Free Agency Roundtable
2022-06-30With all the free agency news this week, and the madness ready to kick off Thursday night, we decided to get the CtB folks together to throw around hot takes on the Cavs’ direction and the news around the league. First up, our favorite opera singer.
Ben Werth
Man, people just want to hate without understanding.
If the Knicks end up with Brunson, that is a huge move. Dude isn’t a s**t defender, (though no where near a positive like his body double, Kyle Lowry, but he is fine, doesn’t have a terrible injury history, and is only 25. It isn’t like he is 29 coming off multiple injury years like Kemba. RJ Barrett is also going to be next to him, along with Quickley. I love Barrett 200 percent more if he is next to dudes who can shoot and handle.
Unfortunately, they still have Thibs… Randle, Toppin, and Reddish don’t really go together, and they will have to figure that out. That doesn’t make Brunson not a great move. It isn’t like he is going to get the Max max..
In other news, how are people still tossing our Tyus Jones for the mid-level and Collin for just under 20? “might go to eight figures!” If he doesn’t get eight figures, his agent should be fired. What effing planet do fans (or perhaps GMs) live on? Jones is such a better player than all these 20 Mil mediocre guys. I would offer him 15 and sleep well. He is a great player, and honestly often the better player to Ja’s flash. A team needs Ja’s personality and top end moments ( no, I’m not going nuts claiming that Jones is overall better than Ja), but if they lost Jones, they are going to be a less effective team.
Imagine how good the Wolves would be if they switched Russell out for Jones? That isn’t going to happen in a direct way, or at all, but Jones would immediately make any team in need of intelligent two way play will benefit immediately. I would offer him a bigger contract than LeVert and Sexton combined.
Die horse, Die!!!!! oh… Die!!!!
Nate Smith
I feel you on Brunson. The Mavs look like utter morons for not extending Jalen last summer, and will likely have to pay a premium to keep him. Props on his agent for making them pay out the nose to keep the second best player on a Western Conference finals team. Also, Tyus Jones. Good Gravy, would someone grow a brain and realize he should be one of the top free agent targets in the association? Memphis is absolutely not going over the cap to re-sign Tyus. If you’re a team with cap room sitting there like Detroit or the Sixers, why in God’s name would you waste your money on a $19+ million per year sexton offer when you could probably sign Tyus for a four year $60 million dollar and like you said, sleep well.
Speaking of Detroit, I am very worried about the Cavs going backwards in the Eastern conference. Atlanta just traded for Base8 Triple Double king, DeJounte Murray, giving up two first rounders and three pick swaps, plus Danilo Gallinari. What an absolute steal. The twitter dopes that don’t understand how DeJounte and Trae can fit together don’t realize how much load Murray is going to take off Trae. Young doesn’t have to run Atlanta’s whole offense any more to be successful, and he can run around screens like Steph off-ball to get easy looks. Trae’s gravity will open up the lane for Murray and will make life easier for everyone. Plus, you can always have one of them on the floor. They’ve clearly passed Cleveland and haven’t even dealt with Juice Collins yet.
Also, with Detroit having cap room and having traded for Noel and Alec Burks, they’re suddenly deeper with veteran support. Of course, Jaden Ivey is the reason they probably won’t chase Jones. That cat is my early rookie of the year candidate. This Detroit team with no free agent additions yet, and two or three straight killer draft classes (Killian Hayes not withstanding) could eclipse the Cavs this coming season.
And speaking of Cleveland. Color me worried as hell. If you’re not getting better in the NBA, you’re getting worse. They currently look like they may have been passed by the Brunson Knicks, the Hawks, and the Pistons. The additions of Monte Morris and Will Barton make the Wizards look like a good bet to eclipse the .500 mark. Meanwhile the Cavs seem content to coast on their first half success from last season, choosing not to bid for DeJounte Murray and not choosing to address their biggest need: a wing with size. Currently the only wing they have taller than 6-5 is Cedi Osman.
As I informed my Subtexters — and Cavs Insiders — I asked a source close to the Dejounte Murray situation yesterday if #Cavs were “in on Murray” still and I was told, “No.”
— Chris Fedor (@ChrisFedor) June 29, 2022
Fedor’s pod tonight seems like the Cavs are committed to running it back with Rubio and using the last NBA contract spot for a backup center (Isaiah Mobley likely to be two-way) baring some unforeseen trade.
— Cavs:TheBlog (@CavsTheTweets) June 27, 2022
Obviously, this seems to include Sexton. The lack of urgency, and the fact that the Cavs are counting on the same core last season, makes me worried that they’re content to achieve the same goal: make the play-in, and nothing more. Maybe they want to keep their lottery pick again. I pitched this to the staff, and Eli Kim’s response was, “if the Cavs are tanking, why did they draft Agbaji ovelarr Branham or Griffin?” (or Eason). “That’s anti-tank. That’s just over-confidence.” Preach, Eli.
I don’t even quite understand the need for a backup center when they have three guys in last year’s starting lineup that can play the five. It makes a lot more sense to me to get a 3/4 wing who can allow Lauri or Mobley to play up a position or too. Of course, I understand the desire to add some bulk, but I’m not quite sure who the Cavs could add. I also am baffled by this thought that the Cavs couldn’t take some fliers on guys at the end of the roster. Of course, I think Lamar Stevens isn’t an NBA player, and his shot is unfixable. I’m a curmudgeon. Hopefully Wade can be Wade again next season, and hopefully the Cavs make some positive additions to the way they manage load and injuries, but I’m not holding my breath. What say you, about all this, Chris?
Chris Francis
I like Nate’s idea about expanding the free agency search to get a player who can let Lauri, Kevin Love, or Mobley play up a position. Unfortunately, there aren’t really many options (Ben McLemore? Rodney Hood reunion?) in that regard among the free agent pool. A guy like Bobby Portis could fit nicely there, but there’s probably zero chance he comes to Cleveland.
I will take a victory lap here about the Collin Sexton contract negotiations, yours truly has been a “3/45-50ish” guy regarding what the Cavs should pony up, and Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer confirmed that was what the Cavs offered. Things appear to be trending in the direction of sixth man Collin Sexton, which is something that I’ve wanted to see ever since Darius Garland arrived on the scene.
As for Cavs’ free agency, outside of a Ricky Rubio reunion, it doesn’t sound like that the Cavs are going to do much else besides a veteran minimum guy to fill the 15th spot on the roster. Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor mentioned a backup point guard or backup center was in play. Similarly to Nate, I’m in the camp that would much rather see a point guard added to the mix given how last year showed how important having a backup point guard is. A few minimum guys with non-Bird rights include Jevon Carter or Gary Peyton II, granted GP2 is in line for a massive pay increase if he goes to a cap space team. But the Cavs could offer the midlevel exception to GP2 if they were so inclined. Both of these guys would represent an upgrade to Brandon Goodwin, not to say that Goodwin wasn’t a legit third string point guard, he was.
As for some veteran minimum backup centers, there’s not very many good options there but I’d be interested in two players with non-Bird rights: Luke Kornet or CtB favorite Isaiah “Hard Rock” Hartenstein. Both players have familiarity with the current Cavs regime, Cavs’ POBO Koby Altman can correct the mistake he made letting Hartenstein get away.
To wrap up this free agency roundtable vignette, I will once again plead with Koby Altman to go star hunting… Bradley Beal, Zach LaVine, Donovan Mitchell, consolidate the Sexton/LeVert platoon for a real perimeter star. Kevin Love is already on the job so make it happen Koby!
Lebron still in NYC… working out with Kevin Love and Donovan Mitchell… pic.twitter.com/r79hjnSgvy
— EP (@epark1016) June 26, 2022
Utah gets Minny’s unprotected 1st in 2023, 25, 27, and a top 5 protected first in 2029.
I am having this fantasy that Brooklyn trades KD to Utah for Mitchell & Connely + a bunch apicks and KD is in Utah by himself.
Not sure what Minny was thinking. That’s just too much. Danny wins again.
Well, that is a lot.
PBev, Beasley, Vanderbilt, and Kessler + 4 picks, 3 unprotected. But….
DRo, Ant Man, Slo Mo, KAT, Gobert plus:
Moore Jr, Prince, and McDaniels is pretty nice.
A legit backup PG and they are set.
Yeah esp with 3 unprotected picks… with how quickly things change in the NBA, super risky to be trading picks any more than 2-3 years out.
is this the wildest start to an NBA season ever?
Now this I like…
https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1542960614917693441?s=20&t=vCqB6sMEgBb4hKUhk4se8w
Well, that’s 15. All full with Sexton still out there.
Unless Stevens/Wade are waived or the Rubio deal is a S&T, we don’t have any room.
I do like Neto coming. He can be stable, if unspectacular, while Rubio gets healthy.
better if he could spell his name!
Clearly, he has it wrong!
I wonder if the Jazz tear the whole thing down & start over. This is Ainge we are talking about.
remember when Ainge bit Tree Rollins?
As a Hawks fan, yes I do.
They traded O’Neale for a first.
Waived Hernangomez. Did not extend a QO offer to Paschall or Forrest.
O’Neale, Paschall, & Forrest were all close to Mitchell.
Now Rudy goes.
https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1542956279546740736?s=20&t=4TksoUPVoqGzy-SeImAjcw
I was just about to say the big trades (non-Nets edition) left were Collins, Turner, and Ayton. Totally forgot about Gobert. The breakup with he and Mitchell was coming.
I wonder if Utah sells Connely off as well. And the details on the picks..
Sounds like three of the picks are unprotected. I’d say Ainge made out like a bandit.
Well, I think we are close to the point where:
1) Sexton is the biggest FA fish out there. Albeit a RFA. Harden is bigger and an UFA, but is assuredly returning to Philly. Bridges as an RFA would have been bigger, but he likely isn’t playing next year. Unless the Browns sign him, of course.
Ayton is likely bigger, but he the Suns likely want to use him in a KD package. Do teams want cap space tied up while that sorts out?
Biggest UFA realistically on the market? Probably Harrell, and he has oegal issues, too.
Warren might be up there and he hasn’t played for 2 years.
Lol Haslam is probably thinking about buying Cavs just so he can sign Bridges
THAT IS A DEFINITE WIN FOR KOBY—–MY OPTIMISM ALLOWS ME TO “DREAM ” LEVERT COMES BACK AS A BETTER PLAYER / FIT THIS YEAR —-GETS A FULL TRAINING CAMP WITH THE CAVS // HEALTHY —WE SHALL SEE IF MY GLASS IS ” HALF FULL “
RUBIO IS A CAVALIER! LeVert was basically had on house money, is on an expiring contract that should be a good trade chip, I know it’s not popular to say, but I think that’s a win for Koby.
popular with me. totally agree.
‘DOUBLE ” BOO —PLAY THE KID —SEE WHAT HE CAN DO// WHAT HE NEEDS TO WORK ON —EXPOSURE IS HUGE
right. disappointed.
can’t see any upside to not playing him this summer.
Fedor says no Diop in Summer League (boo!).
Agbaji, Isaiah Mobley, & Travers will play.
Celtics get Brogdan. He’s hurt half the time, but decent player when he plays.
For an (unprotected) 2023 1st, Theis, and Nesmith.
If Brogdon is healthy, that is a good deal for Boston. Better PG play.
Plus, Brogdon, Smart, Brown, Tatum, + Horford/Williams to close.
And 3 other guys Indy will likely waive, including Nick Stauskas.
DG, LeVert, Big Finnish, EM, JA.
Rubio, Okoro, Agbaji, Love, Lopez
(Sexton), Windler, Osman, Stevens, Wade
2 way: Nembhard, IM
Still too heavy on SGs and PFs and light on SFs, PGs, and C’s. We don’t have one guy on the roster whose natural/best position is SF.
Lopez is a good pickup.
Well, Lopez is a perfectly acceptable get on a vet min. An upgrade from Davis and he can bang with the bigger C’s & score a bit. Hopefully a bridge guy as Diop & Isaiah Mobley develop.
Well, we are at 15 with Sexton still out there. Unless the Rubio deal turns into a S&T (which I’d live), I think we are done signing new FA’s. Sexton + Garland extension.
Trades always possible.
12:50 p.m. ET: Free agent center Robin Lopez has agreed to a one-year deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Lopez averaged 7.1 points and 3.5 rebounds in 36 games with the Orlando Magic last season.
Better than Huerter going to Celtics…
https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1542918465098584066?s=21&t=dMR6TlWi-vowRLyZRW1cwA
Warren makes the most sense if the Cavs are going to gamble on someone. If he can’t start, then he and Sexton have the potential for all exhausting, high scoring second unit.
Rubio, Sexton, Agbaji, Warren, Love. We’d have some punch off the bench for sure.
LaVine back with Bulls. 5/215.
Bol Bol re-ups with Magic. EG will be crushed.
Where for art thou, EG???
Otto Porter to Raps two year deal plus player option.
Dubs have lost Payton and Porter.
In less fun news, the Miles Bridges stuff is sickening. I’m always amazed, though, how selective people are about when and where they draw the line. Witness Jason Kidd strolling the sidelines while the tweets pour in about how Bridges should never touch an NBA court again. If we all saw the pics of all domestic abuse, Bridges would be just the latest in a long line of dirtbag a-holes to call out…
Don’t disagree, but it seems Bridges case is extremely egregious…
Fedor says to not assume we use the TOE on Rubio. He says a sign & trade is possible. Osman & Windler come closest to Rubio’s year 1 salary of just under $6 mil.
Since we’d be hard capped, I’d expect a Sexton resolution first. And if we did go S&T, there would have to be a TPE target for it to make sense.
Interesting wrinkle to the idea of WIndler/Cedi sign and trade for Rubio is how much better RR makes Cedi. Remember how solid and consistent he was with Rubio finding him in his spots? He’d never been better. Think there’s something to be said for hoping for him to return to that form with the Spaniard back at the helm…
Agreed. Rubio makes everyone better, though.
It seems TJ Warren would be the most likely target for our full TPE use.
The S&T mechanics seem to work. Rubio’s huge cap hold (and Warren’s) are the only things keeping Indy from being under the cap, significantly. They could take more salary back within the rules.
On our end, we’d be hard capped at the apron. $156,938,000. Our current salaries plus Rubio & Warren (at full MLE) would put us at $20 mil below the apron and $13.6 below the tax line, with 2 open roster spots (Sexton + 1).
Now, if Warren gets less than the full MLE, we’d have more room. But that is getting a tad tight if we want to be under the tax, that is.
how would Warren fit in?
Good question. I mean, he has missed the last two years aside from 4 games. If he was healthy, he’d likely be a starter. But given his injury history, IDK that he can expect to start at this juncture. I’d hope not. SF/PF option off the bench who can spot start & score.
6’8″. 220.
Last healthy season in Indy: 19.8/4.2/1.5/1.2/0.5. On 53.6/40.3/81.9 for a TS% of 61.0%. Career high, though.
Does not do a lot other than score.
Guys I wouldn’t mind (and might be in our price range):
C: Ibaka, Bryant, Howard
SF: Warren, Jones Jr, Hood, Martin (RFA)
PG: Goodwin, Neto, Campazzo, Bradley, A. Holiday
Not a lot of needle movers, obviously. Though pre-injury Warren & Bryant could move a needle some.
what is Goodwin’s status right now? anyone else showing any interest?
some late night ESPN guys were mentioning that KI + KD might want or demand to be traded to the same team. such an event would likely require a vast, many team trade. if such an (unlikely?) event happens, hopefully the Cavs can join to pick up some value for expiring contracts or whatever.
Other than LA Lakers, who have said they aren’t trading AD, what team on earth would sign the Dysfunctional Duo?
no clue. maybe one with an owner that thinks he is smarter than the basketball people?
actually, the Lakers are a good bet. Any team would want KD. KI is much more of a gamble due to “Advanced Head Case Syndrome”, but if anyone could make him shut up and fly right, it would be LBJ.
I wanna say no team. This sounds logical.
But then again, a team signed these two guys AND Harden as short while ago.
haha — and traded for Simmons!
Surely the Nets will demand pile of loot for each of KI and KD. They will probably get it for KD, but not for KI.
If anyone wants KI, they will wait until the price drops. This will be a long time. Thus, when next season starts, don’t be surprised if KI is refusing to play, like he threatened to do if Cleveland didn’t trade him. And Simmons might find another reason to pout, so both of them might not be playing.
haha in advance!
Spotrac has year 1 of the Rubio deal at $5.84 mil. TPE is $10.49. Roughly $4.6 mil left.
Guys who signed for the $4.5 mil mark (or less): Drummond ($3.3), Dedmon ($4.5), Coffey ($3.6), House ($4.2), Wes Matthews ($2.9), D. Jordan ($2.9).
A restricted FA has yet to change teams.
good info.
Bruce Brown to Nuggets 2/ $13 mill. He’s a limited player, but Jokic will probably make him look good.
But a tough/versatile defender who cuts well and can exploit defenses too focused on Jokic, Murray, and Porter.
And solid 3-pt shooter. Would have loved to see him on the Cavs at that #. Thought he’d do a lot better.
GSW lose Payton to the Blazers. 3/28.
Well, that Rubio deal is friendlier than I had thought. Right in line with what Ingles goes got from the Bucks.
We even have some of the MLE left over. Not a ton, but more than the vet min.
A bit of a risky deal for Rubio, coming off the injury, but personally glad to see it. Hope he can come back close to what he was. Grats to Ricky, too.
SOME VERY GOOD POINTS RUNNING JUMPER—————MAN THESE “PRIMA DONNA ” SO CALLED SUPERSTARS —WHINING// DEMANDING // THREATENING// ETC ARE REALLY TURNING ME OFF TO THE NBA —-” NATIONAL BABY ASSOCIATION ” !!
WELCOME BACK RICKY—-A ‘LATE ” WEDDING PRESENT FOR KLOVE !!
Rubio/ Cavs: 3/18.4
Awesome!
not without risk. who knows what level he will be able to play at post second knee rebuild.
nevertheless, I rate this as a good gamble.
Yep. And if playing time is limited at various stretches, we still get a great free throw shooting coach :)
one of the games I watched last year was when RR was 9/9 on three pointers. A couple were slow set shots, after he had faked everyone out and was totally isolated.
I think he took a 10th in the closing seconds and missed. Don’t know if anyone has ever been 10/10 on threes.
The dude was in rare form. I’ve mentioned it before, but he nearly beat the US olympic team single-handed a few months prior. I haven’t witnessed that kind of performance live many times in my life. Jaw on the floor.
Mee, too. At worst, he becomes a #3 PG and a mentor/player coach type.
Hopefully he can help DG, Sexton, Okoro, & LeVert develop a bit as playmakers.
don’t forget Agbaji. if his ballhandling gets within shouting distance of mediocre, his value will skyrocket.
Fedor says partial guarantee in the 3rd year.
In 2 or 3 years the landscape of the league will change again. Cavs should be careful of not jumping into this holy moly free agency. I will not rush into anything if I’m the front office. Let this team grow. Let Mobley and DG grow. Have flexibility and strike at the right time.
I feel like the Cavs learned a lesson about the dangers of free agency back in the early Lebron years. They mostly stick to bargain signings now, and take bigger swings through trades.
https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1542866198978695168?s=20&t=hDiUQwSWN9Gb4FGPN-ozfA
Nice.
Ricky! You love to see it.
Woj grenade.
https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1542865573394219010?s=20&t=zCemHU4MKBZEGbllY27sKw
Good to see a team friendly deal for him.
Look out for Houston
https://twitter.com/TommyBeer/status/1541061465951686658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1541061465951686658%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportingnews.com%2Fus%2Fnba%2Fnews%2Fkevin-durant-trade-request-nets-kyrie-irving-brooklyn-departure%2Fipgukuw0htfof5ta25pjdocd
yikes!
all time greatest tank in any sport!
As for KD, I doubt the Nets are in a rush. He is under contract for 4 years. What is he gonna do, sit until he is 38? Just because a guy asks for a trade, you don’t have to grant it (Koby/Lakers).
If they are not blown away with an offer, they probably tell him to play & hope for better offers later/in season.
I am all for trying to get in on the deal as a 3rd team. If we can pull another Allen out of this deal, I will take that.
good to see you are OK with getting an all star for bupkis!
It’s pretty obvious the Cavs (and me) badly miscalculated on the Sexton price tag. He’s gonna make at least 22-23 mil in this market. Don’t think anyone predicted the cap was gonna jump this much.
Check back when everyone was saying Koby was an idiot for giving Jarrett Allen four years.
Notice I predicted that the contract would look cheap in four years because the cap was bound to go up.
What?
The cap is at $123, I believe. That is what spotrac had weeks ago. I posted on it a while back. Cap $123, Tax $149, Apron $155. It is now a smidge over $150. That is not much of a jump.
As for Sexton, no way he gets $22-23. Well, it only takes one. But I’d bet under $15 before over $20. Few teams have space.
Mannix at SI has 2 execs pegging Sexton at $10-$12 mil, with the Cavs planning to match any reasonable offer.
That was before 6pm, though.
Tax at $150.
that is around a 22% jump. wish I could get that at work.
Surprised no DG extension yet. Thought that would be easy. Was also hoping for a Rubio reunion off the bat.
I think the Cavs are trying to get in on KD deal.
not to get him I hope!
it will be great if we can play a role like in the Harden to NJ trade. don’t have a clue how this would work — maybe someone will need LaVert and Love’s contracts.
I would take KD. Dude is sort of age proof with his height, length, and shooting.
sure, except the Nets would expect Mobley + ????
From Fedor’s latest article: “ Despite the Cavs likely presenting that to him when the free agency bell sounds, don’t be surprised if an agreement takes a bit longer. The general framework — and overall valuation — is uncomplicated. Garland is one of the pillars of this rebuild. But the two sides may need more time to work through the intricate details.”
Rubio: 3/18.4 right now
Assuming vet mins only for us (if Rubio signs), options.
C: Ibaka, Thomas Bryant
PG: Neto
SF: None I like
Drummond to Bulls 2 years/ $6.6 mill. Remember when this dude was making ginormous money?
That is decent value for Chicago. If Zach is back:
Ball, LaVine, DeRozan, Williams, Vucevic
Caruso, Dosunmu, Terry, ???, ??, Drummond
Need some F depth.
https://twitter.com/NBACouchside/status/1542675500249882624?s=20&t=C6ck9D5QChetRZnRl6abqw
Brunson to Knicks.
At the moment, my view of the East.
1. Bucks:
Starters: Jrue, Connaughton, KM, Giannis, Lopez
Bench: Hill, Allen, Matthews, Ingles, Portis
Deep bench: Carter, Beauchamp
2. Celtics:
St: Smart, Brown, Tatum, Horfort, RWill
B: White, Pritchard, G. Williams, Theis
3. Heat:
St: Lowry, Strus, Butler, ???, Bam
B: Vincent, Herro, Dipo, Robinson
Deep: Dedmon, Yurtseven, Jovic
4. Philly (on review, should be 3rd)
St: Harden, Maxey, Tucker, Harris, Embiid
B: Melton, Milton, Thybulle, House, Niang, Jordan
Deep: Springer, Joe, Korkmaz, Queen, Bassey
5. Atlanta
St: Young, Murray, Hunter, Collins, Capela
B: Bogdanovic, Huerter, Griffin, Johnson, Okongwu
For 6th: Nets, Bulls, Cavs, Raptors, Hornets
Pistons & Knicks making run at play-in.
Pacers & Magic & Wiz bottom.
Delon Wright to the Wiz two year/ $16 mill.
Have been reading Nets Daily…some of it is wishful thinking, but I think some of it is people really really thinking the Suns would trade Booker+ for Durant. I don’t know if there’s a KD to Suns deal to be made or not, but they sure aren’t sending Booker.
Gary Harris resigning in Orlando.
haven’t read the articles, but durant wants a divorce from the queen bitch.. this has nothing to do with the nets.. right ?
exactly opposite according to reports, both still want to play but just not for the Nets.
really.. why ? what did the nets do ? trade harden ? that is kray-krsy.. they are all a bunch of adolescent drama queens..
Yes they are.
appears that many teams (esp ATL) are getting better.. i fear that preferred cavs trade assets (“round uo the usual suspects”) are mostly like day-old bakery discounts.. still edible, but rather crusty.. oh well.. they could still be in the 20-something wins column.. should likely be pleased they should at least be able to be a 50% win team..
might not be bad to keep the powder dry, get a year better, and pounce in 23/24. be great to screw the Pacers out of the FR pick.
y.. why not..
Roll the dice on internal improvement (DG, Mobley, Okoro), better health (Rubio, Sexton), hope Agbaji helps. Big Finnish & Sexton are still young, hope for improvement there.
Hope LeVert & Sexton also fit better this year with a fully healthy roster & a full camp.
Love & LeVert off the books next year.
could be worse.. much worse
Reports are Kyrie trying to force his way to the Lakers.
If you are LA, don’t you try and trade AD for KD first?
wow. this is out there!
shaping up to be the wildest FA / Trading season ever.
The Cavs should keep a low profile, and be ready to grab any free morsels that float by. E.g., maybe LaVert’s contract will be an essential to some sign+trade.
Really can’t wait till Kyrie is out of the league. What an absolutely tiresome being.
That’s too kind.
Thad Young to Raptors. 2/16.
Bucks bringing Matthews & Carter back.
PJ Tucker to Philly per Shams.
Harden, Maxey, Harris, Tucker, Embiid.
Lonnie Walker to the Lakers.
one year, $6.5 mill.
And Damien Jones!
PO’s here we come.
is this for real?
Batum back to Clips. 2 years.
Malik Monk to Kangsz. 2/19.
Fast & furious deals.
Dort stays with OKC. 5/87.5
Portis 4/49. Stays with Bucks.
House Jr to Philly. 2/8.5.
Jones returns to Memphis. 2/30.
Ingles to Bucks. 1 year. Could help if healthy.
Coffey re-ups with Clips. 3/11.
Boucher re-ups with Raps. 3/35+.
Lot of money for Ingles, coming off a bad injury. Good deal if he can have a return to form, but I was surprised at that.
$6.5 mil. Ince we sign Rubio, we won’t have much left. Though if it is multiple years, there is some wiggle room.
DAMN DID KOBY EVEN MAKE A ‘RUN ” FOR HARD ROCK
1. We have no cap space.
2. The MLE is likely earmarked for Rubio.
3. Which means we are looking at vet min guys, trades, and re-signing Sexton.
4. Unless Rubio signs for way below the MLE, which I seriously doubt.
right.
lots of demands for Koby to do stuff that is impossible.
Getting Hard Rock was far from impossible LMFAOOO
4/100 for Anfernee Simons? Always a reminder that so much about free agency is timing.
Yikes that seems like a lot, I’m sure Sextons people are pointing to that to push his numbers
His people will know very soon what his real life numbers are.
Nurkic 4/80 mill. I know they were hoping more like $15mill/ per.
nm, sounds like that was an incorrect report.
Dipo back to the Heat on one year deal.
And the Wiz give Beal the franchise destroying supermax. Smart, Wiz.
Godspeed Hard Rock: https://twitter.com/KellyIkoNBA/status/1542629050652545024?s=20&t=BzW1MlPK_jThn5T6u9LRyQ
oh, well
Yeah. No way was he a vet min guy.
yeah my suggestion was based on giving him a portion to all of the MLE
But then we are screwed at backup PG.
Rubio gonna take that MLE. Maybe we could get by with IM as the 3rd C and try for Rubio + vet min wing/PG instead.
Diop looking better by the minute
No he’s not LMFAO
Not necessarily, and Sexton/LeVert is where that was anyway.
JASON YOU MAKE SOME GOOD POINTS—-DURANT BEING A TOP 5 PLAYER DOES BRING “BAGGAGE ” WITH HIM // PLUS AGE AND INJURIES …………………..ON A DIFFERENT SUBJECT—CALL ME “OL SCHOOL ” TOTALLY NOT IN FAVOR OF USC// UCLA JOINING THE BIG TEN OR WHATEVER YOU WANT TO CALL IT NOW——JUST CAN’T SEE THE TRAVEL EXPENSE AND NOT SURE YOU CAN DEVELOP A RIVALRY
agree on the “Big Whatever”. I am in favor of putting pressure on the top few college leagues to expand to 16 teams and maintain geographical sanity. Big 10 should poach UConn and Kentucky.
I may get lambasted for this, but I do not want KD. He’s a spoiled brat who wanted a clearly washed De’Andre Jordan over Allen because they were buddies.
Eff the Sockpuppet.
I’d see if we could try and facilitate a bigger deal and get some picks/players that can help us (a productive wing over 6’5″ and under 6’11”).
Then LeBron can come home next year.
Not too concerned about it, since Cavs are probably number 27 or below on the list of teams where he would want to go.
Garland, Okoro/someone else, Durant, Mobley, Allen. Plus a good bench. If I’m Durant I’d take a look, but yeah, I doubt he’d consider.
I don’t think you’re getting Durant without giving up Garland or Mobley. Pretty sure we would all hate that.
Yeah, Mobley at least. No thank you. Add to that, Durant won’t want to be in Cleveland, and we’ve already seen that movie.
who knows what he would consider — not the brightest bulb. anyway, he has so much baggage that he is not worth a lot in a trade.
FWIW, the day KD asks for a trade, the Nets send a first round pick to Utah for………..Royce O’Neal.
Seriously.
Good discussion, guys. As to Free Agency, if we bring Rubio back, I am assuming he eats the entire MLE (or close to it). That’s why we are hunting backup C’s with roster spot #15, you can land one for a vet min (not Hard Rock, though).
We also want to stay under that luxury tax, if possible. Another reason to keep Stevens (+ he can’t shoot but is a dawg). If we can get Sexton/Rubio back for cheaper, then maybe we can spend more in FA & replace Stevens.
Serves the Nets right. Never put your franchise in the hands of complete flakes.
They have employed 4 of the biggest flakes in the league the last year.
1. Irving
2. Simmons
3. KD
4. Harden
KD is upset they didn’t do right by Kyrie. The sockpuppet is a joke. Immature. Fragile. An emotional child. Most 8nsecure superstar since Rick Barry. Tatum ate his lunch. Hope he gets traded to Sacramento.
Oh man I’m all here for Sacramento Kings Durant
haha!!! me too!
https://twitter.com/clutchfans/status/1542583134432247808?s=20&t=DsWKU7_GRyEK7sSXLA6seA
They did the exact same mistake twice! The incompetence is mind boggling
The Nets will get assets back, they won’t be horrid.
Yep, the Nets cannot even tank. It only helps Houston.
YEAH I CAN BE –“ALL IN ” –ON THAT DEAL RAFFY——–MAN THE NBA HAS TURNED INTO A “DRAMA FEST ‘
Its Real Housewives type stuff. Durant wanting to leave Kyrie is chefs kiss.
Honest question, why do you guys like Brunson better than Sexton?
Or at least, why is it such a clear difference? He’s 2 years older and has one year of solid production.
Brunson can play d and has a much stronger core. Ben likes Tyus Jones better than both.
Brunson’s clearly a better passer and slightly more efficient scorer.
Also the advanced metrics on defense are better, and eye test matches because of what Nate mentioned as far as strength is concerned.
I guess the scoring part could be argued, Sexton has had to bear more usage but Brunson has better shooting splits and turns it over less.
That’s all fair. I just think I’d bet on Sexton being a better player in his prime than Brunson. That being said I wouldn’t pay either more than $15mil lol.
The passing component is too important for me to make that claim.
20m is fair for Brunson, 30m is a stretch. Knicks had to pay a tax because they’re not a free agent destination (LMFAO)
He can playmake and run an offense. And a better defender.
I guess. I think I’d want more than one year of proof from a 26 year old 6’1” PG before I handed him $120 mil
That’s fair. He came up huge with Luka hurt, though.
I am not worried about the Knicks, or any team with Will Barton on it.
Not sure how the salaries line up, but can we offer up Markannen, Sexton, some other filler, plus a bunch of firsts, to get Durant? That doesn’t seem like a bad package.
SEND IT IN KOBY!!!
https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1542580983739858944?s=20&t=GhrSp-GTPlJvItC_Kc5Kug
GET IT DONE KOBY!