To build a winner around Dame a GM was always going to have to take a risk. Would've rather done that than play it safe until the wheels fall off.
I wonder if Joe and Mike Schmitz share so many others philosophy that you can’t win with your best player being a shoot first ball dominant pg? Once Olshey refused to move CJ and picks for a wing this team was pretty much sunk.
TLDR: If Cronin was being aggressive, why weren't there any Woj reports about it? The thing that sticks out to me about Brown is that even if Cronin did inquire about him and was quoted a ridiculous asking price, someone who's being "super aggressive about building around Dame" wouldn't just hang up the phone, throw up his hands, and be like "welp, that's not happening!" He would use every tool at his disposal to attempt to negotiate a reasonable deal. And I think we can reasonably conclude that didn't happen. Why? Because we know that Cronin is no stranger to using Woj as his mouthpiece to attempt to negotiate through the media, and there were never any Woj pieces about Boston being unreasonable in their demands for Brown, nothing about the Blazers showing interest in acquiring him, nothing more than "Portland will be active in the trade market over the next few weeks." I have difficulty believing that someone who has shown no aversion to using Woj to promote his agenda would not employ that tool in his "super aggressive" building campaign.
You need to learn to understand context, comparison and deduction. Saying "you have to believe" doesn't mean you said it. It means that for what you are saying to be right A, B, C and D would have had to have happened. They didn't, so your idea doesn't pass the smell test. Good grief.
But, you know what, Torey, thanks for giving me another example of why your "Cronin lied" storyline doesn't hold up. You just said Dame was the one pressuring him, but Jody wanted something else. OK, that implies Cronin was trying to do what Dame wanted even over what Jody wanted, and Jody wanted to cut costs, which could easily have been done by not extending Dame or re-signing Grant. Which is it? You're here claiming to have a smoking gun but the only gun you have is the one you used to shoot your own argument in the foot. It lacks plausibility and it contradicts itself all over the place. You guys are so eager to be outraged experts that you can't see no matter what intel you got it Makes. No. Sense.
I see. So Dame changing his tune because of ... things ... is OK, but Cronin not moving fast enough for Dame's like or reacting to the market in a way that's prudent amounts to lying. Your bias is showing. I've said this before: If Cronin had traded the third pick for what has been reported to be available you'd have been all over him the way you are for this, because it wouldn't be aggressive, it would be reckless. If Dame only would be placated by trading the third pick for any veteran, you should have Dame on blast for being unreasonable. You should have said the tip of the ice cube, not the iceberg. You lack perspective.
For me at this point Im interested in seeing how Joe builds this team around Scoot & Shae, and if he is able to quickly get the right pieces to make them contenders in 2-3 years. These two will not give it 10 years for that to happen.
I don't see anything wrong with Cronin believing that - Dame is 33 years old on a supermax and the Blazers have no path to contend soon. Seems like the prudent GM action to seriously consider a younger direction. Only players older than Dame to lead teams to titles were LeBron/MJ/LBJ/Kareem.
None of those actions or speculation make Cronin a liar. Cronin and Schmits may have gauged the market for the pick weeks before the draft, and realized there were not any discussions approaching their value of using it. Its actually extremely rare to trade away a top3 pick for a veteran, tons of risk for the team trading it away and the team acquiring it. Kevin Love for Wiggins is about the only recent one I can think of. Dame isn't LBJ and the Blazers aren't close to contenders like those Cavs were.
Duncan wasn't MVP - it was Kawhi and that was a great deep Spurs team with many different leaders. Duncan often played much fewer minutes for that last title. Duncan was a great starter for that final ring, but he didn't lead them to a title. All of Duncans other 4 rings where yes he was the leader were at a younger age than Dame. Dirk wasn't older than Dame. Dame would have to win the title this season which obviously isn't happening. Same for Steph last ring.
The time for that opportunity was the decade Dame was in his 20's. When Dame is 33 and the team is devoid of win now assets..... its too late buddy.
you didn't stipulate "MVP" and Duncan and Dirk did win ...you can claim these guys didn't lead their teams to a title but both were team captains so I disagree. Dirk won a title at an older age than Dame because well.....Dame hasn't won a title. I don't understand your spin on that one either but it's all good.
Dirk was 32 the start of the year he won the championship. Timmy was 31 the start of the last year they won a championship and he was the best player in SAS. When they won in 2014 it was because the GM went younger and built a younger team around him.
I'm not saying only MVP's - I said "players older than Dame to lead teams to titles" Dirk was not older than Dame when he won a title. My comment was to show how rare it was to have an NBA team built around a star player at Dame's age or older and have them go on to win a title. Only 4 of the all time greats have done it, all MVP level TALL players. 33 is older than the vast majority of NBA champions, and the Blazers had no felllow stars on the roster. Dirk, Duncan, and Curry had allstars or hall of famers up and down those rosters. It was a dumb strategy to try and build a contender around Dame a few months ago, its just way too late. When Dame was in his 20's there was a chance to do it, but that ship has sailed.
If I'm not mistaken Dirk entered the NBA much younger than Dame...Dame was late to the draft and stayed in college longer than most guys who declare for the draft ...I'll have to check that but I think that's true of a lot of guys....comparing Kobe or Melo or Lebron coming into the league as teenagers ..sometimes it's not the years but the miles with these guys
Except the way you laid it out isn't how it had to have happened at all, and you constantly say things like "Bones thinks this" and "Bones is saying that" when it's not true. All you do is put words in my mouth and thoughts in my head. It's weird.
Cronin not moving fast enough for Dame'a liking? Most meaningful free agents signed day one. He couldnt have "moved any slower". Hes had two years to make progress and the only meaningful win-now upgrade he's made is a guy Dame recruited. You think I'm biased for Dame, I think your biased for Cronin. How can a dude tout winning free agent battles, say they need to do well in free agency, don't do anything, then say that was never really the plan? That's a direct contradiction. Amd there you go again claiming you know what I think, say, or do.
