Official 2016 Free Agency Thread

Man if we don't go after Whiteside I'm gonna be f***ing pissed. He's argurably the second best player on the market. He instantly improves our team on both ends. I just don't get not going after him. The guy has produced at a high level for two seasons now plus playoffs this year.

 

Dumb as a rock? Don't agree with that. You can't be as consistent as he has been over the last two seasons and be as dumb as you claim. The guy is a monster. Whiteside pretty much blocks or alters every shot in his path. He's constantly gobbling down double digit rebounds. He consistently finishes plays. His offensive game isn't great, but it's definitely evolved. He has a a couple of nice moves on the post and a nice 15 foot jump shot.

I mean sure he can revert back, but the guy's talent and production speaks for itself. The Lakers are in NO position to pass on a guy like that. He's an All Star caliber big man. An elite big man. An elite rim protector. A guy who is gonna help our young guys because of his ability to cover for their mistakes as well as finishing lobs from JC and D'Angelo. As for veterans we can always re-sign Bass. Luke is gonna hire some veterans on his staff that can help out. There's still a number of veterans in free agency so it would be absolutely foolish to pass on Whiteside.

 

Man there are too many unknowns with these FA centers.

With some of the names being mentioned I'd rather sign Bass for 8 mil and Black for 5 mil and be done with it.

 

whoa, I go away when we're crapping on barnes for 21 per and come back to ezeli for 21 per?

I'm leaving again. you sort this out among yourselves.

if I come back and you're suggesting buying out nick young and then maxing him, I'm quitting altogether.

 

That sounds like a great plan. Let's not sign anyone because we're afraid of overpaying. That sure has gotten us a lot of wins the last few years.

 

lol, yeah, that's what I said.

anyway...

ezeli at the max makes the Erick Dampier deal look freaking brilliant.

he doesn't produce, he has multiple knee injuries, and he's already 27? man, that's some Jerome james stuff.

I'm with whomever said they'd rather roll the dice on noah at a lower price.

but I'm thinking I should have stuck to my guns in the earlier post.

 

Doesn't produce? He's one of the better backup centers in the league. His only problem is knee injuries otherwise it would be a no brainer.

 

7/6 on 55% in 17mpg. I think a couple pages back, nobody wanted Tyson chandler for 7/9 in 24mpg at a salary about 25% lower over the same period. if age/injury is the concern, I'd say it's relatively equivalent. the production is similar. the salary is theoretically lower. Tyson's older, but far more proven as an nba starter. plus, you could probably grab an asset or two in picking him up.

anyway, to me, barnes is a much more interesting investment than ezeli. if I'm throwing that kind of money around, I want someone who's younger, more durable, and who has reasonable upside.

 

No way I'm paying a back up oft injured center the max. Barnes I'll overpay obviously.

 

yeah i'm not on board at all with giving ezeli that much money

 

Production isn't really similar. Ezeli averages the same amount of points and boards basically, but he does it in just 17 minutes a game. I don't see how 7/6 in such little playing time isn't really solid production. It's not just about the stats either with him. He's an outstanding defender as he showed the other night. His energy and tenacity and pick and roll coverage was a key for Golden State winning that game. He's also a lot younger than Chandler. I still don't think he's worth that money, but he's a damn good player.

 

I believe Ezeli is just a smokescreen and the actual target is Whiteside.

 

@abeer3 you really despise Ezeli huh? From what I've seen, he's a very good defensive big, and he can finish on the offensive end and is perfect for the Warriors offense that we will be running. He's pretty mobile too and he switches onto guards sometimes and does fairly well in those situations. I know it's overpaying but for someone like him, I wouldn't mind. The one thing I didn't know was that he's already 27. I thought for some reason he was same age as Barnes or a little older like 25. 27 is a little bit older than I wanted him to be. So I'm cautious on that.....would rather go after Whiteside...but everyone will be after Whiteside.