Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! I'd have been happier in the $58-60 million range over 5 years. Still, good news.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! west is 5 years older and presumably playing at his ceiling. not really a valid comparison.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! Forget the damn cap. This is about the luxury tax. No matter what people think they know, Paul Allen is not going to pay huge lux tax bills year after year after year after year. That ship sailed. The only way this team can afford a huge monster payroll, with lux tax every year is if the economic model is changed: In other words the TrailBlazers would have to move to another city.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! Even still, you're paying quite a bit for potential. Sometimes it works out, but sometimes you get Darius Miles...
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! What he said. Again. Where was it I saw that Aldridge was among the league leaders in adjusted +/- or some team stat that takes defense into account? He may not be a great rebounder but he is one of the more athletic big men in the league, has the best/ONLY low post game on the Blazers and can guard little men on switches. PLUS, we need to have him under contract, in case we need to trade him for Chris Bosh...
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! Remember, the CBA might change at the end of this year anyway, so there's no point getting your knickers in a twist. Live in the moment. This is a GOOD THING. In the long run we're all dead.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! If Allen is serious about winning a championship, this is his window to do it. He knows we've got to keep the core together, and he signed off on the deal knowing the long-term ramifications.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! that's the way the league works unfortunately. if you don't pay for potential, someone else will.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! You really think that Paul Allen wasn't involved in this process? It's not like the blazer brain trust got together and pulled that salary figure out of a hat.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! In 2 or 3 years we're going to be a 3 man team anyway. And it'll be better then stockpiling talent like we do now. Our big 3 and some complimentary role players and we're set.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! So let's see... What other city would allow for larger revenue for the Blazers.... Hmmm Seattle? Well maybe but the city and state have made it clear they aren't going to help build a new stadium, and The Sonics already left because the stadium was deemed unworthy by NBA standards. SO Paul could build a new one to the tune of say 600 milliion. If the luxury tax is 75 million Portland would have to be at 90 million for 40 years for Paul to spend 600 million on Luxury tax. So I think I'd scratch Seatlle, so Kansas City? Vegas? Yeah not going to do better there than in Portland. You'd have to go to a NBA ready market that has a larger media market than Portland for that to make sense and for the most part all those markets already have NBA teams.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! The new CBA, if anything, will ratify the new economic enviroment and reduce the ability of teams paying monster contracts for most or all players. In other words, the guys that get deals now will be happy they got paid before the new, meaner system is in place. I was one of a group that was all in a "twist" over the deals made to retain Darius, Zach and Theo. We hated those deals the moment they happened. Others posters were dancing the jig, putting us down for nitpicking, "its only PA's money", "it doesn't matter if we overpaid", blah, blah, blah. Same shit. Turns out that group of posters was right. LaMarcus is not Darius or Theo, but he has been overpaid, and is being paid as much on POTENTIAL as actual achievement. He MAY live up to this rich contract, in which case he will be FAIRLY paid. He almost can't be overpaid. He doesn't have the upside to be cheap at $15mil per. But, equally, he MAY not live up to this rich contract. It is a risky deal for the Blazers. Whatever. Arm Tellum. What do you expect. Seems like every one of his clients is "overpaid". And for those who continue to dis David West like he is trash. LOL. So far in his career LaMarcus has NOT eclipsed any of the achievements of West. He should. He is younger and longer. I hope he does. I assume he will. But so far - POTENTIAL.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! 5/$65m is a lot of money. It's not the end of the world, but that seems like more than he deserves relative to other players in the NBA. Ed O.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! We did tell them so. Sort of. We're too mature to do that, and they (whomever they are; I don't even remember with whom I was arguing) would probably not admit it Ed O.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! With the Raptors setting the bar at $10m/per minimum, it was expected LaMarcus would get something in the $60-$65m range.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! Something else to consider is Allen's health. He is getting older and has had health issues. Perhaps he sees this squad as the most likely to bring Portland a championship before he *shudders to think* kicks the bucket and is willing to pay for it. In the early part of the decade, when we were contending (99/00 specifically) we had a payroll DOUBLE the salary cap. He has shown he is willing to pay for a good product. http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/POR/2000.html http://www.insidehoops.com/nba-salary-cap.shtml The only way I could see this contract really killing us is if the next CBA contains a hard cap. I don't see many of the current players still on the squad by the end of these extensions, anyways.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! The object is to have the best players, not to have cap money. We played the cap money game for 5 years and all we have to show for it is an aging obese shoot first PG who has shattered our team's chemistry and minimized our franchise player's effectiveness.
Re: ALDRIDGE SIGNED! I was on the ESPN board and did not like those deals. So, at least we have that in common. I also think Portland overpaid for LMA considering the market, but I suppose they didn't want to risk (as I posted earlier this month) another team offering LMA a max deal after the LeBron/Wade/etc. fallacies disappear after they resign with their own teams.
