Do we own the bird rights to Barnes? I assume we do with MP. Point being that if we do have those rights, then they both potentially become (sign and) trade chips.
I thought Bird rights were only for the drafting team... GS drafted Pietrus, so maybe there, but Barnes was FA in camp, I don't think he came with Bird rights... not sure though. Good point, though, it would be wiser to s&t Pietrus rather than take him on at the MLE when financially that would mean not being able to sign Monta/Beans in the future. I'd much rather keep Barnes. Pietrus is the sentimental favorite, the crowd loves him and he's got that youthful sense of humor. But Barnes is more of a winner that will help your team in the playoffs. Sure he had some mental breakdowns this post season, but C'Mon! this was a guy who wasn't even on a team, he comes out of nowhere and helps you get to the second round of the playoffs? That's impressive. If we could get Gasol somehow, that would be awesome. I think what SJax and AL have done most is bring an attitude to this team, and I think without them, this team might lose that 4th quarter, crunch time mentality. I know Jax had a rough series vs. Utah, but he was the best player for either team in the Dallas series (well, he and Baron). Jax was simply amazing at both ends of the floor. Gawd, can you imagine if we still had Dunleavy / Murphy? That would be AWFUL. So, I don't trade Baron, JRich, Jax, Monta, or Beans. I can part with AL if it doesn't hurt chemistry, and Pietrus, Barnes (though I wouldn't mind keeping him), Foyle, etc In other words, there aren't really any blockbuster trades out there, unless you give up the prospects. Better to hope you get a strong PF in draft, or trade draft pick along with Foyle/Pietrus to get something back.
<div class="quote_poster">Kwan1031 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">So, in my opinion, we have 4 ways to improve the team. 1. Blockbuster trade involving Richardson, Harrington, Monta and extras. 2. Trade Harrington + extra for better PF (unlikely). 3. Get lucky in the draft. 4. Find another Boykins, Cardinals and Barnes. Other than that, I don’t think we can improve our club that much…</div> Agree with that assessment. If I'm Mullin I'd try to see what a J-Rich, Harrington + extras package would get us. You have to love those guys for their heart but they have a lot of holes in their respective games and they both have some pretty large contracts. I think/hope Monta will emerge as a near-star SG next season and can get the scoring and up to J-Rich level while having better penetration, defensive, and passing ability. I would only trade J-Rich for a big or at least a player who is a damned good rebounder. Losing Richardson, Barnes, and Pietrus would make our already horrible rebounding significantly worse. If KG or Pau is available I'd gladly offer JR, Harrington and POB or our 07 1st, then go from there if they get better offers. I wouldn't be surprised if Nellie trades an Andris Biedrins in order to get a KG type player either. Trading Harrington for a better PF is probably unlikely like you said but there might be some teams out there who do want him. A team like Chicago maybe who is desperate for scoring and will have a hole at PF after this offseason (S&T Nocioni?). Again, its worth it just to shop him around and gauge his value around the league. I think we can get a good role player through the draft. At #18 in this year's draft IMO the prospects are better than 9 in last year's draft. For big men you've got potentially Jason Smith, Tiago Splitter, Josh McRoberts available. Never seen Smith play but he sounds like a Murphy clone; crafty on offense on the perimiter, no inside game, decent rebounder. Splitter sounds like Biedrins without the shotblocking, though I've never seen him play. McRoberts, though I'm not a big fan of him, could be a damned good PF in Nellie ball because hes a great ball handler and passer for his size, runs the floor well, can block some shots but has no back to the basket game, poor defense (though hes a capable shotblocker), and isn't a dominating rebounder. If McRoberts developed a jumpshot and/or post game he'd be lethal, especially in an open floor game. At SG/SF guys like Thad Young, Nick Young, Marcus Williams could possibly be available. Thad Young was a highly touted freshman who had a good season, was overshadowed by Oden and Durant. Nick Young is a guy I like a lot. Hes a great mid-range scorer with a great fadeaway and turn around jumpshot and hes also got range out to 3 pt and ability to penetrate and finish. Hes a good rebounder and decent defender. Marcus Williams I haven'[t seen a lot of but he seems like Stephen Jackson with worse defense; tall, lanky SG/SF, good court vision, can penetrate but is just an average finisher, good shooter. At 18 we could also get another legit PG. Here I like Acie Law and Javaris Crittenton. Law is an NBA-ready type of PG, a senior out of Texas A&M. Hes a very good scorer with great ability to penetrate and score inside as well as hit the outside shot consistently. One of Law's best qualities is his leadership and awesome performance in crunch time, watching him in big situations reminds me of Kobe Bryant; you can't give him even the most insane of shots because somehow he'll hit it. Hes got decent court vision but hes not great in that area. Crittenton on the other hand is an outstanding Fr. PG from Ga. Tech. Hes got very good court vision and great athleticism, can get to the rim well. Did I mention hes 6'5? I didn't because I actually dislike tall PGs because of their lack of success in the NBA, especially tall PGs who lack a good jumpshot (necessity for a PG IMO) and Crittenton doesn't have a very good jumper at this point. Still, he'd be a great high potential pick with his legit court vision and he'd be great to pair with Monta in the backcourt for the future. In round 2 I'd look at Alando Tucker is hes available (think Desmond Mason or Bonzi wells), Dominic McGuire who is like a Barnes type of player or I'd take a flyer on a big like Herbert Hill, Sean Williams, DeVon Hardin, Glenn Davis, etc. As for finding another Cardinal, Boykins, Barnes, etc. We've already got one waiting in the wings in Azubuike. He'd be dumb to leave if Barnes and Pietrus walk this offseason because he'd be a rotation player and could greatly boost his value around the league. Hes a guy who can shoot, penetrate, play defense, and rebound. The only problem I see with him replacing Barnes/Pietrus is that he'll struggle defending PFs while Pietrus and Barnes were tall enough to hold their own. He is a lot smarter than those two though.
LOL you guys. I'll try to keep it short, but I promise nothing! <div class="quote_poster">AlleyOop Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I thought Bird rights were only for the drafting team... GS drafted Pietrus, so maybe there, but Barnes was FA in camp, I don't think he came with Bird rights... not sure though. </div> Yeah, Bird Rights are for those with rookie scale contracts. Usually, this means the drafting team has those rights unless they traded them away. Those players with bird rights have it so the team they are on have the option match any offer from opposing teams until it reaches the maximum length. So bidding wars, can definitely lead to overpaying... and not everyone has the free cap to overpay unless via sign and trade. This prevents teams from trying to jack up the price but never intending to pay unless they want to make a mistake and really screw their pay roll and their talent base up. <div class="quote_poster">AlleyOop Wrote</div><div class="quote_post"> Good point, though, it would be wiser to s&t Pietrus rather than take him on at the MLE when financially that would mean not being able to sign Monta/Beans in the future. I'd much rather keep Barnes. Pietrus is the sentimental favorite, the crowd loves him and he's got that youthful sense of humor. But Barnes is more of a winner that will help your team in the playoffs. Sure he had some mental breakdowns this post season, but C'Mon! this was a guy who wasn't even on a team, he comes out of nowhere and helps you get to the second round of the playoffs? That's impressive. If we could get Gasol somehow, that would be awesome. I think what SJax and AL have done most is bring an attitude to this team, and I think without them, this team might lose that 4th quarter, crunch time mentality. I know Jax had a rough series vs. Utah, but he was the best player for either team in the Dallas series (well, he and Baron). Jax was simply amazing at both ends of the floor. Gawd, can you imagine if we still had Dunleavy / Murphy? That would be AWFUL. So, I don't trade Baron, JRich, Jax, Monta, or Beans. I can part with AL if it doesn't hurt chemistry, and Pietrus, Barnes (though I wouldn't mind keeping him), Foyle, etc In other words, there aren't really any blockbuster trades out there, unless you give up the prospects. Better to hope you get a strong PF in draft, or trade draft pick along with Foyle/Pietrus to get something back.</div> I think the best option is to captailize on the "rich getting richer". Since we're pretty rich now, we could take the player that teams wish they picked if they hadn't gambled stupidly on a big player that does nothing important. Just think if the Sonics had picked guys that were ready to play right now and had some upside than guys like Petro or that other dude that played in the Belgian Waffle league. Think about guys like Josh Howard, Carlos Boozer, Tayshaun Prince, Ryan Gomes, or Delonte West. Guys that could do things for us now because they had college coaches that paid attention to them and developed them. We could have those players and most importantly find guys that could adapt well at both ends of the floor. I'm not down on Euros so much, but I'm saying that some of these pro teams probably don't focus on the young kids like they do in college. That coaching is so important because if they are well coached in college, that means less work the warriors have to do to get them ready to play. Either that or find the next world beating prodigy 19 year old who didn't need much coaching.
If a player stays with the same club for 3 years, he gets bird right. If one player stays with team A for 2.5 years, and gets traded to team B for 0.5 years, team B still obtains bird right. In another word, if a player signs 3 years deal (doesn't have to be rookie), that player will get a bird right, like most first round rookie. For Barnes case, we do not have a bird right, because he only stayed with us for one year...
<div class="quote_poster">Kwan1031 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">If a player stays with the same club for 3 years, he gets bird right. If one player stays with team A for 2.5 years, and gets traded to team B for 0.5 years, team B still obtains bird right. In another word, if a player signs 3 years deal (doesn't have to be rookie), that player will get a bird right, like most first round rookie. For Barnes case, we do not have a bird right, because he only stayed with us for one year...</div> Really? I thought it had to be rookie scale contract to have bird rights on it because lottery teams who drafted certain guys would get screwed over if the rookies left for another team. Now if teams don't exercise the third year option on the rookie contract then they lose the bird rights, similar to what happened to Michael Olowakandi. Oh well, I'll have to look up the revised cba again.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Really? I thought it had to be rookie scale contract to have bird rights on it because lottery teams who drafted certain guys would get screwed over if the rookies left for another team. Now if teams don't exercise the third year option on the rookie contract then they lose the bird rights, similar to what happened to Michael Olowakandi. Oh well, I'll have to look up the revised cba again.</div> I'm not positive but I thought Olowakandi used the fifth year option, that made him an unrestricted free agent after that year.
<div class="quote_poster">Gohn Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I'm not positive but I thought Olowakandi used the fifth year option, that made him an unrestricted free agent after that year.</div> Hmmm... you know I'm not even clear on that anymore. I thought it had to do something with the clippers and not extending his rookie deal and therefore the team let the contract run out for another year or two or so after the third year option was declined and he was a restricted free agent at the 5th year? Okay... so he was drafted in '98-99 by the clippers 99-00 sophmore year 00-01 third year (team option year) 01-02 fourth year 02-03 signs with the T-wolves in July. Man, I don't even know how this works anymore. The CBA is a mystery to me.
^I just looked it up. He played for the clippers from 98-99 to 02-03. I'm not sure how the CBA works now, but I do remember how the rookie contracts worked back then. Now I think it is changed, a bit, because I remember Diogu getting his option picked up for year 3, which was strange to me (used to be for the fourth year). It used to be that rookies got a 3 year contract, with a team option for a fourth year, after which they became a restricted free agent. But there was also an option for a fifth year, I think this is player option (maybe? I'm not to clear on it). If this fifth year option is taken, then the player becomes an unrestricted free agent. That is what happened with Olowokandi. I think Melvin Ely has the same situation with the Bobcats this year.
<div class="quote_poster">Gohn Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">It used to be that rookies got a 3 year contract, with a team option for a fourth year, after which they became a restricted free agent. But there was also an option for a fifth year, I think this is player option (maybe? I'm not to clear on it). If this fifth year option is taken, then the player becomes an unrestricted free agent. That is what happened with Olowokandi. I think Melvin Ely has the same situation with the Bobcats this year.</div> I'm not sure but maybe you mean the qualifying offer? After a rookie's contract runs out they are restricted free agents but their team can offer them the qualifying offer and if they take it I believe the year after they are unrestricted. And FWIW Ely is on the Spurs now though his contract situation should be the same.
On a side note for next season -- at least FA players will finally WANT to come to Golden State for a change. That's a bonus.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I'm not sure but maybe you mean the qualifying offer? After a rookie's contract runs out they are restricted free agents but their team can offer them the qualifying offer and if they take it I believe the year after they are unrestricted. </div> Yeah, I think that's it, the qualifying offer.
Wow, you guys got an early jump on talking about next season. I agree that the top priority is finding a bulky power forward. Dallas was the perfect team for the Warriors to exploit because they didn't have any interior beef. Utah was the perfect team to exploit the Warriors because they had three guys who were too big for the Warriors to handle. The goal of the off season should be twofold: A) Get bigger at power forward/improve rebounding Fix the cap situation so the Warriors can re-sign Ellis and Biedrins. Here's what I would do this offseason if I were Mullin: <u>1. Buy out Foyle</u> Foyle has essentially two years left on his contract (third is a team option) where he makes 8.9 and 9.8 mil per year. Typically contracts are bought out at around 50% of the contract value. The cap number to a team is then reduced by a pro rata amount for the length of what the contract would have been. So, basically, if the Warriors bought Foyle out for around 9.5 mil, then the hit to their salary cap would be reduced to about 4.4 and 4.9 for the next two years. That money can be used as a cushion against the luxury tax when drafting players the next two years and/or signing anyone to the mid level exception. <u>2. Re-sign Barnes</u> This is sort of the make it or break it issue for Mullin. Clearly, Barnes has demonstrated that he can thrive in Nelson's system. In theory, the types of things he has done this year, he should be able to do for any other team. The biggest revelation between all previous seasons and this season for Barnes has been his three point shooting. He's certainly better suited for a small ball, fast paced line up, but he should be effective in any system. However, he's also a one year wonder. I don't see any reason why he shouldn't duplicate the success he had this year. He's not a one trick pony that defenses could shut down if they wanted to, and he doesn't have any deficiencies on defense that are covered up by any of the Warrior defenders. He's a rugged sf defender who can also guard smaller pfs. So there are two questions: A) how much are teams willing to pay him and is Barnes looking to get security this year, or does he want to go for a bigger pay day a year or two down the line? A) Given the fact that the Warriors have had two previous one year wonders (Boykins and Cardinal) who got big paydays after playing for the Warriors and didn't really pan out after signing the big contracts, GM's have to be wary of giving Barnes a similar contract. However, the other two put up good stats on bad teams, Barnes started a few games for the team that knocked off Dallas. It'll be interesting to see whether teams decide to take a chance on Barnes. I could see a team offering nearly all their mid level exception for Barnes (I'd be surprised to see him get the full mid level) and give him 4/5 years. If I were Mullin, I'd either give him a two year/8 mil deal OR give him a 3 year/ 11 mil deal with a team option for a fourth year. If Barnes wants that fourth year option to be a player option, then make it a 3 year/9 deal. I really don't know. Barnes hired Dan Fegan as his agent, so negotiations are going to be tough. Mullin has a history of giving into player demands, so if the Warriors do re-sign Barnes, it's probably going to be for more than any of us are happy with. <u>3. What to do with Pietrus</u> Before I go into this, I'll offer the disclaimer that I've never really been a fan of Pietrus. He's got a low basketball IQ and has not improved his game in a single area since he was drafted. I'd prefer to have Barnes over Pietrus right now, and I'd probably definitely prefer to have Barnes of Pietrus in two years, because I expect Barnes to keep improving. The Warriors don't need to keep both, but they do need to keep one. If I were Mullin, I'd try and re-sign Barnes as soon as I can while letting the market set Pietrus' value. If Barnes doesn't sign with the Warriors, by the time Pietrus signs an offer sheet with another team, Mullin is going to be in a bind. If I were him in that situation, I'd let Pietrus go, figuring that Nelson has found so many diamonds in the rough that he should be able to do it next training camp. If the Warriors lose Barnes, I'm ok with re-signing Pietrus, but I wouldn't give him more than the mid level exception for three or four years. <u>4. The Draft</u> There's a lot of talent in this draft, and the Warriors should be able to find immediate contributors with both the #18 and #36 pick. At #18 my draft board would be the following: 1. Jason Smith 2. Tiago Splitter 3. Thad Young I'd prefer to have Tiago Splitter over Smith, but the fact that Splitter still has doesn't have an option to buy out of his contract this year, and has a significant buyout tag next year is enough to scare me off. He's just what the Warriors need though: big, athletic, can rebound, block shots, and run the floor. I like Smith, even though he reminds me a lot of Murphy, because he should fit into the Warriors system. The big if with him is whether he's too soft. The Warriors need a big guy with a mean streak. Now, if Joakim Noah were to free fall once teams get scared off by his jump shot or the fact that he may not be able to add enough muscle to hold his own in the post, then I would be thrilled if Mullin could trade up 8 spots or so to snag him (probably cost this year's #1 and O'Bryant). I fell in love with Yi Jianlian two months ago when the Warriors lost six straight, but I recognize he's just a pipe dream....(he'd be perfect though...sigh...) At #36 is where I think the Warriors can really address their needs at pf. There are two guys in particular that I keep thinking about: Glen "Big Baby" Davis and Sean "I'm a pothead" Williams. They both have huge question marks, but either could become the next diamond in the rough for the Warriors. The downside is that it costs about 1.5 mil to find out. Davis would be that Paul Milsap type player the Warriors need, provided that he can drop down to around 260-270 and stay there. Williams, provided that a light bulb goes on for him and he realizes he can either make millions in the NBA or join Ricky Williams in the "We threw our careers away so we could get high" Hall of Fame. I see Williams as the pf/c equivalent of Stephen Jackson: highly skilled, highly emotional, highly volatile player that needs to be in the right situation to keep him focused. We'll have a much better idea about the draft in two months, keep this in the back of your mind: the Warriors will get more production out of their second round pick next year than their first round pick. My bet is he breaks the 8/9 man rotation by the end of the season, whoever he is. <u>5. Trades</u> I really don't see the need to make any trades, unless Mullin/Nelson think someone like Reggie Evans can be as or more successful in this system than he is in Denver. If that were the case, then I could see them doing a sign and trade of Pietrus for Evans. This actually makes sense given the strong play of Nene to end the year and Denver's log jam of big men. How's that for long...
Great post wtwalker. I think you're right on about the Foyle buyout. Apparently Mullin was working to buy him out earlier this year but nothing went through. It came up briefly right before we made the POs as well but Foyle said that they'd deal with it after the season so it wouldn't be a distraction. I think the buyout will happen like you said and that will save us around 4 mils/year over the next 2 years. Another probable bit of cap relief should come with Sarunas opting out or being traded. Hes made it clear that its not smart on either his part or the Warriors part to be paying a 3rd string PG (at best) 4 mils. He has an opt out clause but it sounds like he'll wait to see if Mullin can move him first before opting out. His contract may have some value in a larger deal because its expiring or he can even opt out immediately after being traded for instant cap relief to whoever we move him to. If hes gone in addition to Foyle thats an 8 mil cushion we've got right there. As for re-signing Barnes. I would only do so if the price is right. Its hard to gauge what kind of offers he'll receive right now but like you said he could get a big contract from some team a la Cardinal and Boykins. I don't have much doubt that he'll go to whoever gives him the biggest contract though. I think he does really love playing here under Nellie and with a bunch of players hes close with but hes been making the minimum his whole career, hes 27 years old and just hired Fegan; he'll definitely try to cash in on one fat, long term contract (and I don't blame him) before hes over the hill. I hope Mullin just lets him test the market and then decides if he wants to use the MLE to match, because I think Barnes will definitely come back if we offered an equal contract to whoever he highest bidder is. I would also pursue Nocioni and Gerald Wallace this offseason. They're both PFs in an SF body, can rebound, play defense, and score. If we do get some cap relief from Foyle and Sarunas leaving then they'd be big upgrades over Barnes/Pietrus. Wallace had a great season on a bad team averaging 18/7/1 bpg, hes still only 24 but hes injury prone so that will deflate his value and the Bobcats have been reluctant to give him any half decent contract. Nocioni is just a tough hustle guy who can rebound and play defense as well as score well when set up.
Being unrestricted FA and having a bird right is two different things. Kandi became unrestricted FA, but that doesn't mean Clippers didn't hold his bird right. The reason teams have bird right for rookies is because previous rookie contracts for 1st rounder guranteed 3 years contract. For Kandi's case, his first three years are guaranteed. The team has an option to extend his contract in 4th year. After 4th year, 1st rounder becomes restricted FA. At that time, the team may resign a rookie or offer 1 year qualifying offer. If the player accept qualifying offer, he cannot be traded for that year, and he becomes unrestricted FA at the end. Right now, two years are guaranteed for first rounder, and the team has an option for both 3rd and 4th year. Fifth year is the same...
I don't think Foyle will accept buyout worth around 10 millions, since he can collect nearly 20 millions by just sitting at the bench for two years. Warriors tried to buy out Foyle's contract a year ago at 75% of his contract worth. But Foyle refused. So, I don't think he will give us 50% discount. I think Barnes are out to get nice contract. He will at least get MLE, and with our financial situation, I don't think we can match that. Good thing about Pietrus is that he didn't exactly ignite his value during PO. So, if we give qualifying offer, he may bite it. If somebody actually offer MLE or something similar, we should let him go...
<div class="quote_poster">Kwan1031 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I don't think Foyle will accept buyout worth around 10 millions, since he can collect nearly 20 millions by just sitting at the bench for two years. Warriors tried to buy out Foyle's contract a year ago at 75% of his contract worth. But Foyle refused. So, I don't think he will give us 50% discount. I think Barnes are out to get nice contract. He will at least get MLE, and with our financial situation, I don't think we can match that. Good thing about Pietrus is that he didn't exactly ignite his value during PO. So, if we give qualifying offer, he may bite it. If somebody actually offer MLE or something similar, we should let him go...</div> Ah, Foyle sucks. The least he could do is at least pretend like he might be needed, and at least pretend to prepare himself to play. Everytime I go to a game, during warm-ups he's shooting fade-away threes for airballs, or doing "Baron Davis" type spin moves and hitting all backboard with his prayer lay-ups, just basically acting like a little kid instead of getting ready to play. I've never seen him come out to warm-ups and work on free throws, baby hooks, or other fundamental warm-ups that will get him ready to play his game. Even during game 3 of the playoffs, while Matt Barnes and others were trying to warm-up, Foyle and Sarunas were having a half-court shot competition, which lasted for like 15 minutes. You could see it was a nuisance to all the players who actually WANTED to take their multi-millions job seriously, what with these balls flying in overhead from halfcourt and upsetting the rim. It was a disgrace, a shame to the Warriors organization and to the game itself, IMO. To this day I still don't get it...? Half court shots for 15 minutes... WTF! Anyway, that's sad if he doesn't accept a buyout. If he doesn't accept a buyout, I think it would be great if Mully punishes him by sending him down to the NBDL league. There, he'd have to ride busses instead of take airplanes, stay in cheap hotels instead of Holiday Inn Expresses, unless of course he pays for his own stuff and separates himself from the rest of the NBDL team. That would be hilarious, though. And then make the NBDL coach RUN his ass in practice, make him run wind sprints all practice, and then play him 48 minutes a night so he has to MOVE his ass for once. Then maybe he'll accept a buyout, the bum. OH, BTW -- Great post, Walker. Your comments on the draft give me hope!
<div class="quote_poster">Kwan1031 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Being unrestricted FA and having a bird right is two different things. Kandi became unrestricted FA, but that doesn't mean Clippers didn't hold his bird right. The reason teams have bird right for rookies is because previous rookie contracts for 1st rounder guranteed 3 years contract. For Kandi's case, his first three years are guaranteed. The team has an option to extend his contract in 4th year. After 4th year, 1st rounder becomes restricted FA. At that time, the team may resign a rookie or offer 1 year qualifying offer. If the player accept qualifying offer, he cannot be traded for that year, and he becomes unrestricted FA at the end. Right now, two years are guaranteed for first rounder, and the team has an option for both 3rd and 4th year. Fifth year is the same...</div> Thanks for clarifying that. Either a guy gets extended or he doesn't and then if he doesn't, he then might accept one more year (the qualifying offer) until he becomes a RFA. Got it.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Thanks for clarifying that. Either a guy gets extended or he doesn't and then if he doesn't, he then might accept one more year (the qualifying offer) until he becomes a RFA. Got it.</div> That's correct, except for one important point - they become an unrestricted free agent if they take the qualifying offer.
<div class="quote_poster">Gohn Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">That's correct, except for one important point - they become an unrestricted free agent if they take the qualifying offer.</div> Yeah I know that part. Thanks! BTW I love Wtwalker's post. He's got everything written that I hope the Warriors do. Sorry I got confused with Jason Smith and another guy. Jason Smith might be okay pick. Maybe similar to Splitter, but the knock on Smith I heard was he's not that tough, he's not super athletic, and he's not really developed. Yeah... I don't like that pick already, but I've already read Wtwalker's reasoning with the buyouts on Splitter. How about just pick Thadeus Young over both those two? I know... he's a big question mark as well with all those perimeter game weaknesses... Or if we try to find rebounding in the second round, see if we can get a nice midrange marksman like Nick Young? I'm clueless as to which guys we should pick because I would love another ballhandler, but we need rebounding a lot more... The question is, is there a dominant rebounder in this draft that can do more than Troy Murphy did for us on defense?
