I'm not so sure. With his spot in the rotation tenuous, and then him getting injured, I think he's finally adopted a "Honey Badger Don't Care" attitude. Last season I think he thought the world was on his shoulders. Hopefully, he continues his new attitude. If we had a big who can shoot while also being able to defend and post up.... wow. If we add a healthy Ezeli to the mix, WC finals, here we come. Of course, these things are premature, but I'm a freaking Blazer Fanatic!!
People are not going to want to hear this...but IMO this is a lost season for Meyers. Shoulder surgery is no joke and he has visibly lost a lot of strength. It is going to take a solid portion of the season for him to get back to where he was physically as he was just cleared to start lifting again I believe. The guy is a nice piece off the bench and gives us different looks to throw at teams. He has his place on the roster...it just may take a couple months for us to see the best of Meyers again. If a big man gets traded this year it's Plumlee IMO. His contract status, continued lack of offensive game and mediocre defense is the weak link in our starting lineup. His passing helps us tremendously but from the looks of it, I think we can get most of what Plumlee offers with the aggregate behind him.
I agree with you on Meyers. He needs a lot more time to even get back to where he was. I don't agree with you on Plumlee. I don't think any other big on our team possesses the skills that Mason offers. He had some very good games in preseason. Way too soon to write him off.
I'm just tired of waiting for Meyers. We have too many talented bigs to waste time on him. Especially once Ezeli is healthy. Plumlee Davis Ezeli Vonleh I would rather see any of those players on the floor over Meyers at this point.
Don't get me wrong, I still like Plumlee and what he adds to the team. His passing from the top of key really opens up our offense. I just think that long-term he can be replaced by the improvement of Vonleh and the versitility we have with playing Meyers, Festus or Davis. If you guys thought the Turner and Meyerse contracts are big...Plumlee's CLEARLY less-talented brother just got 4 years $52M from MIL. Plumlee is easily getting $70M.
This is why I think we trade him before the deadline. He's still on a cheap contract, which makes him easier to move in a package. I still think we're missing a consistent third scorer in the starting lineup. Maybe it's Vonleh eventually. All things considered, if everyone was healthy and playing to their potential, I'd love to see Dame/CJ/Aminu/Vonleh/Ezeli in the starting lineup with Turner/Crabbe/Harkless/Davis to round out the rotation. I think Plumlee/Meyers could be trade bait.
I think this goes to show just how much professionals like GMs, coaches, and scouts see that we don't see. Noah looked like such a bust last year, and a bust of a trade - esp. for an asset like Batum. What the heck did we know? Bupkis. Sure glad Neil and Terry are in charge, and not, say, me, Riverman, and Sly!
Yeah the money is an issue. But I say keep the guys who are the best fit, not who are the easiest to trade. Sure if Plumlee brings in a huge talent that we need more via a trade, do it. But I am not banking on that to happen....because it seldom does. Four centers is a lot. Each one offers something different. But I see where one probably has to go by next summer. Plums has proved to be a healthy center for us. So has Davis. As an old Blazer fan... that is huge. So I lean toward those two. We really need Ezeli's size, so I hope he is the 3rd. But if he is healthy....he will also get a huge contract...the year after Plumlee. The improvement of Vonleh is not going to effect Plumlee, it's going to effect Meyers. Even though they technically play two different positions, Vonleh's ability to also spread the floor could make Meyers's best skill set.....less needed. It sucks for Meyers that he got hurt, but he has this year to get healthy and get better by the playoffs.
An unconfident Noah IS a bust. In this preseason, and now first game of the season, he has been confident. "Leave me open for a long 2 - the worst shot in basketball? Suck it Bitches, Splash Twine." "Leave me open at the 3 point line? Suck it Bitches, Splash Twine." "Single team me in the post? Suck it Bitches, Splash Twine." There is just no way to predict whether someone is going to get there mentally. Frankly, we also don't know if it will last. I believe it will, but that just might be the homer inside me. Darius Miles, for example, was an average/slightly above average player who never got there mentally. If he had....
While I agree with you, it's going to be really hard to stomach something like a 16 million per year contract when we're already paying Meyers and Ezeli 9 million per year each. And as much as I like Plums, he's not a star. He's a really solid glue guy. And before you scoff at 16 million per year, Mozgov got 16 million a year this last summer, and he averaged 6.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 0.4 assists, and 0.8 blocks in 17 minutes per game last season.
It was inevitable that the "new" money would be hard for us to stomach. And although it is a factor, I don't think it should be thee deciding factor on who to keep. For now I say keep the best players and let Neil worry about weeding out the excess contracts. They are all decent players and can eventually be moved. If Paul has to go into the salary cap hell, I doubt it would be for too long.
I think it really depends on how the franchise views Vonleh to be honest. If they see him as a potential 5 like I do, then giving Mason a big contract is a very tough pill to swallow. Let's be honest. Having too much depth and talent is a great problem to have and discuss answers for. I'm excited to see where Olshey goes with the roster because with the amount of talent and versatility we have, he has a LOT of options.
Isn't Pinwheel saying that we would trade Myers, saving $10 million and that chances are Ezeli will be gone after two years (either because he is too good and we won't be able to pay him or he will flame out physically) saving another $8 million? Isn't Pinwheel saying that we would trade Myers, saving $10 million and that chances are Ezeli will be gone after two years (either because he is too good and we won't be able to pay him or he will flame out physically) saving another $8 million? That would free up plenty of money for Plumlee.
Agree on Meyers. Whatever he's going to be, it's not going to be this season. As you said, he's visibly lost muscle, and he looks like he's not ready to be on the court.
Meyers, Plumlee and Harkless for Boogie? This is a pipe Dream but could Mark Gasol be shopped at trade deadline? Brook Lopez? We need to create more playing time for Vonleh. Neil will go for a big time center at trade deadline.
I like where your going, but that isn't enough. Toss Cleveland's 1st in 18' and your getting close though I think.
