When you have your Tim Duncan or Dirk you are investing in your franchise....rather they lock Dame up now than wait 40 years for another Dame to show up. Given how much money ownership has to play with it's only fair Dame gets a chunk of it...the tv deal is around the corner so there will be more money available the second half of his contract. That money will help Dame buy the Blazers with his buddies when he retires. Jody has really deep pockets now after selling off Paul's estate.
Not right now he shouldn't be. If we get off to a horrible start, and it's clear that Dame/Simons isn't working, then I think we need to explore all options, which should include trading Dame or Simons.
I can’t think of a better plan to help firm up the view around the league of Portland being the last outpost where no quality NBA star wants to go than to get tight with Dame’s extension money. I have zero doubt that his value as an asset to the team does anything but improve with his contract guaranteed for two more years.
I don’t care if they give him the money. But holy shit am I tired of all the “he’s so loyal and such a trooper” stuff. Great, he hasn’t asked to be traded (that we know of), but he has a say in personnel decisions, he plays however he wants, and has always been paid as a superstar. The loyalty to him goes both ways.
Be crazy not to give Dame the Super Max. The NBA is a Machine that Dame helps propel, and he certainly gives Portland relevance and energizes this small market team.
40 years? If I think of team-changing players in Blazer history: Walton - mid-70s Drexler - 90s Roy Dame Yes we have had great teams without those guys but they are the ones that come to mind that seemed to fundamentally change the team. That is nearly one game-changer per decade.
I think people can recognize that the team is pretty shite and it's time to make a chance. Most superstars in his position would have wanted out by now. If the team opted to go young, I think most people (superstars included) would understand.
Unlike the 3 you named....Dame hasn't changed teams ...great players but didn't retire Blazers...that's what I call a franchise player...hence the Dirk, Duncan comparison. Also the 3 guys you mentioned had a lot more talent to play with than Dame has had in his era.
I don't agree with the first statement. The team is incomplete, but has one great player, some good components, and can add more through trades and FAs. I know you're down on the team, but I think that there's a good opportunity to field a team that can make the playoffs this year and compete next season. I don't see Dame's value going down in that time period so I don't see a rush to abandon Plan A in favor of a rebuild Plan B. If things crash this year, sure, you work a deal with a contender to get value for Dame in terms of picks and young players. I don't see why you'd want to miss the chance at Plan A only to prematurely dive into a very uncertain Plan B.
I don't think keeping our roster-construction options open is the same as "getting tight with Dame's extension money". I don't think it's unreasonable to state/conclude that if the team is interested in trading Dame, his trade value will be higher with 3-year deal in place than a 5-year. Anyone who thinks they know how this roster will perform as currently constructed is absolutely fooling themselves. If Dame is playing at an all-star but not all-NBA level (very possible), Ant shows that his 2022 performance was not flukey (likely, IMO), and the rest of the roster is not enough to approach contender status (it almost certainly won't be), it would make sense to look to deal Dame at the deadline for the best rebuild package we can find.
Dame is a generational talent. Ant looks like a good player who could, maybe, be special. It's funny how guys like Steph are like a fine wine in some views, but Dame's like over the hill and not likely to be special anymore. I don't doubt Dame. Even if he gets off to a slow start, he will kick it in and destroy foos.
I'm not saying that the extension should be signed before the rest of the off-season plays out so Cronin can maximize the roster. Of course no one knows with any certainty how the roster will perform this season...the roster isn't even built yet and, as you say, we haven't seen how healthy Dame is. I said that the team should look at a rebuild if it becomes apparent that this reboot isn't going to work. I'm pretty certain that Dame doesn't want to spend the rest of his career here if we're looking at a five-year or so rebuild. I'm just saying that I am NOT in favor of dealing Dame this summer without trying to build a competitive roster around him here this season.
Yeah, I just think Dame is the kind of player the Supermax is there for. A franchise defining star. Pay the man.
So we mostly agree here; only question is when it makes sense to ink him to an extension. Personally, I'd like to wait until 2023. Could be January, could be after the deadline...just at some point after we have an idea if Cronin's vision might actually be building toward a Dame-centric contender. I don't think there's any way to gauge that at any point during this off-season.
I wouldn't be surprised at all if the extension has already been agreed to and is one of the reasons that Dame settled back from previous rumbles of discontentment into his expressing support of the rebuild. I think the extension happens as soon as free agency plays out. Edit: That's consistent with what Jake Fischer is reporting: https://www.basketballnews.com/stor...-lillard-twoyear-100m-extension-nba-offseason
