So, someone who is better than Pendergraph, and more hard-nosed than LMA/Outlaw. That shouldn't be that tall of an order....but I am betting it won't happen. My best guess, is that they give Pendergraph an extended try-out, and/or try to get Freeland to come over.
Teams? I've only heard of one team rumored to have asked for Batum/Rudy for Haywood. Obviously, they were trying to take advantage of the Blazers injury situation at center. If that offer even happended, I'm sure it won't be their best offer. They were shooting for the sky and figured the worst Portland could do is say no. As the trade deadline approaches and teams like Washington get closer and closer from being mathmatically elimintaed from the play-offs. I'm sure the offers will get better. Especially for teams looking to cut salary or get under the luxury tax threshold. In addition to cheap, young talent, draft picks and expiring contracts (Blake and Outlaw), the Blazers are also currently $1,265,626 under the salary cap. Not a lot, but combine it with two expiring contracts totalling over $7.5 million and maybe a cheap young player and a draft pick, and Portland can put together a pretty attractive package for a team looking to shed salary. I'm not talking about giving anyone away out of desparation. Exactly the opposite. I'm talking about making the team better and maximizing the return value by trading our redundant pieces to a team desparately looking to dump some salary. BNM
Maybe, maybe not. He hasn't shown me enough to reach that conclusion. He doesn't suck, but he also doesn't do anything particularly well. Sure, he's physical in a chest thumping rah-rah kind of way, but he's not that great of a defender and an average rebounder at best. He'll also be 23 by the end of the season. It's not like he's a 19 or 20-year old kid with a ton of upside. BNM
I'm higher on Cunningham as a backup 3/4 to be honest -- smarter defender, knows how to play Dean's zone, better shooter, better court awareness, more versatile and will probably be more successful as a flex forward than Pendergraph will be as a forward-center.
Yes, and I want a BANGER. A guy who rebounds, defends the paint and attacks the rim. No more stretch fours for me. I want a back-up power forward, not another jump shooter. Pendergraph doesn't suck, but he's not all that good either. He's aggressive, which I like, but for all the bluster, he's not a great defender or rebounder. I know he's a rookie, but as a four year player, with unspectacular college stats, I'm not sure he has much more to give than what we've already seen. BNM
Yep, I had Cunningham ranked much higher than Pendergaph on my "rank our players" thread. I think he can play spot minutes at the 4 depending on the match-ups, but long term I'd like to see him being Batum's primary back-up at the 3. BNM
