nathan2331

Can you blame them? They're right when they say we look like a treadmill team that doesn't show any signs of a rebuilding effort.

You're right, we never won anything. But while Wilkins was here we actually had a chance at winning something. While I'm not a pro-tanker, I definitely see the merits of their argument. The way I see it so long as Bud is our coach, we will maximize whatever talent is on the roster. He can't however turn the talent we currently have into a legitimate contender.

I'm not saying that Smith could necessarily be changed now, but if we're talking about Bud coaching him from when he was rookie, I think it would have made a huge difference in the player he turned out to be.

Why is it that Smith could never have hypothetically reached his potential with Bud. As bone-headed as he is he wasn't a major cancer on the team, he just never was able to put it all together.

According to my sources (ESPN), Deron Williams will not make the trip to London to face the Hawks on Thursday.Not sure whether the Nets will be better or worse without him though.

Some of those passes look like they came out of his ass... I kid, I kid.

Correct me if I'm wrong but can't the amnesty clause only be invoked in the offseason?

Hope we use his roster space to good use in a trade

The Bulls would never do either of these trades while I think Houston would be interested, I think the Bull's owner is too cheap to pay Lin and Asik 30 mil.

If we are going to start losing games when we try to be competitive then why panic? For all the benefits tanking gives you in the short-term, it hinders you in the long-term.

It all makes sense now. Back in the 1996-1997 season, the Spurs lost David Robinson to a season-ending foot injury.And guess who's out for us now. That's right, Al Horford. Now this is the 'Spurs way' we've all been wondering about- lose your best player, acquire another franchise player, profit.Ferry's plan is now in motion. We are about 3 years from our first NBA Championship in Atlanta.

That's his cap number but he gets paid 5 mil this year and 15 mil next year (same for Jeremy Lin). Now while that 15 mil only affects the ASG as far as the check they give him, it appears that Houston is trying to avoid paying him and Lin 30 mil when they are essentially getting their production for 10 mil this season.

While this debate is hypothetical I think it will be a while before Horford can return to his full workload next season so I'd expect him to start slow and work his way up to say 30 mpg. As for Scott he may have to start getting used to guarding 3s primarily.

If he can put on a little more weight to help establish his position easier, he can definitely be a good offensive player for us off the bench next year.

You also assume Bud comes here if Joe was still around which probably wouldn't happen.

Much better trade than I came up with I'll give you that.

The point is that I can tell you with confidence that we go nowhere if Joe stays on this team. Bud wasn't in a hurry to be a head coach, he came because we were in a desirable situation i.e. not handicapped by an albatross of a contract and blessed with cap flexibility. And Lou, Brand and Pero are better than what Joe offers at half the cost.I don't know if I can keep doing this. If that trade does nothing else for us I can at least watch the Hawks without watching the leagues most overpaid player nightly.

What? So you are actually saying you would have declined Joes trade to the Nets?! Let's see what would happen: a) Coach Bud doesn't come here. Part of the appeal of this team is that we have the flexibility to make moves other teams can't. Now yes, flexibility means nothing if you don't use it but who would you rather be us or the Nets who have no cap room through 2016. While it's a big if, I don't think Bud comes here of Joe's still on the books b) Joe's declining. He's only averaging 15.3 points on 43.6% shooting and I can only imagine how bad his defense is. What do you see in him that makes you willing to keep him at 21.4 million dollars?

If I'm Orlando's GM, I'll add in a swap of Vucevic and Brand to help the Hawks out. But if the Magic are serious about tanking (and they should be) then I would do Cunningham/2 2nds then have the Hawks send Williams to OKC and have Jeremy Lamb come to Orlando.

I wouldn't care if we got rocks for Joe. I liked Joe while he was here. While he never elevated his gameto where we needed it, he did make us semi- relevant. As Lt. Gordon said, he was the hero we deserved, but not the one we needed right now, or something like that. But he's signed to a max contract he doesn't deserve. So yes getting out of it while taking back contacts that didn't handicap us was a great move, no doubt in my mind.

You can debate how good of a player Joe would have been in this system is the reality is that we were smart to get out of that contract when we did. He's way overpaid and its not even close. The only time the Nets will ever be able to trade him is when is expiring.

I can't tell, are you being serious?

Not gonna lie, that was a classic Hawks fold towards the end of the game. Oh well we still played well and I think we we may be one trade/lottery talent from becoming contenders, Coach Bud is that good.

Honestly, Lou/Cunningham 2 2nds and an IOU would probably be enough to get the deal done assuming they don't receive a better offer from somewhere else

Haha. Didn't get it till I did a quick search on Google.