Just a formality, but an unfortunate one. A guy that big and heavy with a broken foot? He might never be the same caliber player.
yeah, that's a big deal. a guy with his frame will have trouble keeping weight off with the foot injury, which could lead to a vicious cycle. what I'm really curious about is mike conley. does Memphis pony up the cash with the questions surrounding gasol? does conley want to stay? is anyone going to max him out?
I wouldn't hesitate to throw cash at him this summer. Then again, I wouldn't hesitate to throw cash at literally any semi-relevant FA this summer.
Gasol will have to rehab then not rush back BUT you know Memphis isn't going to be patient... He'll get flack for it, could sour on the organization, its fanbase, then get traded to some up and coming SoCal team just like older brother. Deja Vu all over again? - Yogi Berra
we have two young players who can both play some pg, one of whom needs to be in that spot full-time. I wouldn't call conley unless we'd traded Russell--which better be for a bona fide superstar non-pg in this case. I only throw cash at obvious fits (age- and position-wise), but I think we have a general philosophical difference here.
Yeah we do because I want the talent on the roster, to heck with fit. I'd also draft Simmons without looking back if we ended up with the #1 pick. I go ahead and pay Conley and move Clarkson to the bench. D'Angelo slides in as a great off-guard who can also control the ball if needed. It also allows us to get something of value for Lou Williams who is on a great contract. Having a three-guard rotation of Conley/Russell/Clarkson is not something I'd turn my nose at.
drafting is different, imo. I take the bpa and sort it out. if the lakers draft third and kris dunn is the third best prospect, I take him. this is because you have multiple uncertainties there. I think signing an established veteran at the same spot as your young players sends a clear message and is bound to create tension, especially for the coaching staff. and playing a young player out of position can slow their development, imo. if Russell's going to be a star, he has to be a pg, imo. his size turns from positive to negative when he slides over to the two. I'm only signing backup pgs if I'm the lakers.
I just don't agree that D'Angelo has to be any one thing. I think he's a guard in the classic sense. He's not really a PG, he's just a guard. He can shoot, score, and has great vision but he's not a 10/10 guy. He's a 15/5/5 kind of guy and I think he can do it from either spot.
