Pretty silly for them to list LA as a possible destination for Deron with 0 capspace. And Nic has no trouble scoring in "double figures" every night. He did average 14ppg. Whether he can consistently put up 20 is in doubt. And LOL @ the idea of SA as a possible destination. How exactly will they do that?
I would guess they think a sign and trade could be worked out as that's the only way I can see him ending up with the Lakers. As for SA getting Nic, not sure on that one, but I know many down here in South Texas have talked about him. I spoke to Tony Parker and his brothers when they were here for a camp and they made it sound like Nic to the Spurs was almost a sure thing. Not sure why they thought that when we could just match any offer but I found it a little odd they had that mindset. I guess only time will tell.
I stopped with the possible destinations when they listed Chicago as the only one for Nash. How exactly does that make sense? I guess if they think Rose is out all season with his torn ACL but even then if I'm Nash I go to a team like Miami before the Bulls.
Almost one out of every 3 of Batum's games this year (19/59) he scored in single digits, so their statement isn't completely off-base. EDIT: It also seems like this list is just in the early stages as many of the FAs don't have any possible destinations. It'll get updated as time goes on.
Out of realistic options, I look at it in a couple of ways. Players who could play a significant role (starter or 6th(ish) man) Lou Williams, Ersan Ilyasova, Goran Dragic, Kris Humphries, George Hill Williams would be a good instant offense guy off of the bench if we pick up Drummond. Hill would be a decent PG if we strike out on bigger names. Why isn't anyone talking about Kris Humphries?! He'd be a great fit next to Aldridge. I'm not super high on Ilyasova, but he's sadly better than many of the players we have. Backups Chris Kaman, Carl Landry, Brandon Bass, Aaron Brooks, Andre Miller, Spencer Hawes, Landry Fields, Courtney Lee Some of these guys could start, but I lumped them all together. A few decent big men, buy low on Fields (he'll come cheap), and then I'll admit I have mancrushes on Miller and Lee. If we get Marshall, I want to see us pick up Miller as a mentor (assuming Nate being gone makes it at least somewhat plausible). Unlikely Deron Williams, Steve Nash, Roy Hibbert, Eric Gordon, Gerald Wallace, Ryan Anderson. I'd love to have any of these guys, and I hope we get lucky and get one, but the first four names have bigger destinations (or paydays) in mind. Wallace probably wouldn't come back (and yeah he's another mancrush), and Ryan Anderson doesn't fit great unless you move him to SF. Even then, who knows what you'll get without him next to Dwight. I do like him though. Overall, there's a lot of options in FA, although most of them are not guys you'd be stoked about throwing into the starting lineup. Looking forward to seeing what this off-season brings!
I'm more excited about the player we can get in FA than I am about the player we can get in the draft
I stopped reading when I realized they ranked Eric Gordon ahead of Jamal Crawford. Ridiculous. Other than that, an absolutely flawless list.
Sounds like Drajic may go the highest bidder. He likes Houston and the fans want him to stay so Houston has the best shot. But he left the door open to seeing what happens this summer. He wants to be a starter, he wants a system that will allow him to develop and he doesn't say it but he wants $$. With the current Blazer players, a new coach to be hired and PA's money, Blazers might be able to make this happen. It would be a serious feather in Olshey's hat to be able to bring Drajic over.
Of those 19, how many were after he started getting playing time? Didn't get any run or shots off for the first 3 weeks of the season.
Okay, I'll do it. He played 32+ minutes as a starter 23 times. He scored 10+ points 18 times (5 under 10, three of which were 9-point games). IHe scored 390 points in those 23 games, for an average of about 17.0 points per game (3.1 points per game higher than his seasonal average, and in line with his per 36 average of 16.4 ppg). He had 14 above average games (17+ PPG), and 16 below average games (16ppg or less). His minimum was 6 points (2x), and his max was 33 points (1x). So his "under 10" percentage goes down to 21.7% from 30.5% (18/59), and his "above average" percentage moves to 60.9% (14/23) from 50.8% (30/59). As a starter regardless of minutes, he is a 15.2ppg player, a 1.3ppg improvement. Play him more minutes, and he improves another 1.8ppg to 17.0ppg. Basically, if you keep him, start him and play him full starter minutes. If you're not going to commit to both, then let him go. Batum is a good example of a player whose performance was hindered by Nate's rotations and lack of confidence in young players.
