if a deal for Ayton is available in a S&T, I don't think it should cost us more than just Nurk or Hart.
I don't see him going anywhere. The whole max deal is negotiating positioning. Question? Is Ja Morant worth a max deal?
I like Warren too, but he didn't play this season at all and only played 4 games the year prior due to injury.
"up for him"...? as in something like 7 + Milwaukee pick for 5 + Grant? that would be a good trade for Blazers IMO 7 for Grant would be the opposite of good
With the game as it is, a guard and wing duo looks best as #1 and #2 on the team. No argument from me. Boston is right there. Using Denver as an example should include their injury issues for a couple years. They and Philly should be the outliers other teams DON’T follow. Utah has a guard-center spat they aren’t getting over. The essential argument is a team doesn’t need an elite or Tier 2 center making $$$ to contend. With the Nurkic (and other) untimely injuries, it’s an easy excuse on not getting back to the WCF. More reasonable on the early exits? Sub-par forwards who are neither stoppers nor consistent, significant scorers. Having a short, no-D pound-the-rock SG made the problems more visible. [Dame isn’t tall, but he’s not small.] The only question for me is whether Ayton is good enough to be that #2 who hedges, gets back and covers the corner 3. I’d take him over Gobert in a heartbeat.
Huh? James Wiseman was drafted so high because he was predicted to be a Stretch 5 with a handle. Not all 7 footers are KD or Rudy Gobert. Evan Mobley for instance. Not a “traditional” center.
I think Cronin will trade the #7 for Grant and ? Hopefully ? is better than scrubs. After Cronin negotiation skills from the Clippers trade, I'm not expecting a good deal.
What is his value in a trade? Morant is not a good 3-point shooter and we've seen how important that is in the playoffs. He's not a good defender either. He's famous , though. What if they could trade him to Indiana for Tyrese Haliburton and the #6 pick?
Ayton is the only “gettable” center closer to elite — a really short list, by the way — who has enough O to go with his D. Bam is really good and would be great to have but he’s a #3 at best on O. And this is fine. Winning basketball. Ayton is in a “situation” that brings the chatter … Would Dame, Ayton, Grant, Simons be enough to contend? Maybe.
No. Who is the second best player on that team; Grant? Ayton? That is not a duo that can contend. The Suns couldn't win it all when Ayton was the 5th option. You think he'll lead a team to contend as the second?
The important thing, if you have a center who has talent but isn't Embiid or Jokic, get him the fucking ball where he can score!! One of the great things that happened after the trade deadline is that our team, especially Justise Winslow, made a concerted effort to get Nurkic the ball in good scoring position. That seems to be a lost art in the NBA now. Lots of teams don't even try to get easy buckets with their centers. Looking at the stats when the win streak started (February 9th) to the end of the season , I expected Anfernee Simons or Josh Hart to have the highest true shooting percentage on the team, but No. It was Jusuf Nurkic at 66%.
The thing is that it's a lost art because it's not smart basketball in the NBA. Why feed your big guy so he can shoot 60% when you have guys who can shoot 35% from three pointers? Why clog the paint with a big guy when you could have the floor stretched and layups be easier? Jokic and Embiid are amazing players that pass and can shoot from deep... and it's still questionable if they're as valuable (dollar for dollar) as top-tier smaller guys. It might just be coincidence that they are at home right now, but it also might speak to the way the teams are constructed. Also, about Golden State: pointing that they drafted Wiseman isn't really relevant. The team is winning in spite of getting NOTHING from him, which just reinforces that top-flight centers aren't needed to succeed. About Ayton: giving up value for him and then paying him like a top-flight center would be a disaster IMO.
My question back would be what was given up to acquire Ayton and Grant? I think Hart would get the Ayton deal done with maybe the Bucks pick. Suns have no leverage and I really think they burned their bridge with Ayton. If they do not trade him, I expect him not to sign with them and walk after next season. I could be wrong. As for Grant, personally I would not give up our 7 for him.
Yep and if the Suns blew it by not getting Ayton involved rather than die by the three which they did.
Is Ayton on a huge max contract worth Hart, the Bucks pick and Nurk walking? I'd say heck no. But who knows with Cronin, maybe its something the Blazers would do.