etidy:


You wan cause world War 3

I Will say Duncan sha but it's so close.

Quick question Kobe vs Duncan who was better?

felix00:


61M/year.

That's 11/12M more than KD and giannis

Teams like Blazers and Wizards are going nowhere. Dame and Beal are all about the money and should stop talking about winning

A $15mil paycut for next season .Harden really wants that ring

Android17:
Disclaimer: this post is not about Kevin Durant

The issue for me is the Nets asking price, 2 allstar caliber players and multiple picks. No team in the nba can give that up and still be in the running for a championship.

A40:
Why will they want to cannibalize their legacy like that? Getting KD will help them win more rings but surely it will not boost his standing in the pantheon of all time greats. Now imagine he wins another ring sans KD now we are discussing whether he's actually surpassed Magic

That is one way of looking at it, but one of the salient point, is Steph has a reputation for selflessness and willingness to sacrifice for the team's glory.
So based on that, the equation for the team is simple. All but guarantee the next 3 chips barring injury and then start a rebuild after that, or have a very good chance of winning any of the next 3 chips and also have a strong core that will remain competitive after those 3 yrs. Also it might actually be cheaper for the team to bring in KD and if Wiggins and Poole are the ones leaving, yes a 3rd team has to be involved if Wiggins is going to be part of the deal, but GSW will definitely save money on luxury tax payments if those 2 are the core of what they are giving up.

A40:
What will Golden State want to do with Kevin Durant again for the love of God? They have the right balance of youth to foil the veterans and be in the Championship conversation for another 3 seasons barring extreme bad luck

You see what you just mentioned is exactly the issue. With what they have they are in the conversation for the next 3 championships, with KD barring injuries they are guaranteed 3 of them. So that is the issue for GSW right now, do you want to have a very good chance at the chip for the next 3 years, and then have a competitive team going forward from there. Or do you want to all but guarantee the chip for the same 3yrs and then after that start a rebuild.

Skrrrrrrr:


Makes sense.
Another thing to consider.
In that 4years, Durant would be 38...
Poole is just 23 and Wiggins is 27. Neither is at their prime yet. And I also heard whispers about adding Kuminga to the deal. Ain't no way it makes sense....
The best the warriors can do is see what they can get from the big 3 and this young guys, before curry retires, and then start all over with the youngins. This group already won a championship.

Personally adding Kuminga to any trade is a no no. The dude has the potential to be a number 1. I can swallow Wiseman and even Poole. But Kuminga is a no go area.
As for the Curry time line, that is another reason they might be thinking of KD. We know for a fact that a team with a healthy KD, Steph, Klay and Green is practically unbeatable. They might just bring him in, to all but guarantee, a GSW 3peat.
Giving steph 6 rings

Android17:
You are more intelligent than this, atleast that is my impression of you. So help me understand something that the best organization in the NBA did not figure out, would you?

We traded KD for essentially Wiggins and 2 first round picks and then we will give more than that to get him back at 34? lol

E reach to laugh. I don't know how long you have been on this thread for but it is safe to align your thoughts with those of more consistent winners. E get why.

I am not saying they will do the trade, i was just wondering why they would even consider it and the only thing i could come up with is finances.
Wiggins in case you don't know is on the last year of his Max contract at $33mil. Wiggins might be asking for a max contract at $172mil and every indication points to Poole getting around a $100mil/4yr deal, which might even now be higher seeing that Afrenee Simmons got that.
KD on the other hand, is signed on a $198mil/4yr contract.
In that same 4yrs span, Wiggins and Poole contract combined, might be at around $240mil
So considering GSW pays luxury tax at about 6x, it is something every good front office will do their due diligence on.

PS: Personally, I will not make the trade and I think GSW will not do it, but we are talking about money here

etidy:

And that's exactly the problem, 5 unrestricted first round picks , 1 pick swap and 4 players for a 50 million per year, 30 year d center with no offense. Yikes. When you already have a center.

You could have gotten a sign and trade for kyrie, beal, Zach Lavine or a trade for Siakam, Dejounte Murray for far far cheaper and they would have made far much sense.

For those assets, you could have gotten a Dejounte Murray and if you want a center so badly, grab a Capella and become a Juggernaut in the west.

You don't spend that level of talent for experimentation.

Agree with everything you said but, Gorbert is on 41mil/yr

Roland17:
Even the Warriors.....

According to the great Woj, more than half of the league have made contacts with offers/ trade packages to the Nets and all 29 teams have discussed a potential move for KD.

Make all 29 come take tag number and queue up

Hate all you want, HE IS THAT GREAT, NOTHING YOU SAY OR DO WILL EVER CHANGE IT!

THERE IS A REASON HE IS THE SLIMREAPER!!!!!

We die here!!!!!
#SLIMREAPER

The warriors package I read was centered around Wiggins, some of their young core and picks.

felix00:


Lakers prefer Curry

Yep, as they should, but it boils down to this, is getting a legitimate chance to win a championship, worth taking on Harris $37mil contract for the next 2 yrs worth.

PS: With AD, Lebron and Kyrie, the Lakers have a legitimate chance, I will not call them favorites, but they will have a legitimate shot at winning it all, with those 3

The Nets are only going to make the Kyrie for Westbrook trade if the Lakers also take Joe Harris

Just heard a quote from the Wolves,he said they decided not to out small ball, the greatest small ball line ups in the league (I am paraphrasing). So in essence they are gambling on out-rebounding and limiting finishes at the rim, to offset the 3s they will be giving up

etidy:

It could, but a Myles turner would have done the same for cheaper

Now, this was my initial reaction too, also I think they over paid in terms of picks. Who were they even bidding against I wonder.

etidy:


LOL you're still ignoring the fact that nobody has won with this set up for ages now.

The inside game of Evan Mobley a rookie is more polished than Gobert and his defense in the playoff is questionable.

This may work in the regular season when nobody is paying attention but in the playoffs they will exploit these guys with a rain of threes. Look at what the mavs did to Ayton.

Teams will spam 50 threes and kill them off

In their scenario Mobley is KAT while Allen is Gorbert. Nobody thinks this will win them the chip, but Gorbert is better than Allen and KAT is better than Mobley and the Cavs won a bunch of games with those 2.

birdman:


You dey scarce for here brah. The moment KD listened to Kyrie, that was the beginning of the end. I dont think Kyrie fits anywhere to be honest, and I am not sold on his skills. Kyrie has always been a streaky shooter, will win you some games, and lose a lot more. People need to shine their eye on this cat.

As for KD, I would like to see him on the Bulls team - I think that crew fits his personality and playing style very well. Even if they dont win a ring, I think he would be happy there.

Thank you for your Kyrie take, baba has been coasting in the league for a long time, just based on his finals performance in 2015.

etidy:


Baba we all saw how well Al Horford and embiid worked. Unless KAT turns into Durant. This move is crap. We haven't seen something like this work since Duncan and David Robinson and that was a totally different league back then.

A sign and trade for a wing like Zach lavine would have made a million more sense, even a trade for brogdon which would have been cheaper would be more sensible.

Did you watch the Cavs at all last season. Modgley and Allen played well together and none of them can shoot like KAT. Embiid and AL did not work because the sixers had Simmons who cannot shoot at all as a PG.

etidy:

LOL what's the Point paying a supermax for two centers you can't play together

They will play together, but one or both of them will be on the court for every minute of a game. The reason they did it is because of how bad their defense is, even with all the Beverley gragra they were like 24th in defensive rating. Gorbert on his own makes a team a top 10 defense. So if their defense becomes that, they might have enough scoring to make the playoffs without going through the play-in

etidy:
.
It's a wings league bro. yes KAT has some perimeter game but he's not KD. Anthony Edward's is not a renowned shooter either. That leaves you lacking a lot of shooting. Teams will small ball them off the court.

They will figure it out, Gorbert and KAT will probably stagger minutes to ensure that at least one of them is on the court for the whole game, which will help their rebounding numbers. If they can move Dlo for a PG with a bit more defensive chops I think it can work

etidy:
Wait what's Gobert and KAT doing on the same team . Unless they are trying to trade KAT, this makes zero sense

KAT just signed the Supermax, it makes sense if look at what happened in the league last year. The Cavs played with a twin towers of Modley and Allen and I think a lot of teams were intrigued by how well it worked especially on the defensive end.
On offense we all know KAT stays on the perimeter a lot so Gorbert and he can fit in at least on paper.

Gorbert to the Timberwolves, the Wolve now need to move Russell for a better playmaking PG. Nba arms race is on

felix00:
ESPN story on the Boston Celtics acquiring Indiana Pacers playmaker Malcolm Brogdon in a trade: https:///bT5dsSXBJx

Very good move, by the Celtics

birdman:


I say 5: Lebron, Jokic, Giannis, Embiid, Steph

Its more than just skill. Your skill has to be capable of shining even with a double or triple team. Which means you have a very good basketball mind. You can read defenses and still execute your game plan. Which also means you are by nature a disciplined and driven person. And you can take over games on the offense as well as defense. Interestingly, my list is all mobile bigs, except Steph. Steph sucks on defense, but his offense more than makes up for it.

Also note that being a superstar does not equal ring - you need a complete team and disciplined organization for that. Any of these superstars would have won a ring with the Warriors cast. None of these superstars can win a ring with say for example Orlando

I think your criteria is well rounded. I will include KD and a fully healthy Kwahi to the list, and if Luka can put more effort on defense then he will be on my list.
I was asking because based on Shaqs criteria guys like AI, Chuck, Melo were not superstars which is surprising

Roland17:


Baba, everybody dey run him own race last! last!! Beal has his mindset on his own financial goals, I can’t hate the man for what he desires or terms success. Whether him win title or compete for title is irrelevant to the man, na the bar be him own struggle.

He turned 29 last month, he is now on the other end of his career and financially assured. Who knows and considering his offensive skill set, baba may use his 30’s to chase a ring and if e no work, Beal no be like pesin wen go lose sleep.

To each his own!

That is how I see it too. Nobody knows his history or family story. I remember Brazilian Oscar saying when he got the Chinese deal, that he would rather ensure that his family is set for life (he had a huge extended family), rather than the prestige of playing in Europe.
So for Beal big ups to him, he was offered that contract, he did not force the Wizards into giving it to him, they did so of their own volition, so he has every right to sign the contract and enjoy the financial security.

The Bucks ownership are going cheap again IMHO

felix00:


Wtff.
I don't understand. Kyrie is staying. Why does he want out?

Actually that part I understand, Kyrie has shown he cannot be counted upon to stay on the court for any extended period of time. In Hindsight KD probably knows it was a mistake to team up with him and has decided to the detriment of the Nets to cut bait, rather than continue their partnership.

Some people have issues with this changes that occurs every offseason, because of the player empowerment in the nba.
Personally, I like it, because as someone who supports no particular team, this movement results in a yearly reshuffle. IMHO, if this continues it would make it harder for a long reign by just one team, unless a team lucks out and has a collection of talent like the KD Warriors
This movement all but guarantees a new set of competitors for the championship each year. Non of the participants in the last 3 championship series before this year made it back to the finals, the next year, non even made it back to the conference finals .
It makes the nba, much less predictable based on past performances, i.e you cannot predict based on last season what is going to happen in the next season. Keeps the competition fresh if you ask me

The only thing that is guaranteed this offseason in the nba is that there is going to be an arms race by teams.
The Nets will probably trade both KD and Kyrie and try the hypothetical route of putting a team of shooters around Ben Simmons, at least in the short term.
I see the Suns, Heat being players for KD. As for Kyrie the Lakers and maybe Dallas if they can get him for cheap.
You add that to the Clippers loading up, GSW who will definitely have no choice but to pay Poole now. If the Sixers, Bucks, Nuggets and Celtics also add some pieces we just might have a situation where there is about 5 or 6 loaded teams gunning for the championship this upcoming season.

With Shaq saying there are currently only 4 superstars in the nba, let me just come out and ask, what is the criteria that makes a player a nba superstar? cause it seems to be all-over the place

etidy:


Na ment now, the super max has been a death contract for most teams, I never liked it when it was initiated and I don't right now.

The only players that has successfully lived up to the contract has been steph and Giannis
Paying a single player 35% of your cap space is madness to me when you still need to squeeze in another supermax or one/two more max contracts to compete.

What you get is a consistent miserable team who is not competing neither is it bad enough to get good picks. Moreover if the player declines its become a horrible contract.

John wall, Westbrook, Gobert, Harden have be dud. Meanwhile the same contract has been impeding Lillard from getting any help.

The bar for getting the super max is too low, heck Klay narrowly missed out on it and was disappointed when he missed all nba before contracts negotiations.
Imagine paying steph and Klay 70% of your cap space,e don finish for the warriors be that they would have to cannibalize the team.

The way the Supermax is calculated makes the value different for each player. E.g Jokic Supermax value is higher than what Beal might get and also what Doncic got.
Still I truly believe it should only be for those who really push the needle. Personally, if I was the players instead of the Supermax they should have pushed for Ownership shares with the selling point that it would be harder for a player who has Ownership stake to ask for a trade after getting paid.

The Spurs are finally going full rebuild mode