Now that the 2015 NBA draft is over with, it's time to place NBA discussions into a new thread.
Now that the 2015 NBA draft is over with, it's time to place NBA discussions into a new thread.
"One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."
This is finally the year for Utah!
OK, well, maybe they'll finally make the playoffs again. Williams for Favors and two first round picks was one of the great ripoffs of all time!
BuckeyeRed27 (07-01-2015)
It'll be interesting to see what happens.
Looks like the Suns' Eric Bledsoe is being bandied about as a possible trade target.
I'd think he'd go right to the top of the class, if so.
Off the top of my head, I can think of at least ten teams that could really use him.
Blazers have apparently signed Al-Farouq Aminu to a 4-year/$30 mil. contract. To which I say, at least that money won't be significant in years three and four of the deal.
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 11m11 minutes ago
Yahoo Sources: San Antonio trades Tiago Splitter to Atlanta, clears space for Aldridge pursuit.
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 11m11 minutes ago
DeMarre Carroll has agreed to a four year, $60M deal with Toronto, league source tells Yahoo.
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 47m47 minutes ago
Yahoo Sources: The Nets have agreements now: Thad Young (4 years, $50M) and Brook Lopez (3 years, $60M). Both deals w/ player option.
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 2h2 hours ago
Yahoo Sources: Goran Dragic, Miami reach agreement on $90 million deal. http://yhoo.it/1GZjqu1
“I don’t care,” Votto said of passing his friend and former teammate. “He’s in the past. Bye-bye, Jay.”
texasdave (07-01-2015)
I don't know if I like that deal for Atlanta or not. Splitter is okay at this point, but nothing special. It does allow Horford to be PF which makes him better, but Splitter can't play against small lineups at all. He is a good passer and a good shooter out to 10 feet. The money is negligible especially in today's market. All money can pretty much be ignored.
Carroll to Toronto will be interesting. He's turned himself into a very good shooting wing. (He shot 40% from 3-point range last year and has been particularly effective from the corners, an NBA set staple.) He's not ever been good as a defender according to most metrics. (I'd love to see what they have within NBA circle, though.) Basically, he's a carbon copy of a player they already have-- Patrick Patterson.
In fact, they are so similar (very good passers and shooters, decent rebounders, poor defenders), I wonder if Toronto's going to play the two together as interchangeable forwards. Offensively, each goes to a corner and allows PG Lowry to create and kick. Defensively, they outweigh their struggles with good shooting and decent rebounding numbers. This takes advantage of the dearth of offensive small forwards in the modern NBA (and in particular the East). This would also limit the disappointing duo of DeRozan and Ross to one position, perhaps the better to limit their barrage of bricks and fly-by defense.
__________
On another topic, is it bad that I desperately want to see Rajon Rondo, DeMarcus Cousins, and Rudy Gay all on the same Sacramento team? With George Karl coaching it? Hell, I'd settle for Ty Lawson's two DUIs, hookah, social media account, and inflated sense of self-worth added to the aforementioned "team" instead of Rondo's surly, take-my-ball-and-go-home, superior attitude mixed with 55% free throw shooting, four TOs a game, and 35% field goal percentage.
Add in the flake that is Willie Cauley-Stein, Ben McLemore's ego, and Nik Stauskas' Bird Disease-- this needs to be on HBO. Seriously. I'd pay to see how that works.
Last edited by Bourgeois Zee; 07-01-2015 at 01:42 PM.
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 12m12 minutes ago
Sources: The Suns walked into meeting with LaMarcus Aldridge moments ago, armed with Tyson Chandler and his agreed upon multi-year contract.
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 16m16 minutes ago
Tyson Chandler has agreed to a deal with the Suns, league source tells Yahoo Sports.
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 36m36 minutes ago
Yahoo Sources: Brandon Knight, Phoenix Suns agree on a five-year, $70M deal. http://yhoo.it/1gbN1Yx
“I don’t care,” Votto said of passing his friend and former teammate. “He’s in the past. Bye-bye, Jay.”
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 7m7 minutes ago
Amir Johnson's agreement with Boston will pay him $24 million over two years, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 6m6 minutes ago
Restricted free agent Kyle Singler has agreed to a five-year, nearly $25M extension with Oklahoma City, league source tells Yahoo Sports.
“I don’t care,” Votto said of passing his friend and former teammate. “He’s in the past. Bye-bye, Jay.”
Just to put everything in one post for a moment....
From Rotoworld's live blog..
Update at 3:30 p.m. ET - Tyson Chandler has agreed to a deal with the Suns. Well, we have our first surprise of the day. Additionally, the Suns are going to bring Chandler to their meeting with LaMarcus Aldridge. The Suns had some issues with center because Alex Len just couldn't stay healthy, but now they have two terrific rim protectors. Len is no longer a fantasy sleeper for next year while Chandler should be the same double-double guy with blocks in an up-tempo style that he's always been.
Draymond Green and the Warriors have broken off talks of an extension. He's still a restricted free agent and the Warriors can/will still match any offer he receives. But it's a little odd that they're not just giving him the max deal he's going to eventually get.
Update at 3:15 p.m. ET - The Suns and Brandon Knight have agreed on a five-year, $70 million deal. The Suns now have two guards with five-year, $70 million deals in Knight and Eric Bledsoe, but that's OK because coach Jeff Hornacek loves two-PG lineups. Then again, that's a lot of money for Brandon Knight and we'll have to see if he can improve, or if last year's successful campaign was his ceiling.
Update at 3 p.m. ET - Kevin Love will return to the Cavs and accept a five-year, $110 million deal. "After Game 1 of the NBA Finals, that’s when it really struck me. Sitting on the sidelines, I never wanted to play in a game more than that one," Love said. "I had dreamed of playing in the NBA Finals and I just wanted to help my guys win." While there was some speculation that Love would leave Cleveland after not gelling with LeBron, we're pretty sure Love realizes his best shot at rings right now is to learn how to play with King James.
Jimmy Butler is finalizing a five-year, $90 million max deal with the Bulls. The other teams after Butler have given up, so the Bulls have their man. Cut from the same cloth as Kawhi Leonard, Draymond Green, DeMarre Carroll and Nicolas Batum, Butler should continue to improve his great all-around game over the next several years.
The Cavs and Tristan Thompson are nearing a deal worth $80 million. It seems like just yesterday Thompson was changing his shooting hand and struggling to get playing time. Thanks to being arguably the best rebounder in the postseason this summer, Thompson has set himself up for a big pay check. Presumably, this will be a five-year deal. The Cavs are bringing the crew back together to make another run at a championship.
Alexis Ajinca will sign a four-year, $20.2 million deal to remain with the Pelicans. Ajinca was a solid option off the bench for the Pelicans last season with averages of 6.5 points, 4.6 boards and 0.8 blocks in just 14.1 minutes per game, so this deal should end up returning some value.
Update at 12:30 p.m. ET - DeMarre Carroll has agreed to a four-year, $60 million deal with the Raptors. He will likely start at small forward and should pick up right where he left off in Atlanta, meaning he'll be a mini version of Kawhi Leonard and Draymond Green with his new team.
Paul Millsap has narrowed his choice down to the Hawks and Magic. The Hawks are already reeling after losing DeMarre Carroll to the Raptors and if Millsap goes to Orlando, things will be gloomy in Atlanta. But hey, they did pick up Tim Hardaway Jr. and Tiago Splitter.
The Grizzlies are nearly assured of re-signing Marc Gasol, to no one's surprise.
LaMarcus Aldridge, who is meeting with the Spurs as we speak, is expected to make a decision soon, and the way things are going for the Spurs, don't be surprised if he's heading to Texas.
The Mavericks appear to be the frontrunners to land Portland's Wesley Matthews, which makes sense because Monta Ellis appears to be on his way to Indy (or somewhere other than Dallas).
Update at 12:05 p.m. ET - The Spurs have been busy. After locking up Kawhi Leonard to a max five-year deal soon after free agency began, they managed to ink Danny Green for four years at $45 million before dealing Tiago Splitter (and the $8.3 million he's owed) to the Hawks. Gregg Popovich and co. are now meeting with LaMarcus Aldridge with their core intact and enough salary-cap flexibility to bring him on board with a max salary. The Lakers reportedly didn't wow Aldridge during their meeting, and the Spurs still feel like the frontrunners -- that's a scary thought for the rest of the Western Conference.
Goran Dragic agreed to a five-year, $90 million deal with the Heat. Dragic has a player option after the fourth year, but the Heat have to be thrilled with this deal, which gives them some additional flexibility to re-sign Dwyane Wade. Luol Deng has already opted into his 2015-16 deal, so now it's up to Wade to cap off a successful offseason for the Heat.
Mike Dunleavy and the Bulls agreed on a three-year, $14.4 million deal. It was more money than the Cavs or Clippers could offer the veteran Dunleavy, who doesn't offer more than late-round fantasy value in Chicago. Expect him to hover around last season's averages of 9.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.7 triples. In other Bulls news, Jimmy Butler is now "leaning strongly" toward accepting a four-year or five-year offer from Chicago. Any deal he signs would likely include a player option.
Update at 3:20 a.m. ET - The Bucks and Khris Middleton are nearing a five-year, $70 million deal. What a difference two months makes, right? Middleton was behind Jared Dudley on the depth chart at the time of Jabari Parker's knee injury, but he turned in one of the best finishes of any player in the 2015 part of the season. In that span, Middleton averaged 16.7 points, 4.9 boards, 3.0 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.5 treys, which gave him third-round value in fantasy leagues. He'll be an early mid-round fantasy target next year with Jabari back.
Update at 2:45 a.m. ET - Free agent Monta Ellis and his family will reportedly travel to Indiana to meet with Pacers officials on Wednesday. The Pacers seem to be determined to sign Ellis for his instant offense, but it will be interesting to see him and Paul George (and the rest of the team) try to share the ball if it happens.
The Lakers had a two-hour meeting with LaMarcus Aldridge on Wednesday morning. He still has six more meetings and the Lakers are really going to have to impress Aldridge in order to bring him on. Plus, Kobe Bryant's massive contract will severely limit the team from signing two max players. Expect LMA to sign somewhat soon, and while the Lakers are now probably the favorite, he could still end up in San Antonio, or somewhere else.
The Nets and Brook Lopez are finalizing a deal worth a reported $60 million over three years and that's a lot of money for shaky feet. Brooklyn prioritized BroLo in free agency, particularly after trading away Mason Plumlee on draft night, and they quickly locked him up just hours into free agency. Lopez played 72 games last season, quelling concerns about his surgically-reconstructed foot, and he's a solid top-40 fantasy player when healthy.
The Brooklyn Nets will re-sign Thaddeus Young to a four-year, $50 million deal on Wednesday. No surprises here. The Nets made it clear that re-signing Young was a priority this summer, and they didn't waste any time getting a deal done.
Free agent Monta Ellis "is gathering traction" in talks with the Pacers, according to Adrian Wojnarowski. The Pacers are dedicated to playing at a faster pace next season and Ellis would be a shot of adrenaline offensively, so this is an interesting match. He reportedly prefers East Coast teams and has been linked to the Hawks and Heat, but the Nuggets and Kings have also expressed interest.
Update at 1:30 a.m. ET - Anthony Davis and the Pelicans have verbally agreed upon a five-year, $145 million deal, and it sure didn't take it long to happen. Davis will have a player option for the fifth year but Pelicans fans can breathe easy with this news. For obvious reasons, Davis is still the frontrunner to be the No. 1 pick in fantasy leagues.
Kawhi Leonard and the Spurs have agreed on the framework of a five-year contract worth more than $90 million, which also didn't take long to happen. Even this maximum-salary contract is a relative bargain for the Spurs, who locked up the reigning Defensive Player of the Year for roughly $18 million per season as he heads into his prime. And let's never forget, this is the player the Pacers traded in order to get George Hill.
Greg Monroe will meet with the Knicks on Wednesday. Monroe is one of the more interesting free agents, as he could literally land anywhere. The Celtics, Lakers, Bucks and Blazers could make things interesting, while the Hawks, just like with every other key free agent, haven't been mentioned at all.
In the first truly surprising news of the night, Al-Farouq Aminu has agreed to a four-year, $30 million deal with the Trail Blazers. Aminu was reportedly a target of the Celtics, Raptors, Pelicans, Knicks and Mavericks, but Portland ponied up a lot of cash to bring him to Rip City. The Blazers recently traded Nicolas Batum and could lose Wesley Matthews and Arron Afflalo in free agency, so Aminu will almost certainly be starting at small forward on opening night. And he may see some time at power forward as well, if LaMarcus Aldridge ends up with the Spurs, or some other powerhouse. Aminu is shaping up to be a steal in the later rounds of fantasy drafts next season.
The Brooklyn Nets are nearing an agreement to re-sign Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young. There doesn't appear to be any drama in Brooklyn right now, and it sounds like the Nets could have a deal in place for both players very soon.
"One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."
Love the Tyson Chandler move for Phoenix. Don't understand the Brandon Knight deal. He's decidedly average as a PG, perhaps less than that.
I am also amazed that any player would accept any contract longer than three years. Especially with the cap as it is. Worried about a lockout perhaps?
Last edited by Bourgeois Zee; 07-01-2015 at 03:51 PM.
Where does everybody see Aldridge landing? I can't see him passing on playing in his home state alongside Tim Duncan, but stranger things have happened.
“I don’t care,” Votto said of passing his friend and former teammate. “He’s in the past. Bye-bye, Jay.”
I find the Tyson Chandler signing the most significant move of Free Agency so far. It propels Phoenix from borderline playoff team in the West to probable playoff team in the West (because they aren't done adding player(s), which knocks some team out of the West (Portland?, with it's loss of Aldridge?).
Portland should land Monroe, even though he was meant to be used at Center with hope LaMarcus is at Power Forward. But, I don't see how Aldridge can turn down the Spurs if he hears this from them?:
Pop: "LaMarcus, if you sign with Portland, or any other team, it will be your last max/big contract, as any team will use you too many minutes the same way Portland has for the last three seasons (Stotts way overused his Starters the last two seasons, so often when he didn't have to). But, with San Antonio, you can see how we extended the careers of our best players, Duncan, Parker and Ginobili. Here your career longevity is taken into account and you'll not only get the max contract you sign right now from us, but you'll be in position to sign another max contract with us after this one is up. You'll have the least amount of wear-and-tear on your body, the most money, and of course, the most Championships."
LaMarcus: "Where do I sign?"
Last edited by Kingspoint; 07-01-2015 at 03:54 PM.
"One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."
Tom Servo (07-01-2015)
"One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."
Slyder (07-12-2015)
As of right now, this is the lineup I see in Portland...
Lillard/McCollum/Frazier/Diez
Henderson/McCollum/Connaughton
Aminu/Henderson/Crabbe
Monroe/Leonard/Vonleh
Plumlee/Kaman/Leonard
While the Starters are a big downgrade (though still not bad), the bench is a major improvement, going from worst in the NBA the last two seasons to middle-of-the-road w/ McCollum, Leonard, Kaman (and unnamed player to be added later) as the first four off of the bench. Vonleh's minutes will be reduced, but he'll get developed. He's only 19. That is one really, really young ballclub.
That's 13 players with one more player left to sign (Olshey likes the extra roster spot for flexibility). The hope is that one player is Aldridge, then Monroe would move to Center. If not Aldridge, I have no idea who, but maybe throw a contract at RFA Enes Kanter and make OKC match. Lot's of options for Olshey.
Last edited by Kingspoint; 07-01-2015 at 04:04 PM.
"One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."
Of course, if Aldridge wants to make the most money, he does a sign-and-trade and gets the extra year and the extra money per year (35% of Portland's cap versus 30% of another team's cap).
Aldridge to Phoenix for Bledsoe?
"One problem with people who have no vices is that they're pretty sure to have some annoying virtues."
BillDoran (07-01-2015)
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