Just say NO to mediocre, overpriced free agents!

[txsting]

(first time caller - love the squawk)

Let's not get too carried away with needing to collect a free agent just to show that we did something. This market only had a few max-caliber players, and they are mostly gone.

It's not a crime or a bad thing for this team to not sign anyone. If you cannot say for sure that a given player is a legitimate starter for a championship team , then why do you want to pay max dollars and cripple your team down the road?

Who out there fits the bill? I think that only a few available players 'could' (note that none of them have proven it) fit the description:

1) Allen (gone)

2) J Johnson (RFA)

3) Dalembert (RFA)

4) Chandler (RFA)

I think each of those players instantly improves the team, and can be a long term piece of a championship team. If they are all matched, save your money and continue to build the team through the draft. In the league today, the only way to develop star players and keep them at reasonable salaries is to draft well and extend contracts of key players a year before they hit the market. Nothing wrong with that!

If we gamble on signing a mediocre player to a big contract (hello Curry/Swift/Kwame) we could very well end up with an untradeable contract and cripple our chance to add the right free agent down the road. What's worse, we could actually improve our team to the dreaded mediocre level - not bad enough to improve in the draft, not good enough to go anywhere in the playoffs, and too capped out to do anything about it!

So we probably can't add another big piece right now. So what? One more year of struggle could lead to another good draft position. One more good draft position, and we have ourselves at least 6 or 7 key cogs. Just look at what we're building on:

Chillz/Smoove/Marvin/Al/Salim/Our 2006 1st/Lakers 2006 1st

Some of the necessary depth is likely to emerge from a core of promising backups:

Diaw/Ivey/Donta/Cenk/Andersen/mid-tier free agent(s) (05 or 06)

Take another chance at filling whatever holes emerge with 2006 free agency. Then sit back and watch this flower grow. It's going to fun to watch this develop - but patience is the key!

Imagine - your playoff bound 2006 Atlanta Hawks!! 2007 Eastern Conference finalist!! 2008 NBA Champs!!

[ggp]

I agree. However, this teams needs a Center. Without one, the season will be a long drawn out saga that can cripple a franchise's success.

I don't want to spend stupidly on FA just to make headlines. I personally think that we can trade Harrington for Magloire and solve the Center problem. After that, going after JJ makes sense, but would not be a desperate need.

[txsting]

I admit, it would be great to enter next offseason with only 1 major hole in the starting five (be it C or PG). I think we lost a major opportunity to take another step by failing to trade up for Jack, as BK tried to do.

On Harrington, I'm not entirely sold on trading him. This board seems to really undervalue him. And I agree, if you're going to sell him, you should sell high, because his value has peaked after his best statistical year, w/expiring contract, still young, etc. But I don't see anything wrong with having 3 very solid guys to rotate at the forward positions - that's a mark of strength and depth that few teams can match. When one guy gets in foul trouble, has an off night, the rotation can pick you up.

If we can get a true center that can start for a title team, go ahead and trade Al. I'm doubtful that we can get one. If we can get one through free agency, then by all means do it. I want a young REBOUNDING MACHINE who BLOCKS SHOTS. Here are the some of the possibilities, with Magloire thrown in for comparison:

1) Chandler (#4 in REB/48 min, #14 in BLK/48)

2) Dally (#13 in REB/48, #12 in BLK/48)

3) Gadzuric (#1 in REB/48, #18 in BLK/48) - likely backup role, but he's signed

4) Pryz (#10 in REB/48, #4 in BLK/48)

5) Magloire (#20 in REB/48, #40 in BLK/48) - best offensive game

Gadzuric has surprisingly strong numbers over 48 minutes. What stats don't show is how well these guys play on-the-ball defense.

HELP!!

Somebody please rank these guys defensively - not on stats but on feel for how well they can guard other top centers, how well they help. Whoever wins that comparo would have my vote.

Anyone else to throw in there??

[Lascar78]

while Curry will be overpriced, he is not mediocre. When the guy is one of the best offensive weapons at his position, he is not mediocre. He is not the best of rebounders, but the rest of our team makes up for it. He hasn't played much D, but I trust Woody to get a foot up his behind. Dude can easily be one of the top players at his position, fast. He is worth the gamble.

Not to mention, we still have big holes at the PG and C. If we sign Curry, we can draft a franchise PG with our top (top 5?) pick next year, then we at least have some talent and potential at every position. Center is the hardest positioin to fill, it is worth taking a chance on.

Methinks you all will change your tune if Curry gets here.

[txsting]

I'm going to pretend that I understand and am in support of the direction BK is taking the team.

That said, I don't feel that Curry is a BK center. Out of the trio of offense, defense, and intangibles, he only has one, and the wrong one at that!

BK needs a Whopper at C! Who is it?

[Traceman]

It baffles me that people are so ready to throw max money at the likes of Sam Dalembert but they don't want Curry at any price. Curry has had the dreaded "lazy" label placed on him despite the fact that he worked hard with his personal trainer to lose a significant amount of weight prior to last season and despite the fact that he was NOT overweight last season. In addition, from reports I've read, he's in pretty good shape right now considering the fact that he has been unable to workout at all due to his medical problems.

I think Curry is the most talented of the bunch of the young FA big men and I think he is likely to have the biggest immediate impact for any young big man that we might acquire. Chandler MIGHT eventually have a bigger impact but I don't know if that will be the case.

I read that Big Eddy might be out and about around town on Friday. If I see him out, I'm going to be sure to tell him that this is one season ticket holder who would LOVE to have him in the ATL!

[Sage11]

I hope you are right, at this point we don't have many remaining options.

[Final_quest]

Allow me to echo, that if Curry was such a liability how did he get so many minutes in Chicago? They had Antonio Davis and Chandler. If he is a total liability, how is he getting 30+ minutes/game?

It's easy for you guys to say he's a bum, but the statistics don't back that up. If we have the opportunity to sign one of the best low post scorers in the game we have to do it.

Daly does not do anything at an elite level. He's just a solid big man. If you don't think Curry can impact your franchise Dalembert certainly can not.

[Traceman]

I keep reading from everyone here that BK wants a "defense-minded Center" but I think this is pure speculation based on his obvious like of versatile, long, athletic players at other positions. Media reports have had us in hot pursuit of Big Z and Curry with interest (but lesser interest) being shown in Chandler, Dalembert and Brown. I also read that BK likes Curry while Woodson prefers Chandler.

I think BK fully recognizes the need for a low post offensive threat for the team and values that at least as much, if not more, than defense. It will certainly be easier to find a BU Center that can rebound and defend than it will be to find a BU Center who can score in the low post.

[Sage11]

Quote:

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I think Curry is the most talented of the bunch of the young FA big men and I think he is likely to have the biggest immediate impact for any young big man that we might acquire. Chandler MIGHT eventually have a bigger impact but I don't know if that will be the case.

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I've always respected your opinion of players, and when you say that this kid can have the "biggest immediate impact," you got my attention. I am concerned about his medical history though. What about his heart (health) concerns????

Just don't want to pick up a guy who turns out to be another Theo health wise.

What are your thoughts.

[emeans]

I agree. Curry is the most talented of Dally and Chandler. We need to do what we have to do to get this kid.

[Traceman]

Obviously, the type/length of contract I would offer him would depend upon what the insurance people decide about whether his condition is insurable. I'd offer him the max 5 year deal regardless, BUT I would put in a clause that allows us to exercise a team option after year 3 ONLY if he is unable to play due to his heart condition. The bottom line is that he has been evaluated by the top heart specialists in the country and his heart has been deemed to be okay.

Sure there is a risk with Curry but I think it is a risk worth taking. I think the chances of him being okay medically are MUCH better than the chances that Sam Dalembert or Tyson Chandler EVER become as good offfensively as he is right now. I truly think Curry will be an All Star next year if we land him.

[chillzatl]

I would throw max money at Curry with no problems. But you can't argue the question marks that surround this guy. He's proven to be lazy, he's proven to have questionable committment and his best year was, for all intents and purposes, a contract year for him.

and for the record, i'm not for throwing max money at Dalembert or any of these other guys either.

[Sage11]

Quote:

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Sure there is a risk with Curry but I think it is a risk worth taking. I think the chances of him being okay medically are MUCH better than the chances that Sam Dalembert or Tyson Chandler EVER become as good offfensively as he is right now. I truly think Curry will be an All Star next year if we land him.

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This kid might be our SHORT term answer in the middle. IF HIS HEART HOLDS UP.

[Yeti]

txsting, I agree with you completely.

I thought Kwame was worth trying. Curry might be also, for a REASONABLE price, or he might just end up as basketball roadkill. We do not need another Henderson or Koncak contract. Those killed us for years.

[Lascar78]

Quote:

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That said, I don't feel that Curry is a BK center.

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That's true. And I would say that Salim doesn't fit the BK model either. As a GM, you have an ideal team. Then you are faced with the reality of what your options are, particularly as the worst team in the league. The reality is that we can't get any true top FA because other teams will offer the max and get them. We have to overpay for any FA, especially the first ones. We want a tall, athletic, defensive, versatile center. Guess what , there are maybe 4 in the league that fit the bill and we're not getting them.

So we have to see who is worth overpaying, who is worth gambling on. I don't see a savior at C in the draft or FA next year. I think Curry will be the best C we can realistically get this year or next. He is almost automatically guaranteed as a top 5 scoring C in the league. Even in a worst case scenario where he doesn't rebound or play D, that's a very valuable commodity. I like our odds of getting a franchise PG next year WAY more than I like our odds of getting a great C.

For all the talk of getting fat, he got more and more in shape every year, posted better numbers every year. He got labelled as a lazy bum with the potential to balloon his first year and a half. That doesn't match what has in fact happenned in his career. He has produced. Not quite enough D or rebounding, but for a 4th year player out of high school, I think he's pretty amazing with limitless potential.

I've said it before, I'll say it again. He's a huge gamble we have to take

[MoonKnight]

Elden Campbell, Steven Hunter, etc. We should get used to those names because they may be the level of FAs we will actually need to consider at the 5 spot. My question is this: If we could sign any 2 of the above names for short term reasonable contracts are we better off than signing Curry to a 8 Mill to max like long term contract? I know that Curry can be a very good post scorer but I also know he is a weak rebounder and below average Defender in general. He also has health issues. I believe with our current roster our greater need is interior defense as opposed to post offense. If this is indeed the case, then we might be better off signing two of the above names for short term reasonable contracts as opposed to giving Curry a big contract. Thoughts?

[AHF]

I would MUCH rather gamble on Curry than sign two below-average centers like Hunter and Davis or Johnson and Potapenko. Curry could be a difference-maker those guys have no chance to be better than contributing role players.

[Traceman]

would be wiling to spend a combined $10M on 2-3 role players rather than take a gamble on getting an All Star caliber player. WORST case, Eddie Curry is going to be FAR better than a combo of Steven Hunter and Elden Campbell.

[Final_quest]

Why not sign both Curry and one of those guys?

The reality is we don't even have a legit backup Center.

Franchises don't win with perfect players. We will never find one. Take Rasheed for example. He put Detroit over the hump. You could critique his game all day long. Now that he has won a championship all of the sudden you hear about the things he does well. I think we can make do with Curry, and you might start hearing about the things he does well.