My "stay over the cap" plan. Note that I'm using 2009 salaries which can be found here. Trade Outlaw ($3.6m) and Bayless ($2.1m) to Milwaukee for a signed and traded Ramon Sessions (5 year, $36m contract starting at around $5.8m). * Sign Brandon Bass to the full MLE. Use Ike Diogu's trade exception ($2.9m) to get Grant Hill in a sign and trade. I'm thinking a contract of 2 years at $2.9m. Trade Phoenix the rights to whatever stashed players they want in order to get him. Sign Ime Udoka (or whoever, honestly) to the minimum to add some depth at the 2/3, a vet PG (Brevin Knight, Lindsey Hunter?) to do the same at the 1, and a center (Steven Hill?). The rotation would be: Sessions/Blake/Knight Roy/Rudy/Udoka Batum/Hill/Cunningham Aldridge/Bass/Pendergraph Oden/Przybilla/S. Hill * If they would be willing, try and package Webster ($4.4m) and Outlaw together (total of $8m) and have the Bucks throw in the contract of Charlie Bell ($3.7m) along with Sessions (total of $9.5m). Possible problems: First of all, Sessions would have to insist on coming here and refuse to resign with the Bucks. I don't think this is entirely out of question because he would be getting the same amount of money to play for a contender, not a team that just got rid of Jefferson for cap relief. As for the other deal with the Bucks, I'm not sure if the Bucks consider Bell (and his 9.8 PER) a bad contract, or Webster and his injury an upgrade. I just thought I'd throw it out there though, because I'd hate to get rid of Bayless. Secondly, Dallas might match that offer to Bass and offer him more minutes than he would get here. Finally, I have no idea if Grant Hill would want to come here. I don't see him staying in Phoenix, but he might prefer a more "proven" contender. Otherwise, I think that's a pretty solid roster, and none of the moves made are that unrealistic. As I see it, the Blazers have four question marks going into this season: PG, backup PF, SF depth, and overall experience. This plan addresses all of them. What's your plan? It might be fun to go back at the end of the summer and see whose ideas were closest to Pritchard's.
I gotta quit trying to figure things out on 2K9 lol.. my roster looks COMPLETELY different every 4 days it seems.. I keep having to start over on my association.
You gotta get draft picks. And you gotta draft players with a high potential rating. They are worth more to trade.
Heck yaaa. Deng is way overpaid but I ain't the one cutting the check! He has the best upside of any option out there and the only reason he might be available is because there is risk. CHI wants to avoid luxury tax, if they resign Gordon to a big deal they will be tempted to dump salary. They traded away Chandler 1 year after he got a big contact I hope they do the same with Deng.
My offseason plans include, but are not limited to, egging Chris Wallace's house and taking a big ol' dump on his front lawn. If we can pull that off I think we can contend next year.
Waive Blake and Outlaw, giving Portland another 8 million or so under the cap. Sign either Artest to a contract starting at 8 million a year, going up the maximum amount for 4 years with a team option for a 5th year. This would leave another 7 million under the cap. Point Guard is harder to fill, since no available player lights the world on fire. However, Hinrich is probably the most doable. So, I would trade Batum + some combination of the players Portland drafted for Hinrich. I would use the trade exception to get Walter Hermann from Phoenix for nothing. He could backup both Artest and LA. The rotation is now Hinrich/Bayless/Mills Roy/Bayless/Artest Artest/Hermann/Martell(?) LA/Hermann/Artest Oden/Joel/LA Portland only really has 8 players that get much playing time, which I like. Artest is the defensive beast Portland needs. Hinrich plays perimeter defense better by far then Blake. Bayless is the third guard in a three guard rotation. Hermann isn't anything special, but the dude isn't going to play a whole lot. Oden and Joel man the middle. All of these players are easily attainable. The only out going player that I personally care about is Batum.
too many damn combos to think of what I want, one day I want Hedo, the next I want Ron Ron..sometimes I think Blake can work w/ Hedo, the next I want JKidd.....
Where's Rudy? Does Blake go out in the trade for Hinrich? And you don't have a problem giving a proven headcase a 4 year contract? Remember that this season, probably his best as far as his behavior goes, was in a contract year. For me, that's one hell of a gamble to be taking.