Lolol should be odds of getting traded: 0-5%. Griffin knows what asking out means. He’s not (or his agent) dumb. They know a buyout is the most realistic. He’s probably prepared to give up money to make it happen.
I wonder how much money is he willing to give up. He has a player option next year for 39 million. I assume that is Detroit's biggest worry. Blake will probably get most of this year's 37 million. Still, if I am Blake that 39 million would be hard to walk away from.
And don't forget that his market rate in the subsequent free agency season will be forever diminished after taking a minimum now. Melo and Kanter know a thing or two about that.
my guess is he will end up walking away from it. If all he cared about was getting his money he would just stay in Detroit. And maybe he still will, because if he doesn’t already know a trade is highly unlikely, he’ll most likely find out.
It’s pointless to bring up his stats because any team acquiring him isn’t acquiring him for what he’s doing in Detroit this season. Everyone knows his numbers are trash. The real question is whether it’s a physical issue or just a “I play on a shit team” one ala Batum. People bring up the fact that he hasn’t dunked in a year or whatever, but he adapted to a below the rim game years ago, so that’s really not enough to confirm that he’s washed imo.
The numbers are important because they're basically the same player at this point. So where do you play Griffin? Do you start him? Move RoCo to the three? His defense is shit, so at that point you might as well just start Melo.
That's my thing, he looks like a lesser version of Melo, so why in the world would anyone want him on this team? Even if you want to say his numbers are down because it's Detroit and he isn't motivated, then that's an even bigger red flag. If the Blazers have one move to make, this one isn't it.
they’re not the same player. One guy can create for others consistently. The other is a ball stopper. Pretty big contrast. assuming Blake isn’t washed up physically (big assumption but possible) I would start him at the four and run plays through him the way golden state runs stuff through draymond. Having a primary screener be such a good playmaker is a weapon considering how teams STILL trap the fuck out of dame.
Aside from passing, they're the same player. Neither one can play defense, but Melo seems to be in better physical shape and at least tries on defense. Melo is the better scorer at this stage. So you can't start Blake for the same reasons you can't start Melo. They're both shitty defenders. They're both past their prime. Passing just isn't enough for me to warrant starting the guy.
Griffin is better for greasing the offensive flow and ball movement. Melo is better for improving the floor spacing. Both are going to give you nothing on the defensive end. I think they're about equally valuable, so it just depends on whether you need more ball distribution or shooting. If CJ were healthy and Covington and Hood were hitting from deep, I'd probably go with Griffin. As it stands, Melo is probably more valuable to the current Blazers (though it pains me to say it).
He’s a great playmaker. I wouldnt look at his 12 ppg. Yes he’s lost athleticism but I think this is a classic “I play for a shitty team so I’m not gonna try hard” situation. He would be great if it was a buyout situation
Even the floor spacing is equal, as teams don’t leave Blake open anymore. His percentages are affected by the volume of pull ups. If you look at his splits, he’s shot over 35% the past three seasons in catch and shoot situations. Even this year, he’s at 35%. If you put him in Portland’s system as a complimentary piece where there’s more catch and shoot and fewer pull ups, his percentages should rise. Less responsibility will most likely equal more efficiency. He’s not longer the star he once was, but he can still help a team, and his skill set is something Portland could use. (Yes it’s all health permitting)
I would give up the portion of the vet min that would still keep us under the luxury threshold for any productive player right now. He will probably get buried on the bench when Nurk and CJ are back but right now we're short on body's especially big bodies.
The problem that I don't think many of you are considering is the burden it puts on our rotation. Where do the minutes come from? We need another center right now. Griffin isn't a center.
Here are our current minutes per game averages So if you add Griffin, he has to get minutes at power forward. Right now RoCo is averaging 30.9 minutes and Melo is averaging 25.4. DJJ is averaging 26.7. That's your forward rotation. Between the three front court spots you have a total of 144 minutes. Maybe these numbers aren't reflecting the current rotation with Nurk out. Last 10 Roco - 32.3 DJJ - 24.7 Kanter - 30.5 Melo - 25.1 So that's a total of 112.6 minutes. I'm guessing Trent is getting some of those minutes. Giles is getting some of those minutes. Nas is getting a few minutes. In theory there's another 30ish minutes but we need a center.
