How deep are Vivek's pockets?

[Glenn]

I applaud your enthusiasm Glenn, but there really is no chance that Dwight considers the Kings as a possibility, Vivek or no Vivek. Dwight probably has never even heard of him. He'd laugh at the thought of joining us - we're still in a mess roster wise, coach wise. There's a lot of work to be done before we're looked at as a possible team for big FAs regardless of new ownership.

My initial post wasn't saying Howard isn't good enough for us. He's obviously still a top player, but he's not at the elite level. And even though he'll get a huge contract, as his play deserves, it could end up biting the team in the a** a few years down the road, and that's my point. My thoughts are in line with padrino's (as usual).

I understand but I wouldn't give up and simply perpetuate the idea that we aren't worth having great players. Nothing hurts in giving it a try. It's the "we are losers" attitude" that bothers me.


Edit: Let me add that if the GM, coach, and other FO positions aren't taken care of quickly, I'd be very surprised. Of course he won't sign if the coach is Smart. Ackkk!

 

[Capt. Factorial]

You are both correct and wrong, as was I!

Yes, this is the last year of both Kobe's and Pau's contracts (I was looking at this year and next thinking it was the next two years) but no, NOT $40 million. According to Hoopshype, Kobe is slated to make $30,453,000 and Gasol $19,285,850 for a total of nearly $50 million!

Yes, mine was a typo. Meant to write $49M.

 

[The_Jamal]

at this point in dwight howard's career, there is definite reason for pause. he's got a penchant for petulance, and likes to point fingers before first considering how he himself might be the problem, might improve on his deficiencies. he says he wants to lead a team to a championship, yet he shrinks away from the responsibilities that come with the territory of leadership. he may not be as demonstrative as our own demarcus cousins, but he does suffer from many of the same issues of immaturity. howard has an unnerving need to be liked, and it causes him to hedge his bets, both with the media and on the court. playing with kobe bryant has only provided further contrast. on the one hand, kobe bryant does not give a **** what anybody thinks. he just gets results. without him, the lakers floundered in the playoffs. then there's dwight, who cares far too much what everyone thinks, and is unable to lift a team on his back when they need him most...

then there's the fact that howard had the gall to proclaim himself superman--a nickname previously owned by shaq--long before establishing himself as a dominant force on the offensive side of the ball. he remains mostly reliant on his fading athleticism to score, and still hasn't fully developed the footwork necessary to become a true back-to-the-basket center. demarcus is already further along, in that respect. of course, howard has always had a feel for weakside shot-blocking. when he's at 100%, he's a rim protector of the highest order, but he's never taken that next step to legendary status, the step that shaq was able to take much earlier on in his career. it's confounding as an nba fan, to watch dwight howard flirt with greatness but fail to grasp it time and again. not to mention bigs take a lot of punishment down low (particularly given the hack-a-howard strategy), and i'd be seriously concerned about how dwight's back will hold up as he ages, as his athleticism continues to dissipate...

if you're a gm, you must do the diligence, and give dwight howard a fair look in free agency. i mean, his ability to change the entire course of a game from the defensive side of the ball is so very tempting, especially given the kings' well-chronicled deficiencies on defense. but, considering what it would cost to lock him up long-term (with no guarantee that he wouldn't just abandon ship like he did with orlando, and like he would be doing with LA if he theoretically signed with the kings or anybody else), i'd be more inclined to pass, and invest my energy in demarcus cousins, who has a tremendous ceiling, and the kind of fiery competitive streak that dwight has always lacked...

I agree with most of this. He handled Orlando like a child, but there's still plenty of blame to put on the team. He was there for 7 years and they failed, like Cleveland did with LeBron, to put any sort of supporting cast around him. And despite the disappoint of him never fufilling his offensive potential, he still makes a huge impact on that end of the floor; moreso than a majority of bigs in the league.

With Dwight you're paying for 18 PPG and the one of the most impactful defensive players and rebounders we've had in the NBA the last 7-8 years. It's hardly worth talking about it since he'd never consider playing in Sacto, but I don't see how or why we would turn him down if he had interest in playing here. He's 27 now, so we'd be paying for his "prime years" through age 31. This would be the time to offer Dwight the big deal

 

[Darth Divac]

He was there for 7 years and they failed, like Cleveland did with LeBron, to put any sort of supporting cast around him.

They gave him Jameer Nelson, Hedo Turkoglu, and Rashard Lewis. All of whom are terrific players.

 

[Padrino]

I agree with most of this. He handled Orlando like a child, but there's still plenty of blame to put on the team. He was there for 7 years and they failed, like Cleveland did with LeBron, to put any sort of supporting cast around him. And despite the disappoint of him never fufilling his offensive potential, he still makes a huge impact on that end of the floor; moreso than a majority of bigs in the league.

With Dwight you're paying for 18 PPG and the one of the most impactful defensive players and rebounders we've had in the NBA the last 7-8 years. It's hardly worth talking about it since he'd never consider playing in Sacto, but I don't see how or why we would turn him down if he had interest in playing here. He's 27 now, so we'd be paying for his "prime years" through age 31. This would be the time to offer Dwight the big deal

indeed, and this makes it all the more infuriating that dwight howard re-signed with orlando in the first place, only to demand a trade shortly thereafter. it was obvious to everyone paying attention that the magic had done a poor job of building a true contender around dwight. nothing changed in the offseason that dwight re-signed with the magic, so why did he re-sign? howard is forever warring with the side of himself that so desperately wants to be liked. he couldn't handle the prospect of disappointing orlando fans, so he re-signed against his own desire to play for a title elsewhere. at some point, the side of him that wanted to win woke up, and he demanded a trade, inciting the ire of orlando fans rather than the disappointment he was clearly so frightened of in the first place...

it's this quality that i am not fond of, dwight's inability to make the simple decision to play to win. he gets too concerned with the media, too concerned with perception, too concerned with pleasing everybody. i honestly do not believe that a team wins titles with dwight howard as it's best player. he's a #2 that will earn #1 money, and that's what makes me leery of him, despite the obvious next-level talent he displays on the defensive side of the ball. pair him with a guy like lebron, and it's a dynasty. but without an adequate superstar running mate, howard is the kind of personality that caves beneath the pressure. even with more than adequate support in LA, it took 3/4 of a season for dwight to play his best basketball, and by then, it wasn't enough to help his team develop any kind of lasting momentum. some of that was adjusting to a new environment and new expectations. some of it was the lingering effects of back surgery. but, at a certain point, howard's gonna run out of excuses. i remain unconvinced that he's a winner worthy of a max contract...

 

[VF21]

indeed, and this makes it all the more infuriating that dwight howard re-signed with orlando in the first place, only to demand a trade shortly thereafter. it was obvious to everyone paying attention that the magic had done a poor job of building a true contender around dwight. nothing changed in the offseason that dwight re-signed with the magic, so why did he re-sign? howard is forever warring with the side of himself that so desperately wants to be liked. he couldn't handle the prospect of disappointing orlando fans, so he re-signed against his own desire to play for a title elsewhere. at some point, the side of him that wanted to win woke up, and he demanded a trade, inciting the ire of orlando fans rather than the disappointment he was clearly so frightened of in the first place...

it's this quality that i am not fond of, dwight's inability to make the simple decision to play to win. he gets too concerned with the media, too concerned with perception, too concerned with pleasing everybody. i honestly do not believe that a team wins titles with dwight howard as it's best player. he's a #2 that will earn #1 money, and that's what makes me leery of him, despite the obvious next-level talent he displays on the defensive side of the ball. pair him with a guy like lebron, and it's a dynasty. but without an adequate superstar running mate, howard is the kind of personality that caves beneath the pressure. even with more than adequate support in LA, it took 3/4 of a season for dwight to play his best basketball, and by then, it wasn't enough to help his team develop any kind of lasting momentum. some of that was adjusting to a new environment and new expectations. some of it was the lingering effects of back surgery. but, at a certain point, howard's gonna run out of excuses. i remain unconvinced that he's a winner worthy of a max contract...

That's pretty much the Reader's Digest of how I feel about Howard. He doesn't show the hunger that true champions have to feed.

 

[The_Jamal]

indeed, and this makes it all the more infuriating that dwight howard re-signed with orlando in the first place, only to demand a trade shortly thereafter. it was obvious to everyone paying attention that the magic had done a poor job of building a true contender around dwight. nothing changed in the offseason that dwight re-signed with the magic, so why did he re-sign? howard is forever warring with the side of himself that so desperately wants to be liked. he couldn't handle the prospect of disappointing orlando fans, so he re-signed against his own desire to play for a title elsewhere. at some point, the side of him that wanted to win woke up, and he demanded a trade, inciting the ire of orlando fans rather than the disappointment he was clearly so frightened of in the first place...

it's this quality that i am not fond of, dwight's inability to make the simple decision to play to win. he gets too concerned with the media, too concerned with perception, too concerned with pleasing everybody. i honestly do not believe that a team wins titles with dwight howard as it's best player. he's a #2 that will earn #1 money, and that's what makes me leery of him, despite the obvious next-level talent he displays on the defensive side of the ball. pair him with a guy like lebron, and it's a dynasty. but without an adequate superstar running mate, howard is the kind of personality that caves beneath the pressure. even with more than adequate support in LA, it took 3/4 of a season for dwight to play his best basketball, and by then, it wasn't enough to help his team develop any kind of lasting momentum. some of that was adjusting to a new environment and new expectations. some of it was the lingering effects of back surgery. but, at a certain point, howard's gonna run out of excuses. i remain unconvinced that he's a winner worthy of a max contract...

We wouldn't be depending on him to carry the weight of the team on his shoulders. That job lies with Boogie (hopefully). And I do think Howard has plenty of excuses for last season. Lingering back-injury, 3 coaches, Kobe drama, and playing most of the year with a coach who has no idea how to use a big (D'antoni).

I really don't like Howard either, but I can't deny that he would put us in the playoffs and a combination of Boogie and Howard makes us title contenders with a few changes in the role player dept. I just don't see any way we would walk away from him if he said he wanted to come to Sacto

 

[The_Jamal]

They gave him Jameer Nelson, Hedo Turkoglu, and Rashard Lewis. All of whom are terrific players.

Average Role-players are terrific players? Mind you, Hedo and Shard are on their way out of the league now and Nelson has never been amounted to any sort of greatness.

 

[Darth Divac]

Average Role-players are terrific players? Mind you, Hedo and Shard are on their way out of the league now and Nelson has never been amounted to any sort of greatness.

Nelson was an All-Star caliber player at one point, and Rashard has been for a good deal of his career. Hedo is no star, but he's definitely more than an average role-player. He shoots, he rebounds, he passes and defends.