True enough. And if he doesn't play, then that'll probably make it that much more likely we get another lottery pick. Win-win.
nooooo !! the T-wolves traded all their picks for Rudy Gobert. Portland would get KAT and some 2nds back. A Dame trade to Minnesota would be the worst possible outcome for the rebuild.
no...I was exaggerating..I don't know how much he makes but he's got a big contract if I remember correctly...looked it up...he made 35.5 rounded up last season.. he doesn't come cheap. he'll make just under 38 next year and just over 40 the following year so his two years left will set a team back just under 80 million...I think that money could be better spent
Simmons would be a complete reset of our identity. In a good way. Fast paced, easy baskets, great defense.
Ohhhh, you're exaggerating. Well he's got two years left (38/40 from what I see), so we could flip him as an expiring before we need to pay Sharpe, etc. If he ends up having something to prove and can be our SF he could work out. Could be a case where buying low ends up a steal. If not, our dreams of a championship in 2024 are dead (still). I only want him if it gets us Claxton though.
Harden never played with Simmons. They were traded for each other in '22. From my perspective, Kyrie blew up the Nets. KD already had 1 foot out the door in July of '22 (before ever playing with Ben). He came back to give it a try. With the issues between Kyrie and Nets, blew up the team & then with the Suns ownership changing - there was an opportunity for a windfall return for the Nets. The Embiid/Simmons issues are of legit concern. I personally see this more of two guys jostling for leadership of the team (much like the 'issues' LMA had with Dame). The other issue they had was their games didn't exactly complement each other. Both prefer to operate around the basket - so Embiid was frustrated that he was pushed further out to accommodate Ben. On Portland's roster, I think Simmons could be a nice fit. Grant never gets close to the paint. I think Nurk operates best from the high post/elbow area, but he can also float out to the 3pnt line.
Claxton I'm all in on...you guys might be right...Simmons might pan out and find his confidence again. I think Ant could be moved to pay Sharpe down the road as well.
as I said, you guys might be right..he sure doesn't make me optimistic as to his fit. I'm more afraid of him having a negative impact on our young guys. He sure hasn't made many friends in his last two stops
I think the Blazers is the perfect landing spot for Simmons. What I hope will be our style and makeup on offense would be perfect for him. His defense would be perfect for our needs. We couldn't hope to get a better defensive player or a better playmaker or even a better rim runner. As far as his "head" goes, a change to Portland scenery, lower pressure, and playing with young guys who are playing with joy and optimism might be just what the doctor ordered. That's a lot of maybes, but there are always maybes with every player. Then there is his soon-to-be expiring contract. Getting Simmons would be a no-risk move with the possibility of a very high reward. Even if he didn't work out, we'd be rewarded with another high lotto pick. I've been okay with taking back Simmons since it first came up. We've got nothing to lose. Roll the dice.
Based on my comments above, I really think Ben would be ideal next to a C who is a great shooter from outside..... Enter KAT. What do people think of this trade? I'm guessing Portland would need/want to trade Nurk in a follow-up deal - but that wouldn't be required. Given the injury histories of KAT & Nurk, it might be nice to keep both for a while.
Not if we take an extra first to get him off the Nets' payroll. He's exactly the kind of risk this team can take. We're not competing. We're also a wakeup call for how far his career has fallen. He would be sent to the NBA gulag and the Nets would have paid us to take him. If he doesn't decide to play, then we've lost nothing as he's just cap filler. We have the luxury of sucking for him to sit. We could actually send him as an expiring, and get the benefit of trading him twice. If he actually becomes the Ben Simmons of old, he's exactly what we need. There's a similar scene regarding Simmons' situation in Moneyball.
