David Lee has agreed to the deal with the Warriors

Re: David Lee for Anthony Randolph/Azu/Radmonovic

I like this trade, BTW. I don't think Lee's contract is horrendous. Let's put it in perspective with all the other FA signings. David Lee was a top 10 FA in the most coveted FA class in history. I know, I know, you can argue there's a huge drop off after the tier 1 and tier 2 guys, but David Lee is not a bad player. Like Monta, I think he will be better on a better team. Let's hope the Warriors are better because of this.

I see it very simply: they address a specific and desperate need, rebounding. It doesn't seem to address defense, specifically, but if David Lee is able to get more rebounds to avoid those costly 2nd chance points, that is defense. Also, I really like the idea of stockpiling all these high IQ players. Curry, Lee, Wright, Udoh, R. Williams. I consider those guys high IQ players (Udoh just based on scouting reports).

If the Warriors can shore up the SF spot with a legitimate SF, no improvising with Morrow or R. Williams, AND keep Monta, the Warriors are vastly improved, IMO.

Matt Barnes and Ronnie Brewer are still available.

 

Yes, I believe this is true regardless of whether they get Lee or not.

Good points all around. I wrote earlier that David Lee is an excellent passer at the post position. Lee's 3.6 assists per game last year ranked 1st among all centers (nba.com has him listed as a C). Even including all forwards (SFs and PFs) in the league, David Lee still ranked 6th in the league in assists. The only Forwards in the league who had a better APG than Lee were LeBron, Igoudala, Josh Smith, Hedo Turkolu, and Boris Diaw.

Lee had a better APG than guys like Lamar Odom, Tim Duncan, Paul Pierce, Kevin Durant, Grant Hill, Dirk Nowitzki, etc. That's pretty damn impressive for a guy who is also getting you 20 and 12.

I agree with you that, with Curry as the cornerstone, GS will do well to get high-IQ players. I can't think of too many bigs that will complement Curry better than David Lee. I mean, he's not a superstar franchise player, of course not. But he could be a solid anchor for a long-term winning team, IMO.

And yes the deal is not official yet. It may not go down. And if it does go down, I'll be sad to see Randolph go. But I'll be looking forward to the Curry/Lee connection next year, that's for sure. Nellie or no Nellie.

 

Re: David Lee for Anthony Randolph/Azu/Radmonovic

. I can't argue with that.

Again, it's giving up AR that makes me think that this is a bad deal. He's got the most upside and he's tall and long. We do not know what we have. We have to overpay Lee because he's a free agent (it's not that bad of a contract I guess), but to give AR to the Knicks is ridiculous. Why not Brandan Wright? If they say no, then we wait.

Nope. Childress will get Marvin type money in $7 to $8 M/year range. It's high, but that's what this FA market is all about. Pay or get out of the way.

 

Re: David Lee for Anthony Randolph/Azu/Radmonovic

People are saying Brandan Wright > Anthony Randolph. If that's the case, Warriors might have gotten a really good deal here.

 

Re: David Lee for Anthony Randolph/Azu/Radmonovic

I'm not getting sucked into Kawakami's logic. I just posted his article because he agreed with my thinking on the deal. Giving up AR is too much. If you have AR in your sig, then you should fight for him harder. I think having a coach like Don Nelson who gets frustrated with AR has not helped. AR should do better with a coach like D'Antoni.

As for Cohan's logic, I saw it posted nicely by Run BJM. Cohan, Rowell and Riley can only see an all-star and aren't listening to the naysayers. They do not develop their players to the point that they can see that what they have is a valuable chip. Furthermore, the Mags trade cost a future pick which they did not get back. They took money for the future. That's part of the vicious cycle of why the Warriors end up making bad deals like this. The Warriors can do better with a smarter management group, but we can't because of Cohan:
According to the local beat guys the logic is that Cohan and Rowell both like this move. They see Lee as an all-star big man which fans have been pining for and a marketable player. They also don't think the value of the team is hurt because after trading Mags for expirings and also trading comparable contracts for Lee they're "cap neutral" or something like that.

BTW apparently this isn't official. David Aldridge and Chad Ford are saying that Lee's agent says it isn't a done deal barring LeBron's decision. Doesn't necessarily mean that the W's and Knicks don't have the framework of the deal done, probably more likely that Lee hasn't decided completely on GS. I reckon that he is a) looking for another team to outbid the W's and b) would rather play for the Nets who have shown interest and he could stay in NY. Seems like the Nets and Wolves are the two teams most interested in signing him outright but I don't quite understand the logic for either of them as they both have young PFs there already.

Man, I hope the Nets outbid the Warriors on David Lee. They look stupid with that big sign of Prokhorov and Jay-Z they put up across from MSG unless they come away with a big name FA.

 

Re: David Lee for Anthony Randolph/Azu/Radmonovic

BW is a nice player in a pick and roll system. Real nice. The only thing I would worry about is whether his body can withstand a 82-game season and the playoffs.

Of course, that wasn't your point was it?

It's hard to believe you guys give up on AR when we do not know what we have. And I'm not against getting Lee at $13 M. I'm willing to deal Monta, BW, Buike, Turiaf, Radman, Hunter, or Tolliver to get it done, although for Monta, we should get back more. It's not like the Knicks are in the driver's seat and want to keep Lee. Not when they have $100 M man Amare.

 

Lee will be a great pick up for the Warriors. He's a hard worker and has always improved every year in the league, so I still believe he has a lot of room to improve. According to reports, he's working hard on adding three-point range, too. He will be a great asset if he ever adds this to his arsenal as it will keep shot blockers out of the paint and open up the paint for Ellis dribble penetration. I also disagree with those who say Lee's stats are inflated. Lee was putting up numbers before D'Antoni. But overall Golden State will be taking back a hardworking all-star who still has room to grow and playing that up and down GSW basketball he will thrive. His defense sucks though.

I don't know much about Antony Randolph but Lee is a proven 20/10 player and all-star. You won't be getting a bad deal, but I guess that depends to some extent on how much you intend on paying him.

 

Just thought I'd mention that Lee's numbers, including blocks, were nearly identical to Boozer's last year.

Boozer: 19.5 ppg / 11.2 rpg / 3.2 apg / 0.5 bpg / 56% FG / 74% FT

Lee: 20.2 ppg / 11.7 rpg / 3.6 apg / 0.5 bpg / 55% FG / 81% FT

I mean, just for comparison's sake, many people think of Boozer as this inside, powerful brute force, and yet, he had the exact same amount of blocks per game last year that Lee had. In fact, for their career, Boozer is 0.5 and Lee is 0.4. Sometimes, block shots come from the weak side, from a long, quick leaper. Sometimes, a good defender can make it easier for his teammates to come in and collect the blocks. Both of these players bang and scrap and rebound tough inside, they just don't get blocks. I'm not saying they're great defenders, but I'm just saying that blocks don't always tell the whole story.

Also, based on the numbers above, Boozer is getting $15 mils per year, where Lee is reportedly getting $13 mils. Boozer is also 2 years older, and has had a major injury, where Lee has never had injuries and has played 81 games for three straight years.

Of course, Randolph could be the next KG some day. He's a great, valuable prospect right now. That's why this trade is so fair, I think. Lee is a proven work horse who can be extremely productive without ever needing to dominate the ball. Randolph has the potential to be better than Lee one day.

Either way, they are both valuable pieces, IMO, and to have either one will be a good thing. It's nice knowing that we'll for sure have one of the two. Either way that's a good thing, IMO.

One other cool thing is that I'm all about passion in basketball. That's why I have loved Randolph -- his fire. It's a plus knowing that David Lee brings the same type of contagious intensity to the court. He seems to have a bit of a crazy side to him (like Randolph) which I actually like

 

Biedrins and Lee? We better not be having rebounding troubles this season...

 

Lee's agent downplays Warriors sign-and-trade:

http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/nba/news/story?id=5364903

Well, LeBron is not going to NY (sorry Knicks fans), so a sign-n-trade with Lee seems imminent. I wonder what other teams have offers on the table for him. The package, $$ and years will be interesting to find out, and it will reveal a bit more about Larry Riley's deal-making skills...

 

Okay, that didn't take long. It's now official, according to Chad Ford of ESPN:

It's tough to see Randolph go. He has crazy potential. I myself ranted on countless posts about how he could very well be Superstar one day. And he just may end up being that. As far as Azu and Turiaf, I like those guys, especially Azu, but they're not long-term building blocks of this young team. Randolph was, and for that, I am a little bummed.

But David lee is going to be a cornerstone here at PF for the next 6 years, and he is going to become Steph Curry's biggest friend. At basically 13 mils a year, I don't really have a problem with it. There are other deals I would've liked to have seen. I would've liked GS to get Bosh themselves, lol.

But Lee is legit. GS just got a 20/12 energizer bunny who is also one of the best passing big men in the league (assist-wise), and who has played 81 games the last three years, with no injury problems. He's young, and he's ready to build around. Plus, he loves to run the floor. He's not a superstar, but he's going to be a great addition next to Curry, IMO.

To me, this was a fair trade for both sides. It's value for value, and now that it's apparently done, I'm ready to get excited about this young nucleus.

1 - Curry / Bell
2 - Monta / ?
3 - Williams / ?
4 - Lee / Wright
5 - Biedrins / Udoh

GS still has Gadzuric and Radmonovic -- that's $14 million in expiring contracts -- so they can still make another big move if they wanted.

Losing Azu means Reggie Williams is the only guy they have at SF right now. I think the Ronnie Brewer discussions now pick up some steam, although I wouldn't mind if GS went after the other Brewer -- as in Corey Brewer.

Or, maybe Wilson Chandler will be involved in this deal somehow?

Probably, GS will match most any offer for Morrow, just as insurance. But CJ Watson, maybe not.

This Lee move definitely leaves GS shorthanded at the SF, and even SG positions, so it will be interesting to see what's next.

 

This article says 80 over 6....ouch!

 

Yeah, that's basically what we had discussed earlier (I had said 5 years, $65 mils). It still equates to roughly $13 mils per year, with an extra $2 mils tacked on the last year or something. He's 27, so this deal will go until he's 33. It's a hefty chunk of change, but this is no Maggette deal. This is a building block, IMO.

Where did you see that GS threw in a draft pick? That does seem unnecessary, you're right. It is a large contract, but frankly, I think he's worth it. I don't think he needs to get much better. I think he's already worth that money, and I think all he needs to do is be consistent and to keep being David Lee. His history so far has shown he can do that -- steady growth, consistent numbers, no injuries.

 

Bleh, so conflicted on this.

Should we have kept Randolph, but risk being stuck in rebuilding mode? Ellis would probably jet or welcome a trade I feel; could we have stuck onto Randolph and Curry long enough to fill the gap with a few good draft picks and one or two great veteran free agents in a few years? It's not like we have the luck to get the ping pong balls to get the 2011 likely #1 pick Harrison Barnes and then find a dominant center lying around.

Looking at this offseason's examples, rebuilding may have very well failed. Look at everyone who lost in the LeBron sweepstakes: would the Warriors have been able to make a big splash like Miami? More likely we would have been one of the losers like New York, Chicago, or New Jersey. And these are big money, big market teams, willing to overspend to the max. Nice places to live and play too, though Miami's draw of exciting party scene, no state income tax, and Riley isn't quite matched by those other teams.

Will this team succeed? I think it's got the ability to hit the playoffs for sure now, and maybe sell a few more seats. I think it will build on the short-term respectability of the team, too. So like Alleyoop said, it's a building block. At the least, other teams wanted Lee (Nets, Wolves) so it's not like we couldn't move him in the future.

 

Don't compare the W's to the Knicks; they are so bad they picked Jordan Hill over Brandon Jennings. Instead of looking at the Heat, Bulls and Nets, I look at the Trailblazers and the Thunder and Jazz, that's how you build a team. Look at the Nets, they draft Brook Lopez and trade for Devin Harris. The Blazers draft Roy, Aldridge and Oden, Batum, Fernandez, Outlaw yet still have money to sign someone like Andre Miller. That's how to build.

I love this quote from Kawakami (yes my friend):

"Same old, same old: The Warriors are always over-hyping their young players then quickly souring and then manuevering to trade the young player for someone who actually wants to be here.

Then that player sours, too, and it all starts over again, with larger and larger contracts each time. It’s the Cohan Method."