Where KP's head is at: Today is not the day.

The only thing I don't like is that I keep hearing KP wants to wait and make a move "for that one final piece", well what happens if that moment comes and "that one final piece" isn't available? Secondly, "one final piece" assumes that the rest of the pieces are in order (something I don't necessarily agree with).

If anything with all of these bit players and reserves pressed into big minutes with so many guys down, you'd think KP would have a better idea than ever about the caliber of some of the players he's accumulated, not less of an idea.

 

I completely agree. I don't think we are looking for the final piece. I think we are looking for the second piece.

I would not have signed Miller. I would have taken the guards we already had and found out what they are made out of this season, so I could make an informed move later. Miller was a waste of salary space IMO.

 

If Portland has learned anything during the time Roy has been out it is that they don't have the talent needed to put together a package for a second option.

No one is going to take any combination of Oden, Joel, Batum, LMA, Webster, Rudy, Bayless, Blake, Outlaw, DC, Pendergraph, Howard, or Mills in return for a player of that caliber. The reasons are not all the same but the end result is.

Portland isn't going to be able to make a deal. Not because they are unwilling to package these dudes but because no one wants any of the packages Portland could put together.

Further, all of Portland's talent, outside of LMA and Joel, is cheap which makes matching the salary of a quality player next to impossible. No team is going to do a 5 for 1 due to roster size limits.

The only asset Portland has that could return a player good enough to be a ligitimate second option would be Roy and trading him for another great player doesn't do the Blazers any good.

KP, Tom Penn, Nate and Paul Allen can put whatever face they want on the issue. "We like our guys", "We haven't seen the core players play together enough to know if we need a trade" or any other bs.

No one wants Portland's players bad enough to take on 3 or 4 of them for one star player.

 

Well, that's just a messed up analysis of the situation, IMO. The bolded part is certainly true; the Blazers don't have the high-dollar ending contracts that other teams trying to clear cap space for this summer are looking for. That says nothing about how other GMs view the Blazers' talent though. You honestly don't think that the Blazers young talent is viewed as being as good as J.J. Hickson, whom is said to be the carrot in the Cavs' offer for Stoudemire? Bunk. The problem, in terms of a trade, is that we'd have to give up so many players to make a deal for one of the established players around the league. The Blazers would also be put into a situation where they'd potentially have too many longterm high dollar contracts to make it possible to continue to avoid the luxury tax.

 

I honestly don't think most of the young players on the Blazers are viewed as being as valuable as JJ Hickson. Probably the only guys who would be are Oden, LMA and Batum. LMA can't be traded due to his contract. Oden's injury history makes it impossible. So Batum would be the only Blazer player a GM would potentially want over Hickson.

Are the young players on Portland more valuable then Hickson in reality? I doubt it. I would trade nearly anyone on this team for Hickson.

 

Why would you trade nearly anyone on the team for Hickson? He's yet to reach an even average PER so far in his career. I'm not sure I'd even trade Dante Cunningham for him, at least in terms of how Cunningham gets his points and how well it fits into the offense.

 

How did he fuck up on the Zach trade?

 

He basically gave away Zach for Charmin Frye, and the privilege of waiving Steve Francis ... maybe a better question is, how did he win?

 

Final piece: The Machine.

 

Gaaaaahhhh!!! My eyes. My brain ... my eyes and my brain!!!

 

Because I don't think very much of the talent level of many guys on the team and Portland needs size.

I would rather have Hickson then Tyrus Thomas.

There are a ton of players I would rather they get then Hickson. I don't think Hickson is really anything all that special. But I do think he would be more valuable to the team right now then Rudy, Bayless or Blake.

If the players name isn't Roy, Batum, or Oden then I am not going to be too upset if they get traded. I just don't see any of them being special or all that valuable.

It sure seems like the rest of the league agrees.

 

If The Machine is the final piece of anything then that thing is made of fail.

 

Hickson is quickly becoming one of the most overrated young guys in the League.

His ceiling, IMO, is Chris Wilcox.

 

Pritchard is delusional and Webster, Fernandez, and Bayless should be given away. We could replace them with old Juwan Howard bums we find on the street and we'd be a much improved team. This assumes we still have Blake and Outlaw.