sometimes, one decision sets in motion lots of others If Kanter had agreed to re-sign, the Blazers would not have Hood. The Turner for Bazemore deal was already in the books so no change there...thankfully But, with Kanter on board, the Mo/Meyers for Whiteside deal almost certainly wouldn't have happened. Odds are high that Portland would have kept Mo and Meyers. With Meyers around, Gasol likely isn't signed. Olshey has liked Hezonja for a while, so that deal would have likely happened. Aminu would definitely be gone. Tolliver probably would have still been signed. Layman?...probably not it could be a staring lineup of Dame-CJ-Mo/Bazemore-Zach-Kanter are the Blazers better off because Kanter felt pressured and said no?
It's my understanding that the Blazers possibly had both a trade for a center (Whiteside) and a trade for a wing (unknown) depending on what happened. When Kanter said no they re-engaged the talks with Miami. I think Moe and Meyers would've still been traded.
If Hassan proves to a defensive force we are better off. When you have wings that are not consistent threats than guys like Kanter help offset.
You sure about this? That is not what was reported but you may very well be right? It makes sense looking back. But it also creates some questions? Like was Dame in the know on this all along. Was the offer to Kanter less than authentic?
If it were possible for the Blazers to resign him and still do everything else they did, and we could have him along with everyone else on the team now, that would be awesome, but it is not how things work. Blazers would have not been able to sign Hood too (or they would have hardcapped) no Whiteside trade then. I am ok with all that happened though. Blazers got better. I wanted Layman to stay, but oh well.
The offer to Kanter was 100% authentic. He knew long before free agency started that was the most the Blazers could offer. The problem was the timing. Kanter thought there would be better offers if he waited and with Hood surprisingly being willing to accept the same deal they needed to know quickly. The thinking behind that was having Kanter at $5.7 million this season would be more valuable than having Whiteside at $27 million. The Blazers and Heat discussed the Whiteside trade at the draft several days earlier. From what I heard both teams were comfortable waiting knowing that they could revisit it later. Miami wanted to make sure they got Butler before clearing Whiteside's salary. Portland wanted to make sure they even needed a center because if Kanter re-signed there was no need for Whiteside. I don't have a link or anything but from what I was told the Blazers did have a plan for adding extra wing depth if it played out with Kanter re-signing. As to specifically who they were targeting anything I say would just be a guess. There would have been several possibilities including guys that did get traded this summer (Jae Crowder, CJ Miles, Chandler Parsons lol, Allen Crabbe lol, etc.). Like I said I don't know the specifics of who they had an opportunity to get just what their plan was had Kanter stayed. Edit: If Hood leaves, I'm pretty sure they would've kept Layman as well. @Chris Craig's post above reminded me of that. 2nd Edit: I'm not saying the Blazers valued Kanter as a player more than Whiteside. It was strictly a contract thing and they already knew Kanter could fill the role needed. If money was the same I think they would've chose Whiteside.
There would've been no way to keep Hood if Kanter re-signed unless Hood was willing to sign for $4.1 million. I guess he could've but that has nothing to do with the hard cap. With Kanter on board there is no need for the Whiteside trade.
