Evaluating the Cousins Trade.
- Thread starter kingdivac
- Start date
I agree on some levels. I'll say this, the so call CBA changes that was supposed to "help" small market teams retain their star players actually hurt them. Most small market teams won't be able to pay this $209 million level money and will make decisions based on money more than being the most competitive. Unless the small market team owner happens to have Balmer money, they can't pay $42 million a year to 1 player regardless.
My thing regarding the Kings and Vivek money is this. If you are going to trade Cousins, get something in greater or equal value in return. When you basically dump him 4 days ahead of the trade deadline for scraps, it smells of desperation, as if he must get rid of him asap or else.
I've said in my other posts already, if the team develops another star somehow and he is eligible for the same or higher level of money at that time, Vivek won't pay it. Unless of course he somehow strikes gold with some outside business other than the Kings. This new CBA rule works for teams like the Knicks, Lakers, Warriors etc who have a huge revenue stream. For small market teams with a "poor" owner (by NBA owner standards), it will always be difficult.
Every time I think of that, I've been shaking my head and giving a long sigh at work. Seriously, how bad of a deal can Vlade/Vivek come up with. Could we have got Whiteside + a 1st rounder? DeAndre Jordan + a 2nd rounders? To me, those teams would've done a swap for players in a heartbeat. Talk them into including the pick.
I wonder how much did Vlade try to get a better deal. Why pull the trigger so early? This bad offer of a deal wasn't going to disappear, but Vivek and Vlade probably believed the Pels' GM telling them "I have a lot of people offering me big talent for Buddy Hield".
I wonder how much did Vlade try to get a better deal. Why pull the trigger so early? This bad offer of a deal wasn't going to disappear, but Vivek and Vlade probably believed the Pels' GM telling them "I have a lot of people offering me big talent for Buddy Hield".
It's not even the return that is abhorrent. It's the timing. It's not like Papa, Skal or Malachai are blossoming stars ready to take the reins of this franchise. Why not field offers in the summer? So the Kings tank this year to help the 76ers? Was that the goal of this trade Vlade!?!?!!? If the Kings were intent on keeping their pick this year rather than conveying the Bulls, they certainly could have traded other players while keeping Cousins to keep the team in the top 10.
I didn't watch that much of Buddy Hield so far. But what I saw leads me to the question: When Buddy Hield is a good prospect, how do you think of Stauskas?
Because frankly speaking Buddy has been on and off with his shot so far and Stauskas is the superior ball handler and playmaker from my point of view.
Because frankly speaking Buddy has been on and off with his shot so far and Stauskas is the superior ball handler and playmaker from my point of view.
Every time I think of that, I've been shaking my head and giving a long sigh at work. Seriously, how bad of a deal can Vlade/Vivek come up with. Could we have got Whiteside + a 1st rounder? DeAndre Jordan + a 2nd rounders? To me, those teams would've done a swap for players in a heartbeat. Talk them into including the pick.
I wonder how much did Vlade try to get a better deal. Why pull the trigger so early? This bad offer of a deal wasn't going to disappear, but Vivek and Vlade probably believed the Pels' GM telling them "I have a lot of people offering me big talent for Buddy Hield".
I wonder how much did Vlade try to get a better deal. Why pull the trigger so early? This bad offer of a deal wasn't going to disappear, but Vivek and Vlade probably believed the Pels' GM telling them "I have a lot of people offering me big talent for Buddy Hield".
mind boggling but we have malachi richardson who looks better than buddy. we also have bogdanovic coming over next year also.
It'll be interesting to see what happens when he gets the ball back in his hands like he did with Oklahoma. A lot of his problems were similar to what happened to Stauskas and Ben here where he just gets frozen out by Jrue, Davis and Jones. He's going to be a good player, but for him to be the centerpiece of Cousins deal is an absolute joke.
For some reason too, we didn't grab Cheik Diallo or Terrence Jones, both young guys on great contracts. Just absolute crapstorm
For some reason too, we didn't grab Cheik Diallo or Terrence Jones, both young guys on great contracts. Just absolute crapstorm
That's what I was saying. Vivek thought he was going to buy the team at approx $295 million value at first. When the Maloofs got that huge offer, he was toasted and scrambled to not lose his dream of becoming majority owner. Financially, he was never really strong enough and that's why he owns only between 15-35% (depending who you believe) of the team. But he was just willing to put it on the line and commit to building a new arena and the NBA did all they could to help him.
Now, the bills for the arena are kicking in and Vivek needs profit from this team for his own life. Unlike other owners, the team isn't just a toy to him. The salary cap will keep going up. I don't see how Vivek will be able to afford $50 mil a year for another superstar should the team develops one.
Here's how this trade works out and the odds of it happening:
The more likely scenario is Buddy turns into capable starter based on his impressive skill set but not star level simply because achieving NBA stardom is a rarified air. (Note: I really like Buddy so think he has a chance to be a star better than most). And the two picks the Kings retain in this years draft will amount to decent role player or wash outs. So you give away the most dominant big in the NBA for 2-3 role players.
The package Vlade accepted was same the Pelicans offered for Okafor and the 76ers rejected it. What does that tell you about Vlade's ability to maximize player value? It tells me he is an impulsive idiot being out-smarted and outclassed by GMs with 30-40 IQ points on him. It is gross negligence and fireable offense what he did and Vivek should have put the breaks on this stupidity like he did previously.
Vlade couldn't get a 2019 draft pick out of Pelicans?!? That he couldn't get the 2017 pick unprotected?!?! That he couldn't exert patience and shrewdness and wait until Thursday and play hardball for competing suitors to sweeten the pot to outbid one another (Pelicans, Detroit, Suns)? This guy is out of his element and clueless buffoon. He's an epic fail even if Buddy and the draft picks go on to have success. Just when you thought it could get NO worse than Pete D'Allesandro, Vlade outdid that clown and cemented his legacy as a total laughingstock.
The depressing notion in all of this is the Kings have NO proven starters and NO proven stars especially since I expect Collison and Koufos to be gone Thursday. We traded a superstar without getting an established building block in return. That's a crime and a nightmare scenario and a slap in the face to all Kings fans.
- Buddy turns into a 25 PPG scorer and all-star
- Boogie or Davis get hurt over last 25 games, NOP finish with 7-10 range
- POR, DAL and DEN finish ahead of NOP
- Kings finish in the 5-8 worst record range
- Kings are lucky on lotto day and 76er swap rights are not exercised
- Kings are lucky on lotto day and NOP does not get Top 3 pick
- Kings have two lottery picks around #5 to #10 range
- They draft a future all-star (PG) with one pick and a star with the other (SF)
The more likely scenario is Buddy turns into capable starter based on his impressive skill set but not star level simply because achieving NBA stardom is a rarified air. (Note: I really like Buddy so think he has a chance to be a star better than most). And the two picks the Kings retain in this years draft will amount to decent role player or wash outs. So you give away the most dominant big in the NBA for 2-3 role players.
The package Vlade accepted was same the Pelicans offered for Okafor and the 76ers rejected it. What does that tell you about Vlade's ability to maximize player value? It tells me he is an impulsive idiot being out-smarted and outclassed by GMs with 30-40 IQ points on him. It is gross negligence and fireable offense what he did and Vivek should have put the breaks on this stupidity like he did previously.
Vlade couldn't get a 2019 draft pick out of Pelicans?!? That he couldn't get the 2017 pick unprotected?!?! That he couldn't exert patience and shrewdness and wait until Thursday and play hardball for competing suitors to sweeten the pot to outbid one another (Pelicans, Detroit, Suns)? This guy is out of his element and clueless buffoon. He's an epic fail even if Buddy and the draft picks go on to have success. Just when you thought it could get NO worse than Pete D'Allesandro, Vlade outdid that clown and cemented his legacy as a total laughingstock.
The depressing notion in all of this is the Kings have NO proven starters and NO proven stars especially since I expect Collison and Koufos to be gone Thursday. We traded a superstar without getting an established building block in return. That's a crime and a nightmare scenario and a slap in the face to all Kings fans.
This makes me beyond angry:
http://www.sbnation.com/2017/2/20/14670160/demarcus-cousins-trade-buddy-hield-kings-pelicans-love
For the TL;DR crowd, all you need to know:
"Source familiar w/ Kings’ thinking: "Vivek thinks Buddy [Hield] has Steph Curry potential.” Am told that fixation was a key driver in deal." - Baxter Holmes
http://www.sbnation.com/2017/2/20/14670160/demarcus-cousins-trade-buddy-hield-kings-pelicans-love
For the TL;DR crowd, all you need to know:
"Source familiar w/ Kings’ thinking: "Vivek thinks Buddy [Hield] has Steph Curry potential.” Am told that fixation was a key driver in deal." - Baxter Holmes
