So here's a question..just where IS Dwight going? NY will prioritize Noah I'm guessing, and Dallas is going after Whiteside and Conley. Who's going to make Dwight their priority? Milwaukee? Charlotte? Seems like if Portland prioritized him they could probably get him.
Here is how I would do it. Go after the cheapest of the big three first and in this case the one you think you have the best chance of getting; Whiteside. Get an early commitment if at all possible. Then you can go to the other two and say see we already got Whiteside, now we want you. Of course, that doesn't mean you ignore the other two while getting a commitment from Whiteside. I am hoping that Olshey really does have that kind of relationship with agents that they will trust him enough to tell there is no chance to sign their client, and so make it easier to determine a course of action.
Not sure why everyone has suddenly jumped on the Dwight Howard bandwagon. First Call: Horford, second call : Whiteside, 3rd call: Marvin Williams and then I guess howard
I thought Horford was going to stay put with a max 5 year deal....read something about that yesterday. I'd say Whiteside because of his youth, then Howard after he's been wined and dined in New York, Dallas and Miami...if he's greedy we'll find out that way. If Howard wants a basketball culture..he'll come to us.
Don't call Howard. Let the market take care of that one. Call Durant (just to leave a voice mail), then Horford, then Whiteside, then OKC to see if they still want to keep Kanter, then Cole Aldrich, then Milwakee to talk about Monroe, then check back on Howard.
The "first call" was months ago, Olshey has been wooing agents for days. Excited to see what he produces this summer but you can bet Neil has been putting in work for some time. Will be pretty telling if he picks NY (Melo). Pretty lateral move from Houston but who knows maybe he'll believe Rose (Brandon Roy 2.0?) isn't done yet.
The ground work has already been set. Agents have been talked with and interest is KNOWN to N.Olshey and the other GM's. We've let Whiteside's and Howard's agents know that we have significant interest and we know who has interest in us. The phone call is a formality IMO. The pitch and contract agreement is the tough part.
I'm trying to be realistic. I don't think we've got any shot with Durant, and it's unlikely that Horford would come here. I would love to get Whiteside and I'm coming around to the idea of Howard. With that said, I still think we need to upgrade the four spot as well, but I think that would have to be a trade. If we stole Horford, do you think Atlanta would be too bitter to trade us Millsap?
I'm not as high on Whiteside as most. I don't have a good feel for how much Horford would like to come here, but I get the feeling that Olshey may go back to the "couple of guys to bring the floor up" Still feel like Batum could be in play. Especially with the model of needing some flexible defensive guys. Maybe Bazemore or Mbah a Moute.
Batum isnt in play. http://www.blazersedge.com/2016/5/2/11570592/nicolas-batum-exit-interview-charlotte-hornets Multiple reports he wants to stay in charlotte and sign quickly. And that last year was his favorite season so far in the nba because they let him play the way he wanted.
I'd like your real answer. Instead of telling us who you hate all the time, tell us who you like. Tell us who you would go after in free agency. I don't think that question has been answered.
Whiteside. Lower max than Howard and Horford. Fits in the age range of our current core. Miami will have a hard time freeing up the money to make him a max offer. Howard I see as a consolation prize after we let the market play out. No way I'd offer him his max of $30M. Horford I don't see us having any significant chance of landing. If Atlanta wants him back, he most likely will end up there. No need spending time there. If we don't land one of these three, I don't see a real advantage of going fast and strong after additional role players. Our team has great chemistry and plenty of depth mixed with potential. We need to add that last big piece, preferably in the front-court. I'm guessing there won't be a lot of bargains out there with the CAP situation. Probably better to hold on to that cap space and look for trade opportunities. The last thing we want to do is panic and tie up money with bad contracts.
