I would be thrilled to get him for 10 mil per. Even 12 before the injury. But I thought 15 was too much.
Well you can be assured he won't get anything over 12 post injury. It's unfortunate, but that's the business. Wes definitely has the capability to overcome this injury, but the risk is still high for Wes to be the same Wes before Injury. I definitely could see Allen adding a little bonus to Wes's contract for service performed though. He seems like that type of owner. He's as emotionally invested as we are to our players.
This is 3/6 Training camp starts at about 10/1 which is under just 7 months. starting of the season would be just under 8 months. My guess is that the Blazers will err on the side of caution.
You have to figure everything he says about his return date is with his contract negotiations in mind. I don't blame him a bit. The more positive he is and the earlier he says he will be back, the easier it will be for teams to not worry about giving him a huge deal. So I guess my point is I am not going to pay attention to how soon he thinks he will return.
I completely understand what you are saying, but the hard part for me to fathom is that he would be thinking about that given the way he looked. Completely dejected, etc. I know he's a positive person, but he didn't look anything like it during that interview. I know we're talking millions of dollars, but to me, his mindset regardless of a contract year or not would have been the same, IMO. I honestly don't think he was thinking about money, or that his agent was in his ear...
I don't see how any team would throw a big ($10million+) multi year contract at a guy who is right in the middle if recovering from a ruptured achilles. I've said before I thought Wes would break down during his next contract, but I'd match offers anyway. I still think the Blazers are in the best position to keep him, on a reasonable contract. I hope we do and I think we will. Afflalo is the big question mark. If he will opt in it gives us a better chance of improving next year's team.
Yeah you guys are probably right. Wes is the ultimate competitor. I guess I was thinking about what I would do if I were in his shoes...
The best thing (looking for a silver lining so I don't shoot myself) is that the effectiveness of Wesley's game is not predicated on his athleticism (something that will certainly leave him after this type of injury).
Tell me about it. My two favorite teams are the SF Giants and Blazers. They each have one intense, iron man that always play through injuries and are the heart-and-soul of their respective teams. Both went down with injuries yesterday (Hunter Pence, RF for the Giants, though he'll supposedly only be out 8 weeks). I sure as hell hope we haven't seen the last of Wes in a Blazers uniform, but it could be.....
Not necessarily disagreeing with you, but they said the same about BRoy. Just because he doesn't dunk doesn't mean his game is not predicated on his athleticism. Wes is a dog when he defends guys one on one, and uses every ounce of his lateral speed and strength. He can stay in front of his guy better than anyone else on our team. And his postgame, jab steps, and slashing ability are really underrated -- all of which require his athleticism. The tiniest decline due to health can be magnified in the NBA, and needs to be thoroughly evaluated before Neil commits long term.
