JeffS17

I don't disagree with this as a viable approach but betting on an, at best, 14% chance at the #1 pick is quite silly. Hoping to hit in the lottery is a strategy that can leave you looking like the Pistons for years. I'd rather just focus on creating/maintaining a winning culture, player development, and savvy trades. So far, this FO has done well post-DJ trade. This offseason will be a big test though.

Our roster is very flawed from a fit perspective, and we have a lot of contracts that are effectively bad money, for a number of reasons: some overpays, some decline, and injury issues. There are a lot of things to overcome from a roster construction stand point which means the only viable path forward is patience, which most here do not have -- which is why the proposed solutions are to throw money at the problem, i.e go into the tax!!! The reality is there are no $20M/year players that are going to fix our issues. There's no tax scenario even possible that has us contending. We don't need more players, we need better players. Maybe we eek out a couple extra wins with better bench depth, but a couple extra wins isn't even the difference between us getting into the play-in or a 6 seed. We need to re-prioritize where our dollars are going (we spend waaayyyy too much on our back court) and we need to develop guys to create value contracts. That is necessary for any path forward.

I agree with this, assuming we don't go above the first apron this upcoming season. 2025 also lines up with our next reasonable opportunity to pay the tax, which will be JJs extension kicking in.

Appreciate the insights, but if this guy is so good, is there any reason to think he's going to be available at our pick?

what are these numbers

Ah, sorry, nevermind then -- have not been keeping up lately.

This is using historical stats though. That means you're comparing a roster that is severely underfunded to one that is competently funded. The real question is how much better is your defense, and how much offensive impact loss can you make up with that $40M worth of assets in place of Trae. Teams being worse with their best player and $40M on the bench, injured, is a non-discussion. Of course we are worse lol

I hope he can develop into a solid bench guy. I'll be honest I don't have an eye for bigs that will be good in the NBA, so I would really like to watch him get some minutes later this season.

I don't really agree with this framework at all. Are you suggesting Doncic is getting favorable calls for people in Dallas? Lebron doesn't even get a favorable whistle when I watch him play. He's massive and takes tons of contact constantly with no call. IF anything, a lot of the stronger player (Lebron, Kawhi, Giannis) get punished for being so strong. Meanwhile, defenders have to treat smaller guys like porcelain without getting whistled. How "favorable" of calls a player gets is completely subjective and subject to bias in the worse way, so it's hardly a conversation worth having. Every team feels like their guy is getting shafted. The only players I see that truly feel like they're getting a favorable whistle are Shai and Butler in the playoffs.

I don't think anyone in here is trying to run off Trae? He has major strides to make if he wants to be a true leader of the team (by example or vocally), though, and it's fair to discuss those shortcomings.

Yes, I've noticed a difference. Hunter got a lot more calls last night than normal. JJ got some annoying offensive fouls, but the biggest difference I noticed is the vibe of the team. Trae was not there arguing with refs constantly which puts a bit of a negative blanket of energy on the floor. And while I agree the refs do not like Trae, which is completely understandable, I don't think it actually impacts his whistle that much. His FTA/game are down but so are his ball dominant comps: Harden, Luka, Lillard, Butler, etc. That's just how they're officiating across the board now. The difference is Trae is much much whinier than most of those guys and his attitude towards the refs clearly grates them. I think you see this in the techs he gets. Anyways, most here know this is a soap box topic for me, but it has been really refreshing being at the games the past couple -- whole mood on the floor has been lighter and more positive.

His screen navigation is some of the best I've seen, he moves like water on defense, it's beautiful. I think the time in College Park was probably well spent refining his game, and for his confidence

Im finally seeing glimpses why Landry was pumped about grabbing Kobe at 15

Would you guys trade Trae for Ingram, Dyson Daniels, and a couple picks?

We were building around him the right way, at least when Schlenk was here. We brought in a very good defensive anchor center, Capela. We drafted long defensive wings (Cam/Hunter), and we put shooter around him (Heurter, Bogi, Gallo). And we got another big with a lottery pick (OO). I would argue this was the "right way" and right approach. Things went off the rails when we spent our assets to bring in someone completely redundant with Trae, which was a very recent shift. Theoretically, we could still move DJ for a big or wing to shore up the fit issues. But in my opinion, fit issues have been dwarfed by talent issues, until Jalen. We just haven't had any guys really pan out to their projected ceilings (Cam/Hunter/OO/JC). Upgrading the roster requires sending out picks and now we're pick starved as well, so options are pretty limited outside of developing the talent we have.

I understand the "short term tank" strategy on paper, but the more I've thought about this, the less sense it really makes to me. Not only do we need to build a winning culture, we need to build player value with the guys on our roster if we want to make any significant moves in this offseason. Tanking for a top 6-8 pick instead of a top 10-12 pick is not going to make a difference.

At this point its clear were fine losing for a better pick for this season. Thats what Im seeing anyways

What happened to Clint man, he’s barely an NBA player anymore. He looks like he has some kind of degenerative disease that causing him to lose coordination or something

Me too man, I don't even know if KAT is the answer, but he'll certainly have me excited to watch games again.

I don't see how re-signing Conley now changes anything about KATs availability this summer. They're in 1st place right now, and they could lock in a #1 seed for the playoffs, but KATs availability will likely be determined by their playoff performance. I personally think they will start to run into issues when teams are game planning against personnel, but we will see. Anything short of a conference finals appearance and I would put my money on KAT being available.

Ehhh, you guys would be the first to call out ownership and the front office if Trae asked out because they didn't acquiesce to what he wanted

Yes, I have, and there is a level of transparency required to build trust and establish a logical basis to the deal. This statement is fine and doesn’t go beyond that threshold. Nothing about it is going to force ys to drop our asking price— this isnt a secret salary dump situation. We simply disagree.

Just to be crystal clear here, we just spent the past month shopping Murray to damn near every team in the league, because to anyone with eyes, the pairing is not working, but you think it's this public statement by Landry that is going to tip off other front offices we want to offload him? Think about what you're typing.

I think this line of thinking is incredibly insulting to opposing teams GMs and front offices. Doesn't matter what Landry says at the podium, other teams are going to be in the know -- particularly if they're considering being a part of a high profile trade. I'm happy with Landry being honest and forthcoming. I worry much more about the transactions he makes, the draft pick selections, and contract extensions than i do him coddling fans emotions.

https://streamable.com/38cn97 This play kind of epitomizes Collins. Great hustle, good board, kinda surprised he didn't turn it over, then cannot make a pass to save his life.