The Summer Pick-Up Team Nobody in the NBA Could Beat Interesting article about how competitive the summer pick-up games were at Impact Basketball in Las Vegas back in the summer of 2010. Also an interesting look into the importance of good fundamentals and a high BBIQ. Of course, a team of stars, with proper coaching and time to game plan could rip that team of role players apart. But it also provides insight into why the US struggled for a while at the Olympics by basically sending an all star team, thrown together at the last minute, with no role players to do the little things. BNM
And here's why it's only semi-OT. A few weeks ago, after the Crabbe trade went down, I listed my top 4 targets for replacing Allen Crabbe's shooting. No. 4 on my list was Jared Dudley. Reading that article makes me want him even more. Sure Dudley is old, but he's a career .397 3-point shooter, a better rebounder, much better passer, plays much better defense than Crabbe and is the kind of veteran presence that would help this team in many ways. This guy plays hard and he plays smart. He has such a high BBIQ, I think he'll be a head coach in this league at some point. So, is there anyone here that would object to a Meyers Leonard for Jared Dudley trade? It works salary wise. We could use our TPE to get Dudley, but that would negate half the savings we got from unloading Crabbe's contract. Plus, I'd rather Neil hold onto that TPE, just in case something bigger comes along. Why we do it: All of the above, plus we get rid of Meyers and his contract. This may not happen before the season starts, but perhaps if Meyers has a bit of a bounce back season, shooting wise, maybe PHO takes a chance that a change of scenery will improve his play. Also, right now, PHO only has 3 players taller than 6'8" on their roster. Two are most definitely power forwards and the third, Tyson Chandler, will turn 35-years old before the season starts. Alex Len is an RFA, but hasn't signed an offer sheet. If someone gives him a bigger offer, for more years, than what Meyers is owed, they may just let him walk. They weren't exactly thrilled with him last season anyway - which is why I think they haven't tried to re-sign him, yet. Meyers is 10 years younger than Tyson Chandler, and this isn't the same Tyson Chandler that won a ring in DAL eight years ago. As hard as t his is t believe, in spite of playing fewer minutes last season, Meyers Leonard blocked more shots than Tyson Chandler. I'm not claiming Meyers Leonard is a rim protector. He is not, and that's my point, at this point in his career, neither is Tyson Chandler. He also clearly isn't part of their rebuilding movement. They overpaid to get him when they were making a run at LaMarcus Aldridge two summer ago. Chandler stopped making sense for them the day Aldridge signed in SAS. I'm not proposing a Meyers for Chandler swap. PHO may be stuck with Chandler and his contract, and he can serve as a mentor to the other PHO bigs, even Meyers, but I'm sure they'd rather give Chandler's minutes to someone 10 years younger who fits in better with their rebuilding timeline - maybe even Meyers. With Nurk, Davis, Vonleh, Swanigan and Collins, we need wing help more than bigs at this point. So, I'd definitely do a Meyers for Dudley swap. BNM
We would have to attach picks for them to consider this. Suns in their current shape have no business trying to win so they might be tempted to trade Dudley who doesn't fit into their long term plan but they'd a least want a second rounder to go with it so they can further stock up their team in young talent. This could easily change if they trade for Irving as predicted. They'd suddenly be trying to win now and Dudley would help them.
Sure, why not? I was surprised to see that Jared Dudley ranks in the top 100 in NBA history in several shooting categories. 2FG% = .519, NBA Career Rank: 87th 3FG% = .397, NBA Career Rank: 49th TS% = .578, NBA Career Rank: 58th eFG% = .550, NBA Career Rank: 23rd ORtg = 114.7, NBA Career Rank = 56th The guy can obviously shoot. Combine that with solid team defense and a very high BBIQ, and he's the kind of vet we could really use coming off the bench. Although the sample size is relatively small (but not insignificant), he's always shot the 3 well in the post season (career playoff 3FG% = .456). If we have to throw in a little something to convince PHO to do a Dudley for Meyers swap, I'd be all for it. BNM
I'd gladly throw in a future 2nd round pick if that's what it would take to entice PHO to do a Meyers for Dudley swap. In addition to the Irving possibility, I think the viability of this trade also depends on what happens with Alex Len. If they let him walk as an RFA, they will need anther big body, and while Meyers gets a lot of shit around here, they may think a change of scenery, coaching and role could turn him into a back up 5 to replace Len in that role. If PHO does not get Kyrie, the only real reason to keep Dudley around would be to mentor their young players and they have Tyson Chandler for that. If Neil pulls this off, I think it ends up being a nice, under the radar, off season. He will have shed two of our three worst contracts and will have replaced Crabbe's shooting with a player who is also a better rebounder, better passer, better defender and a veteran leader. We will have basically replaced Crabbe with a better player and completely shed his $19 million salary and all it cost us was Meyers Leonard (who everyone wants gone anyway) and a 2nd round pick - and Neil still has that $12 million trade exception in his back pocket, just in case something worthwhile comes along. BNM
I agree that Dudley would be a nice addition to the roster, providing good shooting and veteran play at a position of need. I have to think that he'd like a chance to play one of his final seasons on a squad that has a decent chance to make the playoffs.
I think it would be a good move for Dudley. I think he would thrive in POR getting the open looks that have been reserved for Crabbe and Aminu the past couple seasons. I think he'd be a great fit in Stotts' system, and great fit both on and off the court. I also think Dudley will have a career, either as a coach or an analyst, after his playing days are over. There will always be opportunities for relatively unathletic guys like Dudley, who carve out long NBA careers based on solid fundamentals and high BBIQ. So, I think he'd welcome a chance to play for Stotts, who many consider one of the top offensive coaches in the game. BNM
He was one of my summer FA targets last year. Really wish NO would have signed him instead of Turner, Crabbe, or Meyers....
We say this because we know Butters. I don't think any of us know what teams may value him. @TBpup does your guy know anything about his worth around the league?
Not necessarily. They are currently in full rebuild mode and have no use for 32-year old Jared Dudley, but with only 3 players taller than 6'8" on their current roster, they need big bodies. They may also believe that with a change of scenery and coaching, Leonard could revert to the player he was two years ago, when he had a rare 50/40/90 season and average 13.9 points and 10.6 rebounds per 36 minutes. And while we think his contract sucks, it's not like he's making Mozgov or Parsons money. Sweetening the deal with a future 2nd round pick may be enough to tempt PHO - especially if Meyers gets off to a decent start and this ends up being a mid-season trade. In addition to the 50/40/90 season, Meyers also shot .457 3FG% during a 37-game stretch from Christmas to mid-March 2016 (when he suffered the season ending shoulder injury). So, it would not be unprecedented for Meyers Leonard to have a hot shooting streak leading up to the trade deadline. If he get's off to a hot start the team benefits as it increases his trade value. I'm not predicting he will, but it's not completely out of the range of possibility. BNM
