Obviously Aldridge, Batum, Lillard. Matthews too, I guess. Leonard as well, which I wouldn't've guessed before the season. Claver too, so long as he doesn't want to bail. But for me, that's about it. I like JJ, and he's our surest source of highlight dunks, but he's so god-awful a defender at C, and hasn't really looked good as an Aldridge-stand-in when LA's out, so I wouldn't cry if he wasn't back. Maynor has been pretty solid, but I want a backup PG who can play lockdown defense, and he's not that. My biggest disappointment has probably been Will Barton. I really wanted him to be great, but he just looks like a streetballer. After that it would have to be Freeland. I went from hoping he'd be a poor man's David Lee to hoping he could be a poor man's Nick Collison, to giving up hope. He's less athletic than I thought and he has a bad case of Rex arms that make him very dunk-on-able. I'm kind of hoping that CSKA Moscow or somebody offers him big money to come back to Europe, but I fear we're stuck with him. Babbitt I actually thought was turning into a decent contributor. But then he went back to the bench and never returned. What did he do? He was never a defender of any sort, but if Steve Novak can carve out a useful NBA career, I don't see why Babbitt can't. Still, I wouldn't miss him if he was gone. Nolan. Sigh. Let's pass over him in silence. The sooner he's gone, the sooner we forget he was chosen over Faried. Also E-Will. No more bad knees, please. In general, I wouldn't mind a major purge. I've got a bad taste in my mouth than needs washing away.
Babbit's prob was he was supposed to be a shooter but he shot far to many blanks, if that is all he can do then he damn well better be very good at it - he was miles from that
I really have a hard time understanding people thinking like this. How is he not a keeper, there is no one in FA we could get to replace him at his salary. Very few SG's seem to be good on defense these days and Mathews is one of those and he shoots damn near 40% from three. He isn't irreplaceable but that wasn't the question. Grabbing a high potential SG in the draft is a good idea but there is no reason to actively try and replace him.
As much as I hate to say it; I think he's gone. I think we have out bet on Lillard, batum and Aldridge. Matthews is our biggest trading asset. I think management deals him.
I don't think you get a legit Center for him so not sure what you would trade him for. I guess if you added a 1st round pick too but we can't trade ours this year (without picking for the other team and that is very rare) and next year's is also tied up.
Don't know if you guys see this as well, but Matthews just hasn't 'looked right' to me. He doesn't move smoothly on the court - like he's 'broken down' or carrying some lingering low-key injuries. That wouldn't be surprising, given his tendency to play through smaller injuries, but they may have come at a price. Hell, the guys not that old, but he sure does move like an older player. I love the commitment and passion that Matthews brings, but maybe we should 'trade high' on him as he's coming off of a good shooting season. He just doesn't look right on the court to me, and being so young he''ll only get worse as his body ages. If Matthews is here long term, then i'd like to see him come in to camp quite a bit lighter. I think his current build is too 'stocky', slows him down and possibly contributes to his ongoing ankle problems.
Could be. I'm not sure. As I've posted before--He looks like a football player. He isn't the tallest NBA guard, but may be the widest. In 1980, he would have played at forward. The NBA had numerous SFs his size.
To me, the only true lock to be kept is Damian. Batum would be 2nd. I really think it's time to question whether trading LA is the way to go or not - but that's for another conversation. In discussing moving the roster forward, I think it's perhaps a little more valuable to look at things based on what you have based on what role they'll play (example: obviously Will Barton is not a "keep" as our starting SG but if he's a developmental 5th G, it's more reasonable.) PG: Lillard, ??? - Maynor's a great backup, but he's obviously not the easiest to lock into a roster spot at this time SG: ???, Matthews, Barton - In the short term, Wes is fine as a SG, but both for the longevity of his career and to take us to the next level, probably need a younger 2 to compliment Dam. SF: Batum, ???, Claver - Nic's not going anywhere, can Claver be a full-time backup 3, or do we need another guy here? PF: LMA, ???, Claver, Freeland - same question on Claver at the 4 - can he be a reliable backup? I personally think Freeland can make big strides this offseason to become a serviceable backup 5th big. C: ???, Leonard, Freeland - Longterm, Meyers will take a good share of these minutes. The big question is if we need another guy here or if we roll w/ him. Semi-sidenote, LMA doesn't like playing "Center", but if we could put together an uptempo (Maynor, Lillard, Batum, Claver, Aldridge?) unit where he as a "Power Forward" was the biggest guy on the court, taking advantage of his speed, would he change his tune some? I, I think more than most, think we can get away with our guys and possibly a draft pick @ C... So where are the question marks? -Backup PG can be filled w/ Maynor pretty easily if we want to. -Long-term answer at SG to pair w/ Dame - Mayo? JR Smith? Rookie? Worth considering a "half and half" stopgap veteran type option like Iguodala? (Adding Iggy could solve the next ? as well...) -Backup SF - figure Batum takes ~34 mins and a still developing Claver can handle another ~5 or so at SF. Probably leaves 1 more roster spot-worth of minutes at SF. Again, I think Iggy fits well here. -Backup PF- Like the SG/SF issues, I think 1 answer can satisfy our PF/C issues. Draft a guy with enough size/length/bulk to play a serviceable ~5-8 mins at C and with enough mobility to do the same at PF and I think we're set with LMA, Claver, Meyers and Freeland.
Absolutely; but will management trade him? Personally; and not homer talking; no way they deal him. So Matthews is the next player. I would say batum; but I think he's held at the same regard as Aldridge too.
Wes is too old long term next to Damian, so you propose Mayo, who is only a year younger than Wes, or JR Smith, who is actually a year older? Makes sense. Wes is only 4 years older than Damian is. I don't think it's necessary to find someone the exact same age who can play alongside him for 10 years. I'm all for upgrading any and every position. But not just because someone doesn't fit a perceived window.
Wes is not to old to be next to Damian. Look at Joe Johnson and Deron Williams or how about Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili and so on.
Lillard and Aldridge are really the only true building blocks. That's a formidable 1/2. Everyone else can be had for right price to try and find that #3 guy
With his injury history and our luck... i'd pass. He has a max deal and hasn't shown he can stay healthy for the last several seasons.
