That's the point though. The whole league knows that they are likely to trade Conley which puts them in a position of weakness amongst other teams, not necessarily us only. If they draft Rubio, other GMs know that they are looking to trade Conley. I more than kind of like him. He would be terrific and as you said, can slice into the lane and hit a very good % of three pointers. Not only this, it would give Greg Oden extra motivation to dominate and a guy who knows how to get Greg going. No longer would this team suffer from McMillan's incoherence at getting Greg Oden the basketball, it's going there via Mike Conley either way.
If teams give Memphis shitty offers for Conley they'll just take him off the table and roll with a fantastic 1-2 punch of he and Rubio for as long as they need to. It's all about supply and demand; there are multiple teams competing to offer something they feel will pique Memphis' interest -- those suitors are competing with each other like they're at an auction, whomever offers the best deal presumably will get him (unless they pull another Kwame for Pau).
That's insane, they already have a very solid young center in Gasol ... who's twice the talent Thabeet is and will be in the NBA (IMO).
could someone please confirm this: the trade exception can only be traded for a player whose salary is less than $2,912,823. correct? if so, that sucks. I was thinking Outlaw + Sergio + cash for Conley, and then the trade exception for Greg Buckner's contract.
That is correct. EDIT: This is thinking a little outside the box, but maybe the Blazers don't renounce Frye and use him in a sign and trade ... in this case, you use Outlaw, sergio and cash (or picks) for conley and then you do a separate deal with Frye for Buckner (assuming that was the price of admission to get Conley). In this scenario, the Grizzlies get a player they supposedly have coveted in Outlaw, a decentish backup point guard to play behind Rubio, and 6'11" guy who can probably compete with Arthur, Warrick, and Gasol for minutes in the front court. In this situation, the Blazers keep their mid-level and trade exceptions instead of cap space, which can be used to go out and get some veteran backup help at the 4 and maybe the 3.
This is exactly right. Memphis is only at a disadvantage if they are dealing with one potential trade partner and have to make a deal. Even if they must trade one of Conley or Rubio (which they don't, this off-season), if multiple teams are interested, Memphis is no longer in a weak position. As long as the most recent offer is below "fair value," another team will have motivation to out-bid. This dynamic will drive the ultimate, winning trade offer up to around "fair value." Of course, that's true of an open auction, where all bids are known. This is a closed auction, where only Memphis will really know all the bids, so disinformation would also change the dynamic.
Right, the "closed auction" where nobody else can see what competitors are offering puts Memphis at an ever greater advantage. GMs after Conley will be hearing all sorts of chatter and rumors about so-and-so going after Conley and upping the ante; the pressure must get pretty strong to overbid.
I don't think anyone is suggesting offering them a shitty deal. In fact, if it was me I would give them pretty much anything they wanted outside of Batum, Rudy, and the big 3. We have enough depth to consolidate and use our cap space to sign a vet SF to start for us. I think that when you can acquire an up and coming PG for spare parts like Outlaw and Bayless then you do so because I think Mike is going to really blow up. I'll give them Travis, Bayless, and two of our second round picks, and Sergio if I needed to. They'll trade Conley if they take Rubio or vice versa.
Yeah, I agree. I thought about adding that that works to Memphis' benefit, too, but I wasn't sure I could illustrate that conclusively. I'd argue the same as you, that Memphis can manage perceptions of where the bidding is...but I imagine someone could argue that teams will hold their own bidding to avoid the embarrassment/problem of "bidding against themselves."
KP made mention that this is Greg's "Contract" year today on The FAN. I was kinda surprised and then the more I thought about it, the more it makes sense. Face it, Greg is not in love with Portland. Anyone who listened to Greg's interview with the Indiana radio station could tell, Greg seemed REALLY happy and content being with family, etc. He then mentions going to OSU for classes and that MCjr will be there . Since this is Greg's contract year I'm sure KP wants to make the big guy happy. I think he knows that this team will only go as far as Greg will take them. He gave up Durrant and I'm sure he feels a lot of pressure with the pick of Greg. So, why all the rumors for MCjr in the last 12-16 months ? I think KP knows he has to get Greg's head straight and bringing in MCjr is about the only thing he can do. I think KP lucked out again today with the draft lottery. Nobody knows for sure where KP and C. Wallace relationship is after the Miles fiasco. I do know that MC SR is the agent for both Greg and Mike. I think with today's devolpment's getting MCjr became a bit easier. I do think his price tag has gone up obviously with his play at the end of this year. This might be KP's last chance to get MCjr. I'm sure he has already been on the phone with SR to try and swing a deal Memphis. So what does Mempis want ? If MCjr is a starting PG for the next 10 years, then I think we give them what they need. Outlaw ? Tak'em, Blake ? We could sign Miller. Bayless ? Hot Head who has no perimter game. As much as I wanted Baron Davis I think for the long term future MCjr might be the answer. I think getting him got easier today. I really like his quickness. His shooting really improved last year. Defense ? I guess we will never know, but with him and Greg having played so much together It can only be a plus. Bottom line, I think KP can kill two birds with a stone here. Make Greg happy and get a quality PG for the future. Conley and Miller would be a HUGE upgrade over what we had this year. Yes, we still need a Vet PG. Not sure Miller would sign here so I guess we would have to retain Blake. Gotta keep the big fella happy.
Yeah I'd like to listen with my own ears before making any kind of assumptions. Edit: I think i found it. http://www.indycornrows.com/2009/5/18/879559/greg-oden-on-jmv
After listening to the interview I didn't really get the impression Greg dreads being here. Overall it seems like his level of play is what bums him out the most, which is obviously understandable. Once Greg gets it going and the fans are all over him again 100%(it's scary close to 50-50 right now), he'll be back to his normal self.
OK, I just listened to the interview and I have to ask where you come up with some of your conclusions ... I'm not getting it.
