Everything Playoffs

[G__Deane]

Another awesome part of going this far in the playoffs: offseason is so much shorter! We're only like 2 weeks from the end of this series until finding out that Kawhi is re-signing with the Raptors

Fixed it for you ....

[Demographic Shift]

So in the "been there done that" department and just what is on the minds of Eastern Conference GMs as the draft and FA phase of the 24 x 7 X 365 NBA season rolls inextricably on ??

If your Philly whats up next ? From the been there done that Masai Ujiri playbook.. you roll it back. Your one 4 bounce shot from advancing to the ECF. Thats it. One shot. So back comes Embiid. Back comes Simmons. Back comes Reddick.... Since there is only one ball I think you bring back one of Harris or Butler and parlay the open money to solidify your bench .... We going to be hating the Hinkies for a while.

If your the Bucks ... You do nothing. The bucks donated blood this year against a team that was more experienced and with a bona fide star that did what bona fide stars do. The Bucks have one of those bona fide stars in the Alphabet. If I am GM for a day.. I sign both Middelton and Brogdon for term. I still like Mirotic and Illyasova and they stay..This is the second time Eric Bledsoe wilted. Last year he melted against Boston.This year it was against the Raps. So do you dust him for pennies on the dollar? No. You have to stick with Eric who is only 29 to make good on his deal in the post season. So what do the Bucks do then ?... They have a few margaritas over the summer .. build a decent level of hate for the Raps and Philly and the Chowda's and bring the band back. They gave their blood... they now know what its going to take.

The Chowdas ... I think its prudent that they let the distraction walk. Irving can leave. No charge. Thank him for his service. Take him to brunch. But let this fucker go. Give Rozier a deal to make him feel wanted Is he Irving on the floor ? No. Is he better for the team. Hell yeah. Move number 2 is to see if you can sign Al Horford to a 2 year plus a team option Lowry like deal. Brown and Tatum like him. Those two are your next 5 years so let them grow with a guy who plays hard .. plays well and doesn't sap the confidence or "want to" from your up and coming players. They have 3 draft picks this year.. .Trade what you need to in order to land a designated 3 point shooter. The big trade with New Orleans might be for E'tuan Moore. And .. yes.. the no reasonable offer refused sign is up on Hayward if he isn't the guy you thought he was going to be at next years trade deadline. Sometimes a bad stock buy is just that. Sell before you lose it all.

The Pacers...well those guys get back their stud in Olidipo. Is it enough ? Prolly not. So what to do ? There is lots of chatter to trade one of Myles Turner or Sabonis... which is .. with all due respect to the MSM NBA media... fucking retarded. When your on the way up.. your move is to get better by additions. So what does Indy do ..they have the 18th pick in the draft and they have Thad Young as collateral. How do they turn that into a wing player. Is it easy ? No. Is it doable.. yes....Indy has a PG in Collison. They have an all NBA type player in Olidipo. They have a young mobile C in Turner and a young mobile type PF in Sabonis... At SF they have an aging Thad... Would Philly who just happens to have two SF's who can bring scoring and who meet what Indy needs in Butler and Harris part with one for a package of Thad Young and the 18th pick. I think Elton Brand takes the call. A veteran bench who can be counted upon in the playoffs is something Philly needs.

The Heat.. Well they are porked. They get a pick.. but they are stuck with Dragic and Whiteides horriific deals. No cap space and a bunch of try hard guys. The weather is nice though.

The BobHornetNetCats ...The poster child for what is a treadmill team in the NBA. They need to let Walker walk. Really.. you'd pay 200M plus to finish 7 or 8 or 9 for 5 years ? Problem is that it opens minimal cap space. Quite seriously the Hornets suck. With Mitch Kupchak at the helm.. another Carolina guy with no track record in the NBA.. they will contine to suck for the foreseeable future.

The Magic... Again as GM for a day I resign Vuc and try to trade a young and promising Mo Bamba for a PG or a draft slot to get a decent PG. Does a combo of Mo Bamba and your 16th to Cleveland get you to 6 where you get a shot at Coby White ? Vuc.. Gordon... a stopper in Jonathon Issac a legit three point guy in Ross and a shot at a legit D'Arron Fox type PG in White get you going.. yes it does...

The Pistons ... Capped out with all the money tied up in Blake and Drummond... as the baseball expression goes.. Pray for rain.

The Hawks... Two more top 10 picks to add to Collins and Young. Another year of staying the course. They are coming.. in 3 years.

The Nets.. They are the next Indy... They have good wing depth in Levert. + Hollis Jefferson and Joe 3ballHarris.. They have a decent to good backcourt in Russell and Dinwidde... They need a PG and a big body presence up front. They have two first round picks this year and cap space... Sean Marks your on the clock. If Marks is as good as he looks to be.. expect the Nets to be there next year. I think they get a buyers market serious sit down with Kyrie Irving to fix one of those holes. Or if they think Irving is a flake beyond belief... maybe they look to add a power guy to the front court and stay the course via the draft. You could do worse than Julius Randle and waiting for Jarred Allen to get some old man strength.

Everyones favourite to sign any and all free agents that has shiny-ness .. Da Knicks... Do they get Durant or Irving or both ? Who knows... If they don't ... They're fucked.

The Wizards... Life without parole... The Wiz are going to pay for Ernie Grundfelds misktakes longer than the Nets did for Billy Knights. Conventional thinking says there is no such thing as an untradeable contract... but John Walls 4 year deal 45m aav deal for a team killing pinhead with a bad legs and knees and whatever else may be the exception. It foreces them to trade Beal in order to suck bad enough to get picks while they wait out Walls contract. Who ever takes that GM job needs a 7 year ironclad deal.

The Bulls.. They have the 7th pick and a bunch of young talent in Carter and Markaaanen. They need to unload Zach Lavine a poor mans John Wall and Kris Dunn. The Lakers are dumb enough to take Lavine for one of Ingram or Ball. No one is dumb enough to take Dunn. Another year with team Panzer for the Bulls... unless ownership fires Garpax.

The DeadLooks...Continue to look dead. They get to unload JR Smiths deal and they get the 5th pick. The next order of business is what can they get for Kevin Love. A pick and a prospect enhances the Cavs if they can get it... Who is in the market for a tier two star on the downslope of a pretty good carreer... Well the Knicks are if they strike out on Durant and Irving.... If they can't move Love.. .the Cavs are not Wizards bad.. but its close.

[inthepaint]

So in the "been there done that" department and just what is on the minds of Eastern Conference GMs as the draft and FA phase of the 24 x 7 X 365 NBA season rolls inextricably on ??

If your Philly whats up next ? From the been there done that Masai Ujiri playbook.. you roll it back. Your one 4 bounce shot from advancing to the ECF. Thats it. One shot. So back comes Embiid. Back comes Simmons. Back comes Reddick.... Since there is only one ball I think you bring back one of Harris or Butler and parlay the open money to solidify your bench .... We going to be hating the Hinkies for a while.

Agree that if you're Philly you run it back, but just for clarity, if that shot doesn't go that game goes OT (It's not that they were winning and that shot put the Raps ahead on the last second) They would still have to win in OT, in game 7, on the road, with a non-shooting point guard and a brittle centre not used to big minutes. I'm glad it didn't have to go to OT to begin with, but if it did, Philly would have to work real hard and have great mental stability to walk out that building with a W. Shouldn't affect their offseason decisions though, they were really close.

[KeonClark]

Agree that if you're Philly you run it back, but just for clarity, if that shot doesn't go that game goes OT (It's not that they were winning and that shot put the Raps ahead on the last second) They would still have to win in OT, in game 7, on the road, with a non-shooting point guard and a brittle centre not used to big minutes. I'm glad it didn't have to go to OT to begin with, but if it did, Philly would have to work real hard and have great mental stability to walk out that building with a W. Shouldn't affect their offseason decisions though, they were really close.

I think butler is gone, and he was the 2nd best player, and maybe their best playoff player. Until simmons can develop some semblance of an outside the paint shot, and Embiid can play 30 min a night 75 times and then not have strange ailments all playoffs, I see a step back next season. Not necessarily in wins, but passing bucks and raps if Kawhi stay, seems unlikely

[Apollo]

If Kawhi stays the Raptors are still gonna need to pull off a bold trade in my opinion. It sounds like the Knicks are primed to land a couple stars and have the assets to trade for another really good player.

[KeonClark]

If Kawhi stays the Raptors are still gonna need to pull off a bold trade in my opinion. It sounds like the Knicks are primed to land a couple stars and have the assets to trade for another really good player.

Serge is that trade. You can't pay 46 million for 48 minutes of Gasol and Ibaka. Serge and Fred in a package for a long combo guard

I know Milwaukee won't trade with us, but love to pry Brogdon away. Or maybe a bigger fish like Jrue Holiday. Tough though because we don't have a ton of valuable young assets anymore. You almost need to trade with that is win now mode like you but have a different need. The only surplus we really have is at center. OG is backup to both Kawhi and Pascal. I think the biggest need is finding a bonafide backcourt guy to share minutes with Kyle and Danny as they age. Fred and Norm are great, but as Kyle will continue to need more support I'm not sure they're enough

[inthepaint]

I think butler is gone, and he was the 2nd best player, and maybe their best playoff player. Until simmons can develop some semblance of an outside the paint shot, and Embiid can play 30 min a night 75 times and then not have strange ailments all playoffs, I see a step back next season. Not necessarily in wins, but passing bucks and raps if Kawhi stay, seems unlikely

Yeah it's hard to see Philly getting stronger unless it's from internal, organic growth (Simmons learning to shoot, Embiid more durable, Harris remaining borderline all-star etc.. etc..). I think if you're Philly that's what you aim for, but if you're unable to retain Butler, that will be tough, he was really the anchor on their playoff run.

[Apollo]

Serge is that trade. You can't pay 46 million for 48 minutes of Gasol and Ibaka. Serge and Fred in a package for a long combo guard

I know Milwaukee won't trade with us, but love to pry Brogdon away. Or maybe a bigger fish like Jrue Holiday. Tough though because we don't have a ton of valuable young assets anymore. You almost need to trade with that is win now mode like you but have a different need. The only surplus we really have is at center. OG is backup to both Kawhi and Pascal. I think the biggest need is finding a bonafide backcourt guy to share minutes with Kyle and Danny as they age. Fred and Norm are great, but as Kyle will continue to need more support I'm not sure they're enough

TJ Warren might be a guy to kick the tires on. The Suns have a log jam on the wing and he can really shoot it.

Not sure if he fits though. Depends on other moves.

[DanH]

If Kawhi stays the Raptors are still gonna need to pull off a bold trade in my opinion. It sounds like the Knicks are primed to land a couple stars and have the assets to trade for another really good player.

Boy golly are the Knicks real far down on the list of teams to worry about.

If Kawhi stays, any trade will likely be cutting the fat and reducing team salary. Unlikely there's another bold trade.

[inthepaint]

Serge is that trade. You can't pay 46 million for 48 minutes of Gasol and Ibaka. Serge and Fred in a package for a long combo guard

I know Milwaukee won't trade with us, but love to pry Brogdon away. Or maybe a bigger fish like Jrue Holiday. Tough though because we don't have a ton of valuable young assets anymore. You almost need to trade with that is win now mode like you but have a different need. The only surplus we really have is at center. OG is backup to both Kawhi and Pascal. I think the biggest need is finding a bonafide backcourt guy to share minutes with Kyle and Danny as they age. Fred and Norm are great, but as Kyle will continue to need more support I'm not sure they're enough

What I think we also need is a freaking first round pick one of these years. Feels like we haven't had one of those in a while. I know it's the price to pay in order to be where we are, but as the guys age you really start to see the need for new blood in the team's growth cycle.

[DanH]

What I think we also need is a freaking first round pick one of these years. Feels like we haven't had one of those in a while. I know it's the price to pay in order to be where we are, but as the guys age you really start to see the need for new blood in the team's growth cycle.

They took OG in the first round in spring 2017, and had two first rounders in spring 2016. So, last season they had no first. This year they have no first. They have every 1st moving forward.

[Apollo]

Boy golly are the Knicks real far down on the list of teams to worry about.

If Kawhi stays, any trade will likely be cutting the fat and reducing team salary. Unlikely there's another bold trade.

I don't agree with either of those. The Knicks have a new management team and an unrelenting rumor that Durant is going there. They're nothing to worry about at this moment but by late July it might be another story.

To keep Kawhi they need a plan to improve, not to downsize. If he stays and they don't fulfill that, what do you think is gonna happen?

[octothorp]

Bucks have a really tough move regarding Lopez; IMO he is vital to what makes them dangerous, but they don't have bird-rights on him. They can offer him a MLE-type contract, but that's way below what he gets on the open market, and at 31 he may be looking at this as his last guaranteed big paycheque. Alternately, they could opt not to resign Middleton in order to clear up cap space to give him a competitive contract... he'd likely take below market value to stay with the Bucks, but not $10 million a year below market value.

[DanH]

I don't agree with either of those. The Knicks have a new management team and an unrelenting rumor that Durant is going there. They're nothing to worry about at this moment but by late July it might be another story.

To keep Kawhi they need a plan to improve, not to downsize. If he stays and they don't fulfill that, what do you think is gonna happen?

The Knicks getting Durant is like the Lakers getting LeBron. Shaking in my boots...

They are in the Finals, though? Why does a team in that position need a plan to improve beyond relying on the young pieces on the team getting better? Meanwhile, the long term plan to improve is pretty obvious, and a trade would likely work against it.

[Apollo]

The Knicks getting Durant is like the Lakers getting LeBron. Shaking in my boots...

They are in the Finals, though? Why does a team in that position need a plan to improve beyond relying on the young pieces on the team getting better? Meanwhile, the long term plan to improve is pretty obvious, and a trade would likely work against it.

For someone who can't tell the future you're pretty damn confident about it.

The Clippers took the Warriors to six games without a star. Now they have the money to bring in two. They also have one of the most renowned coaches in the league. They have one of the best team builders i league history on staff. They have one of the richest team owners. They're also located in Kawhi's home town. Where did Kawhi want to go when he asked to be traded? His home town.

There are trades that can help the Raptors. The team they are now will look different than the team they are this time next year even if Kawhi stays and they don't make any moves. Is that team better than this one? Really hard to say but I don't think Masai rests on his laurels, especially if they lose the chip over the next two weeks.