I appreciate that you are unhappy with this roster especially if you see the Dame/CJ back court as the nightmare that I do. That being said, if you being a fan of the Blazers is based on what moves we make or how good we are, then please be my guest and find another team that you can maybe be a real fan of. I would suggest the Lakers or Celtics... they have rich histories and are never complacent unless they are in the finals.
Why couldn't there be a big trade? Ive been an NBA fan for 60 years and seen many big trades. I think everyone on the team is tradable except maybe Dame. And actually Dame is tradable for the right young super star and some.
Here's my ideal off-season scenario: (Keep in mind I have minimal salary cap knowledge. I'm sure there are lots of mistakes here.) Locked in Salary: (pg) Lillard (sg) McCollum (c) Nurkic (sf) Hood (pf) Collins Simons Little Hezonja Trent Jr Pick #16 - draft Vernon Carey, Jalen Smith, Saddiq Bey, Aaron Nesmith, Josh Green, or Devon Dotson. That's approximately $102M Guaranteed for 10 player. (That includes 'dead money' for Varejao and Nichols, and Ariza's guaranteed $1.8M.) Pick up the team option for Ariza. That adds $11M. (That's 11 players at $113M. Tax at $139M) Sign Whiteside to $10M 2-yr contract. Use bird rights. $10M is more than the $9.2M MLE that most teams could offer. (That's 12 player at $123M.) Use BAE to sign Anthony to $3.6M 2-yr contract. That's more than the vet minimum ($2.7M) that most teams will be willing to offer him. Finish up his career in Portland. (That's 13 players at $127M.) Sign Gabriel to minimum $1.6M. (That's 14 players at $129M.) That leaves the Blazers $10M under the tax line and able to use the full $9.3M MLE. Here are some of my targets: - Joe Harris, 6'6", 29 yo. Previous contract $7.7M. - Bogdan Bogdanovic, 6'6", 28 yo. Previous contract $9.0M. (restricted, SAC may blink) - Goran Dragic, 6'3", 34 yo. Previous contract $19M. (What the hell. We can ask.) - Jeff Teague, 6'3", 32 yo. Previous contract $19M. (We might as well try.) If we can't land any of those guys, I'd offer part of the MLE to: Christian Wood, Rajon Rondo, Isaiah Thomas, or DJ Augustin. Keep the team healthy, and I think they can go deep.
As long us it gets us in the running for a top 4 seed and sets us up to make a splash at the deadline, I'm happy with it. Returning this same team would be a disaster though.
Simple, ideal off-season. Trade one or two 2nds for Bjelica (TPE) Use the MLE on a Harkless type of wing (1 year deal prefered) Starters: Lillard / McCollum / Ariza / Harkless / Nurk Bench: McCollum / Trent / Hood / Bjelica / Collins Them we have the expiring contracts of Ariza, Harkless, Bjelica, and Collins to make a splash move(s) at the deadline.
Could also swap Ariza and a 1st for Fournier and start Hood if hes ready. Starters: Lillard / McCollum / Hood / Harkless / Nurk Bench: McCollum / Trent / Fournier / Bjelica / Collins
I did listen to Mike Richmann's Podcast last year and he mentioned the same that the Blazers are a boring team from the outside even though we have Dame. Before the bubble he said that the Blazers are a bit more interesting with the return of Nurkic, because he gives the Team some nasty and pettyness and some swag. Another thing is you never hear something about the Blazers in rumors, Neil never leaks anything
Yes. Different sites had slightly different numbers for a few of the players, but here's my estimate: Lillard $31.63M McCollum $29.35M Nurkic $12.0M Hood $6.0M Collins $5.41M Simons $2.25M Little $2.21M Hezonja $1.88M Trent Jr $1.67M #16 Pick $3.12M Ariza $1.8M Varejao $1.98M Nichols $2.84M Total: $102.1M
Windhorst I have already heard of a deal that’s been agreed to. Who knows whether it’s true or not? Bobby Marks of ESPN I had one agent – because I was talking about his free agent and salary projections, right? And he said, “Hey, you’re really low. I’ve already got two offers from two different teams.” Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports: Multiple teams are asking the NBA for clarity on offseason dates. Because of how tight windows are, teams would like some direction on dates beyond just the November 18 NBA Draft. There are rumors circulating that some free agents have already reached agreements for next season. — Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) October 26, 2020
man free agency is gonna be wild this year. No wonder there are already rumors of players agreeing to deals. NBA is gonna have to just ignore tampering more than they usually do.
So who is Olshey signing first? My guess is still Millsap. He just screams Olshey to me, and I like the fit, assuming Ibaka is too expensive. I also like that there’s only one playoff team with projected cap space.
This probably won't go over well , but i really like what Neil has done for the most part. With a super talent like Dame, and many quality players, this team is HEALTH, and a quality role player away. I don't see them as far from being a contender as others do. They weren't anything close to the team they could be against the Lakers due to health, and Ariza's situation. But to me, Dame, and his ability to get better every year brings me plenty of hope going forward. He's 30, not 37. Neil will do everything in his power to add key pieces. Go Blazers!
I dont trust Neil to sign a guy like Millsap, he probably will sign another Stauskas first and call it a offseason. Neil has been a big failure in free agency