2014 NBA draft/off-season thread

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

There are a lot of Rajon Rondo trade rumors out there. Kings, Cavs, Magic.

 

Knicks get: Calderon, Larkin, Dalembert, Ellington, 34th overall pick, and 51st overall pick

Mavs get: Tyson and Felton

I don't like this trade for the Mavs. But they are stuck in 45-50 win purgatory in the West - so they have to try something. This gives them:

Harris/Felton
Ellis/Carter
Marion/Crowder
Nowitzki/Wright
Chandler/Blair

Weak at PG and SF as I think Marion will start to slow down this season. If they can fill in some depth at SF and find a starting quality PG in via Free Agency they could make a run past the first round next season.

The way Harris finished last season I would see him getting the start over Felton.

 

Did the Knicks take on a lot of salary? As a Knicks fan who hasn't really paid much attention since they hired Isaiah, I can't remember the last time they did something & I thought "wow, that's a great move." Go Phil!

 

Calderon is owed $22mm over the next 3 years. A lot of cash for a slightly above average player.

 

OK, but I think they were on the hook for 2 years of Felton who is no bargain.

 

At I believe $9 million. I just don't get committing to 3 years of Calderon, even if Felton is inferior.

 

By the numbers Felton was probably the worst defensive point guard in the NBA. I forgot where I saw this number, but opposing point guards scored something like 23 points per game on him.

 

I saw somebody joking that Felton was going to be the fourth-best PG in New York, behind Deron Williams and the two coaches.

 

Houston is said to have dealt Omer Asik to New Orleans plus cash in exchange for draft picks. Morey's clearing of cap space has begun!

 

I'm shocked he got a first round pick for Asik, since Asik is making $15M this year in real money. The cap hit is only $8M, but still, everyone knew the Rockets wanted to deal him. He seems to be a really good match for Anthony Davis.

Re: The Knicks and Mavs deal, it's kind of a meh deal for me for both sides. The Mavs get Chandler, the best player in the deal, but gave up two OK players to get him. They probably sacrificed a bit of depth for a better player overall. The Knicks getting out from under Felton, who's essentially a candidate for release at this point between his on-court defense and his off-court baggage, is nice, but Calderon is signed for three more years and he's probably a league-average player at best.

 

So how much are draft picks "worth" when trying to balance out the books on a trade? Reading about how much a crapshoot the NBA draft has become (read the Grantland piece) makes me think a draft pick in most cases is better to have on your books than a player that it might be used for.

 

I wonder if the Pelicans pick is lottery protected for next year. Nice move by Houston getting value for a player who everyone assumed would be dealt shortly after they signed Howard.

Based on the NYK-Dallas trade, I'm assuming Phil is assuming that Carmelo is not coming back. It was a "win now" move for Dallas and seemed like a "rebuilding" move for the Knicks.