I'd be disappointed with acquiring Felton as our starting PG. He's not particularly great at anything. Playmaking, no. Defense, no. Scoring, not bad, but not exceptional. Speed, no. I'd much rather keep Blake. Now if we're talking about as a back up, that sounds cool.
Wallace makes too much sense for this team. He's a perfect 3rd option and is a great rebounder. I don't know how his defense is though. Batum is going to need at least three seasons before he's solid and consistent enough to be depended on full time. Portland is too deep right now and doesn't have enough players ready to stand out above the rest right now. The team needs a better starting team right now, not a huge bench. Starters win in the Playoffs, the bench just helps. The Blazers don't need to be three deep at PG with no one standing out. They don't need to be 3 deep at SF with no one standing out. Sergio, Bayless, Martell, Outlaw, and Frye coming off the bench is just too much. If Wallace can be had without giving up Bayless, Batum or Rudy, Portland should make that move.
I think the current roster easily makes the playoffs, but I wouldn't expect them to win much once they got there.
I really want Crash after sleeping on it. Batum is ONLY 19 years old, no where near touching his prime. I still want to give him minutes, but starting right now shouldn't be an option. Wallace is near his prime and he could mentor Nicolas. G Wallace would be a perfect 3rd fiddle on this team. I think he could be had with a combo of RLEC, (Marty/OUtlaw), Frye, Sergio, Blake, 1st rounder. This move would not hinder our future, and still make us better now! Please get it done KP!
This team can make the playoffs this year. They wont go past the first round but that is plenty for where we are in the development of this team. That said... Bayless needs to see time. This kid can get to the basket and will D up PG's like Davis much better than Blake will. He can take some of the pressure off of Roy and will get to the line. Letting Bayless rot on the bench shows why if any changes need to happen they may need to be with the coach! Nate needs to let his talent show. Batum needs to not be pulled out any more so Travis can shoot wild shots, Bayless needs time and get the ball into Greg!! The rest will handle itself.
The one player that would REALLY help is Caron Butler. He still has a lot left in him and by the time he declines Batum will be more than ready.
I disagree that we're shallow at PF. Frye is a top-15 bench power forward and Outlaw can play there, too. I didn't say don't make a trade. I did say don't go out of your way to "get Roy help". I'd love to get Gerald Wallace because I think that he'd help in both the short and long runs. I am 100% opposed to getting a short-term solution at the cost of long-term assets. Ed O.
That right there is the core of the problem. While I am less optimistic about the current team than you are, I really hope the team doesn't overpay just to add experience. The one exception would be the RLEC. I consider the free agent market a poor way to improve a team, so I would rather use that contract to "rent" someone like Andre Miller, as opposed to turning it into cap space.
