Honestly, I'm really not interested in addressing a question based on the unspoken fallacious assumption that "cap space" is the only thing sacrificed by over-paying players. If we have learned nothing this off-season (and last), we should understand that lack of financial flexibility and contract immobility severely restrict a franchise's options both in free agency and the trade market, and severely hamper's a GM's ability to remodel, reshape, and tweak a roster as necessary, and can often have unforeseen consequences, such as the undesired departure of a player that has been or could potentially be a significant contributor, or the inability to pursue a player who would, under normal circumstances, be a relatively reasonable target.
The only thing I'd say to counter that is the owner could choose to pay tax and the restrictions wouldn't be as limited. The Blazers aren't flexible right now because they are choosing not to be. They actually do have a decent amount of flexibility if they use the TPEs.
Our current inflexibility is largely a function of the Turner and Leonard 2016 contracts. Moe's contract isn't nearly as onerous and Ezeli is off the books. Our flexibility will be limited until those contracts either expire (summer of 2020), or we somehow pay someone to take them off our hands. Knowing that our cap flexibility is minimal until then, I'm fine with slightly overpaying Nurk for two years, with a 3rd year team option, to keep him and keep him happy and motivated. If we won't have any flexibility anyway, I'd rather maximize what we have than lose Nurk for nothing, or have him sulking and feeling underpaid. Absolute worst case, he doesn't pan out and we decline his option the same time Turner and Meyers (and possibly Moe) come off the books. Best case, Nurk continues to improve and looks like a bargain and we get him at below market value by exercising the 3rd year option. DAL just gave DeAndre Jordan $24 million for one year. So, if Nurk continues to improve, he may very well be a bargain at $15 million three years from now. BNM
Actually when Portland started running the offense through Nurk in game four they played pretty well.
This is completely up to Nurkic at this point. My bet is he takes the QO and goes for Unrestricted Free Agency. Why wouldn't he?
Don't forget the nearly $5M in dead money that we have for Ezeli, Sideshow Andy, & Nicholson (Crabbes remaining contract).
3 yrs. 45 mil./per isn't overpaying a young developing center like Nurk. Jusaf is light years talent-wise ahead of Meyers so there is no need to make Nurkic pay for the sins of Leonard's deal. Nurk will continue to develop and make that contract look brilliant. Hopefully he takes it.
Starting to smell an awful lot like someone in the Bosnian media trying to do Nurk (or perhaps Papa Nurk) a favor. BNM
I believe the answer is that cap space has never netted us a player as good as Nurkic can be. Brian Grant is about the best, and that was a long freakin time ago. Please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.
Modern game you need to score about 130 pts a game to beat the contenders in a series...Grizzlies old school game is history
I don’t like it... Maybe I’m just lame, or getting old or something but I don’t like the 3 point contest teams take a lot of possessions off on defense basketball the NBA has gone towards. I guess it’s more entertaining so that’s what they do, but I think it’s drifted too much towards offense all the time.
If you don't have those weapons the Warriors will run away with every game after halftime...that's the bar to contend
Nurk signed for 4 years 48 mill..4th year partially guaranteed....done...franchise center is Nurk he got some of what we would have paid Ed but deservedly more than Meyers
