Free Agency

quick interruption: Is July 1 likely to be a blockbuster day when all the handshake deals become reality? Or do the negotiations truly start on July 1?

Just wondering if I have to carve out the day to hang on twitter the whole day watching the dominos fall, or if it will unfold more slowly?
 
The time to get Clarkson is right at the start of FA. The last thing they want to do is have to use $15mil of their cap space to resign Clarkson when they're off trying to court LeBron, Durant, Horford, Derozan, Batum, etc. Then you work on S&T possibilities.

Basically the same idea with Crabbe and what Philly is going to do with Barnes. You force these teams to make a deal earlier than they want on their RFA and work into S&T possibilities.
While it is true the smart play is to do it early, I don't think even the Lakers are delusional enough to think they are in play for top free agent (LBJ, Durant) and they will have over 40 million in cap space even if they max Clarckson.

Crabbe is an interesting case because they also have Harkless and Leonard as RFA and they have McCullom on his spot so there is a possibility they won't match- Barnes is a good example of when the strategy you pointed out should work.

quick interruption: Is July 1 likely to be a blockbuster day when all the handshake deals become reality? Or do the negotiations truly start on July 1?

Just wondering if I have to carve out the day to hang on twitter the whole day watching the dominos fall, or if it will unfold more slowly?
Well officialy you can only start negotiating in July 1st (I'm not sure if that holds in practice) and deals can't be signed until July 7th because of the free agency moratorium.
 
quick interruption: Is July 1 likely to be a blockbuster day when all the handshake deals become reality? Or do the negotiations truly start on July 1?

Just wondering if I have to carve out the day to hang on twitter the whole day watching the dominos fall, or if it will unfold more slowly?
Durant apparently will be meeting with teams a day at a time starting Thursday. It will be interesting to see if the market waits for him or other dominos fall while he makes up his mind.
 
quick interruption: Is July 1 likely to be a blockbuster day when all the handshake deals become reality? Or do the negotiations truly start on July 1?

Just wondering if I have to carve out the day to hang on twitter the whole day watching the dominos fall, or if it will unfold more slowly?
Historically with several big names out there and new cap you might expect handshake after handshake once the top few names made a deal, but after last years debacle with the Clips chasing Jordan down and holding him hostage like an abusive spouse tracking down his runaway bride, who knows. I think some teams may be a bit reluctant to move on, and agents will be playing teams harder than ever. But once a team bucks tradition is is anyones guess how that will effect the next season.
 
http://cowbellkingdom.com/allen-cra...bid-in-the-vicinity-of-15-million-per-season/

The Sacramento Kings seem to be set with their front court and will need to upgrade the point guard, shooting guard and small forward position in free agency.

Sources have confirmed to Cowbell Kingdom that the Kings are among the teams interested in 24-year-old restricted free agent, Allen Crabbe from the Portland Trail Blazers.

Ian Begley of ESPN.com was the first to report it.

Crabbe will most likely want anywhere from $54-60 million on a four-year contract from any team interested in his services. If Sacramento wants to be a real player in the Crabbe sweepstakes, they will probably have to offer him $57 million to even be considered, sources tell Cowbell Kingdom.

With that said, Portland is really under the cap and I can’t imagine them not matching most offers from other teams. It would make sense to keep their young core together and continue to add talent in hopes of taking another step forward in the playoffs next season.

Crabbe averaged 10.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists off the bench last season on 39.3 percent from beyond the arc. He had solid performances in both playoff series’ against the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors. He is young, athletic and would be a major upgrade on the Kings’ depleted roster.

 
http://cowbellkingdom.com/allen-cra...bid-in-the-vicinity-of-15-million-per-season/

The Sacramento Kings seem to be set with their front court and will need to upgrade the point guard, shooting guard and small forward position in free agency.

Sources have confirmed to Cowbell Kingdom that the Kings are among the teams interested in 24-year-old restricted free agent, Allen Crabbe from the Portland Trail Blazers.

Ian Begley of ESPN.com was the first to report it.

Crabbe will most likely want anywhere from $54-60 million on a four-year contract from any team interested in his services. If Sacramento wants to be a real player in the Crabbe sweepstakes, they will probably have to offer him $57 million to even be considered, sources tell Cowbell Kingdom.

With that said, Portland is really under the cap and I can’t imagine them not matching most offers from other teams. It would make sense to keep their young core together and continue to add talent in hopes of taking another step forward in the playoffs next season.

Crabbe averaged 10.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists off the bench last season on 39.3 percent from beyond the arc. He had solid performances in both playoff series’ against the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors. He is young, athletic and would be a major upgrade on the Kings’ depleted roster.
Man... I didn't realize his stats were that low. If B-Mac could be consistent, it would solve our SG problems.. Crabbe is a 3&D who can't create nor handle the ball. However, he's not afraid to shoot the ball.

I think he can break out out here. 57million is around 14mpy.
 
So between 13 o 15 mil per year might work , If he is a better defender, holds the 40% from the three as a starter, Ben in reserve Following year Ben is gone and the euro comes in and we still have richardson

would Portland really match for a backup?
 
So between 13 o 15 mil per year might work , If he is a better defender, holds the 40% from the three as a starter, Ben in reserve Following year Ben is gone and the euro comes in and we still have richardson

would Portland really match for a backup?
Yeah they would. Crabbe would be a backup for them, but he played really good this year. They don't lose anything by matching 14mpy for Crabbe. If he gets disgruntled or falls out of rotation, they could easily trade him away the next season for a decent asset.
 
Man... I didn't realize his stats were that low. If B-Mac could be consistent, it would solve our SG problems.. Crabbe is a 3&D who can't create nor handle the ball. However, he's not afraid to shoot the ball.

I think he can break out out here. 57million is around 14mpy.
Crabbe really isn't a good defender right now though. The potential certainly is there, but you're paying for exactly that; the potential.

I don't see it being THAT easy of a decision for Portland to match and keep Crabbe. They're already going to be paying Lillard $26 million and McCollum's contract is going to be up next season that will cost them at least $18 mil if not a max. Portland has a great cap sheet right now, but they very easily could end up paying Lillard, Crabbe and CJ close to $60 million by next off-season.

I could very easily see this being a spot where we ship Koufos in a S&T. They need big man help with just Vonleh and Mason Plumlee left on the last year of their deals and Koufos could easily slide into that rotation, even if they do end up getting a Horford or Howard. They don't lose Crabbe for nothing, we get our SG of the future and mitigate the cost of signing him to a largge deal.
 
Yeah they would. Crabbe would be a backup for them, but he played really good this year. They don't lose anything by matching 14mpy for Crabbe. If he gets disgruntled or falls out of rotation, they could easily trade him away the next season for a decent asset.
They're in ideal spot for a S&T with him. It just doesn't make sense to sign Crabbe for $15mil then hope you can trade him next season when CJ needs a new deal. He's got good value now as an upside SG, they'd be better off taking advantage of it while they can and their cap sheep is still clean.
 
Man... I didn't realize his stats were that low. If B-Mac could be consistent, it would solve our SG problems.. Crabbe is a 3&D who can't create nor handle the ball. However, he's not afraid to shoot the ball.

I think he can break out out here. 57million is around 14mpy.
Crabbe might bring the 3 part of the equation but he certainly is not D.
 
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hrdboild

Moloch in whom I dream Angels!
Staff member
Crabbe might bring the # part of the equation but he certainly is not D.
What makes Allen Crabbe so appealing as a target is that he has proven production and also projectability. He's young enough that his best years are still ahead of him (which is a concern when you're spending the amount of money free agents are going to demand this summer -- you don't really want to be paying through the nose for past performance). On the defensive end, he didn't impress me as a standout defender this year but he also didn't look particularly bad. Like everyone else on that Portland team he worked hard in the team defense concept. He's got ideal size and length for a SG and he can move his feet. Most of the rest is about adding strength and studying tape. You kindof have to shut one eye and peer into the future a bit to see it, but if he's not already a 3&D role-player, I see no reason why he can't be for the next 4 years.
 
Similar to Solomon Hill, Crabbe is the type of player the Kings need to take a risk on. We can't bring top end talent here through FA. We have to take these types of calculated gambles and hope it works out.

Crabbe's defense is just okay right now, but like others have mentioned, he has all the tools to be a good one. Groom him under Joerger and let the coach establish that defensive mindset.

Coming back to the 54-60 mil over 4 years that he is looking for, I was prepared to give him 64 mil over 4 years. And considering our lack of appeal to FAs and the fact that he is restricted, 64 mil over 4 years should be the starting point if we want to have a chance at grabbing him. Keep in mind that 64 mil over 4 years under the new cap is the same as paying him ~10 mil a year under the old CBA. I don't think that is unreasonable for someone at his age and with the potential he still has left.

EDIT: If we can pick up both Crabbe & S. Hill this offseason, I would be extremely happy. You would potentially have two 25 year old 3&D wings who you can slot in as long term starters next to Cousins & Cauley-Stein. Then the following offseason, you focus your efforts on one of the FA PGs to round out the roster. Not to mention you still have Papagiannis, Richardson, Labissiere, & Bogdan being groomed in the background for good rotational players or valuable trade chips to help improve the roster further.
 

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
Similar to Solomon Hill, Crabbe is the type of player the Kings need to take a risk on. We can't bring top end talent here through FA. We have to take these types of calculated gambles and hope it works out.

Crabbe's defense is just okay right now, but like others have mentioned, he has all the tools to be a good one. Groom him under Joerger and let the coach establish that defensive mindset.

Coming back to the 54-60 mil over 4 years that he is looking for, I was prepared to give him 64 mil over 4 years. And considering our lack of appeal to FAs and the fact that he is restricted, 64 mil over 4 years should be the starting point if we want to have a chance at grabbing him. Keep in mind that 64 mil over 4 years under the new cap is the same as paying him ~10 mil a year under the old CBA. I don't think that is unreasonable for someone at his age and with the potential he still has left.

EDIT: If we can pick up both Crabbe & S. Hill this offseason, I would be extremely happy. You would potentially have two 25 year old 3&D wings who you can slot in as long term starters next to Cousins & Cauley-Stein. Then the following offseason, you focus your efforts on one of the FA PGs to round out the roster. Not to mention you still have Papagiannis, Richardson, Labissiere, & Bogdan being groomed in the background for good rotational players or valuable trade chips to help improve the roster further.
Crabbe and Hill would likely leave $5 million for Curry. But that would also leave the Kings with 7 wings and only six slots and only 2 PGs when they need 3. McLemore for Burke or Mack would fix that. Then Acy (or another low cost big) with the room exception.

Cousins/Papagiannis/Gudaitis or Moreland
Cauley-Stein/Acy/Labissiere
Gay/Casspi/Butler
Crabbe/Hill/Richardson
Collison/Curry/Burke

Statistically Collison/McLemore/Gay/Thompson/Cousins was a very good starting five. I have to think this group could be just as good but without the historically bad bench.

Not a complete makeover but a solid roster for Joerger to work with.
 
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Exactly my thinking. By all reports the market goes crazy because there is way too much money floating around. Even if I factor in a 107 mil cap in 2017 I have a hard time paying Courtney Lee 15 mpy for 4 years. And that number is probably ignoring the Sacramento Tax. I would rather spend big on a young player that will still develop. If that means spending up to 20 mil for Kent Bazemore or Allen Crabbe I'm all for it.
 
Crabbe and Hill would likely leave $5 million for Curry. But that would also leave the Kings with 7 wings and only six slots and only 2 PGs when they need 3. McLemore for Burke or Mack would fix that. Then Acy (or another low cost big) with the room exception.

Cousins/Papagiannis/Gudaitis or Moreland
Cauley-Stein/Acy/Labissiere
Gay/Casspi/Butler
Crabbe/Hill/Richardson
Collison/Curry/Burke

Statistically Collison/McLemore/Gay/Thompson/Cousins was a very good starting five. I have to think this group could be just as good but without the historically bad bench.

Not a complete makeover but a solid roster for Joerger to work with.
Definitely agree with you on the Collison/McLemore/Gay/Thompson/Cousins argument, but Gay & Collison are going to be expiring next year and Gay is in his 30s. I like Crabbe & Hill moving forward as they are just 1 year younger than Cousins and can enter their primes at roughly the same time.

As for the scenario, I would likely try and take a different approach than the one you described...

We have ~$31.5 mil in cap space counting Cousins, Gay, Koufos, Collison, McLemore, Cauley-Stein, Casspi, Butler, Papagiannis, Richardson, Labissiere, & Curry's cap hold. From here, I would make two trades:

Trade #1
Kings Get: Tyreke Evans
Pelicans Get: Rudy Gay
Why? Pelicans strengthen their SF spot and free up time for Holiday, Pondexter, & Hield. Kings get a guy who can help with backup PG duties (or fill in if Collison gets suspended for stretches), be our sixth man off the bench, & comes off the books the following year when we want to invest in our PG of the future (also gives us around $3 mil in extra cap space).

Trade #2
Kings Get: Knicks' 1st (top 20 protected in 2017 & 2018, otherwise a 2nd rounder in 2019)
Knicks Get: Kosta Koufos
Why? Knicks get a cheap center option they can plug next to Porzingis while saving their cap space for another wing to fit next to Rose/Anthony/Porzingis/Koufos. Kings clear cap space for this year, free up the logjam at center, and pick up a future pick during a time when the Kings may not have many picks.

These two trades leave the Kings with ~$42.2 mil in cap space and this roster:

PG - Collison/Evans/Curry
SG - Mclemore/Richardson
SF - Casspi/Butler
PF - Cauley-Stein/Labissiere
C - Cousins/Papagiannis

Then we sign Allen Crabbe to a $68mil/4 year deal, Ryan Anderson to a $48mil/3 year deal, & Solomon Hill to a $40mil/4 year deal. That leaves the Kings with ~2.1 mil in cap space. They can use that money to resign Acy and then go over the cap to retain Curry considering he is a restricted free agent. That leaves us with this team going into next year:

PG - Collison (28 min) / Evans (20 min) / Curry
SG - Crabbe (28 min) / McLemore (12 min) / Evans (8 min) / Richardson
SF - Hill (26 min) / Casspi (22 min) / Butler
PF - Cauley-Stein (16 min) /Anderson (28 min) / Casspi (4 min) / Acy / Labissiere
C - Cousins (36 min) / Cauley-Stein (12 min) / Papagiannis

Cousins - 36 min
Collison - 28 min
Evans - 28 min
Crabbe - 28 min
Cauley-Stein - 28 min
Anderson - 28 min
Hill - 26 min
Casspi - 26 min
McLemore - 12 min

Then the following year, you have this remaining team on the books with ~34.2 mil in cap space:

PG - Curry
SG - Crabbe / Richardson
SF - Hill
PF - Cauley-Stein / Anderson / Acy / Labissiere
C - Cousins / Papagiannis

Ideally, you would hope that McLemore takes a big jump this season and we lockdown a young athletic, defensive, 3pt shooting wing rotation of Crabbe/Hill/McLemore. It also gives us more flexibility with our cap space as McLemore is a RFA whereas Casspi is UFA (and we don't have his bird rights meaning we can't go over the salary cap to sign him). So again, you hope Joerger gets McLemore going, and you use a big chunk of that cap on a Lowry, Holiday, Teague, etc. to be our starting PG.

I think that's what I'm hoping for this offseason (not holding my breath though).
 
Zach Lowe cites sources saying that the Blazers are interested in Dwight Howard.
From his article:
The Blazers have a gazillion in cap room, and they want to hold the line in a Western Conference that will be better almost across the board. They could use a defensive anchor at center, and they will absolutely look at Howard, per several league sources.
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/1...-midnight-friday-nba-contracts-flying-shelves

They also need to pay McCollum next year. So we may really have a chance to land Crabbe with a high offer.
 
I can't believe that I am reading that Crabbe could be getting $15 million per season from us!

For that much money there are much better otpions out there. Seriously if we are forgetting about getting a defender at SG then I would much rather offer max to Evan Fournier than Crabbe. At least Fournier is a much better player than Allen. Neither is a good defender. Evan is a better shooter and passer and provides more of a bang for our money. Starter, proven shooter who is yet to reach his prime.

The PG situation is a real dilema for us. If we are to believe that Jorger will go more down the Princeton path then a ball dominant PG who can't shoot are not on the agenda. That rules out players like Rondo, Rubio, MCW, Payton etc.

So that means players who are solid defenders, ball handlers and 3 pt shooters and looking around the league there are just not many realistic options that are better than Collison. No one is an upgrade and there are not that many options that would be good backups who are also capable starters.

I would rather we get some sort of combo guard who can create off the dribble and be a spot starter at either spot. Tyreke is not the greatest of shooters but he has improved his set shots from 3 and can still get to the rim as well as anyone. I wonder if New Orleans would be interested in Koufus?
 
I can't believe that I am reading that Crabbe could be getting $15 million per season from us!

For that much money there are much better otpions out there. Seriously if we are forgetting about getting a defender at SG then I would much rather offer max to Evan Fournier than Crabbe. At least Fournier is a much better player than Allen. Neither is a good defender. Evan is a better shooter and passer and provides more of a bang for our money. Starter, proven shooter who is yet to reach his prime.

The PG situation is a real dilema for us. If we are to believe that Jorger will go more down the Princeton path then a ball dominant PG who can't shoot are not on the agenda. That rules out players like Rondo, Rubio, MCW, Payton etc.

So that means players who are solid defenders, ball handlers and 3 pt shooters and looking around the league there are just not many realistic options that are better than Collison. No one is an upgrade and there are not that many options that would be good backups who are also capable starters.

I would rather we get some sort of combo guard who can create off the dribble and be a spot starter at either spot. Tyreke is not the greatest of shooters but he has improved his set shots from 3 and can still get to the rim as well as anyone. I wonder if New Orleans would be interested in Koufus?
But Fournier is a RFA and after the Oladipo trade the Magic will most likely match any offer teams throw at him.
Crabbe is no world beater, but the Blazers are in a situation, where he might be available. And if he isn't available you go hard after Harkless. I think it's unlikely, that they match both and we could use both of them.
An offseason where we add Solomon Hill and Mo Harkless to the roster would be a success. Good defenders, extremely versatile and both physical specimen, that hustle their tails off.
 
I can't believe that I am reading that Crabbe could be getting $15 million per season from us!

For that much money there are much better otpions out there. Seriously if we are forgetting about getting a defender at SG then I would much rather offer max to Evan Fournier than Crabbe. At least Fournier is a much better player than Allen. Neither is a good defender. Evan is a better shooter and passer and provides more of a bang for our money. Starter, proven shooter who is yet to reach his prime.

The PG situation is a real dilema for us. If we are to believe that Jorger will go more down the Princeton path then a ball dominant PG who can't shoot are not on the agenda. That rules out players like Rondo, Rubio, MCW, Payton etc.

So that means players who are solid defenders, ball handlers and 3 pt shooters and looking around the league there are just not many realistic options that are better than Collison. No one is an upgrade and there are not that many options that would be good backups who are also capable starters.

I would rather we get some sort of combo guard who can create off the dribble and be a spot starter at either spot. Tyreke is not the greatest of shooters but he has improved his set shots from 3 and can still get to the rim as well as anyone. I wonder if New Orleans would be interested in Koufus?
Actually, that's not really true. I think you're underestimating how much money is going to be thrown around.

Fournier is likely going to get more than $15 mil anyways which makes your point irrelevant anyways and it's going to be much more difficult getting Orlando not to match considering they just moved Oladipo. Whereas Portland may have to worry about using $60 mil of their payroll between Lillard, McCollum, & Crabbe once it's time for McCollum to get paid, so I think there is more of chance Portland could let him go.

As for the comparison between Fournier & Crabbe, Fournier is no doubt the more talented offensive player at this point in his career, but Crabbe is a much better defender than Fournier (while also still having much more defensive potential). On/Off has Orlando giving up 6.2 more points when Fournier is on the floor while Crabbe is only at 1.5. I think it's fair to say that sharing time with Oladipo (a solid defender) probably inflates Fournier's stats a bit in that category, but even so he's considerably worse. Considering the King's defensive issues on the perimeter, Fournier is not an ideal fit with the current roster. You invest in Crabbe knowing he has decent offensive potential (14-15 PPG) but also having much more defensive potential than Fournier.
 
What about Rudy Gay for Trey Burke and Alec Burks. It works on trade machine and I was thinking since Rodney Hood is emerging to be a good SG for them they probably be moving on with Burks.
 
I can't believe that I am reading that Crabbe could be getting $15 million per season from us!

For that much money there are much better otpions out there. Seriously if we are forgetting about getting a defender at SG then I would much rather offer max to Evan Fournier than Crabbe. At least Fournier is a much better player than Allen. Neither is a good defender. Evan is a better shooter and passer and provides more of a bang for our money. Starter, proven shooter who is yet to reach his prime.

The PG situation is a real dilema for us. If we are to believe that Jorger will go more down the Princeton path then a ball dominant PG who can't shoot are not on the agenda. That rules out players like Rondo, Rubio, MCW, Payton etc.

So that means players who are solid defenders, ball handlers and 3 pt shooters and looking around the league there are just not many realistic options that are better than Collison. No one is an upgrade and there are not that many options that would be good backups who are also capable starters.

I would rather we get some sort of combo guard who can create off the dribble and be a spot starter at either spot. Tyreke is not the greatest of shooters but he has improved his set shots from 3 and can still get to the rim as well as anyone. I wonder if New Orleans would be interested in Koufus?
I know it seems much but the contracts handed out this year are going to be crazy. Joakim Noah is 31 years old, is coming of an season ending injury/surgery and the Knicks are reportedly giving him a contract starting at 18 mpy. Ryan Anderson is getting 18 mpy. Conley is getting 25 mpy. Courtney Lee wants 15 mpy..
 
What about Jordan Clarkson? He's young and can play both guard positions. I also imagine that his cap hold isn't very much, so the Lakers would rather sign him near the end instead of right off the bat. At the very least, we could force the Lakers to make a decision earlier than they might want to (he's a RFA).
I'd love to have Jordan Clarkson on the Kings! He has strong skills, a lot of upside in his potential, and is a great locker room presence. Of course I'm totally biased as a Mizzou Tiger, but we see how all the Jayhawks have worked out over the last several years. ;-)
 
I'd love to have Jordan Clarkson on the Kings! He has strong skills, a lot of upside in his potential, and is a great locker room presence. Of course I'm totally biased as a Mizzou Tiger, but we see how all the Jayhawks have worked out over the last several years. ;-)
I really like Clarkson. He's the type of risk I don't mind taking. Can play either guard position, but better as a PG. Really needs to improve on defense though. I also really question his bball iq..... it's kind of suspect....... would you say it was a problem at Mizzou? He's also said a lot of dumb things off the court... doesn't seem like the brightest guy.
 
Lakers have 55MM in cap room, they will match any offer on Clarkson, Fournier is getting matched as well. There is no reason to extend an offer sheet. I think I have convinced myself of these 3 being the best options for 2 guard,


1. Sign and trade Koufos for Lee 3yrs/42MM
2. Eric Bledsoe 1 YR/18MM, 16MM team option year 2 (giving us the option to slide Bogdan in at the 2 next year)
3. Bazemore 4/74MM



4. Crabbe 3/45. I think Blazers match unless they put money into bigs.