So do you still want to re-sign Matthews?

Is his services along with the money he is going tie up needed that badly if the team is a sub 500 ball club?

 

CJ need to work on finishing at the rim. As for Mathews and as much as I like the guy I don't think it should be clear cut & dry that we resign him or let him go. If you really want a championship team you need to explore all avenues of all players.

 

No Aldridge, no Wes.

 

Re-Sign Wes. I think a one year deal with a team option for a second year is a great compromise. Portland really needs to see how Wesley progresses after rehab and if the injury impacted his game in any way. This injury really takes about a year to fully heal so both parties will know what is fair market value this time net year.

There are two outside factors that I think could play a role in whether or not Wesley returns.
1. LaMarcus Aldridge.
Not only are they best friends, but if LA returns, you really have to assume that Matthews and Lopez would come back as well. If Aldridge bolts, it could put Portland in a quick rebuild and I don't know if an injured Matthews fits into that plan with Afflalo and McCollum already on the depth start.

2. Arron Afflalo.
Does he opt out or does he opt in? If he opts in, Portland has a log jam at the SG position and as much as it might hurt, they might be better off spending the money elsewhere. Another option could be to simply move Afflalo in the offseason since it's obvious Wes was the heart and soul of the team. If Arron opts out, I think the Trail Blazers will definitely look to bring Wesley back.

Overall, I just feel we saw what this Trail Blazers team was like without Wesley Matthews and frankly, it wasn't pretty. We lost our mojo, our fight, our defense. His game was never predicated on athleticism in the first place and if there's anyone who will scrap, fight, and claw their way back from this injury, it's the Iron Man. In the end, I think both parties will come to a short-term agreement with the feeling that a longer-term deal is coming Matthews' way as long as he proves the injury isn't causing his game to falter in any way. I can't wait for Wesley's RE2URN!

 

Is anyone needed that badly if we were a sub 500 club? Way too early and hypothetical for me right now.

 

Would he sign a one year contract?

 

YES. NO question! We need bench help. We can do that by signing Wes and letting CJ be the 6th man. It's that easy.

 

I just think I would turn my focus on developing the younger guys like Crabbe and CJ since the team is clearly not in a window wo LA. And not tie up the money

 

As long as Wes is okay coming back as a ~20 minute backup 3 making ~8 million than yes I'd love him back

 

I thought he made a career playing basketball.....


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You just compared Wilkins to Wes...one of the most freakish Athletes and one of the best NBA scorers in NBA history...to Wes.

 

You're making my point for me. Wilkins used athleticism in his game. Then ruptured his Achilles over twenty years ago when the procedure probably wasn't as good, came back and played well.

Wes does not use crazy athleticism in his game. Dude is a warrior too. I think he will be fine when he comes back

 

Wes' rehab is going to stretch way on into next season. So I think you either sign him to a one year deal if he would rather keep his bird rights and prove he is worth a ton next summer. Or you give him a long 4/5 year deal with the understanding next year is a rehab season the team is significantly overpaying for but he will be a bit underpaid in years 2, 3, and 4. I'd rather just sign him to the long term deal as the cap will be going up and he deserves a contract more than any player. If he losses athleticism I think he'll still be a productive backup. I think either he could come off the bench at the 2/3, CJ could come of the bench at the 1/2 or by the time Wes is fully healed Batum will be a free agent and we have no idea how that will turn out. So maybe eventually Wes will start with CJ and Damian. This series we had 5 players play well and everyone else was horrific so we are a long ways away from having too many healthy productive bodies in the rotation.

I'd be ok with giving him something like a 5 years $50 million deal. That sounds like a ton now but remember the cap is going up to over $100 million so in those later years that will be equivalent to the 5 year $35 million deal he signed with us after his rookie year. He was probably going to earn $12-$15 million per year before the injury so its still a huge discount for the team.

 

But the reason he made it back was because he was a crazy freak athlete(see Adrian Peterson) also he was one of the best scorers in history meaning he could do more than a set 3. He could score in every way. Wes is a bit limited. It is not comparable in the least. If it were not for Roy and his knees, Wes would be a back up or gone plain and simple. If we can get him back on the cheap great, if not well it has been a blast.

 

Let's compare our records before and after Wes went down. Do that and get back to me.

If CJ becomes a starter, then both he and Lillard better have worked A LOT on their defense. I don't think it's possible for them to improve enough, frankly. As Ive said before, I think CJ is best suited for the Danny Ainge third guard role. Of course, Danny Ainge left pretty quickly. And so did James Harden for OKC. But what can you do? Starting him and Lillard together is a poor fit. They do not complement each other well. (When CJ was going off last night, Lillard basically vanished.)

 

I said this originally, but a two year deal around 18MM total with the second year a team option seems like it would be fair to both sides.

That said, I could see going 4/36 or so also.