Trail of Tears

Discussion in 'Portland Trail Blazers' started by TBpup, Feb 6, 2020.

  1. TBpup

    TBpup Writing Team

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    The Summer of 2016

    Without getting too much into how good or bad Neil is as a GM, especially when it comes to offering or signing FAs, I wanted to look back at the complete fallout and butterfly effect of that Summer where the Blazers spent a fortune on players that, well, to be honest, haven't worked out very well.

    Allen Crabbe - Signed for 4 years/$76,000,000. The following year was traded for Andrew Nicholson and a large TPE. The Blazers will be paying for Nicholson's 'stretched salary till 2024.

    Evan Turner - Signed for 4 years/$70,000,000. Played for the Blazers for 3 years before being traded to the Atlanta Hawks for Kent Bazemore. Bazemore was subsequently traded for Ariza. (assuming the smaller parts were traded for each other) Ariza is nearing 35 years old and has a non-guaranteed salary of $12,800,000 for next year.

    Maurice Harkless - Signed for 4 years/$40,000,000 after Blazers had already signed Turner and Crabbe.
    Meyers Leonard - Signed for 4 years/$41,000,000. Later combined with Maurice Harkless to acquire Hassan Whiteside.

    So in total, Crabbe, Turner, Harkless and Leonard were signed for a grand total of $227,000,000. In addition, they will be paying Andrew Nicholson's contract at a rate of $2,844,429 for the next 5 years. To be fair, they were able to unload Crabbe for basically nothing at the cost of paying off Nicholson. So some money was saved there but still a waste of that money to begin with.

    Out of all of that money spent, Portland is left with a nearing 35 year old Trevor Ariza and Hassan Whiteside. Ariza is a nice piece but isn't in anyone's long term plans, and it remains to be seen if Portland can resign Whiteside to a much lower amount that he is currently making or S&T him this Summer for another asset. They could possibly just let him go which would give Portland a little cap room this Summer.....but we've seen how that Cap Room money works out in the past.

    In the meantime, this roster has ben Cap-strapped with the consequences of those contracts while Dame's prime years have been passing by. Injuries hurt this year, but those were terrible contracts to marginal players to begin with and Portland is still left dealing with the fallout.
     
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  2. wizenheimer

    wizenheimer Well-Known Member

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    you forgot Ezeli and you forgot CJ's extension

    essentially, Olshey spent 340M dollars and not an all-star in sight, and 230M was spent on 2nd string players
     
    Last edited: Feb 6, 2020
  3. PtldPlatypus

    PtldPlatypus Let's go Baby Blazers! Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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  4. TBpup

    TBpup Writing Team

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    Didn't forget, just didn't include Ezeli because it was a 1-year contract and his ghost never suited up. But at least it was a 1-year deal. Who put a gun to Neil's head signing all of those scrubs for the full 4 years? How about staggering them out so you have an ending contract every year for years '18,'19'and '20? CJ was the natural extension of a rookie contract. That was fine. It was the next one that is the bigger issue. Dame/CJ will be over $85,000,000 in the final year of their contracts. Holy Boat Anchor!!
     
  5. Neil O. Shyster

    Neil O. Shyster Well-Known Member

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    There are fans who are calling for sweeping changes. Do you think the roster needs tweaking or significant changes?

    “The same people that wanted sweeping changes last year?”


    (Questioner responds: I don't know. I don't know them personally. I just hear from them all the time)

    "Right. Great. Well, last year was going to take sweeping changes because we got swept by Golden State in the first round and all the alarmists overreacted.
    .
    .
    .
    "But this idea that (we need) sweeping changes. Where were all these people that wanted sweeping changes 10 days ago? Where were they? They were the ones bouncing off the walls in the Moda Center when we got the third seed .
    .
    .
    .
    Relative to people back in December who were complaining that we weren't going to make the playoffs and we were in purgatory because we weren't going to make the playoffs and we weren't going to pick high enough. Right? That was the rallying cry. Then it was, 'Oh my God. They're going to blow the third seed because they're going to lose all these games. They're not even going to get home court advantage.' They overreacted to that.”

    Man, the disdain this guy has for the fans in Portland. He thinks we are all beneath him. I will never forget that exit interview.
     
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  6. HailBlazers

    HailBlazers RipCity

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    Who is Torey Jones and why should I value his opinion?
     
  7. tlongII

    tlongII Legendary Poster

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    I believe he has a very popular podcast.
     
  8. CupWizier

    CupWizier Well-Known Member

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    lol. I was going to ask the same question. Never heard of him as an NBA insider.
     
  9. CupWizier

    CupWizier Well-Known Member

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    Fast forward to 2030 and Neil Olshey is gone and tbpup starts a thread rehashing what happened back in 2016. Some people just need to learn to move forward instead of always looking over their shoulder.
     
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  10. PtldPlatypus

    PtldPlatypus Let's go Baby Blazers! Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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    Ignore the opinion; focus on the facts.
     
  11. SIeepwalker

    SIeepwalker The lone sane poster

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    Fucking disgraceful
     
  12. Eastoff

    Eastoff But it was a beginning.

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    @BonesJones
     
  13. SIeepwalker

    SIeepwalker The lone sane poster

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    I think you are mixing up "opinion" and "facts".

    But I'm the foreigner here, I must just be misunderstanding the words
     
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  14. wizenheimer

    wizenheimer Well-Known Member

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    you don't need to be an NBA insider to do math
     
  15. CupWizier

    CupWizier Well-Known Member

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    huh? How am I mixing up opinion and fact? How is me asking who Torey Jones is either an opinion or a fact?
     
  16. PtldPlatypus

    PtldPlatypus Let's go Baby Blazers! Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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    Precisely. Fact is, the real-dollar amount saved by shipping Skal off to ATL is less than the real-dollar tax cost for this season alone of acquiring the pick 5 years ago that eventually resulted in Skal's presence on the roster in the first place.
     
  17. Hoopguru

    Hoopguru Well-Known Member

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    Even Riley has taken several years since James left to get back to respectability.
     
  18. PtldPlatypus

    PtldPlatypus Let's go Baby Blazers! Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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    Riley hasn't had anyone close to Dame's caliber.
     
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  19. SIeepwalker

    SIeepwalker The lone sane poster

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    Yeah alright. I guess I won't talk with about about a topic involving Bones because I know you hate him with a passion and become insufferable in any discussion remotely involving him (Or sometime you even just bring him up out of nowhere because apparently he lives in your head)
     
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  20. Hoopguru

    Hoopguru Well-Known Member

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    i would agree, but why? He had plenty of draft picks. And he's got Butler now.
     

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