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Well it's easy to play hindsight about Gay. To be fair, Gay DECLINED .
W/ that said, Memphis DID F THE GAME UP IN 2010, by giving Gay the max BEFORE FA STARTED. The Grizz offering Gay the max before FA started in Summer 2010, SET THE TONE IN 2010.
From there on, you saw several guys get the max, that are not max players. Those players are Joe Johnson and Amare. If the Grizz didn't offer Gay the max, than I doubt Gay would get 80 million. AT WORST, Gay would have got 75 million(5 million decrease) on the open market. So, the Grizz could have offered a fair deal( no more than a 5 year/65 mil deal is more than fair, and is 15 MIL MORE THAN GAY DECLINED IN 09). If Rudy Gay walks away, than the Grizz have a back-up plan.
That back-up plan, is Andre Iguodola.
Andre Iguodola is FAR CHEAPER( Iggy is owed 46 million over the next 3 years, assuming he accepts his player option in 2014, while Gay is owed 60 million over the next 4 years).
Aside from that, IGGY plays FAR BETTER DEFENSE and PASSES BETTER than Gay. Iggy is not great at getting his own shot, but can hit open shots and attack the rim. If the Grizz use Iggy as a back up plan to Gay, the dropoff is slim to none, and their team PROBABLY GETS BETTER with Iggy than with Gay.
Keep in mind, in 2010, the 76'ers had their coach fired and was coming off a 55 LOSS SEASON. So from the 76'ers standpoint, their looking TO REBUILD. If a team is looking to rebuild, than obviously they're trying to get rid of the high-paid vets(Iggy, Brand) to make room for new guys. Also, the 76'ers WERE LOOKING TO TRADE Iggy at the deadline in 2010. So Iggy wasn't untouchable in Summer 2010, and could have been attained.
I'm 100% confident that any package of Hasheem Thabeet + 2 first rounders, 2 first rounders, or 1 first rounder and Thabeet WOULD HAVE GOT Iggy sent to the Grizz in 2010. This was a realistic and fairly easy trade to get done at the time, yet this wasn't a possible. These GM's do not come up with ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS, that's why they simply sign guys NO WHERE WORTH THE MONEY.
Don't give me the "It's the market" bs, if you are NOT A championship team, signing a second option type player to near max/max money IS RIDICULOUS. Bottom line is, if you're not a championship team, you CAN'T AFFORD cripple your cap space by signing a non-franchise player to near max money/max money. If you can not afford to resign a second option type player and you ARE NOT a championship team, you need to either gut your team or find an alternative to the guy that walks.
Aside from getting draft picks, these small-market teams need to have a Plan A and a Plan B/C, instead of simply saying "oh f the cap, we're getting this the max".
Iggy trade rumors http://www.libertyballers.com/2011/2/22/2007479/how-good-is-andre-iguodala
Gay declining the 50 mil http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5346332
W/ that said, Memphis DID F THE GAME UP IN 2010, by giving Gay the max BEFORE FA STARTED. The Grizz offering Gay the max before FA started in Summer 2010, SET THE TONE IN 2010.
From there on, you saw several guys get the max, that are not max players. Those players are Joe Johnson and Amare. If the Grizz didn't offer Gay the max, than I doubt Gay would get 80 million. AT WORST, Gay would have got 75 million(5 million decrease) on the open market. So, the Grizz could have offered a fair deal( no more than a 5 year/65 mil deal is more than fair, and is 15 MIL MORE THAN GAY DECLINED IN 09). If Rudy Gay walks away, than the Grizz have a back-up plan.
That back-up plan, is Andre Iguodola.
Andre Iguodola is FAR CHEAPER( Iggy is owed 46 million over the next 3 years, assuming he accepts his player option in 2014, while Gay is owed 60 million over the next 4 years).
Aside from that, IGGY plays FAR BETTER DEFENSE and PASSES BETTER than Gay. Iggy is not great at getting his own shot, but can hit open shots and attack the rim. If the Grizz use Iggy as a back up plan to Gay, the dropoff is slim to none, and their team PROBABLY GETS BETTER with Iggy than with Gay.
Keep in mind, in 2010, the 76'ers had their coach fired and was coming off a 55 LOSS SEASON. So from the 76'ers standpoint, their looking TO REBUILD. If a team is looking to rebuild, than obviously they're trying to get rid of the high-paid vets(Iggy, Brand) to make room for new guys. Also, the 76'ers WERE LOOKING TO TRADE Iggy at the deadline in 2010. So Iggy wasn't untouchable in Summer 2010, and could have been attained.
I'm 100% confident that any package of Hasheem Thabeet + 2 first rounders, 2 first rounders, or 1 first rounder and Thabeet WOULD HAVE GOT Iggy sent to the Grizz in 2010. This was a realistic and fairly easy trade to get done at the time, yet this wasn't a possible. These GM's do not come up with ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS, that's why they simply sign guys NO WHERE WORTH THE MONEY.
Don't give me the "It's the market" bs, if you are NOT A championship team, signing a second option type player to near max/max money IS RIDICULOUS. Bottom line is, if you're not a championship team, you CAN'T AFFORD cripple your cap space by signing a non-franchise player to near max money/max money. If you can not afford to resign a second option type player and you ARE NOT a championship team, you need to either gut your team or find an alternative to the guy that walks.
Aside from getting draft picks, these small-market teams need to have a Plan A and a Plan B/C, instead of simply saying "oh f the cap, we're getting this the max".
Iggy trade rumors http://www.libertyballers.com/2011/2/22/2007479/how-good-is-andre-iguodala
Gay declining the 50 mil http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5346332