2015 NBA Offseason Thread

[Groundhog]

3 more opportunities for the Sixers to add more PF/Cs to their roster!

[murrayyyyy]

Originally Posted by Arles

I'm shocked the 76ers took an overseas guy who won't come over for a few years. Guess they didn't want to increase that massive $28 mil team cap number they have for next season.

They are going to build a better team with their five 2nd round picks. Why trade them?

How the hell do they have 12 mill on the books for JaVale? Take that off and they might be around 12 million right now in total salary (not counting tonight's picks)

[Groundhog]

Mason Plumlee announces his own trade. Destination and for whom unknown...

[Groundhog]

Brooklyn will send Mason Plumlee and Pat Connaughton to the Blazers for Hollis-Jefferson and Blake, league sources tell Yahoo.

[murrayyyyy]

More guards in Phoenix!

[Arles]

Who will the Suns take? When in doubt, a guard from Kentucky is always a good guess

[Groundhog]

Andrew Harrison is pretty good value this low in the draft though, probably the last real interesting player in the pool.

[Arles]

Actually, Suns just traded the Harrison pick to Memphis for Jon Leuer

[Groundhog]

That's a good situation for Harrison.

[murrayyyyy]

Think the Celtics can get him to wear #4 so they can just break out the old Marcus Thornton jerseys? More point guards in Boston.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by murrayyyyy

Think the Celtics can get him to wear #4 so they can just break out the old Marcus Thornton jerseys? More point guards in Boston.

At least this one seems to be able to shoot the three. Not sure I understand the Celtics obsession with combo-guards though. I hadn't heard of this guy until I read his draft profile now on Draft Express, but I think I actually prefer this guy to Dozier.

[murrayyyyy]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

At least this one seems to be able to shoot the three. Not sure I understand the Celtics obsession with combo-guards though. I hadn't heard of this guy until I read his draft profile now on Draft Express, but I think I actually prefer this guy to Dozier.

Celtics are building a church league team I think.

[Eaglesfan27]

How many centers are the 76ers going to collect?

[Groundhog]

The NBA needs to scrap the All Star game and instead give us the Boston David's vs the Philadelphia Goliaths.

[Groundhog]

And now a tweet emerges of Larry Nance Jnr. calling Kobe a rapist....

[bhlloy]

They really need to give the 76ers to a new ownership group. Why would anyone go to a game in the next three years?

[Groundhog]

To watch Noel and Okafor battle for offensive rebounds from whichever D-League PG is running the team?

[murrayyyyy]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

And now a tweet emerges of Larry Nance Jnr. calling Kobe a rapist....

Well...

[murrayyyyy]

How many 6'10" guys are left for the 76ers?

[murrayyyyy]

Do the 76ers know that he's an American?

[Groundhog]

On the plus side for Tokoto, being an American-born player drafted in the 2nd round by the Sixers is about as good as a 1st round guaranteed contract.

[murrayyyyy]

Christian Wood goes from 20's on draft boards to undrafted a month later after 1 year of college. Cliff Alexander burned bridges at Kansas just like Christian did. Both get passed up for a guy who averaged 4 ppg from India.

[stevew]

Originally Posted by murrayyyyy

They are going to build a better team with their five 2nd round picks. Why trade them?

How the hell do they have 12 mill on the books for JaVale? Take that off and they might be around 12 million right now in total salary (not counting tonight's picks)

They bought him at deadline last year instead of just distributing their floor money like grownups. They're an abortion

[Groundhog]

I thought someone would nab Quinn Cook, although I think he's destined to be a great Euro PG.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

The real loser of that first round is probably the Maine Red Claws. Those Boston guards are going to be launching three-point bricks all NBDL season-long.

Nah, RJ Hunter and James Young will both have multiple 40+ point games.

I was underwhelmed with the options at 16 and pissed they didn't trade up (if there really was a rational deal to be made for #9 or whatever), but there were about 8 guys I would've picked over Rozier. Funnily enough, I think if they had just picked Hunter at 16 and Rozier at 28 the reaction would be much different. On Hunter, I question his "slow" release and athleticism, but he certainly has range and polish and I'm willing to see it play out. Mickey seems legit for a 2nd rounder although I liked Holmes more. Literally had never heard of that Marcus Thornton before. Kinda surprised Cady Lalanne got drafted... Low motor.

Originally Posted by Groundhog

On the plus side for Tokoto, being an American-born player drafted in the 2nd round by the Sixers is about as good as a 1st round guaranteed contract.

No, they'll try to shaft him with one of those 4 year deals where the last two are non-guaranteed at the minimum. Might as well go the KJ McDaniels route and call their bluff by signing the 1-year tender.

Last thought - am I alone outside Detroit's war room in liking Stanley Johnson over Justise Winslow? Sean Miller is a very good college coach because he can recruit, get kids to play hard and craft a defensive scheme, but he can't coach offense to save his life. Both have NBA bodies but Stanley Johnson actually flashed offensive moves and a 3-pt shot, while Winslow is a menace in transition but years away from being a competent 5v5 offensive player.

[RainMaker]

I don't really know what Hinkie and the 76ers are donig.

[Groundhog]

In the Sixers defense (of the draft at least.... not defending their wretched 'rebuild'), I think they've picked the best available player each of the last three drafts with their top pick, and I imagine they were really hoping the Lakers grabbed Okafor at #2 instead of Russell. As it stands now they need to hope that Embiid is able to play at some point, and then look to move one of Embiid or Noel for a wing or PG.

[stevew]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

I don't really know what Hinkie and the 76ers are donig.

Neither does he.

(Too easy, I know)

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

Looney to Golden State is a good selection at #30, although medical reports make it sound like he could fall apart at any second.

Those medical reports are stupid. After he came back from the initial injury, he was fine. Warriors got a big time steal there.

[nol]

A lot of the trade rumors that were discussed leading up to the draft will continue to be discussed among the teams. I'm sure the 76ers also wouldn't have minded getting Winslow if the Heat hadn't tanked out of the playoffs to keep the pick.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Last thought - am I alone outside Detroit's war room in liking Stanley Johnson over Justise Winslow? Sean Miller is a very good college coach because he can recruit, get kids to play hard and craft a defensive scheme, but he can't coach offense to save his life. Both have NBA bodies but Stanley Johnson actually flashed offensive moves and a 3-pt shot, while Winslow is a menace in transition but years away from being a competent 5v5 offensive player.

I don't know if he has changed at all since high school, but I had several conversations about him with a regular at my restaurant, who taught at his high school, a big time private school which has provided a number of big time athletes to the NFL and NBA. She taught him in several classes. She said that, even among the entitled athletes that have passed through that school, he was on his own level for being a superstar diva type, all attitude and getting by on talent alone. I doubt a year at the top of the heap in Tuscon changed that.

I had less of a connection to Winslow but everything I heard is that he's a high quality person who works hard.

[nol]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Last thought - am I alone outside Detroit's war room in liking Stanley Johnson over Justise Winslow? Sean Miller is a very good college coach because he can recruit, get kids to play hard and craft a defensive scheme, but he can't coach offense to save his life. Both have NBA bodies but Stanley Johnson actually flashed offensive moves and a 3-pt shot, while Winslow is a menace in transition but years away from being a competent 5v5 offensive player.

I think it's very possible to compare the two and say that Winslow had pretty much the ideal role for his offensive skillset at Duke while Johnson had to make more of an adjustment so Arizona could have its best five players on the floor.

I'd slightly lean towards Winslow (mostly because neither player is likely to be a go-to option on offense and Winslow is better at passing and cutting), but their differing roles and the fact that people put more stock into NCAA tournament games than they should make it pretty close between the two players.

It's also an interesting choice given the coach-GM situation in Detroit; I'd bet that Van Gundy's rationale for the pick is at least partially based on Johnson's disadvantages relative to Winslow being mostly intangible/attention to detail type things that Van Gundy feels he can "coach up."

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

I don't know if he has changed at all since high school, but I had several conversations about him with a regular at my restaurant, who taught at his high school, a big time private school which has provided a number of big time athletes to the NFL and NBA. She taught him in several classes. She said that, even among the entitled athletes that have passed through that school, he was on his own level for being a superstar diva type, all attitude and getting by on talent alone. I doubt a year at the top of the heap in Tuscon changed that.

I had less of a connection to Winslow but everything I heard is that he's a high quality person who works hard.

That makes some sense, but "diva-esque" describes a lot of NBA players. If he actually didn't work hard that's a huge red flag to me (that was the case with Michael Beasley - he didn't work out his SR year of HS because the gym was too cold.) But without knowing their work ethic I thought Johnson and Winslow were on a similar tier, and Detroit certainly didn't deserve the vitriol. Now, Charlotte passing on Winslow for Kaminsky is another matter. I find it hard to believe there wasn't a decent trade down to be made from Charlotte's perspective that still could've gotten them a Kaminsky or Booker.

It's also weird how much speculation is focused on Marcus Smart being traded after the Rozier pick. I don't rule out anything when it comes to Ainge, but it looks more like Avery Bradley is now the one who is very available.

[whomario]

Timberwolves also "nearing agreement" with Nemanja Bjelica, 2nd rounder from 2010. 27 years old and fresh off being the Euroleague MVP.

PF with nba 3 point range (albeit a tad bit inconsistent), crafty finisher, very good ball handler and good passer. Overall smart player who makes good decisions. Also a really good Rebounder. Lacks some lateral quickness defensively (so no sliding to SF imo), but has good instincts and effort to make up for some of that. Has some definitive "moxy" as well I realize this sound all too promising, but what can i do ... Think the PF version of Batum.

In short, he is (as far as i am concerned) a guy who could play 20 minutes on a pretty good team and in any case would not come over unless he is getting signals of a decent role. Will be interesting what the Wolves do with what now has suddenly become a deep and largely competent FC rotation. Especially the Payne trade would look weird if he comes over ...

The Cap going up might result in quite a lot of talented former draft picks from Europe being signed i think.

[Arles]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

I don't really know what Hinkie and the 76ers are donig.

Continuing his ponzi scheme. "Hey, we still have all these European assets and draft picks - you can't grade me on our 15-win season this year. I'm only 3 years in..."

Legit question: Let's say the Sixers just extended the players from their 2011-12 playoff season and then added their draft picks from 12 and the latest 1st rounder from 2013. That team would be (contracts for 15/16, 16/17):

PG: Jrue Holliday ($11 mil, $11 mil)
MCW ($2.3, $3.2)
SG: Andre Iguodala ($11.7, $11.1)
Jody Meeks ($6.2, $6.5)
Lou Williams (UFA)
SF: Mo Harkless ($2.8, $4)
Evan Turner ($3.4, 0)
Thadeus Young (UFA)
PF: Draft/FA
C: Nikola Vucevic ($11.2, $11.7)
Spencer Hawes ($5.5, $5.7)

That's 8 players for $54 mil with 2 first and second round picks in 14 and 15 to add, $20 mil in cap space and the rights to Williams and Young going into FA. Assuming they signed just average PF (or draft one), that's a playoff team in the East without many bad contracts and a ton of cap space. Would you trade this current roster/assets for Jahlil Okafor, Nerlens Noel, Joel Embid, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Robert Covington, the rights to Saric, the Lakers pick in 16 and some spare parts (Tony Wroten, Isaiah Canaan, Thomas Robinson)? I think you'd be laughed out of the league for making that trade.

So, essentially, the Sixers could have kept a playoff roster for 3 seasons and be no worse off (outside of Noel and Okafor) for the future. I think it's time we can say this "experiment" has been a pretty big failure so far without much hope for the next 2-3 seasons.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by Arles

Continuing his ponzi scheme. "Hey, we still have all these European assets and draft picks - you can't grade me on our 15-win season this year. I'm only 3 years in..."

Legit question: Let's say the Sixers just extended the players from their 2011-12 playoff season and then added their draft picks from 12 and the latest 1st rounder from 2013. That team would be (contracts for 15/16, 16/17):

PG: Jrue Holliday ($11 mil, $11 mil)
MCW ($2.3, $3.2)
SG: Andre Iguodala ($11.7, $11.1)
Jody Meeks ($6.2, $6.5)
Lou Williams (UFA)
SF: Mo Harkless ($2.8, $4)
Evan Turner ($3.4, 0)
Thadeus Young (UFA)
PF: Draft/FA
C: Nikola Vucevic ($11.2, $11.7)
Spencer Hawes ($5.5, $5.7)

That's 8 players for $54 mil with 2 first and second round picks in 14 and 15 to add, $20 mil in cap space and the rights to Williams and Young going into FA. Assuming they signed just average PF (or draft one), that's a playoff team in the East without many bad contracts and a ton of cap space. Would you trade this current roster/assets for Jahlil Okafor, Nerlens Noel, Joel Embid, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Robert Covington, the rights to Saric, the Lakers pick in 16 and some spare parts (Tony Wroten, Isaiah Canaan, Thomas Robinson)? I think you'd be laughed out of the league for making that trade.

So, essentially, the Sixers could have kept a playoff roster for 3 seasons and be no worse off (outside of Noel and Okafor) for the future. I think it's time we can say this "experiment" has been a pretty big failure so far without much hope for the next 2-3 seasons.

I would do that trade. Most of those guys are not top talents, or on the downside of their careers. Holiday and MCW play the same position. Iguodola is on the far side of his career. Vucevic is a solid, but not spectacular player. Williams and Young are presumeably gone, but also not getting any better anyway. Yes, that's a playoff team in the East, but it's not winning the East, nor is it coming close.

At least with Okafor, Noel and Embiid, you have three talents that are supposed to be top end talents, potential All Stars. You have even more cap space as well. And isn't Saric supposed to be pretty good, whenever he comes over? It's not a playoff team right now, but that's a base you can build on.

[Arles]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Last thought - am I alone outside Detroit's war room in liking Stanley Johnson over Justise Winslow? Sean Miller is a very good college coach because he can recruit, get kids to play hard and craft a defensive scheme, but he can't coach offense to save his life. Both have NBA bodies but Stanley Johnson actually flashed offensive moves and a 3-pt shot, while Winslow is a menace in transition but years away from being a competent 5v5 offensive player.

Miller rode Stanley hard last year. He was benched twice and pulled out of other games at crunchtime. He started off slow, but by the end of the year he was a good defender and a much better scorer. I think he will listen to Stan and work hard. He was clearly pissed at Miller a few times, but kept working and ended up a better player. One thing's for sure, he's not afraid of big moments and to have the ball in crunchtime. He reminds me a lot of Iggy when he was at Arizona. Big body, strong defender, solid handle/passer, can get to the rim but needs to work on his shot and limit the turnovers. I think he has a lot more upside than people think, but there is some risk as he's not "great" at any one thing (but neither was Iggy after his freshman year). He's more NBA ready than Winslow IMO, has about 15-20 pounds on him and was a comparable shooter. I can see why a team would want Stanley over Justise.

[nol]

Originally Posted by Arles

Continuing his ponzi scheme. "Hey, we still have all these European assets and draft picks - you can't grade me on our 15-win season this year. I'm only 3 years in..."

Legit question: Let's say the Sixers just extended the players from their 2011-12 playoff season and then added their draft picks from 12 and the latest 1st rounder from 2013. That team would be (contracts for 15/16, 16/17):

PG: Jrue Holliday ($11 mil, $11 mil)
MCW ($2.3, $3.2)
SG: Andre Iguodala ($11.7, $11.1)
Jody Meeks ($6.2, $6.5)
Lou Williams (UFA)
SF: Mo Harkless ($2.8, $4)
Evan Turner ($3.4, 0)
Thadeus Young (UFA)
PF: Draft/FA
C: Nikola Vucevic ($11.2, $11.7)
Spencer Hawes ($5.5, $5.7)

That's 8 players for $54 mil with 2 first and second round picks in 14 and 15 to add, $20 mil in cap space and the rights to Williams and Young going into FA. Assuming they signed just average PF (or draft one), that's a playoff team in the East without many bad contracts and a ton of cap space. Would you trade this current roster/assets for Jahlil Okafor, Nerlens Noel, Joel Embid, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Robert Covington, the rights to Saric, the Lakers pick in 16 and some spare parts (Tony Wroten, Isaiah Canaan, Thomas Robinson)? I think you'd be laughed out of the league for making that trade.

So, essentially, the Sixers could have kept a playoff roster for 3 seasons and be no worse off (outside of Noel and Okafor) for the future. I think it's time we can say this "experiment" has been a pretty big failure so far without much hope for the next 2-3 seasons.

That's very likely not even a playoff team in the East; it doesn't look any better than the Pistons' roster. Iguodala can't play 35 minutes a night. Holiday has been hurt for the better part of the past couple seasons. Harkless has stagnated in Orlando.

That's a lot of cap room and future star players to give up for like 20-30 extra wins over the past couple seasons.

[Arles]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

I would do that trade. Most of those guys are not top talents, or on the downside of their careers. Holiday and MCW play the same position. Iguodola is on the far side of his career. Vucevic is a solid, but not spectacular player. Williams and Young are presumeably gone, but also not getting any better anyway. Yes, that's a playoff team in the East, but it's not winning the East, nor is it coming close.

So you would trade Iggy, Holiday, MCW, Vucevic, Harkless, Meeks, 2 firsts and 2 seconds for a broken down Embiid, the rights to Saric, Okafor and Noel? No thanks. Noel is a defense-only center who isn't nearly as good as Vucevic. Embiid may not play for another year (or ever with his feet situation). Okafor and Saric are nice assets, but not worth the players and picks listed before.

In order for the Philly "plan" to work, you need to get two guys that are transcendent talents in your 3-4 "suck years". I can't see Embiid, Saric or Noel becoming those type of players given what we know about them right now. They needed to get a Lebron, Anthony Davis, Durant, Westbrook, Chris Paul, Blake, .. level player. And I have my doubts that any of these three bigs will ever reach that level.

At least with Okafor, Noel and Embiid, you have three talents that are supposed to be top end talents, potential All Stars. You have even more cap space as well. And isn't Saric supposed to be pretty good, whenever he comes over? It's not a playoff team right now, but that's a base you can build on.

None of those guys appear to be transcendent talents. Again, the reward is you hit the jackpot with your lottery tickets over a 3-year period and I don't see two defense-first bigs, a young Zach Randolph and a Euro who has never played NBA competition amounting to a "jackpot" pick. Plus, the damage you do by sucking for 3-4 seasons can't be discounted. Even if they had just ridden out the team they had, they could have still made the MCW trade for the Lakers pick and had a ton of cap space. And I don't see how the rights to Okafor, Noel, Embiid and Saric are worth Holiday, Iggy, Meeks, Harkless, Vucevic, 2 firsts, 2 seconds and 3 years of watching pathetic basketball.

The Sixers are no closer to a title than they were 3-4 years ago and they have put their fans through hell. Who's their go-to scorer? Who can defend a top tier wing? Who is one player on their roster right now who would even make the rotation for Golden State? I'm not sure even Noel would with his offensive deficiencies - and he's the best shot. Atleast teams like Golden State and OKC had talents like Westbrook/Durant/Harden or Curry/Thompson/Green 3 years into their "sucking". Does Philly have anyone on their roster who would be a top 2 player on a good playoff team in 2-3 seasons? I don't see it if they do. They will stink the next 2-3 seasons and no FA is going to want to go there and lose. I just don't see the potential payoff being worth 5-6 seasons of 20 wins.

[Chief Rum]

Yes, I would, assuming those firsts you're talking about aren't high end lottery selections. I need more information on what those picks became before I can assess those.

None of those players together form anything close to a quality team. All three of the players the Sixers would have have the potential to be much better than all of those other guys. With more cap space.

[Chief Rum]

The goal is to win a championship, not just make the playoffs in the East.

[Arles]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

The goal is to win a championship, not just make the playoffs in the East.

Philly isn't winning a championship in the next 5-6 years. They are no closer to a championship than they were 3-4 years ago. Their "best case" is 2 of these guys become great post players and they end up a 3-4 seed in the East over the next 5 years.

People act like the NBA is this binary equation where it is Championship or bust. We don't look at the NFL that way, or MLB or even hockey. Here's a spoiler: Philly isn't beating Lebron anytime soon. Look at teams like Houston, the D'Antoni Suns, Indiana, the Bulls under Thibodeau, the Clippers and the Thunder. None of those teams have won a thing the past decade, but their fans have had a lot of fun rooting for them. You can field a fun team that's competitive (with an outside chance if injuries break your way) without sucking for 3-4 seasons and making your fans watch a D-League team for years. Even teams in Detroit and Dallas won a title without bottoming out by having some good fortune on player development and always trying to field a competitive team. This Philly plan is an eyesore on the NBA - with no real upside on the horizon. It's amazing to me that people look at it as some kind of enviable successful plan in action.

[nol]

Originally Posted by Arles

Philly isn't winning a championship in the next 5-6 years. They are no closer to a championship than they were 3-4 years ago. Their "best case" is 2 of these guys become great post players and they end up a 3-4 seed in the East over the next 5 years.

Okay, then they are much closer to becoming a 3-4 seed in the East than they would have been with the core of the 11-12 roster with some cosmetic changes around the edges.

Anyhow, the biggest thing you're missing is that Sam Hinkie has been the GM for one fewer year than you think; if you think trading those Magic players and getting rid of Iguodala was bad to get a bunch of high lottery picks and cap space, well, it was actually all for Andrew Bynum and it happened under a different GM. That's a big hole to climb out of in 2, not 3, years.

[Arles]

We will give him 5 years then and see if he makes that 3-4 seed. I'm pretty confident he won't. Look at Cleveland, Miami, Atlanta and even Washington. All are in much better position to win over the next 4 years and none took the "suck" route. And it's not like Miami (losing Lebron), Atlanta (losing half their team) and Washington (blown 2-3 lottery picks) haven't faced adversity. Trying to field a competent team - while also still looking for a star - has worked well for Atlanta, Houston, Washington and others. You don't need to sell off everyone who can play just to "try to win a title".

Hinkie has just found a way to keep his job for 4-5 years without showing any improvement on the court (or better shot at a title). So kudos to him for pulling the wool over everyone's eyes. What's his excuse going to be in 2017-18 when he decides not to pay Noel, Embiid is still hobbling around and no FAs have wanted to join his D-League team? "Well, we need to give him until 2020 because he just drafted this great Euro who should be over by then!!"

Philly fans, just keep mailing $5 bills to the 10 names on the list in your letter from Sam Hinkie. Eventually you will get rich - I swear!

[whomario]

The Warriors just won a championship without really tanking and by adding a piece or 2 every offseason. So did the Mavs in 2011.

I have sympathy for the 76ers in valuing high draft picks and not committing money to players now for the sake of avoiding controversy. But : there is treading water until you find a Franchise player or the right trade/Free Agent. (for example what the Wolves have done the last few years, who at least tried to set themselves up for success without damaging flexibility. And yes, they tanked towards the end of the season. But they did not tank in July)
And then there is whatever the hell the 76ers have been doing. Actually this years draft does not even fit that well with the narrative, taking Okafor is not as weird i would say (especially if Embiid is really out). Still: Even if you accept that being bad to get a "superstar" is a valid strategy, you also need to actually field 10 - 12 actual NBA players at some point and the 76ers have made it a point not to even try and identify players for those spots 4-12 in the last 2 seasons. They purposely refused to add talent and here are 2 problems with this.

1) You whiff on players all the time, it´s inevitable. In the Draft but also in Free Agency. There is no guarantee, that in the offseason you want to start winning you sign 5 guys and all are good fits. More likely than not, 3 of those 5 end up not a good fit.

2) Players and Agents have taken notice of what the 76ers have been doing. They also will be understandably weary joining a perennial looser based on "but now we want to win !"


So unless you think that the "franchise players" (and all 3 + Saric essentially play only 2 positions) and a bunch of fringe players can win 40 games next year or the year after, who will want to come in 2016 or 2017 ? Especially with the Cap rising, which means more money to go around and more flexibility even for the teams that are allready good now. Why would anyone take the max with the 76ers next offseason or in 2017 when they can also get it with a playoff team ?

[bhlloy]

Yeah, Phillly is a joke and no closer to winning with Embiid/Oden v2, Noel and Okafor. No top free agent is ever going to go play for Hinkle and at some point even the Philly fans will give up on them. There is smart tanking and then there is making your team a joke for 6-7 years and still not ending up with a top side out of it

[cuervo72]

What top FA was going to Philly before?

[Arles]

Elton Brand left the Clippers for Philly. I think the reason this strategy bothers me (in addition to how awful the product is) is the fact that Philly is completely ignoring two of the three ways to improve your team (free agency and trade). Philly refuses to trade for or sign better current players. Look at teams like the Suns, Rockets, Portland, etc. These teams have routinely signed or traded for better current players and then flipped them for assets in the future. Not only did the the Suns get better on the court when they traded for Jared Dudley and signed Goran Dragic in FA, they ended up flipping both players for Eric Bledsoe, Danny Granger and two first round picks. The Rockets signed Omer Asik in free agency. Then, when they lost Parsons to Dallas in FA, they moved Asik for Ariza and a 1st.

Just completely taking yourself out of free agency and refusing to trade for good NBA players shuts off two of the three ways you can improve your team. Even if you sign a player who ends up not being the best fit (a la Asik), it's an asset you can eventually use to get better in other places. Hinkie seems to only want to use his cap space to absorb other bad contracts (like McGee) and get more picks. Of course, sucking does tend to dissuade good players from signing in FA - so there's another negative to the strategy.

[Chief Rum]

I also don't see Philly as a city free agents won't go to. I don't think it has the stigma that a more Midwest-ish city might (like Cleveland, Indiana, Milwaukee, Okie City, etc.)

That said, Brand is a bad example. That whole move from the Clips to the Sixers was orchestrated by the agent, and was all about money. It wasn't about Philly as a free agent draw, but as a team willing and able to spend the money on Brand.

[cuervo72]

They've had this conversation a number of times on DC radio regarding the Wizards, and I consider the Sixers as a destination essentially in the same mold (as do the radio peeps). There's just no excitement about either destination. It's not warm, it's not trendy. It's a big city, but it's not like it's a media or advertising leader. It has a losing pedigree (the Sixers had a winning one, but realistically they've been also-rans for 25 years outside of a couple seasons in the Iverson era). The team is eclipsed by the city's other franchises.

There's really nothing to set them apart as a destination. So you're either going to get a player who is going there primarily for the money, or because they have some tie to the city. Basically, a hometown guy - which is the only reason there's any buzz about the Wizards possibly getting a big name (Durant).