Also, he was only paid $6 million last year. I think his defense is slightly worse than Asik's, but unlike Asik, he's not 100% useless on offense.
Yeah, his metrics on defense weren't bad last year at all. I'd take him in a second. He's only 26 at that...
If the name bigs are off the board (BroLo, Aldridge, Love, Jordan, Gasol, Chandler) then RoLo would be a great option. He plays hard, scores on put backs and broken plays, sets great screens, and shoots well from the line. In fact, if LAL could somehow swing Tobias Harris and RoLo I might take that over just getting Aldridge. I think people are underestimating Tobias and forgetting that he's not even 23 yet. I mean Harris has played 4 years in the league already, has improved every year, and is only 3 months older than Anthony Brown, who LAL just drafted. Yeah, RoLo and Harris would be amazing for a young, growing team.
Another reason I wouldn't mind the signing. You could probably lock him up and potentially add a wing this summer. Lopez+Deng, Green, and or Carroll. I'd live with that combination of players.
There's no chance Lopez settles for chump change again. He didn't get paid much last year... Rumor is he's high on Boston's list of targets. I'd take him and Harris though if you could figure out a way to make it happen.
Because part of Mitch's stated rationale for taking a guard in this case was that there were "so many bigs" available in free agency and so few guards. It's kind of a bust if we can't find an actual big because we will be stuck without a Center. Sure, Russell could develop into a good or great player. But if we potentially put ourselves in a worse position by picking him over what looks to be a franchise center, then yes I would consider this draft to be a bust. Not the player. I said the draft. If we strike out in free agency in getting a great big then I will consider that to be the case. Because we could have had the hardest part of the equation - a legit center - for the second pick. We already have a really good combo guard in Clarkson. I'm not sure we needed another one. But I'm damn sure we need a center.
I wasn't going to whine anymore, but this isn't..... just am agreeing with LJ about what the facts of the situation were and still are. Not just "a" center but one good enough on D to handle the good big centers on the teams that have them, and decent centers on other teams that have them. Upshaw is our best hope in that regard. Which would still allow an Aldridge to be signed. Don't let Upshaw get snatched up by anyone else and take the minimum salary risk with him if practices and first few summer league games show him to be a special defensive talent.
Mitch made a move. for me, you make this kind of move only if you have a joker nobody knows about. so until I see what happens, i'm happy with the Lakers work. But if we end up with Hill/Davis I think it was a a summer of failure . Because luck was finally with our hands, and we missed an opportunity to bring the team the anchor C it needs. even if Russel becomes the next Curry. it's a bad judgment call by the managment. But right now i'm condifent they know what they are doing...
I want to show a comparison. Player A vs. Player B 82 games 82 53.9 FG% 71.0 56.4 eFG% 71.1 18.7 Rebounds 15.0 9.8 Points 11.5 2.3 Assists 0.7 0.8 Steals 1.0 0.9 Blocks 2.2 121 ORtg 126 99 DRtg 98 17.0 PER 21.0 5.6 OWS 7.4 7.0 DWS 5.4 12.6 WS 12.8 5.8 VORP 4.3 Player A is Dennis Rodman in arguably his best season (1991-92). Player B is DeAndre last season. I'm not saying DeAndre is Rodman; I'm suggesting that he can have a Rodman-like impact on a team. You might be saying that Rodman never got paid max. Well, that's true. But he was the second highest paid (at 9m) on a team that won a ring with Jordan. So why can't he be the cornerstone of our future championship team?
Well for me it's because he's a sack of rocks on the court. He makes a lot of mistakes and he has a lot of holes in his game, but I actually think he's a good player. Not because he's the most talented or skilled, but because the guy flat out works hard. He wants to be an All-star but here we'd have to aim his sights higher than that.
He's shot 71% last season (Great finisher around the rim.. He has the 2nd highest offensive rating in the league. His team scores 13.9 points per 100 possessions more when he's on the court. He's 7th highest rated center in the league in Offensive Plus/Minus. Aside from statistics, he sets great off & on ball screens, and does wonders for shooters as a result. His ability to finish around the basket opens up driving lanes for guards and wings, as the big that's defending him is less eager to rotate over to him. He's able to score 10+ppg without ever having to run a play for him.
You want more evidence: 1st in RPG (for the 2nd year in a row) 1st in FG% & eFG% (for the 3rd year in a row) 2nd in BPG (Top 4 for the 3rd year in a row) 2nd in Offensive Rating (Top 6 for the 3rd year in a row) 5th in Defensive Win Shares (Top 5 for the 2nd year in a row) 7th in Overall Win Shares (Top 10 for the 2nd year in a row) 10th in Defensive Box Plus/Minus (Top 10 for the 2nd year in a row) He's putting up his numbers against the entire league. Paul/Redick/Barnes/Griffin/Jordan: +17 points per 100 possessions Paul/Redick/Barnes/Griffin/Hawes: +4 points per 100 possessions
