2024-25 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

Claxton nor Ayton are the answer. Ayton at 35 mil next year is a joke. It's up to Rob to figure it out though it is a huge summer considering you've got to start building around Luka.

 

I really would take a huge swing at Giannis. I know we wouldn't have the best offer and people will say the big 3 model won't work. However, your co star search for Luka is done and you don't have to worry about it down the road.

 

Second Apron significantly impairs team building - people are going to have to adjust their expectations. Parity is going to rain and I think teams are going to try to be like Houston and OKC where you stockpile assets so that once you get priced out of your players you have someone else waiting in the wing on a cheap contract

Boston has to seriously considering trading a star like Jaylen Brown a year after a title due to the Tatum injury

Flawed but talented folks like Ayton maybe all you can get. FA's are going to be overpriced and players on team friendly contracts are going to be moved for more assets than expected

 

i disagree, but the ratings/revenue will end up telling the story, right?

i think fans want to know it's possible for okc or minny to win a ring, as for a while it felt like only a few teams could.

the real issue to me is that injuries determine every year's champion, and injuries are becoming more and more common in the playoffs. unfortunately, it's tied to the game being more watchable than it was in the 90s--guys are faster and have to run more. you want parity, but you want the players on the court to decide the champion, not the ones who couldn't be on it.

like, for me, part of last year's story was boston was healthy and nobody else was. then this year, the last teams standing are the exact teams with all their top rotation guys available.

add in that it's mostly lower seeds, and you have a recipe for some real regular season lollygagging going forward....

i think the second apron stuff will heavily favor teams with a top-5 nba player on their roster in part because it's going to be harder and harder to have two top-10 players, much less the three top-15 players that several gms made their mission to attain for years.

and not that i want to keep stumping for ayton, but there are definitely guys who get overpaid and miscast as potential stars who end up very nice role players. like aaron gordon, for example.

it's part of why i'm open to guys like ayton and john collins.

 

I hope Minnesota wins - They got a nice combination of everything?
Feel like they're being slept on because they took GS a little too easy once Steph went down

Superstar in Edwards
Sidekick in Randle
Big and physical team who can play finesse or bully ball on both offense and defense
Defensive stoppers who can hit shots (McDaniels)
Rim protectors
6th man of the year (who also happens to be a tough big who can rain 3's)
really good roleplayers (conley, DDV, TAH)

 

I think fans of smaller/less desirable market teams want to think their team could become the Spurs. With some lottery/draft luck and the right coaching and front office hires, you can compete for a decade. Everyone says they'd be happy to see their team win it all just once even if it mean they went right back down to the basement, but I don't think that's actually true. I don't think that's how Nuggets fans are feeling right now, they're pissed that they locked in their championship core and now have extremely little flexibility. I don't think that's how Bucks fans feel right now, they're pissed that their superstar is probably leaving because he knows the CBA makes it impossible for them to improve over the next couple of years.

Had the C Bags stayed healthy and repeated this year, there's a decent chance they may have still broken up their core group because the luxury tax payments would have been too punitive. I just don't think that's a situation that should happen in the NBA, where the new champ has often had to dethrone the last one.

Agree with you other points, though. The playoff injuries have become ridiculous. But everyone involved, including the players' association, doesn't want to cut back on the amount of regular season games if it means losing any money. It does seem now like you need to acquire a Top 5 player and then change out the supporting cast every 3-4 years like they do in the NFL around QBs. Thank God we managed to acquire one of the 5 guys.

 

okc is such a great defensive team though. they're going to make things very hard for edwards/randle

 

if edwards is who we say he is, i don't see okc having anyone who can do anything in isolation.

he's not a great passer/thinker/strategist, so we'll see if okc can make him make choices passing the ball. but they MUST send two at him, and they must do it far from the hoop like with luka. we'll see if his supporting cast shoot blanks like ours did.

 

Rob being Rob, Im expecting the TPMLE to be used on a starting center like Capela. A vet min ring chaser for a backup big, and a trade for a guy like Jrue Holliday as our big acquisition.

 

I think the NBA loves rivalries. Fans love rivalries. Magic vs. Bird Jordan vs. everybody who kind of was like Tiger Woods vs. the field. Then you had Kobe Shaq which carried the league. New era of showtime. With small rivalries Lakers vs. Blazers to start it off which actually started in 1996 then Lakers vs. Spurs in the middle sprinkled in Lakers vs. Jazz then Lakers vs. Kings which was probably the biggest one of the 2000s. There was never a rivalry against LeBron. It was LeBron and the Heat against the C Bags. After we got our Lakers C Bags reboot rivalry when Kobe got Gasol.

Now I don’t know. People hate Ant man. So I think it will be Anthony Edwards and the Wolves against Luka and the Lakers and Shai and the thunder because theirs history there.

The LeBron vs. Curry Cavs Warriors seemed manufactured wasn’t organic. It was good basketball the game 7 2016 Lebrons block on Curry when he was talking mess. But those teams didn’t hate each other. Lebron and Green were friends. LeBron and Curry were boys.

 

I honestly never saw enough of it starting his rookie year.

 

Ayton has avg a double double for his entire career, and has been one of the better, offensive rebounding bigs in the League for his career. He would be excellent here playing with Luka. We could definitely keep him at a lower salary moving forward. 26 ain't washed.

 

Without a lot of tradeable assets that other teams will actually want, I’m in agreement that Rob will have to gamble on someone like Williams.
People need to be patient with this rebuild around Luka. It ain’t happening in one season. No other GM in the League wants to be the guy who traded “the perfect fit” to run alongside Luka, just a few short months after we shocked the world in getting him.
As for Ayton, I would rather bring back Hayes(and you guys know how much I like him).

 

To hell with some long rebuild. What successful rebuild have we ever accomplished? Strike now while we still have LeBron to pair with Luka. Chip or bust, that should be the mindset. Not some hypothetical "what might be " 5 years from now.


I don't trust Rob Pelinka to rebuild s***, however I do think, that he's capable of making some roster upgrades, to what we already have.

 

I agree with you. Your wrong. I do like Capella. I think we will sign him.

I am not with trading Dalton Kinect for Nic Claxton and a pick that’s a joke. The 2031 pick??????

I didn’t want to make that trade for Mark Williams for that 2031 pick. I’d save that pick for a Kevin Durant. I need a superstar player coming back not Nick Claxton.


I think Kinect can be our starting small forward when Lebron retires and I project him as a 17 point 18 point a game scorer with 35 minutes a game.

I don’t trade that for Nic Claxton. Theres not a lot there.



I think Ayton is good for trading and keeping The pick.

Dendre Ayton LeBron James Luka Doncic and Austin Reeves is a very good championship roster.

after Trading Anthony Davis you come up with that is huge.


Now I think Capella will be signed we just need some good rim protection. And good pick and roll center for Luka Doncic.


I think we can fill that in the draft after Capella retires or get another player. Not tripping on that.

Claxton doesn’t have a lot of skill.

I actually like our roster we just need to add a little bit to it. If that’s Kevin Durant I’m all for that.


Tim Hardaway jr. Malike Beasley fill out the bench.


Gabe Vincent has to give us more. And I’d like to get a Jordan Clarkson in a trade. If we are able to get Naz Reid I’m all for it.

 

This exactly.

 

I actually like our roster. We have balance. I think what we might have to admit in here. We lost cause our coach sucked and messed up not using our bench guys like Kinect to help out Lebron.

I’m not opposed to just signing guys like Clint Capella.

but if we make a trade I want it for a player worth Kevin Durant Giannis Ayton Miles Bridges. Immediate difference maker. Not just a roster filler.


I think the front office will want to keep flexibility for 2026.

so I don’t think they will go crazy on the big unless it’s a player that makes that difference.

I’m sure the signing will be Capella or Lopez.

Paul Reed also. Jacob Poetell area. I’m not trading that pick or Kinect for Jacob Poetell.

Kinect will find his way. I put a premium on shooting. And he’s also an elite athletic player. With athleticism. Reminds me of Mike Miller when he came outa Florida.

 

Knecht is most likely outta here IMO. He's probably going out, for another young guy in return, so it's not the end of the world. We tried to trade him for Williams, so looking at similar bigs, Sharpe, Portland's Williams, or Kessler, sounds about right. Herb Jones for Dalton and Kleber would be great too.

 

We need depth. We need to keep our depth.