Precisely. At this point I'm off the Rondo train for anything over 10 million. I'd rather get Dragic for whatever than Rondo for more than 10 after Rondo's stint on Dallas has gone so poorly. The only reason I'd be on the Rondo train is to get a good player for below market value in order to get another player at market value at a position of need. Namely Matthews would be a great addition.
Maybe, my post misrepresents your argument (you know your argument much better than I do), but I don't think it misrepresents the specific post I responded to. That's why I prefaced my comment with a "let me get this straight." Your post seemed to indicate that Rondo's history of playing less than full seasons would actually be a good factor in getting him. It seemed like a head scratcher to me. On the glue thing, you are assuming he will be once we surround him with talent. I'm not making that assumption. He was a good glue piece in 2008. He seems to be the opposite in 2015. Mavs have lots of talent surrounding him. Before he got to Dallas they were on pace to set the all time record for Offensive Efficiency. With Rondo their offense stinks. I'm just not interested in trading an occasional trip-dub for a bad attitude, often injured PG who can't shoot from the perimeter and shoots FTs worse than Shaq, and has apparently forgotten how to play D. Bottomline for me, Rondo is a bad move at anything above 2-3m per.
No, I'm saying we have a contingency in Clarkson in case things got rough with Rondo health-wise. I'm not saying it's some sort of advantage, just that at 10 million per year or less there's a good chance we get value out of him AND get another body to use at another position of need (any position!). I thought Rondo to Dallas was a bad idea from the beginning. He's got to control the ball and control the tempo to be effective and they've already got Ellis for that. Ellis was doing fine. I don't really understand why they wanted to get Rondo without any real need for him. It didn't make any sense to me. Rondo works best when he's directing traffic and you have guys that need to either catch and shoot or catch the ball in their spots. I don't think Dallas has that. They've got a different set of talented players. Rondo fits well with Kobe with the idea that Kobe needs to now either become more of a catch-and-shoot type or get the ball in his spots on the court. Kobe would to Rondo what Pierce was in '08. That's my vision anyway, we saw what happened when we thought Howard would play pick-and-roll like he's supposed to. My preference in FA has a progression- 1. Sign young-ish guys to cost effective contracts and then use the rest to bring back key guys- example Dragic @ 10-14 million + Davis and Ellington(unlikely) 2. Overpay for a good young-ish player- example Dragic or Monroe (pretty likely) 3. Pay a below market value on a risk in order to land less risky, solid players- example Rondo and Matthews (maybe even liklier than overpaying) If we do one of those 3 things we'll end up back in the playoff conversation next year even if we don't make it in the hellstorm that is the Western Conference. Anything other than those 3 options probably means we're back in the lottery and maybe even back where we are right now. The good news is that both Dragic and Rondo seem interested in coming here. I'm thinking we'll figure out a good way to rebuild this summer along ^those lines.
no if we end up drafting a guard, no way we draft Rondo. With both Clarkson and our 2015 drafted PG, you dont bring in an old 30 year PG to play a ton of min
Not even C Bags fans believe in Rondo after seeing what the team is like without him. According to them, only "desperate/stupid" teams will sign Rondo. C Bags fans on Rondo:
This is exactly what I have said multiple times. If Rondo was a star, fans would have been up in arms over that mediocre package Ainge got. But this is the collective response from the fanbase, and it has been since he was traded. Rondo is not a top 15 pg in this league. And that's not really conjecture. Who of the following, if given the choice, would you take Rondo over? Lowry Rose (injuries not withstanding) Irving Reggie Jackson Teague Kemba Dragic Wall Lillard Westbrook Lawson Parker Connelly Bledsoe Knight CP3 Curry I. Thomas He is not worth ANYTHING close to the max. He is a 6-7 million dollar type talent, and because of his attitude, he is worth less than that. But our FO is stuck in the stone age. If we sign Rondo to a 10-15 million dollar a year contract, we will be the Al Davis Oakland Raiders of basketball. A team helplessly locked in the past.
The Lakers are stuck in the Stone Age for having some interest in Rondo? I don't get that. The Lakers were trying to get Dragic which would make Rondo unnecessary.
Stuck in the Stone Age, as in relying on players who are past their prime (Kobe) to be major contributors. Hiring a coach who basically says f the 3-ball despite all statistical analysis saying otherwise. Offenses are now free flowing all over the court. Putting Kobe and Rondo on the same roster would make our offense look like its stuck in the mud.
That makes more sense. They're stuck in their ways in some aspects, but I don't think Rondo is one of them. Just because Rondo wants to be here, I don't think that means the Lakers are going to go get him. Isaiah Thomas was begging the Lakers to sign him and we didn't. I think the Lakers are looking at two major names this summer: Dragic and Monroe. Depending on who we end up with in the draft, we'll sign one of them this summer. Those are the names that keep coming up with LA. I would LOVE for them to find a way to go after Wes Matthews and some other guys, but I don't see that as being what they're trying to do.
I'd love Monroe over Dragic (as you well know). If we keep our pick, we draft Russell, sign Monroe, Kobe and Randle come back. Monroe/Davis/Sacre Randle/Black/Kelly Kobe/Young/Houston Pick Clarkson/Kobe/Young Russell/Clarkson/? (Price?) Is it going to make the playoffs next season? No. But at least it would give us something to be excited about. All those young guys developing together.
A slightly different approach, instead of top 2 FA's I'm going to list some potential bargain FA's & players that might be available via trade. So that we can fill multiple gaps with our cap space instead of going all in on 1 player like Dragic. Brandon Jennings - 1 way or another he's gone with Reggie Jackson taking his spot. Has to come back from an achilles injury which as we know very few players have done & reached their previous level. I see this as a Lin-esque move with more upside. Jennings was having a good season 16/6.6 with a 3.0 AST/TO & improved efficiency. With the injury risk Detroit should be willing to give up atleast a future 1st for someone to take on the remaining 1 yr/8.3M he's owed. Another guy like IT that idolizes Kobe & has always dreamed of being a Laker, potentially very good starting PG if he bounces back. Mo Williams - Quietly having a good season putting up 13/6 still knocking down the 3 ball at a respectable clip. Chose $ over a contender this season & will probably do the same again, much cheaper than the marquee options at PG. Burks or Burke from Utah - Burks got off to a great start putting up 15/4/3 in December before getting injured. Burke has been putting up similar stats all season. With Exum to develop & another high pick incoming, 1 of these guys could easily be had without giving up too much. Bradley or Pressey from Boston - I don't think Boston trades for IT if they're sold on Bradley as their starting PG. He got a big contract but it's cheaper than what the good FA's this summer will be getting, he'll only make 7.7M next season & is arguably the best defender at PG in the league. If Boston wants out of the contract, he could be available very cheap. Pressey has been good in limited minutes, his AST48M is 8.6, he definitely looks like a good young prospect to develop but not for Boston who already has Smart. Pressey could probably be had for very little, future 2nd rounder or something. Khris Middleton - Versatile young foward who might be in the wrong place at the wrong time. With Giannis & Jabari being their priorities, Middleton has been forced to find minutes at SG but has still played very well. I can't see them paying very much to keep him around when they want both Giannis & Jabari developing as much as possible. Bismack Biyombo - His under-utilized elite shotblocking & overall defense isn't much of a secret anymore, but he still isn't getting big minutes. You have to think their priority will be bringing Big Al back before they worry about his backup. Should be cheaper than Marc/Jordan/Asik but his BLK48M are higher than all of theirs, & at only 22 he's only going to get better. Taking advantage of some of these potential value signings/trades could help us add multiple starters & still have the cap space to go after a Wes Matthews level player. Of course getting the PG's is unlikely if we draft a PG top 5, same with drafting a C & signing Biyombo. To simplify the post I'll assume we draft Okafor or Towns. Trade for Burke (Nick Young + Hou 1st, gain additional 2.6M in space) Offer the Max to Jimmy Butler. If the Bulls match, sign Matthews (4/40) Sign Middleton (3/18) We should have 5-7M remaining with Matthews, 2-4M remaining with Butler. With that I propose we try to keep Ed Davis with a deal starting around 2-4M & see if Mitch can convince another player to showcase his skills on a below value 1 year deal like he did with Davis/Young. Burke/Clarkson/FA Kobe/FA Butler or Matthews/Middleton Randle/Kelly/Black Okafor or Towns/Davis/Sacre I love Matthews but if we stole Butler we'd be so set for the future it's crazy. It looks like we lack depth in the backcourt but Clarkson should be able to take minutes at both Guard spots & Middleton has played everything from SG to PF in Mil. We have a very good young core with Randle/Okafor or Towns/Burke/Middleton/Clarkson all 24 or younger. But despite their youth Burke & Middleton are already starter level players & Randle, top 5 pick, Clarkson should join them as soon as this season. Then we have Kobe & Matthews to lead them & make us good enough to be appealing to any FA thinking about where to sign in 2016. I don't think there's a better young core in the league that has a chance to win as many games as that team.
^ some pretty good alternatives. I think Jennings will still command too much. He was having an all star year before he got hurt. I've mentioned Mo as an alternative at the point. if we strike out on Dragic and Rando is too pricey, I'd grab Mo and Nelson. Make Clarkson backup and have Nelson as a 3rd stringer. Curious, what's yalls realistic rookie and FA pairing? Mine: Okafor or Towns and Dragic or Rondo Mudiay or Russell and Jordan Johnson and Jordan
I'm thinking Mudiay or Russell and Jordan or Monroe. I believe we will get the 4th pick and will grab whichever guard is still there.
This is what I'm thinking. I think we grab Monroe before Jordan. I think we very well could be sporting a starting five next season of Monroe/Randle/Kobe/Clarkson/Russell. Not horrible, and if all that young talent pans out, we're big time players in the Durant sweepstakes next offseason.
If we draft a guard, I'd still go with the bargain FA plan: Mudiay or Russell + Butler or Matthews + Biyombo. If they really want a more pricey big, Mudiay or Russell + Jordan, Hibbert if he opts out, Monroe, the cheaper of Asik or Lopez, in that order. Draft a big, I'd choose the bargain FA plan first. Okafor or Towns + Burke or another from my list + Middleton + Butler or Matthews. If they really want a more pricey PG, Plan A: Okafor or Towns + Knight + Middleton. Plan B: Okafor or Towns + Dragic. Plan C: Okafor or Towns + Rondo. If Rondo loses value & ends up in the 10-12M range & we can afford Matthews, I'd move him to plan B.
Just our luck........ So much for being a sturdy player. Hope him a speedy recovering, Blazers are gonna miss him especially the playoffs.
Adrian Wojnarowski ✔ @WojYahooNBA Portland's Wesley Matthews on his way to MRI, with Blazers holding significant concern about seriousness of lower leg injury.
