2024-25 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

Looks solid. Like a middle-class Alex Len? Not sure if it's what Rob is looking for though.

 

What could Reeves nab us? Can we get an Amen Thompson, Jalen Johnson? Herb Jones would be great, honestly.

 

(1) Kleber + Vincent + Knecht + Rui +2031 first + 2026 swap + 2028 swap + 2030 swap first to Brooklyn for Claxton and Johnson?

(2) AR to New Orleans for Herb Jones + two 2nds?

PG: Luka
SG: Jones
SF: Johnson
PF: James
C: Claxton

 

He is a smart rim protector. Has ok hands, sets good screens, can finish decently, is an ok lob threat, and rebounds well (averaged 6.5 in 20 mins) - I believe he can be a double double player in 30 mins with solid rim protection.

He isn’t exciting but he’ll help you win games. Better than Gafford about similar to Claxton (Claxton had worse rim protection but is better at switching).

At 8.3m he is a bargain.

 

lol, i love reaves and i'd do that deal in a second. houston, on the other hand...

watching okc just shrivel under pressure is both frustrating and familiar. i mean, denver is just GIVING them open 45 degree threes on every possesion--no matter who's standing there! and every. single. thunder. player. is obligingly bricking these wide open threes. we're 4 games in. the game they hit them was a laugher. the other three were two losses and a narrow win.

i'd be going nuts if i were the coach. like, why are you all shrinking now?! we could win every game in this series by 30 if you'd make 30% of your open shots. good lord.

 

In a vacuum Amen Thompson, Jalen Johnson and Reaves are all like value at the moment (give or take). But the potential of Amen and Jalen is alot higher due to their athleticism, especially Amen, who is off the charts athletically even for the NBA. If Amen develops a shot, he is a 20+ point scorer with DPOY defence on the perimeter and high level rim protection to boot - I'm not sure of a good historical example.

Jalen Johnson meanwhile is an elite rebounder, pretty handy as a playmaker already and gets you 1.5 steals and 1 block a game. He is basically John Collins, if Collins could dribble, pass and defend. If he develops a shot around 38% (last year he was 35%), he is a perennial All Star.

They're both multiple All Star level potential players or better depending on how things play out. If you can get either of them for Reaves, you go do that this moment. Herb Jones meanwhile is just a "star" role-player as Slick calls them. He is an excellent defender, but average at rebounding, ok at shooting but still very athletic. He is a poor man's version of the other two, thats why I think he is getable.

But that's all we really need, we need role players to surround Luka and Lebron.

 

Maybe a hot-take, but I have Amen as a Scottie Barnes or Scottie Pippen at this point. You think about it, Pippen was an elite defender, very good athlete, played point-forward, and didn't have a great perimeter shot out of the gate. But Thompson is more athletic. Reminds me a bit of Shawn Merion in that respect. Another reachhhhh could be Julius Irving! Now we are talking about a player with a ton of potential!

 

But we could get a B version of Amen Thompson in Herb Jones. Or a B- version in Thybulle. Only the latter two have shown better shooting abilities.

 

eh, imo, okc has gotten GREAT shots and missed them. denver's mostly taking bad shots except in transition. they should be shooting poorly. okc should be shooting their normal percentages. they're choking, imo. they just have such a huge talent advantage after the top two stars that the series is tied.

btw, all the bellyaching about luka's defense when okc is just relentlessly hunting jokic with not a peep from the fans/media. denver's having to go zone most of the game to cover for jokic.

marion's a good comp. i'd say super-charged jaylen brown is a ceiling. depends on the work ethic. i think marion might be the floor, actually.

thybulle is the kind of guy who i think could look much better here than he has elsewhere. kinda like gpII in gs.

 

We were rumored to have been in trade talks with Portland this past season for players like Grant and Williams. Maybe we could talk to them again? They hate us though, so they would have to feel that they fleeced us a little. I saw an idea floated out on this thread about Williams/Thybulle. Both are expiring. What would it take to get those two? I'm not saying to solve all of our problems, or even to start for us. But they do provide the skills we are looking for: Thybulle: defense and shooting, Williams: lob threat big man. I would still want to obtain another big man for sure, and maybe another 3 and D talent.

 

One thing I’ve noticed is a lot of these Western Conference teams are running 9-11 men rotations in the playoffs. Times are changing.

 

Agree with both you and showtime, but I think Amen is even more ridiculously athletic than Pippen or Marion. He is an outlier amongst outliers (except for his brother I guess).

Thybulle would be a nice addition, we just need him to play the Max Christie role - hit a couple of 3's and defend POA. A healthy Timelord would be perfect, but alas, healthy he is not. Regardless, I saw somewhere that Portland hasn't traded with us since 1970 or something? They really dislike us for whatever reason... so I just don't think they're a realistic trade partner. Detroit, Orlando, Brooklyn, New Orleans and Chicago are all more realistic and we've worked with them all recently. Sadly I think Dallas won't trade with us for a generation now either, because I think a package around Reaves and Gabe for Lively and something would help both teams.

 

Maybe Portland would want Rui? He played college ball in the Pacific Northwest. They still act kind of like they want to win a little. They are a mess. I dont think they are in full tare it down mode. They just want to consolidate some of their bad salary? I heard Rui's name mentioned with them. He is also expiring. Would Rui + Vincent for Williams + Thybulle work? Also, Knecht seems like somebody they would want. But I want to keep Knecht, or use him in a trade for a better player. We might have to include some other stuff with Rui though.

 

So maybe he is a Dr. J?

 

Lol, not sure if it's sarcasm, but the kid does have the body type, the athleticism, the defensive prowess, and some offensive creativity to boot, so yeah if he develops a jumper he could be pretty damn good.

 

I’m never comfortable comparing you by players to the all time greats. It’s up to them to carve out their career. However, athletically the Thompson twins are at that upper echelon of young Lebron, MJ, Dr J, Giannis etc. They’re a handful.

 

There is just no way Houston is giving up Amen...He's the best of their kids.



They are going to dump Green and the rest of them before Amen.