them (ie Monroe getting 5M for 30 games). Good thing Danny has a treasure trove of picks, cause that is the only way he can land a star there (ie Kyrie and recall that Ky didn't even have Boston on his list of preferable destinations).
I'm not excited about IT because his attitude and locker room behavior were pretty abysmal in Cleveland. Just being honest here. I don't see him here long term. I do like Frye for his shooting but his D isn't so good. We were clicking with Clarkson and Larry coming off the bench. These guys don't do the same things. Arguably of course IT is a much better player than Clarkson at the same strengths, i.e. basically scoring. But these guys have to adjust to what Luke wants out of them. I see us struggling a little with them while they figure it out. Maybe not enough to lose games though.
im ok with it, in fact i posted bunch of it/jc trades on realgm lol.....but i dont like the story of his agent demanding a starting position. I know he has to get paid but realize you aint right with your gm yet, dont come here acting like an entitled star, that big pay day is over, he was never gina get $20mill+ even if healthy. No smart gm is investing 100mill+ on a 5 9" defensively liability
You're not wrong, but IT could still be really helpful in the short-term if he is willing to fit in. I don't see why he wouldn't either, he needs to re-establish his value in the market.
exactly. and just to be clear, that was (again) the narrative. so if and when we're told this was the isaiah thomas trade (like the "brook lopez" trade), we can say no. agreed everyone? here i disagree. i thought IT wasn't worth much even when he was almost leading the league in scoring. his size and style of play were huge concerns, and i was certain ainge would move him even if he hadn't injured his hip. add in a bo jackson type hip injury, and you end up with the isaiah thomas hot potato game we just witnessed. even if he looks great to end the season, you absolutely DO NOT want to be the team that signs him long-term. this totally sucks for him, just terrible timing on his free agencies and his injury, but them's the breaks. IF he plays well AND the lakers strike out on PG and Lebron, i'd consider a large one-year offer. but no way i'm paying thomas long term at this point.
