Luol Deng Discussion: No #Dengdump, Rather Stretched Into Cash

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the issue with the stretch is that all hope is gone for that 7 million. again, we're getting ready to watch morey find a way to dump a deng-level toxic contract, give up few assets, and net melo. i'd rather ride it out than do any kind of waiver. unless deng's willing to give up a ton of cash, and i'm almost certain his fat a** has NO plans to earn another contract in this (perhaps very short) lifetime.

 

If we get 2 max out of it we're pretty much capped anyways, 7mill wont mean much for fa signing, only tax. We'll also have tax mle to use as well

 

Naw man. Here, take a good long rip off of this and realize why we shouldn't just piss that 7 million away each season for 5 years or whatever it is. If the names change a little so be it. But no more wasting money.

 

Obviously I'm with LT on this one...you need to be absolutely surgical with these cap numbers now. Alot of these players are leaving money on the table in the short run, cause of what it will look like over the long haul. I want to use our cap on the players we know will be here as the core.

Not just athletes, but great character guys. Lopez seems like one, so initially I was thinking he would just be a rental, but I'm hoping he stays on cause in this NBA climate he is the perfect stretch 5 for Lonzo and Luke's offense, but seems like a great teammate and character to have in the locker room. Ingram & Zo seem even-keeled (reminds me of Kawhi). Kuz, Hart and Bryant join Nance and Zu as great character guys as well. We're flirting with Rondo, but his young teammates and even vets like KG, Pierce and even Kob swear by him. KCP has that DUI thing, but I'm not sure he's had much on court trouble with his teammates and coaches. We're looking at George next summer who's had great character and even ego tripping Lebron is a great teammate and character guy. You had DLo liking someone that mentioned that the Lakers should pass on Ball cause it was DLo's team....skillset be damned, I want the right mentality for our core moving forward and I'm sure Luke is the one driving that message along with our FO.

You can throw money at those type of players. I'm not saying Deng or Mozgov are bad guys...but throw money at great skills players that have great attitudes and most importantly that type of money is for core players moving forward. I have no idea what Mitch and Jim were thinking throwing that type of money around last summer. I honestly hope we can move Deng's contract and not stretch it. Attach Clarkson and Randle to it if you have to. I got nothing against either player, but I have a feeling management doesn't see them as core players, which is why their names have been floated in trade rumors. Randle is putting in work this summer and that is great to see...but he has to know he's in a contract year, so of course he has to. Clarkson had such a drive in the past, but has peaked and possibly gotten complacent once he got his new lucrative deal. So I'm okay in moving those young players if it means more cap for George, Bron and possibly Lopez and even KCP. They got to prove over this next season that they're worth keeping. But I feel good about both of them, so I'm hoping for the best.

Lastly, our core has to look at defense and want to bring it on that end. I love how Rob challenged Zo to be a top defensive player so that he can be considered a 2 way player as his career progresses. KCP is a 2 way player. Lopez isn't really a rim protector, but has great feet work. Nance, Kuz and Ingram all have the physical characteristics and the motor to be nightmares as frontline defenders in the pick and roll. PG13 is a 2 way player and Bron is also a force on that end of the floor. With those guys I know we have a great offense, but I want LA to start priding themselves on the defensive end as well, cause we've been the league's doormats for far too long. Give me a defensive unit to be proud of.

Anyways, I forgot what thread I was in....so back to business. #DumpDeng

P.s. I think I'm changing the thread title...its a bit too morbid and Deng has fallen off as a bball player, but he's still a good dude off the court.

 

Nice Vash, #Lonzoeffect

 

If Randle and Nance still can't shoot ( and still are by the new NBA definition "centers" ) , he will have to play some minutes at the 4 ....

 

There is very little chance we can move randle, deng and jc without major incentives and as others stated, other teams know what we're up to, they wont let us drop those 3 contract w/o us paying through the nose. Randle with be a rfa, teams can just male an offer, deng is g9na cost an arm and a leg to remove with no salary coming back

 

Yeah the main reason I wanted Deng stretched is because if we'd signed PG in that offseason that Deng was stretched we'd only really be hamstrung while the young guys improved and got into their primes, and GS declined.

 

Is this guy even going to suit up for us this year?

 

I'd honestly just tell him to stay home or continue what he's doing for the Team Africa.

 

Yeah, I totally get it...its going to be a bia to move that contract. But just scoping out the landscape, I'm looking at Wade and Melo as preferable since that's dealing with east teams, while also looking at Favors/JoeJohnson in Utah. All three have sizable expiring Ks.

Wade is ideal, cause we've seen him "secure the king" before. Plus having Clarkson out there instead of Wade for the Bulls makes a whole lot more sense with the rebuild direction the Bulls are heading in now. You got Deng as a great mentor for those kids out there and obviously he's a home grown product. So that narrative seems the most likely. We should try to talk that into existence.

Melo on the other hand is going to be tougher cause the Knicks do not want any more ugly contracts inbound...yet they just made it more Hard(away) on themselves. Mills doing Mill things, guess. But I'm hoping that while the Knicks put Melo talks on pause while they lock up their new patsy...uh GM, LA needs to be trying to get in on that. If Melo wants CP3 so bad, I'm hoping Clarkson and Randle would be good pieces for the Knicks, and then having a fourth team take on Deng. Its going to be interesting what type of compensation NY gives up to the Kings in these GM talks, cause that will make NY that much more thirstier for future picks to close any Melo deal. As we know, Magic and Pelinka had unsuccessfully tried to shop those along with a Deng dump. Maybe this time it gets done with the Knicks losing picks to secure Perry away from the Kings.

Favors & JJ independently don't have sizable contracts as Wade or Melo, but collectively they provide a huge expiring salary and Utah needs to reup after the Hayward loss. Its interesting that they waived Diaw, cause it does open up roughly 8M in cap for them now. Plus who honestly is going to sign with Utah, especially with ex-players saying as much after Hayward chose the C bags over them....its better for Utah to lock up players with existing long term contracts cause it won't happen so easily via free agency. Deng and Clarkson, along with a newly extended Randle can be those players for them.

Either way, look for August 2nd to come around, cause that is when any newly inked 1st rounder can be moved. I really want to hold onto Kuz, but Hart could be on the chopping block then. Bryant could be too...but if assets need to be shed to move Deng, then so be it. Yet another Mitch/Jimmy sin to repent for, but Deng needs to get moved for 2018 to really be a splash.

 

Yeah, I'm a softie when it comes to overall good character guys. That said, I'm pretty hard-nosed in getting this contract off our roster.

New York wants a veteran PG but can't do it via free agency. So they're rumored into trying to reunite Bledsoe with Hornacek. Now that the Knicks landed the FO configuration they want, I'm sure they will start to actively overhaul this roster.

Woj earlier in free agency said that the Suns are in acquisition mode and would accept salary dumps as long as young assets or picks were attached to it.

NY in: Bledsoe
NY out: Future 1st, Future 2nd (that was not involved in Kings-Perry compensation), Lance Thomas, Kuzminskas (expiring 3M deal), C. Randle (young asset that is a RFA in '18)

Phx in: future NY 1st, Deng (salary dump), Clarkson, Thomas (salary dump), Randle (young PG cheap asset)
Phx out: Bledsoe

LA in: Future NY 2nd, Kuzminskas (I'm just wanting to Ainge any player that has some derivation of "Kuz" in their name)
LA out: Deng, Clarkson

Don't want to trade Kuzma (obviously...look above). But If we need to trade Hart to get this done, so be it. But the deal can't go down till August 2nd then when all 1st round contracts are eligible to be traded.

If the Knicks want to expand this to include Melo, then Melo comes to LA and we include Deng heading out to NY (again George, DLo and Randle all share the same agent, so I'm sure he would love his all his clients in big markets with DLo in Brooklyn, Randle in NY and ultimately George in LA in '18).

Rob & Magic, we need to get Deng off the books. If teams are interested in our young assets then attach Deng to them. Get it done fellas. #NoDengNoDeal

 

No Deng No Deal has a different connotation now from the original 2007 one, reversal of fortune, the meaning went far south, Antartic level even

 

The price of Deng's contract will be a great-to-stellar 1/2 season by Randle and a deadline trade. Matching money will be hopefully be Brewer's expiring but it may need to be Jordan to get a deal done and make enough room for the 2 FAs.
I won't hold any delusions of Deng also contributing slightly this season to help facilitate a trade but you never know. Oh wait, yes you do know. It's Deng, he won't.

It won't look as horrible at the deadline to suitors. Seasons nearing the end, some scrub team needing a few years to bail out of their current situation will look at it like "well, we only have Deng for 2 years and we have a rising potential star." (and a roll player/6th man (in the case Jordan goes as well).

 

Clarkson, Nance, Hart and 1st rounder unprotected if Randle blows up?

 

3 of our power forwards and Hart and a 1st rd pick? I mean I realize I'm looking at it from the Laker's side but that seems like a lot considering the talent level of 2 of them.

Also depends on what's coming back. Since we won't take anything less than expiring contracts our choices of who we can deal with are slimmer. Also teams have to consider whether Randle will resign.

This is the cost of fixing total ineptitude, Thanks Mitch, Jim.

 

I was meaning if it might be possible to move Deng without Randle included. By including a first.