**LA LAKERS THREAD** Sitting on 17! 2023-2024 offseason begins

I Like Lavine's game but NAH, Another giant salary, another guy who is always injured & another guy who plays zero defense. The writing is on the Wall, the way for this team to excel is by having depth that Aloows AD/Bron to cruise until the playoffs. They couldn't out perform Jokic & Murray because they've were playing playoff intensity basketball for damn near three months prior because of the horrific start.

D'Lo fit well the majority of the season & was absolute trash in Denver, two things can be true. Because of that I don't think he'll get any crazy offers, which means he can be had for a reasonable price, & it will also allow us to to probably use the full MLE (which could bring in another Starter/6th Man kinda player)

Lavine basically means a swap of him for D'Lo, Beasley, Bamba, Lonnie, Maybe Rui & a first???

For a guy who solves none of the issues this team had..... I'm all the way good on that
 
atlsfinest said:
It's funny that we scrutinize guys who get deep in the playoffs and don't perform well like Dlo but seem to covet guys who have never played a playoff game in their entire career like Lavine.
Click to expand...
MPJ ain't never had significant playoff experience and neither has Aaron Gordon and Bruce Brown til this year and look how ultra valuable they were in helping Jokic win a title this year

Some players thrive elsewhere and become more valuable with a change of scenery

You surround Lavine with Bron and AD and the narrative could easily change. When Lavine played in the 2020 Olympics surrounded by All-Stars he thrived in his role and was a vital piece on that squad. Just sayin
 


Lakers would have strong interest in Chris Paul if he’s waived

The Lakers would have strong interest in signing Chris Paul if the guard is waived or stretched by the Suns, multiple team sources told The Athletic. Here’s what you need to know:

  • Signing Paul to a veteran’s minimum contract would allow the Lakers to use one of their exceptions on another player to bolster their depth.
  • Another option the Lakers have discussed is signing Paul and retaining D’Angelo Russell to truly solidify their point guard position, according to those sources.
  • Russell, the team’s primary point guard after being acquired at the trade deadline, averaged 17.4 points and 5.7 assists per game in 17 regular season games before seeing both of those numbers, along with his shooting efficiency, dip in the playoffs.
  • Paul is coming off a season in which he averaged 13.9 points, 4.3 rebounds, 8.9 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

The Athletic’s instant analysis:

How would Paul fit with the Lakers?

Paul is the type of maestro who could alleviate some of the offensive pressure on James to generate high-percentage looks late in games. Even with Paul nearing 40, it’s easy to envision the rhythm of a Paul-Davis pick-and-roll after seeing it for so many years in New Orleans, Los Angeles, Houston, Oklahoma City and Phoenix.

Paul is more jump-shot reliant than ever, but he remains an elite mid-range assassin. He’s also a capable spot-up shooter who can prop up lineups as a primary or secondary playmaker. The Lakers would need to hide him defensively, but they’re capable of doing so within Darvin Ham’s scheme and with the surrounding defensive personnel. Paul would make a lot of sense for the Lakers as a low-minute starter who ramps up in the postseason. — Buha

Backstory
Paul has struggled to stay healthy through entire seasons in recent years, having suffered an injury in three straight postseasons and six of nine playoffs overall, indicating the Lakers would likely have to manage his workload throughout the 2023-24 season should they acquire him.

If the Lakers replace Russell with Paul on a minimum contract, they’d be able to easily retain Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura and have the option to use their non-taxpayer midlevel exception (worth approximately $12.5 million annually) to spend on Dennis Schröder, another player or both.
 


Lakers’ offseason hinges on their decision at point guard. So what can they do?

For the fourth consecutive summer, the Lakers are looking for a solution at point guard.

Since its 2020 championship, when then-35-year-old LeBron James and then-33-year-old Rajon Rondo excelled as the Lakers’ lead ballhandlers, Los Angeles has used a revolving door of point guards. James’ advanced age and mounting injuries, as well as an internal acknowledgment that he should play off the ball more, have created a need for more supplementary ballhandling, playmaking and shot creation within Los Angeles’ offense. It’s why the Lakers have been enamored with the possibility of adding elite scoring guards like Damian Lillard and Kyrie Irving through the years.

They have taken some big swings to fill this hole. The Lakers traded Danny Green and a 2020 first-round pick for Dennis Schröder before the 2020-21 season. They flipped Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell and a 2021 first-round pick to Washington in exchange for Russell Westbrook in a five-team mega-deal in the ensuing summer. They, of course, moved Westbrook for D’Angelo Russell (among others) in a three-team trade at the 2023 trade deadline, to mixed results. Russell, Schröder (twice) and even Westbrook had productive moments, but none have provided exactly what the Lakers have sought since the title run.

The Lakers are at a crossroads once again this summer. Russell and Schröder are both unrestricted free agents, opening up the possibility that one or both players aren’t back and the Lakers must again cycle through new options at point guard. After priority No. 1 (re-signing free agent Austin Reaves) and No. 2 (re-signing restricted free agent Rui Hachimura), the Lakers’ next priority is addressing their point guard uncertainty.

With the key spots in their rotation largely settled if they retain Reaves and Hachimura, the Lakers’ offseason swings on their decision at point guard. They have various options, from running it back (re-signing Russell and Schröder) to chasing an expensive upgrade via free agency or trade (Irving, Fred VanVleet, Trae Young), or splitting the difference (signing the potentially available Chris Paul in addition to retaining Russell and/or Schröder).

The Lakers’ needs at point guard will be determined in part by how they fill out the rest of their roster, but one of the constant requirements has been a player who can competently run the offense when James is off the floor, develop strong pick-and-roll chemistry with Anthony Davis, fare well off the ball as a catch-and-shoot threat and cutter and at least hold their own in the team’s defensive scheme. Russell, Schröder and Westbrook each checked several of those boxes, but none checked all of them.

The most likely path forward is re-signing Russell and Schröder (possibly with their taxpayer midlevel exception, worth a projected $6.5 million), as The Athletic previously reported.

Russell’s stock has never been lower after a disappointing Western Conference finals showing against the champion Denver Nuggets. He was significantly better in the first two rounds but still did not quite perform well enough to be a the third option on a title-contending team — the level at which the Lakers will be paying him to play if he’s retained. Russell is certainly a useful player who is good on more nights than not. But a player making at least $20 million per season shouldn’t be played off the floor in high-stakes playoff games.

Given Russell’s inconsistent playoff performance and the lack of league-wide interest in him, the Lakers should have the upper-hand in contract negotiations. One framework the Lakers have discussed internally, according to multiple team sources not authorized to speak publicly, is signing Russell to a front-loaded two-year deal – either with an option in the second year or a straight two-year contract – that both gives him the salary he wants and keeps him on the same timeline as James (player option in 2024) and Davis (has an early termination option in 2024 and is eligible for a contract extension in August).

Even though the three-team deadline deal was more about getting rid of Westbrook than the players acquired, the Lakers don’t want to lose Russell in free agency for nothing. Their preference is to find a superior player by either sign-and-trading Russell elsewhere in July or, more likely at this point, re-signing him and then potentially trading him later in the season for a better player or fit.

Those may not be many realistic and attractive alternatives to re-signing Russell. It’s unclear what, if anything, he would net them on the sign-and-trade front. The theoretical alternatives range from unrealistic (Irving, VanVleet) to even more unrealistic (Young, Lillard).

Acquiring Irving or VanVleet would almost certainly require a sign-and-trade, which would hard cap the Lakers at $169.0 million. The Lakers can create roughly $30 to $35 million in cap space, but it would cost them multiple rotation players, likely including Hachimura. Even then, Irving and VanVleet may want more than the $35 million the Lakers can offer – Irving’s maximum contract would start at about $47 million and VanVleet’s max begins at $40.2 million. Young and Lillard are names that have been discussed internally but appear nothing more than a pipe dream, given the current asking prices for stars on the trade market.

That leaves Paul as the most realistic potential upgrade at point guard. If Paul is waived or stretched by the Suns, the Lakers would have a strong interest in signing him, according to multiple team sources not authorized to speak publicly.

The Athletic reported the Suns were working with Paul through a number of options for next season, including a trade or a release. He was slated to make $30.8 million next season, but only $15.8 million of that is guaranteed if he is waived before June 28.

Given that Paul’s next contract would offset the amount he’s guaranteed for this season, him signing for anything more than the veteran’s minimum doesn’t really make sense, as it would only hinder his new team. The Lakers could then sign Paul to a veteran’s minimum contract, retaining access to other salary-cap exceptions to use on other players to bolster their depth.

Paul is coming off a season in which he averaged 13.9 points per game (on a 55.5 true shooting percentage), 4.3 rebounds, 8.9 assists and 1.5 steals. He’s far from the player he was even a few years ago, but he remains a quality starter as a plus shooter and passer. His biggest issue, as has been the case for several years, is durability. He has suffered an injury in three straight postseasons and six of his nine trips to the playoffs overall, indicating the Lakers would likely have to manage his workload throughout the 2023-24 season.

If the Lakers replace Russell with Paul on a minimum contract, they’d be able to easily retain Reaves and Hachimura and have the option to use their nontaxpayer midlevel exception (worth approximately $12.5 million annually) on Schröder, another player, or both. Another option the Lakers have discussed is signing Paul and retaining Russell to further solidify their point guard position, according to those team sources. Paul would be the favorite to start in that scenario.

Head-to-head, Paul vs. Russell was never a conversation until last season, and Paul still rates out better in virtually every advanced metric. He’s the better mid-range shooter, passer, rebounder and more of a defensive playmaker. That said, Russell is younger, nearly matched Paul as a mid-range shooter this past season and is the better 3-point shooter both by percentage and volume. Russell’s 6-foot-10 wingspan also allows him to defend bigger players and add length to the Lakers’ scheme in a way that the 38-year-old Paul never could.

Paul’s ability to command an offense would be appealing to a Lakers team that has lacked that type of traditional floor general. James, of course, has always played that role, to an extent, but Paul is one of the few players in the league he would fully trust to help co-pilot the offense. Signing Paul in this scenario would also be a minimal one-year investment from the Lakers.

There are other reasons for a Paul-Lakers reunion. Paul’s family remains in Los Angeles. Paul and James have a long, storied friendship. The two have envisioned what it would be like to play together over the years. Paul famously was traded to the Lakers in 2011 before the deal was nixed by former commissioner David Stern for “basketball reasons.”

If the Lakers sign Paul, let Russell walk and retain Schröder, a Paul-Schröder backcourt tandem would still allow Paul to play only 24 to 26 minutes per night in the regular season before ramping up to a larger role in the playoffs. Paul and Schröder played together in Oklahoma City during the 2019-20 season; Thunder lineups outscored opponents by 15.6 points per 100 possessions in the regular season and 5.3 points per 100 possessions in the playoffs with the duo on the floor, per NBA.com.

However, Schröder is quietly one of the top point guard options realistically available this summer and will command deals that could be upwards of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception (about $12.5 million starting salary). The Lakers only have Non-Bird rights on him, meaning they’d likely need to use the midlevel exception to meet his market.

The Lakers have other options. They could re-sign Schröder anyway and promote him to starting point guard, maintaining wing and big-man depth by keeping Malik Beasley ($16.5 million team option) and Mo Bamba ($10.3 million non-guaranteed contract) over Russell. They could technically sign all three of Russell, Paul and Schröder, with Russell and Schröder sliding up to shooting guard in smaller bench backcourts. They could also hand ballhandling keys over to Reaves and add a player in the Kentavious Caldwell-Pope/Danny Green mold next to him to form a bigger backcourt, but it’s unclear if they’re willing to do that yet.

Looking at the free-agent market, if the Lakers wanted to use one of their exceptions, there aren’t many – if any – options that would be a legitimate upgrade over Schröder, let alone Russell. The Athletic’s John Hollinger’s free-agency point guard rankings have Russell and Schröder at No. 3 and No. 6, respectively. Aside from Irving and VanVleet, Miami’s Gabe Vincent – more of a combo guard than a traditional floor general – is the only appealing alternative, at least to Schröder.

Most realistically, the Lakers will re-sign Russell and Schröder, maintaining flexibility for next season with the ability to enhance the roster with a trade during the season. There’s also the growing possibility that they can make a move at the 2023 draft, flipping their pick (No. 17), along with Bamba and/or Beasley for a starting-level upgrade.

The Lakers have craved continuity for years and have a chance to finally establish some semblance of it by running it back with most of their current group. That begins with the point guard position, which will determine who fills in the fifth spot around Davis, James, Hachimura and Reaves in closing lineups.

Los Angeles has a one-to-two-year championship window with James (38) and Davis (30). This is perhaps its best shot at addressing arguably the team’s biggest need and help solve some of the late-game offensive lulls from the playoffs, most notably in the conference finals.

There are numerous ways the Lakers’ offseason can unfold. But, assuming they stay true to their intent by retaining Reaves and Hachimura, nothing is more important for the Lakers than their future at point guard.
 
BIG LEEMELONE said:
What are the cap implications if it's Beas/Bamba/picks for lavine? What about going forward with Bron off the books?
Click to expand...
Would need to include Vando with Beasley and Bamba to make the money work for LaVine, at least. I'm sure the Bulls would ask for Christie too.

Should be under the second apron depending on Rui's salary since Reaves is slotted at $11-12M. But it's at the risk of having a team full of minimums after you're top six or seven players in the rotation.
 
BIG LEEMELONE said:
What are the cap implications if it's Beas/Bamba/picks for lavine? What about going forward with Bron off the books?
Click to expand...

AD/Bron/Lavine by themselves is 127M, i believe the second cap is around 169

So a lil over 40 Million to fill out 11 more spots

Austin- 12
Vando - 5
Christie - 2

8 more spots..... 21 million left

Yea i highly doubt that's happening. Zach Lavine is getting paid like a clear cut #1 superstar option & he's a midtier all star. Basically locks up mediocrity for the next few years after Lebron retires & it doesn't even guarantee us a chip this year
 
pmatic said:
Would need to include Vando with Beasley and Bamba to make the money work for LaVine, at least. I'm sure the Bulls would ask for Christie too.

Should be under the second apron depending on Rui's salary since Reaves is slotted at $11-12M. But it's at the risk of having a team full of minimums after you're top six or seven players in the rotation.
Click to expand...

That's not a bad trade-off tbh, especially for playoff purposes; I hate CP0 but if they can get him for the minimum that mitigates the PG issue in theory.
 
Last edited:
1686950493588.png


sports.yahoo.com

Do the Spurs make sense as a possibility for Chris Paul?

There are a lot of dynamics at work as the Suns try to navigate a pathway to move the veteran All-Star.
sports.yahoo.com sports.yahoo.com
 
pmatic said:


Lakers’ offseason hinges on their decision at point guard. So what can they do?

For the fourth consecutive summer, the Lakers are looking for a solution at point guard.

Since its 2020 championship, when then-35-year-old LeBron James and then-33-year-old Rajon Rondo excelled as the Lakers’ lead ballhandlers, Los Angeles has used a revolving door of point guards. James’ advanced age and mounting injuries, as well as an internal acknowledgment that he should play off the ball more, have created a need for more supplementary ballhandling, playmaking and shot creation within Los Angeles’ offense. It’s why the Lakers have been enamored with the possibility of adding elite scoring guards like Damian Lillard and Kyrie Irving through the years.

They have taken some big swings to fill this hole. The Lakers traded Danny Green and a 2020 first-round pick for Dennis Schröder before the 2020-21 season. They flipped Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell and a 2021 first-round pick to Washington in exchange for Russell Westbrook in a five-team mega-deal in the ensuing summer. They, of course, moved Westbrook for D’Angelo Russell (among others) in a three-team trade at the 2023 trade deadline, to mixed results. Russell, Schröder (twice) and even Westbrook had productive moments, but none have provided exactly what the Lakers have sought since the title run.

The Lakers are at a crossroads once again this summer. Russell and Schröder are both unrestricted free agents, opening up the possibility that one or both players aren’t back and the Lakers must again cycle through new options at point guard. After priority No. 1 (re-signing free agent Austin Reaves) and No. 2 (re-signing restricted free agent Rui Hachimura), the Lakers’ next priority is addressing their point guard uncertainty.

With the key spots in their rotation largely settled if they retain Reaves and Hachimura, the Lakers’ offseason swings on their decision at point guard. They have various options, from running it back (re-signing Russell and Schröder) to chasing an expensive upgrade via free agency or trade (Irving, Fred VanVleet, Trae Young), or splitting the difference (signing the potentially available Chris Paul in addition to retaining Russell and/or Schröder).

The Lakers’ needs at point guard will be determined in part by how they fill out the rest of their roster, but one of the constant requirements has been a player who can competently run the offense when James is off the floor, develop strong pick-and-roll chemistry with Anthony Davis, fare well off the ball as a catch-and-shoot threat and cutter and at least hold their own in the team’s defensive scheme. Russell, Schröder and Westbrook each checked several of those boxes, but none checked all of them.

The most likely path forward is re-signing Russell and Schröder (possibly with their taxpayer midlevel exception, worth a projected $6.5 million), as The Athletic previously reported.

Russell’s stock has never been lower after a disappointing Western Conference finals showing against the champion Denver Nuggets. He was significantly better in the first two rounds but still did not quite perform well enough to be a the third option on a title-contending team — the level at which the Lakers will be paying him to play if he’s retained. Russell is certainly a useful player who is good on more nights than not. But a player making at least $20 million per season shouldn’t be played off the floor in high-stakes playoff games.

Given Russell’s inconsistent playoff performance and the lack of league-wide interest in him, the Lakers should have the upper-hand in contract negotiations. One framework the Lakers have discussed internally, according to multiple team sources not authorized to speak publicly, is signing Russell to a front-loaded two-year deal – either with an option in the second year or a straight two-year contract – that both gives him the salary he wants and keeps him on the same timeline as James (player option in 2024) and Davis (has an early termination option in 2024 and is eligible for a contract extension in August).

Even though the three-team deadline deal was more about getting rid of Westbrook than the players acquired, the Lakers don’t want to lose Russell in free agency for nothing. Their preference is to find a superior player by either sign-and-trading Russell elsewhere in July or, more likely at this point, re-signing him and then potentially trading him later in the season for a better player or fit.

Those may not be many realistic and attractive alternatives to re-signing Russell. It’s unclear what, if anything, he would net them on the sign-and-trade front. The theoretical alternatives range from unrealistic (Irving, VanVleet) to even more unrealistic (Young, Lillard).

Acquiring Irving or VanVleet would almost certainly require a sign-and-trade, which would hard cap the Lakers at $169.0 million. The Lakers can create roughly $30 to $35 million in cap space, but it would cost them multiple rotation players, likely including Hachimura. Even then, Irving and VanVleet may want more than the $35 million the Lakers can offer – Irving’s maximum contract would start at about $47 million and VanVleet’s max begins at $40.2 million. Young and Lillard are names that have been discussed internally but appear nothing more than a pipe dream, given the current asking prices for stars on the trade market.

That leaves Paul as the most realistic potential upgrade at point guard. If Paul is waived or stretched by the Suns, the Lakers would have a strong interest in signing him, according to multiple team sources not authorized to speak publicly.

The Athletic reported the Suns were working with Paul through a number of options for next season, including a trade or a release. He was slated to make $30.8 million next season, but only $15.8 million of that is guaranteed if he is waived before June 28.

Given that Paul’s next contract would offset the amount he’s guaranteed for this season, him signing for anything more than the veteran’s minimum doesn’t really make sense, as it would only hinder his new team. The Lakers could then sign Paul to a veteran’s minimum contract, retaining access to other salary-cap exceptions to use on other players to bolster their depth.

Paul is coming off a season in which he averaged 13.9 points per game (on a 55.5 true shooting percentage), 4.3 rebounds, 8.9 assists and 1.5 steals. He’s far from the player he was even a few years ago, but he remains a quality starter as a plus shooter and passer. His biggest issue, as has been the case for several years, is durability. He has suffered an injury in three straight postseasons and six of his nine trips to the playoffs overall, indicating the Lakers would likely have to manage his workload throughout the 2023-24 season.

If the Lakers replace Russell with Paul on a minimum contract, they’d be able to easily retain Reaves and Hachimura and have the option to use their nontaxpayer midlevel exception (worth approximately $12.5 million annually) on Schröder, another player, or both. Another option the Lakers have discussed is signing Paul and retaining Russell to further solidify their point guard position, according to those team sources. Paul would be the favorite to start in that scenario.

Head-to-head, Paul vs. Russell was never a conversation until last season, and Paul still rates out better in virtually every advanced metric. He’s the better mid-range shooter, passer, rebounder and more of a defensive playmaker. That said, Russell is younger, nearly matched Paul as a mid-range shooter this past season and is the better 3-point shooter both by percentage and volume. Russell’s 6-foot-10 wingspan also allows him to defend bigger players and add length to the Lakers’ scheme in a way that the 38-year-old Paul never could.

Paul’s ability to command an offense would be appealing to a Lakers team that has lacked that type of traditional floor general. James, of course, has always played that role, to an extent, but Paul is one of the few players in the league he would fully trust to help co-pilot the offense. Signing Paul in this scenario would also be a minimal one-year investment from the Lakers.

There are other reasons for a Paul-Lakers reunion. Paul’s family remains in Los Angeles. Paul and James have a long, storied friendship. The two have envisioned what it would be like to play together over the years. Paul famously was traded to the Lakers in 2011 before the deal was nixed by former commissioner David Stern for “basketball reasons.”

If the Lakers sign Paul, let Russell walk and retain Schröder, a Paul-Schröder backcourt tandem would still allow Paul to play only 24 to 26 minutes per night in the regular season before ramping up to a larger role in the playoffs. Paul and Schröder played together in Oklahoma City during the 2019-20 season; Thunder lineups outscored opponents by 15.6 points per 100 possessions in the regular season and 5.3 points per 100 possessions in the playoffs with the duo on the floor, per NBA.com.

However, Schröder is quietly one of the top point guard options realistically available this summer and will command deals that could be upwards of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception (about $12.5 million starting salary). The Lakers only have Non-Bird rights on him, meaning they’d likely need to use the midlevel exception to meet his market.

The Lakers have other options. They could re-sign Schröder anyway and promote him to starting point guard, maintaining wing and big-man depth by keeping Malik Beasley ($16.5 million team option) and Mo Bamba ($10.3 million non-guaranteed contract) over Russell. They could technically sign all three of Russell, Paul and Schröder, with Russell and Schröder sliding up to shooting guard in smaller bench backcourts. They could also hand ballhandling keys over to Reaves and add a player in the Kentavious Caldwell-Pope/Danny Green mold next to him to form a bigger backcourt, but it’s unclear if they’re willing to do that yet.

Looking at the free-agent market, if the Lakers wanted to use one of their exceptions, there aren’t many – if any – options that would be a legitimate upgrade over Schröder, let alone Russell. The Athletic’s John Hollinger’s free-agency point guard rankings have Russell and Schröder at No. 3 and No. 6, respectively. Aside from Irving and VanVleet, Miami’s Gabe Vincent – more of a combo guard than a traditional floor general – is the only appealing alternative, at least to Schröder.

Most realistically, the Lakers will re-sign Russell and Schröder, maintaining flexibility for next season with the ability to enhance the roster with a trade during the season. There’s also the growing possibility that they can make a move at the 2023 draft, flipping their pick (No. 17), along with Bamba and/or Beasley for a starting-level upgrade.

The Lakers have craved continuity for years and have a chance to finally establish some semblance of it by running it back with most of their current group. That begins with the point guard position, which will determine who fills in the fifth spot around Davis, James, Hachimura and Reaves in closing lineups.

Los Angeles has a one-to-two-year championship window with James (38) and Davis (30). This is perhaps its best shot at addressing arguably the team’s biggest need and help solve some of the late-game offensive lulls from the playoffs, most notably in the conference finals.

There are numerous ways the Lakers’ offseason can unfold. But, assuming they stay true to their intent by retaining Reaves and Hachimura, nothing is more important for the Lakers than their future at point guard.
Click to expand...

Buha is a hack
 
Not sure how the numbers work bc salaries are odd but both realgm and fanspo say

Lavine for Beasley Bamba and Harrison works (+picks)
 
DLo can be trash in a series. And still not be THE reason they lost. A reason, yes. THE reason, no.

Both things can be true.

And as always never once have I said his series against the Nuggets was good.

Go look at every series in the playoffs, almost every one off the top of my head this year was won by the team whose 2 best players played better.

LeBron and AD played great, still got outplayed by a considerable margin. If it was enough to win, it would have gone 6, hell even 5. LeBron and AD not matching them is the number 1 reason they lost. It isn’t a slight at them. They played well, but it wasn’t enough.
As is DLo’s play. As is Vando who was the defensive perimeter player, and not being able to play defense against the Nuggets and being a complete drain on the offense. Schroder replacing DLo, and not being able to do anything offensively as well. AR having a good series but still giving up more points than he scored. No depth at the 5. Ham struggling with management when a team is making a run.


Cliff Notes:
DLo played like ****.
LeBron and AD were outplayed by a considerable margin.
Everyone got outplayed. That’s why they got swept.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: MVP
We lost 4 games by a combined 24 points. If D'Lo hits his playoff average of 13 points in any of those losses it changes the series. Just offensively he was going to get cooked regardless on defense.

He's getting paid max money and was unplayable that's absolutely the biggest factor in what was a close series each game. If it was Russell Westbrook that had that series nobody wouldn't hesitate to throw the blame his way. Your boy was a 2 pack of ***. And it's why they're looking to upgrade if possible.
 
Wonder if Grizz are in play for CP - veteran mentor to Ja and to fill the gap and be a leader while Ja is out
 
Wherever CP3 goes it’s gotta be as a backup.
And whoever the coach is, has to remember that at all times. There’s always the urge for teams to bring in really good old guys and then start increasing what you want from them.
As a backup gives your team a considerable advantage. As a starter, at this point, it’s an even deal. But that’s before you factor in the age and injury risk

In the West, I’d say both LA teams. Golden State are the best fits for CP3 as a backup. And maybe Dallas make some sense (Dallas just because they need to find as many cheap players who can play as possible, fit be damned).


Where the Suns are screwed is they don’t really do much for themselves cutting CP3. They may just have enough for the full $12mil Mid level if they cut him. But would that guy who you’re essentially paying $27mil for be better than CP3?
Doesn’t sound like they are giving up on Ayton yet. Which also hurts. 3 max deals. Kills all flexibility that a move like cutting CP3 would give them.
If they trade Ayton for lesser starters/ role players. That’s when waiving CP3 would make more sense.
 
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CP either staying in PHX or is going to the Clippers or us.

Mind you Clippers want Russ back but I think at a very low number.

Will be interesting to see if any team give Russ a MLE or something above that.

If we get CP it has to be at a minimum deal IMO. He isn't worth anything more.

We complain about D.lo in the playoffs...at least he played.

CP would get injured when we need him most.
 
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