As I posted in the other thread, the Warriors need to look back at their history and their 1975 Championship team to find how to get better. They don't need the next Dwight Howard, they just need to get bigger and get a center or two who can defend and rebound. Since the Webber debacle, they have done an awful job of drafting, scouting and signing low level free agents. I'm not saying they should have drafted a Bynum or Horford (not available), but how about a Marc Gasol? Luis Scola? Chuck Hayes? Ubaka? Tiago Splitter? Those guys were available and they whiffed (like a lot of teams.) Those bigs are out there and still available in Europe and South America, they need to identify them.
Nene is going to be available. Marc Gasol will be available for the right price. The other chance is to take a risk on Oden (I'm not for this). Let's see what bigs will be available in the draft too.
I wouldn't sign Nene or Oden unless it was a cheap contract...I'd just be hesitant to commit to an injury prone center long term. Conversely, I'd pay big bucks for Gasol. DeAndre Jordan would be intriguing for the right price, although I don't like that he shoots sub-50% from the line. Tyson Chandler is another guy who interests me. I mean, it really depends on the contract in each situation, but Gasol is the only free agent center I'd throw big money at.
I like Nene but he isn't a great rebounder (but slightly better than Marc Gasol). He's got great footwork and a lot of upper body strength. He's 2nd behind Tyson Chandler in TS% for centers that play more than 25mins per HoopData.com. I figure David Lee's rebounding numbers would go up if he were paired with Nene. Same with Gasol. I wouldn't mind either of those guys, but Nene is a little more polished and he can run the floor better than Gasol. I think he's worth what he gets paid, with all things considered.
I don't think it matters who the Warriors bigs are. With the way the defense is set up and run, I don't know if many other bigs in the league alone could do enough to stop opponents from killing the team on the boards, much less be solid defensively. I need to look for this more closely, but I believe there are usually fewer Warriors on the glass than the opponents (when the Warriors are letting offensive boards go very liberally). I think this is the case because a perimeter player will get beat, Biedrins will need to come help, and now there is a free player to get the offensive glass to get that offensive rebound, or the opponents make an extra bucket for an easy two. I also think there's just too much Vlad at 4 with the bench team (the team's biggest weakness, without a doubt in my mind). Another problem is that the team's 1-3 are not rebounding the ball enough. They put in the effort every once in a while, but again you can't expect the bigs to look great if the opponents can penetrate at will and the perimeter players are not working hard enough for the rebounds. Then you add the substitutions that typically have had Vlad at the 4, then that leads to even worse rebounding and defense. So I think strategic changes can help this team in the paint. But I am not against trading players for better players with some conditions on contracts. But I am not as upset with Biedrins as others. I like his contract. If you go after someone like Nene or many of the previously mentioned and touted players in this thread, then I'd bet we might need to break the bank more than we want for such players. It kind of reminds me a mixture of Danny Fortson and Maggette signings. But one name I may throw out there is Kevin Love. I have no idea what the T-Wolves are doing or want. They probably do not want to trade him. But I'd float out there something like Biedrins and Dorell Wright and maybe players like Brandan Wright for Kevin Love. They'd probably reject it, but just food for thought.
Yeah, I don't think they want to part with Love...especially for that. I got the impression that they pretty much chose Love over Jefferson last season, so I would assume they want to hold on to him. I can't imagine any young millionaire choosing to spend his prime years living in Minnesota though. It's a shame that our location doesn't seem to entice players as much as it probably should.
I don't get the love for Gasol. He's big, but he's really big (fat looking) and slow. He's not even a double double guy for Memphis in 33 minutes/game. If you're looking for defense, rebounding, and blocks, Chandler's pretty good. When he's in the lane, his height and length alone make opponents not want to take it to the rim.
Interesting thread, but your exactly right. Marc Gasol would be an interesting pickup for them. He's a good post-player, who can pass as well, and also rebound the ball. They haven't had a guy that talented in the post from the center position. Biedrins is good, but he's just not the type of center that Golden State needs in my opinion. One other option would be a guy like Emeka Okafor or Tyson Chandler if one of those two becomes available via free agency or trade. Those are just a couple more options that I think would fit well with what the Warriors are trying to do.
Let's not forget Ekpe Udoh. He needs to get more minutes. Kendrick Perkins is another big body who will be an unrestricted FA. I'm not sure if ATL won't match whatever Al Horford will get, but he's another, but I rather get a wide body to go with David Lee.
Horford just signed a 5 year extension with Atlanta prior to the start of this season. And yeah I think Perkins is still my favorite option for us to target in the offseason.
Yes. I like Udoh. The Warriors have several bigs right now. They fill up most of the team's depth. They just don't get used much. Out of all the team's bigs - Udoh, Lou, B. Wright, Gadz - the team's first backup big and second team's PF is Vlad! But perhaps philsmith has a point worth repeating about using more second round picks on bigs, even on those that will take some time to develop, like the ones he mentioned. And when you choose bigs like Patrick O'Brian, Ike Diogu, and more or less Brandan Wright, then obviously they need to get better at choosing who is an NBA post player. Biedrins is a super pick in comparison to the other three.
We had some double double candidates but didn't we waive them? Richard Hendrix, Stephen Lasme. They are not undersized compared to what we have on the bench.
My heart tells me Perkins is going to be a bust when he moves on. The guy I want is Gasol (if we have a different coach) or Nene (in this system.)
Don't see Grizz letting Gasol slip away. I think Perk will be fine though, hes not lazy. If you go off of numbers you wouldn't think hes very good at all. But hes a very good defender, very physical, hes a game changer down low. Lee can pile up the auxiliary stats at the PF spot, spread the floor, etc. and Perk can do all the dirty work, non-box score stuff that it takes to compete with the big boys. I like Nene too though. Much more offensively oriented. Not a great defender but certainly a space eater and you saw how he and K-Mart held their own down low against some good, big front lines.
It's a bit troubling that Vlad and Gadz were playing more than Udoh and Lou. I hope Udoh is gonna be good. Right now he's playing at a backup level. I wanted Greg Monroe, but will be patient on Udoh. Lou should get more minutes, too. As for the rest: POB - Wanted Ronnie Brewer Ike - Wanted Gerald Green, Danny Granger and Andrew Bynum in that order. I didn't think Bynum wanted to play here. Messed up on Green completely Brandan Wright - Wanted Joakim Noah Biedrins - AB, Iggy
