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I love our roster. I think the additions we've made help us address some of our problem areas. One of our biggest concerns going into this off-season was how we could improve at the SF position. Maybe my thread title is misleading, but does anyone else feel we didn't address it because Drew's plan is to give either or both Smoove and JJ significant minutes at the 3? Thoughts?

Jerry Stackhouse?

I just read something about us possibly acquiring him. He has PX90'd himself into good shape and if we get him at the vet min, it could mean that we will seek to trade Craw??

We got some toughness.

This team needs some toughness and by signing Thomas we got some. He and Horf are kinda in the same mold....

Check out this excerp from last year...

Quote

Sy is tough in a different way. Sometimes you can be tough by just outhustling your competition so much that frustration sets in. I think Sy is that guy on defense. Some people say that these are minor additions. I say that these additions mean a lot. We finally got away from the Joe Smith's and the finesse big men and we brought in an iron pipe tough big who can do the dirty work and will add toughness to our finessy exterior.

Im very excited about this pickup of Etan Thomas. An I know he wants to prove that he can still be that productve BIg he use to be! If he can return to what he was in Washington than we got ourselves a great pickup ATL and not just a ok pickup!


Check ya boy out! He gon bring some good toughness to this unit!


link:
















one main thing i really like about thomas is how he finish around the goal! he just sticks that s*** in there. dunks all say baby no layup, no tip, DUNK! i like that, thats a finish people! bring this to the ATL thomas!

SIGNING OF THOMAS

http://twitter.com/h...tus/22780416737

BUYOUT OF PAPE

http://www.hoopsnote...ut-for-pape-sy/ :blow out candles:

I read of trades and wants for a "true Center". Who are these supposed Centers? Now, at the deadline and even next summer, what center(s) is or will be available. This is on the heels of "trade Jamal for a true center" statements.

I say trade for WHO??

Best bet is upgrade the 3 and 1 and backup big. Ain't no starting center available.

Nhttp://blogs.ajc.com/hawks/2010/09/02/atlanta-hawks-al-horford-i-am-going-to-war-with-who- ive-got/?cxntfid=blogs_hawks

Isiah "JR" Rider now on "Pros vs. Joes" on Spike.

http://blogs.ajc.com...fid=blogs_hawks

It still doesn’t look like the Hawks are going to offer Jamal Crawford the kind of long-term contract extension he’s looking for, and it still looks like an extension for Al Horford will be GM Rick Sund’s priority when he returns from vacation.

The Hawks can offer Horford an extension that starts in 2011-12 and is worth up to $82 million over five years. The deadline for a deal is Oct. 31.

The incentive for the Hawks to offer Horford the extension is to prevent him from becoming a restricted free agent next summer and signing an offer sheet they’d have to match to keep him. Signing Horford to an extension now would provide cost certainty. It also would provide security for Al, who would get a big-money deal without doing the RFA song-and-dance.

But the uncertainty cuts both ways for the Hawks. The next CBA could be more favorable to owners, and the maximum offer sheet available to Al next summer could be significantly less than $82 million. The same could be true were Al to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2012.

The potential risk for the Hawks in skipping the extension and letting the market dictate Al’s worth is he might become disgruntled. But I doubt that would happen, as Al seemed to understand it’s just business when I talked to him last: “I really can’t get too caught up in that. I really just have to go out and play. If something happens and I get an extension, great. If it doesn’t, I just have to keep playing and keep getting better.”

The money train just keeps on rolling for the Hawks, with each expenditure maintaining their proverbial “core” but squeezing their resources and roster flexibility. They paid Bibby and Marvin last summer. They paid J.J. this summer. They may have to pay Al now or next summer.

The AJC’s Mark Bradley calls it the increasing price of NBA success. Or, as one NBA exec joked, nothing ever stays the same for a good team because everyone wants to be paid or and nothing ever stays the same for a bad team because everyone is subject to being fired or traded.

Sund’s philosophy plays into this, too. For the most part he lets his employees finish out their contracts before offering new deals (or not). When Sund was Seattle’s GM, Ray Allen had to hit the open market before securing a deal he liked from the Sonics. Rashard Lewis become an unrestricted free agent and ended up in Orlando.

The most recent exception to Sund’s reluctance to extend vets is, of course, the maximum extension offer for J.J. last summer. But J.J. seems to be an exception to Sund’s general rule. Sund has been consistent in his belief that J.J. is a franchise cornerstone whom the Hawks couldn’t allow to walk if they hoped to maintain their momentum. ASG was on board with that sentiment and J.J. got his max deal this summer.

Sund is a Crawford fan, too, and why shouldn’t he be? Jamal made him look smart for swinging that trade, and while it’s not like the Hawks gave up much to get him, it was no sure thing Jamal would work here. It did work–so well, as it turns out, that Crawford had a big year and now is angling for one last big contract. Success is expensive.

As for Jamal’s value on the trade market, I’m told at least three teams inquired about his availability before the pay-me-or-trade-me news came out but were rebuffed by the Hawks. I’ve got to think Sund will try to re-establish those talks now and listen to any other offers that come in. I know there’s some sentiment to just deny Jamal the extension and have him report to camp (and he would), but would it be a good look for the Hawks to have an unhappy camper?

– The Hawks are expected to sign free agent center Etan Thomas within the next few days. The one-year deal would be worth the ninth-year vet’s minimum of $1.2 million, though the league would reimburse the Hawks for any amount above $854,389.

–The report saying Pape Sy reached a buyout agreement with Le Havre is inaccurate. It still could happen, and soon, but there are some significant financial issues to work out.

– Hawks single-game tickets will go on sale Sept. 27.

Jamal would sign a 4 year 37 Million dollar deal from us.

http://realgm.com/sr...buyout_with_sy/

http://bleacherrepor..._medium=twitter

Quote

~lw3

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting that at least three teams have inquired about the availability of guard Jamal Crawford.

Crawford wants an extension from the Hawks or a trade if the team won't meet his request.

The Journal-Constitution writes that those inquires came before news that Crawford might request a trade.

Read more: http://realgm.com/sr.../#ixzz0yHhdy1bD





link:
http://realgm.com/sr...about_crawford/









So who are the 3 teams I wonder? hopefully one of them are the nuggets!

Nuggets, new GM Ujiri prepate to deal with Melo issue


Posted Aug 31 2010 6:30PM

DENVER (AP) -- Now that the Denver Nuggets have their management team in place, they're developing a strategy to keep All-Star Carmelo Anthony in powder blue and gold.

At his introductory news conference Tuesday, Masai Ujiri, the team's new vice president of basketball operations, said he's been in contact with Anthony and will meet with him soon.

The Nuggets offered Anthony a three-year, $65 million extension through 2014, but if he rejects it, the team will have to consider trading the forward who has guided them to seven straight playoff berths.

"I think I'm going to convince him to be a Nugget," Ujiri said, smiling. "No, I don't know, I can't make a judgment on that. Like I said, it's a process and until he tells me that ... we want him back, the city wants him back, ownership wants him back."

There have been hints that Anthony might be thinking about moving on: his mansion in the Denver area is on the market and at his New York wedding to TV personality LaLa Vazquez this summer, there was that now famous toast by New Orleans point guard Chris Paul about reuniting with Melo in Gotham to form a super-team along with Amare Stoudemire to counter the Miami Heat's terrific trio.

Anthony has never come out and said he wanted to be traded, however.

At his basketball camp this summer, Anthony dismissed all the speculation of his impending departure from Denver: "I've been hearing that for five years. I'm a Denver Nugget. I'm here, I'm with the Nuggets. I don't become a free agent until next year, if I decide not to take that extension."

He said then that he was just taking his time making a decision.

Team president Josh Kroenke, who is taking over the ownership duties from his father as a condition of Stan Kroenke's purchase of the NFL's St. Louis Rams, said Tuesday that he's had cordial conversations with Anthony and his agents, disputing reports of a recent contentious meeting.

"I haven't had a negative conversation with Carmelo Anthony since I've known him," Josh Kroenke said. "... I think he knows that he can come to me as an individual and we have that amount of respect to where we can talk about things openly in a non-combative way. So, anything that has been stated from sources behind sources, all of our talks have been cordial."

What about talks with his representatives, including agent Leon Rose?

"They've been perfect gentlemen, as well," Josh Kroenke said. "They've been great."

Coach George Karl said he hasn't talked to Anthony about his intentions.

"I didn't feel healthy enough to go to the wedding, so I have not seen him since then," Karl said. "We've had some communication through [assistant coach Tim Grgurich] and through Masai and some people, but I can't deny it kind of shook me a little bit. I really don't know" what he will do.

In addition to the Melo Matter, Ujiri faces questions surrounding J.R. Smith, who is under police investigation for allegedly choking a player during a pickup game at the team's practice facility recently.

Then there's uncertainty surrounding Karl, who's planning on returning to the sideline in September after missing the end of last season while fighting neck and throat cancer.

Kenyon Martin and Chris Andersen are both expected to miss chunks of the season as they recover from offseason knee surgeries.

And if Anthony leaves, the Nuggets could be looking at lots of empty seats.

"I think there are a lot of challenges in this job, but what job doesn't have challenges?" Ujiri said. "How can I turn down a GM job in the NBA just because there are challenges with the job? I think it's a great job."

Ujiri pointed out that the Nuggets reached the Western Conference finals just two years ago and said the future looks bright under Josh Kroenke's leadership.

"There's a new passion, a new movement here," he said.

The Nigerian-born Ujiri's infectious enthusiasm and energy are good for the Nuggets, Karl said.

"I think Masai has a personality that fits the problems that we have," Karl said. "He's such a positive dude."

Like his predecessor Mark Warkentien, Ujiri will have to share power. He'll work with Josh Kroenke, Karl and longtime team adviser Bret Bearup.

"It's a team effort out here," Josh Kroenke said. "We're coming off three 50-win seasons, and I think that speaks for itself."

Karl, who looked rested and spoke with a stronger voice than he's had since he began chemotherapy and radiation treatment last spring, said he was going on a week's vacation before returning to prepare for training camp.

He said his recovery is expected to last well into the upcoming season and acknowledged that he'll have to continue to cut back for his health's sake.

"I'm not going to be a 10-hour-a-day guy anymore," Karl said. "I've been a delegator and a director for two or three years. It's going to continue to be more of that."

Karl isn't overly concerned about so many Nuggets, including himself, entering the final year of their contracts.

"It doesn't bother me. If I was coaching a bad team, I'd be a little more nervous," Karl said. "I think I'm coaching a good team that's going to win 45 to 55 games. That will probably get me another job if I don't have one here."

So, what advice would he have for Anthony?

"I would just tell him, I don't know if you're going to find a better city to live in than Denver," Karl said.





link:http://www.nba.com/2010/news/08/31/ujiri-nuggets.ap/index.html?ls=iref:nbahpt2




i say we and other teams still have a great chance at melo and we should pull the trigger! here's why:



Then again this means nothing if Melo really wants to leave. He will leave no matter what. So we can still be in the running for Melo if the ASG is willing to give Smoove or Al and Jamal! Sure the nuggets can go out and spend a s*** load to keep melo on the team like cleveland tried to do with LBJ but I would think they are a smarter organization and decide to trade him and not lose him for nothing so they wont end up with nothing cause it seems that there is no changing melo's mind but we will see. Denver takes a BIG risk trying to please Melo cause isnt that what the Cavs did with LBJ! Pleasing players isnt the key if they want out you need to let them go. Melo has probably made up his mind and just isnt telling anybody publicly. Last thing think about this ATL, the nuggets have some serious injuries going on with some needed players, J.R smith is getting in trouble and Melo has his own situation. Denver knows this and I just cant see how they can improve this team! They have little trading weapons to make melo happy, then injured players they need! Melo is leaving and going somewhere!



(just keeping everybody updated)