The Official NBA 2020 (-2021?) Offseason Thread

[miami_fan]

Per Woj

Daryl Morey is finalizing a deal to become the President of Basketball Operations of the 76ers.

The Process is back baby!

[stevew]

Season starting 12/22? Draft is still in like 3 weeks, Will be interesting to see what happens. Some teams haven't played in almost 8 months. Wonder which players have been working on their game and which ones have been playing PS4

[sterlingice]

Philly just got really interesting.

Also, Houston's going to suck for a while, I suspect. Like Harden will keep them treading water for a couple more years unless he demands a trade. But then it's years of darkness.

Clearly we have a really awful owner in place in Houston and because he was both too cheap and too meddling, we lost one of the best GMs in the business.

Two years ago, they had 3 things go wrong that if 1 of the 3 had gone right, they have a title: Chris Paul hamstring, historically awful shooting, and some pretty atrocious refereeing. Now we're staring at this nonsense.

SI

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Also, Houston's going to suck for a while, I suspect. Like Harden will keep them treading water for a couple more years unless he demands a trade. But then it's years of darkness.

So I am the only one who jumped on the ol' trade machine already?

[stevew]

So what do the Bucks do if Giannis won't sign a supermax? I'd trade him, but that's after living through LeBron twice. For example, if I can dump Bledsoe into the Warriors trade exception, and take back Wiggins and #2 and the future Minnesota pick in 2021 as well as get a few other things, I think you have to consider doing that.

[stevew]

I'm completely in love with Anthony Edwards, although there's no way he should fall to the Cavs at #5. He's got that Wade/Harden build, and can only hope to fill out a bit more.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by stevew

I'm completely in love with Anthony Edwards, although there's no way he should fall to the Cavs at #5. He's got that Wade/Harden build, and can only hope to fill out a bit more.

Unfortunately, according to reports, he also has the Wiggins motor.

[stevew]

Looks like it's going to be the Tampa Bay Raptors for this season. I feel like they should do a one off nickname and jersey combo set for them and just leave the Raptors stuff in Canada. Make them something cheesy like the Tampa Bay Palm Leafs or see if you can use "Floridians"

[sterlingice]

The Tampa Bay "Florida Man" with the mascot of an old guy on a golf cart fighting a gator while doing something foolish?

SI

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

The Tampa Bay "Florida Man" with the mascot of an old guy on a golf cart fighting a gator while doing something foolish?

SI

Only if all the players grow mullets Joe Dirt style

[miami_fan]

Per Woj,

Chris Paul and Abdel Nader to the Suns. Kelly Oubre Jr, Ty Jerome, Ricky Rubio, Jalen Lecque 2022 1st round pick to the Thunder.

Chris Paul the mentor is not what I imagined for his later years.

[Atocep]

The Suns are going all in on that 6-8 seed in the west.

[stevew]

Why the hell is he the official spokesperson for State Farm when literally EVERY NBA fan I know hates his fucking guts.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Atocep

The Suns are going all in on that 6-8 seed in the west.

Well, OKC won't be contending for it anymore. And Houston looks like they're trying to blow it all up

SI

[sterlingice]

And, really, it's not like the Suns gave up much to get him: the 2022 1st rounder and the chance to pay CP3's contract...

SI

[stevew]

Harden to the Nets really would be something to see. How can 3 guys dominate the ball that much simultaneously.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

And, really, it's not like the Suns gave up much to get him: the 2022 1st rounder and the chance to pay CP3's contract...

SI

Kelly Oubre's good, though his contract timeline would've put the Suns in a tough spot next summer.

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Kelly Oubre's good, though his contract timeline would've put the Suns in a tough spot next summer.

He's a great trade chip and I'm sure that's what OKC sees there.

Paul's a great player when he's on the floor, but this past season was the first time he's played a full season in 3 years? They also gave up their $17 mil in cap space to make the trade immediately so this is basically their roster for the next 2 seasons. They're definitely better with Paul but still not a top 4 seed.

[stevew]

Demar Derozan would be a good get for someone to be their 3rd best player. Also really like the Lakers going after Schroder.

[bhlloy]

The incentives in basketball are just so different than any other sport - it feels like a lot of nothing for a team that actually looked good last year, but then ESPN gives them rave reviews for getting out of the contract and getting what will essentially be a couple of mid-late rounders (they will flip Oubre)

Basically everyone is just buying lottery tickets to try to find the next stud you need to be one of two or three. Sixth place with no realistic chance of winning a trophy seems like the worst place to be. I get it, it’s just strange...

[stevew]

Harden turning down 2 years, 100 million or so as an extension should be enough for the Rockets to move on.

Jrue Holiday to the Bucks for George Hill, Bledsoe, and 3 #1s could be a boon for the Pelicans if Giannis leaves.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by stevew

Harden to the Nets really would be something to see. How can 3 guys dominate the ball that much simultaneously.

HAHA! That would be interesting.

[stevew]

Bucks also getting Bogdanovic from the Kings.

[wustin]

Originally Posted by Atocep

The Suns are going all in on that 6-8 seed in the west.

Not really. CP3's contract is the same length as Rubio's. Oubre is soon to be UFA and on his contract year, they weren't going to resign him anyways cause he's overrated. They had a better record with Bridges in the starting 5 when Oubre was out hurt. And no matter how you look at it, CP3 is better than Rubio. So they pretty much just traded a first round pick to upgrade Rubio to CP3.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by stevew

Jrue Holiday to the Bucks for George Hill, Bledsoe, and 3 #1s could be a boon for the Pelicans if Giannis leaves.

Everybody around here seems pretty confident Giannis isn’t going anywhere. These deals would seem to indicate that. If he does leave, this Jrue Holiday deal would be awful.

[wustin]

Originally Posted by lungs

Everybody around here seems pretty confident Giannis isn’t going anywhere. These deals would seem to indicate that. If he does leave, this Jrue Holiday deal would be awful.

If Giannis leaves they would be in rebuilding mode anyways. Given how much of a crapshoot the NBA draft is, I think the gamble of 3 draft picks is worth it especially for a small market.

The problem now is that they've reached the hard cap and need to find 9 more players to fill out the roster. They have a MLE available and can overpay Wes Matthews and Robin Lopez to bring back onto the team. That leaves 6 minimum contracts.

[albionmoonlight]

I don't see how you trade for Jrue unless you have a pretty firm commitment from Giannis that he is staying.

[albionmoonlight]

dola:

As a Pels fan, I guess I want those picks to be high (though not sure how protected they are). But as a small-market team fan, I want Giannis to stay and the Bucks to be good.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight

I don't see how you trade for Jrue unless you have a pretty firm commitment from Giannis that he is staying.

The only firm commitment that the Bucks could trust is him signing his extension before the season. Outside of that, all they can do is hope. Since I don't expect Giannis to do that, the Bucks had two choices. They can either trade Giannis away or they can try to improve the team and try to convince Giannis that he should re-sign at the end of the season. Not changing anything is not an option.

wustin's comments about the hard cap and the roster is interesting. It is almost as if the front office is trying to force Coach Bud into shortening his playing rotation.

[stevew]

The Bucks can probably buy some second round picks. But getting hard capped for a sign and trade is brutal. I don't see how Giannis stays

[Swaggs]

I'm not sure if anyone sees New Orleans as enough of a destination to use like Miami/Lakers/Nets/Clips have recently been, but it seems like they have the cap room and draft picks to lure do a couple sign and trades (between picks and Lonzo) or use free agency to find two top tier guys to build around Zion. Would be kind of funny if Giannis ended up there.

OKC is sort of in the same boat, but without a Zion and maybe less desirable location. Although I'm not sure how desirable New Orleans is either compared to LA or Brooklyn or Miami.

[Atocep]

OKC takes Horford's contract from the 76ers along with the 34th pick tonight, a 2025 1st, and the rights to Vasilije Micic for Danny Green

[Ksyrup]

Apparently Klay Thompson suffered a lower leg injury today. Yeesh.

[stevew]

If Klay is out all season, isn’t it time to reload completely? Surely Curry should have significant value in trade.

[JonInMiddleGA]

LOL Minnesota.

Have fun with that.

[stevew]

3 and D wings need to shoot better than 29% from 3. At pick #5 no less

[rjolley]

I don't get the Bulls' pick at #4. You're telling me they couldn't trade back and get the same player?

[Atocep]

I'm surprised Haliburton fell out of the top 10. One of the most sure thing players in this draft. Not necessarily a star by any means, but probably a better version of Lonzo.

[stevew]

Draft just shows why the shit teams still suck and the Celtics draft someone like Nesmith at #14 and he’ll play meaningful minutes by next summer.

[stevew]

Pistons seem like they’re doing something here. Bey, Hayes, Stewart seems like a promising haul.

[stevew]

Seth Curry to go play for his father in law.

Bucks trade for Bogdonovic broke down.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by rjolley

I don't get the Bulls' pick at #4. You're telling me they couldn't trade back and get the same player?

That requires people willing to trade up to #4.

In a draft that looks this weak, there may not have been many of those.

[Vince, Pt. II]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Apparently Klay Thompson suffered a lower leg injury today. Yeesh.

Originally Posted by stevew

If Klay is out all season, isn’t it time to reload completely? Surely Curry should have significant value in trade.

Team is worried it is a "significant achilles injury" - just ugh. How awful for him. Been brutal to watch the injuries for the Warriors for the last season and a half, basically.

I can't imagine the Warriors ever unloading Curry. Will be interesting to see what happens if Klay truly is down with a serious injury. If it's an achilles tear, he's done for all of this season and a good portion of the following season, likely. This is a very smart front office, and they have to see the value Curry could have if he is moved. But man, the Bay Area would riot if he left, even if it's a smart move.

[rjolley]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

That requires people willing to trade up to #4.

In a draft that looks this weak, there may not have been many of those.

True. I thought of that as I typed that post. Still feels like a stretch pick based on what their roster looks like and their needs. I would've thought a playmaking wing or a solid point guard would make more sense. I wonder if the new regime is not too high on Lauri and Williams is coming in to challenge for his spot in the next couple of years.

[wustin]

Sacramento, Dallas, and Denver are the winners for me in this draft. Both of Dallas' second round picks were 1st round talents. Tyrell Terry especially was projected as high as 10 on some big boards. Had he not have been available at 31, Dallas probably would've taken Tyler Bey and not have shipped Curry for JRich.

[wustin]

dola Tyler Bey was PAC12 Defensive Player of the Year and has the highest combine recorded max vertical at 43.5 inches.

6'7 with a 7'1 wingspan, he's very reminiscent of Shawn Marion.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by rjolley

True. I thought of that as I typed that post. Still feels like a stretch pick based on what their roster looks like and their needs. I would've thought a playmaking wing or a solid point guard would make more sense. I wonder if the new regime is not too high on Lauri and Williams is coming in to challenge for his spot in the next couple of years.

He didn't get a ton of chances to show it at FSU but Williams has underrated playmaking & handles. Played PG at a pretty good HS. You never know how much is real but he was getting helium on draft boards & projected as high as 4 in some mocks. (Of course Terry was getting some helium & projected late lottery by some & he fell to 31.)

Originally Posted by stevew

Draft just shows why the shit teams still suck and the Celtics draft someone like Nesmith at #14 and he’ll play meaningful minutes by next summer.

Nesmith had no playmaking & seems like a pure off ball shooter. If that shooting is elite enough it obviously plays, but it's understandable why it's more useful on a good team like the Celtics than a bad one who is trying to find foundational stars/pieces, even if their floor is much lower.

[BishopMVP]

Still waiting to see what happens with Hayward & Boston. Would've loved a trade centered around Myles Turner, but it never made a ton of sense from the Pacers side unless they got multiple draft assets (or I guess liked a young player like Romeo Langford/Robert Williams).

I can get why he wants a longer term deal & why he didn't want to opt in just to be traded without any leverage, but it's always made more sense for Hayward to take the player option. I can't imagine he'd get more than $20m/y on a multi-year deal.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

LOL Minnesota.

Have fun with that.

One thing about Minnesota. They are not being held hostage by draft stereotypes of their past.

I think the Pistons have drafted one Euro after drafting Darko. The Cavs haven't drafted a big man of any sorts since Anthony Bennett.

I know Minnesota did not actually draft Wiggins but you get the point.

[JPhillips]

My wife used to work with the sister of Elijah Hughes. They are very excited for him. I know the second round is a crap shoot, but from what I've read it looks like he can stick for a while if he can defend.