Kings Future

[twslam07]

The three most important roster spots right now for our team are SF, PF, and PG. We already have our two franchise players to build around (Evans and Cousins) so let’s begin the process. This post is a plan for the next two years to make the Kings successful.

2012 Draft
I think there is a good chance that Robinson will fall to us. I have a feeling he will come up a little short in his measurements and drive his value down a little bit allowing us the option of selecting him. If he is there, I say take him. He’s a great rebounder with excellent athleticism. He’s got a nice little jumper and he has a great motor and drive. I don’t want to take a flyer on Drummond. He’s way too risky. We can’t risk him busting and setting this franchise back.

I’m also a huge fan of Taylor. Every time I read another article or scouting report on him, I like him even more. He is exactly what we need at SF. He is a great 3 point shooter, excellent defender, and very athletic. He also doesn’t demand shots which would be refreshing to see on the Kings.

So how do we get him? The Rockets have 2 picks (#14 and #16). I believe at #14 or #16 would be a great place to take him. We should offer this trade to the Rockets:

Lowry
#14

For

Thomas
Hayes
#36

Why do the Rockets do this? Lowry isn’t very happy in Houston. His minutes were slashed and has never gotten over it. They love Dragic there and it looks like they want to sign him to a long term deal. Trading away Lowry would clear up that controversy. We give them Thomas who would be a great backup guard for them. Dragic is also big enough to swing over to play SG which would allow Thomas to be on the floor with him which wouldn’t limit his minutes. They also get back Hayes who is loved by Houston and Adelman. Camby is off their books this offseason and Hayes would fill their void at Center. Dalembert and Hayes would be a dynamic rotation for them at center. Lastly they get our early second round pick where there will still be some good players available.

Why do the Kings do this? Lowry would be a very nice complimentary guard next to Evans. He’s a good 3 point shooter, rebounder, defender, playmaker, and ballhandler. We also get the #14 pick which would allow us to take Taylor and fill our void at the SF position.

2012 Free Agency
With these trades, we will be heading into free agency with $48.8 mil on our books. This leaves us with around $10 mil to sign players. I also recommend that we buy out Garcia for this year which won’t be that expensive considering he only has 1 year left on his contract. This would now give us $42.8 mil on our books and leaves us with $16 mil to work with. They should resign Thompson and Williams. Thompson should get around $6 mil a year for 4 years. Williams should get around $3 mil a year for 2 years. After we sign Thompson, we should trade him.

Thornton
Thompson

For

Iguodala

Why do the Sixers do this? It’s been known that the Sixers have been looking to part with Iguodala and his enormous contract. They would get back two good players who are still young. When Iguodala is gone, Turner can slide over and man the SF spot while Thornton takes over for them at SG. Thornton will finally be that 20 ppg scorer they have been looking for and give them someone who they can give the ball to at the end of the game to take the last shot. Thompson will be another solid big to add to their rotation. Brand will still be there for another year, but after he is gone it will just be Young and Hawes. Thompson will definitely help solidify a three big rotation in the future for them.

Why do the Kings do this? SF was our biggest problem last year and you can’t get much better than Iguodala. I know we drafted Taylor, but a SF rotation of Iguodala and Taylor would be outstanding . He also doesn’t demand shots which is valuable to our team. He’s athletic, an elite defender, a great playmaker, and a good rebounder. Let’s hope he can carry over his 3 point shooting from last year.

After this trade we would still have $6 mil left to use. With this money we should go after Camby and sign him to a $6 mil/1 year deal. He would give us that shotblocker and rebounder we need next to Cousins and oh by the way he doesn’t demand shots.

2012/2013 Lineup
PG – Lowry/Fredette
SG – Evans/Williams
SF – Iguodala/Taylor/Salmons/Outlaw/Honeycutt
PF – Camby/Robinson
C – Cousins/Whiteside

2012/2013 8 Man Rotation
Lowry – Evans – Iguodala – Camby – Cousins – Williams – Taylor – Robinson

2013 Draft
This is dependent on how we do next year during the season, but I’m pretty confident that team will be successful. We will probably have a mid-late first round pick next year. My hope would be that we draft a shot blocking big or a guard if Fredette and Williams don’t seem to be working out.

2013 Free Agency
As you probably could tell from the 2012/2013 lineup, Salmons didn’t really have a place on our team. He will have one more year on his contract by this time and I think it is an excellent time to amnesty him. With Salmons amnestied, Camby a free agent, and Evans a restricted free agent, we will have $42.8 mil on our books giving us $16 mil to work with. I think we will see a big improvement in Tyreke’s jumper and ultimately pushing him back to being a 20 ppg player. I think we will probably give him around $10 mil on the first year of his long deal which would leave us with $6 mil left to use. Dalembert will be an unrestricted free agent this year and we can try to sign him for $6 mil a year for 3 years or so. If we are unsuccessful in signing Dalembert we can always resign Camby to fill that shot blocker role. If we are able to sign a deal with one of these players for a couple years, I don’t expect them to be as useful when their contract is over because of how old they will be (especially Camby). By this time, I hope Whiteside has come through in his progression and has shown he can be that athletic shot blocker to pair next to Cousins.

2013/2014 Lineup
PG – Lowry/Fredette
SG – Evans/Williams
SF – Iguodala/Taylor/Honeycutt/Outlaw
PF – Dalembert/Robinson/2013 Rookie
C – Cousins/Whiteside

2013/2014 8 Man Rotation
Lowry – Evans – Iguodala – Dalembert – Cousins – Williams – Taylor – Robinson

Overall
I see no reason why this team can’t be an elite team. The starting lineup’s defense is outstanding and Williams, Taylor, and Robinson off the bench will keep that defense consistent the entire game. This team has plenty of ballhandling and playmaking. Lowry, Evans, Iguodala, and Williams are all capable of running an offense as well as averaging 5 assists per game. Lowry, Iguodala, and Taylor will help spread the floor with their 3 point shooting as well as Jimmer when he is in. The rebounding would be excellent. Lowry, Evans, Iguodala, Dalembert, Cousins, and Robinson are all at least above average for their position. Bottom line is this team would be a very attacking, physical, rebounding, and defensive oriented team. We would be shutting teams down left and right while still having the ability to put up a lot of points. We might just start a rivalry with the Thunder.

 

[KingsFanSince85]

If you were GM and could manage those moves, you'd make many KF regulars here very happy. I'm not going to pick apart and trash your ideas, as some may do, but rather say that it is pretty ambitious. Props on your layout and presentation, too.

 

[rainmaker]

Been thinking about this NO situation, and if we can find a way to get Okafor and the 10, which I still believe will take a little value, and Stein tweeted earlier, then why not try to flip the 5 and 10 pick to a team like Char for the 2, and take MKG? Just a thought, as Char seems to be shopping their pick pretty hard, although I'm not sure what for exactly.

@AlexKennedyNBA: The Charlotte Bobcats are shopping the second overall pick, according to multiple sources.”

Anyway, back to work. See ya.

 

[twslam07]

If you were GM and could manage those moves, you'd make many KF regulars here very happy. I'm not going to pick apart and trash your ideas, as some may do, but rather say that it is pretty ambitious. Props on your layout and presentation, too.

haha I appreciate it. I think it is all definitely possible and it is not an expensive plan at all. Buying out Cisco with one year left and amnestying Salmons with one year left will not be too costly to the Maloofs. I agree that it is ambitious, but this lineup is really only two trades away.

 

[twslam07]

Been thinking about this NO situation, and if we can find a way to get Okafor and the 10, which I still believe will take a little value, and Stein tweeted earlier, then why not try to flip the 5 and 10 pick to a team like Char for the 2, and take MKG? Just a thought, as Char seems to be shopping their pick pretty hard, although I'm not sure what for exactly.

@AlexKennedyNBA: The Charlotte Bobcats are shopping the second overall pick, according to multiple sources.”

Anyway, back to work. See ya.

I don't see how this pertains to what I posted, but I'll roll with it. I think it's something that couldn't definitely work. We fill that SF and shotblocker role and those were our two biggest holes last year. What would it take to get Okafor and the 10th? Just Garcia? I think right now it's still a little unclear what they exactly want so we might need to keep our ears open the next couple of days.

 

[kingsnation]

So how do we get him? The Rockets have 2 picks (#14 and #16). I believe at #14 or #16 would be a great place to take him. We should offer this trade to the Rockets:

Lowry
#14

For

Thomas
Hayes
#36

Why do the Rockets do this? Lowry isn’t very happy in Houston. His minutes were slashed and has never gotten over it. They love Dragic there and it looks like they want to sign him to a long term deal. Trading away Lowry would clear up that controversy. We give them Thomas who would be a great backup guard for them. Dragic is also big enough to swing over to play SG which would allow Thomas to be on the floor with him which wouldn’t limit his minutes. They also get back Hayes who is loved by Houston and Adelman. Camby is off their books this offseason and Hayes would fill their void at Center. Dalembert and Hayes would be a dynamic rotation for them at center. Lastly they get our early second round pick where there will still be some good players available.

Why do the Kings do this? Lowry would be a very nice complimentary guard next to Evans. He’s a good 3 point shooter, rebounder, defender, playmaker, and ballhandler. We also get the #14 pick which would allow us to take Taylor and fill our void at the SF position.

You make Chuck sound extremely valuable. If he were, he'd be worth keeping. You're essentially asking them to downgrade at PG, take on a massive monster contract in a mini-center AND move down 22 spots in the draft. Adelman, BTW, is also the coach in Minnesota, not Houston.

 

[rainmaker]

I don't see how this pertains to what I posted, but I'll roll with it. I think it's something that couldn't definitely work. We fill that SF and shotblocker role and those were our two biggest holes last year. What would it take to get Okafor and the 10th? Just Garcia? I think right now it's still a little unclear what they exactly want so we might need to keep our ears open the next couple of days.

You're right, my apologies. So much speculation coming out I didn't want to just start another thread. Also posted it as given the rumors of both the #2 and #10/Okafor being available, I'd think there's more a chance we get involved in one of those deals than pulling off two separate trades.

As for your scenario now that I have more time, first I want to point out and say thank you for a well thought out scenario, and explaining/analyzing each potential move along the way. I've complained about threads with little thought, but also want to point out and say thank you when there's a thread with a fair amount of thought.

I'm not sure about Robinson, but some rumors suggest our FO is targeting him. Also Henson. I'd probably lean towards Henson if he has good workouts, but if Drummond also has good workouts I lean towards him above the other two. But you as well as I know we can't pick for Petrie. I'm personally not leaning towards Robinson but if we pick him I'll hope for the best, and also hope we make a move for a defensive PF.

The Hou trade is the right idea but doubt IT/Chuck/36 gets Lowry and the 14. And while I love Lowry, I'd first try to use our 36, IT, or Chuck to focus on the Okafor/10 package.

I also like Iggy a lot, but think MT/JT is too much. I also doubt if we were to draft Robinson that JT would be willing to sign, or be willing to help in a sign and trade. My guess is he'd want to go where he wants and survey the landscape. I also doubt we get Camby, and if not than drafting Robinson, letting JT go, trading Chuck, we are left extremely thin up front with zero defensive presence.

I think first and foremost we need to concentrate on getting a SF and getting a defensive minded PF. That's why I'd prefer going hard after the Okafor/10 package, and then drafting Taylor, or packaging the 5 and 10 for either the 2 if possible and take MKG or package it for a SF. Actually, the 5 and 10 might get Iggy.

While I agree with the premise of your scenario, it's too much, and I'd wager it's highly improbable we pull off so many moves/acquisitions. Think we need to concentrate on filling our needs in fewer moves and not limit getting a defensive big to Camby or bust.

 

[twslam07]

You make Chuck sound extremely valuable. If he were, he'd be worth keeping. You're essentially asking them to downgrade at PG, take on a massive monster contract in a mini-center AND move down 22 spots in the draft. Adelman, BTW, is also the coach in Minnesota, not Houston.

I am aware Adelman is the coach of Minnesota and I can see how that quote is confusing to you. What I was getting at is that Adelman really likes Hayes as a player. Adelman is no slouch in this league and if he sees something in Hayes, I'm sure there are other coaches who see it too.

Hayes value is dependent on what team he goes to. He has had success in Houston no longer than a year ago. He averaged 8 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 53% from the floor. It's safe to say he was a very efficient player there. Just because he had a bad season here doesn't mean he doesn't have value. It just didn't work out like it was supposed. Let's take Hickson as an example. In Cleveland he averaged 14 points and 9 boards. In Sacramento he averaged 5 points and 5 boards. In Portland he averaged 15 points and 8 boards.

Many here would agree that we are doing them a favor by relinquishing them of Lowry. Lowry has even said himself that he doesn't think him and Dragic will be back next year and it is pretty publicly known that him and McHale aren't getting along. if they keep Lowry it's quite possible that he becomes a distraction and nuisance next season. It's very likely that Houston won't be looking for too much in return while trying to rid themselves of Lowry.

 

[twslam07]

You're right, my apologies. So much speculation coming out I didn't want to just start another thread. Also posted it as given the rumors of both the #2 and #10/Okafor being available, I'd think there's more a chance we get involved in one of those deals than pulling off two separate trades.

As for your scenario now that I have more time, first I want to point out and say thank you for a well thought out scenario, and explaining/analyzing each potential move along the way. I've complained about threads with little thought, but also want to point out and say thank you when there's a thread with a fair amount of thought.

I'm not sure about Robinson, but some rumors suggest our FO is targeting him. Also Henson. I'd probably lean towards Henson if he has good workouts, but if Drummond also has good workouts I lean towards him above the other two. But you as well as I know we can't pick for Petrie. I'm personally not leaning towards Robinson but if we pick him I'll hope for the best, and also hope we make a move for a defensive PF.

The Hou trade is the right idea but doubt IT/Chuck/36 gets Lowry and the 14. And while I love Lowry, I'd first try to use our 36, IT, or Chuck to focus on the Okafor/10 package.

I also like Iggy a lot, but think MT/JT is too much. I also doubt if we were to draft Robinson that JT would be willing to sign, or be willing to help in a sign and trade. My guess is he'd want to go where he wants and survey the landscape. I also doubt we get Camby, and if not than drafting Robinson, letting JT go, trading Chuck, we are left extremely thin up front with zero defensive presence.

I think first and foremost we need to concentrate on getting a SF and getting a defensive minded PF. That's why I'd prefer going hard after the Okafor/10 package, and then drafting Taylor, or packaging the 5 and 10 for either the 2 if possible and take MKG or package it for a SF. Actually, the 5 and 10 might get Iggy.

While I agree with the premise of your scenario, it's too much, and I'd wager it's highly improbable we pull off so many moves/acquisitions. Think we need to concentrate on filling our needs in fewer moves and not limit getting a defensive big to Camby or bust.

As far as the Lowry trade, I will let you read what I wrote in response to kingsnation.

As for the Iguodala trade, I don't think Thornton and Thompson would be too much especially since we are signing Thompson to trade him. Thompson doesn't have a say in where he goes. He is a restricted free agent. All we need to do is match any offer sheet and we have him, then we turn around and trade him. It won't be until after this contract expires where he has the power to choose where he wants to go.

Being able to sing Camby is a big question mark and I see your concern with our front court depth if we are unsuccessful. We can simply try to sign Camby and if we are successful then we can trade Thornton and Thompson for Iguodala. If we can't sign him then we hold on to Thompson so we can maintain our frontcourt depth.

 

[kingsnation]

I am aware Adelman is the coach of Minnesota and I can see how that quote is confusing to you. What I was getting at is that Adelman really likes Hayes as a player. Adelman is no slouch in this league and if he sees something in Hayes, I'm sure there are other coaches who see it too.

Hayes value is dependent on what team he goes to. He has had success in Houston no longer than a year ago. He averaged 8 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 53% from the floor. It's safe to say he was a very efficient player there. Just because he had a bad season here doesn't mean he doesn't have value. It just didn't work out like it was supposed. Let's take Hickson as an example. In Cleveland he averaged 14 points and 9 boards. In Sacramento he averaged 5 points and 5 boards. In Portland he averaged 15 points and 8 boards.

Many here would agree that we are doing them a favor by relinquishing them of Lowry. Lowry has even said himself that he doesn't think him and Dragic will be back next year and it is pretty publicly known that him and McHale aren't getting along. if they keep Lowry it's quite possible that he becomes a distraction and nuisance next season. It's very likely that Houston won't be looking for too much in return while trying to rid themselves of Lowry.

Yes, you are right, that was confusing. Just because a certain coach has a special liking towards a player, it doesn't mean that he will be signed by another club. "Well Phil Jackson (or any other NBA Coach) really likes this guy, so we will sign him." If that's how NBA GMs are thinking then we are in trouble. Of course, guys have great reputations, chemistry, etc. But the Rockets aren't going to go after Hayes because the Coach they didn't want to resign liked him.

And yes, Hayes' value/stock, along with many other players rise and fall depending on the team they go to. However, Hayes' contract is ridiculously large even when he is putting up his BEST numbers. If the Rockets wanted him, they wouldn't have let him sign somewhere else in the first place last year.

Looking to unload Lowry and moving down 22 spots in the draft are not equatable BTW. They can get alot more for him than what you are proposing.

 

[ParniValjak]

I am aware Adelman is the coach of Minnesota and I can see how that quote is confusing to you. What I was getting at is that Adelman really likes Hayes as a player. Adelman is no slouch in this league and if he sees something in Hayes, I'm sure there are other coaches who see it too.

Hayes value is dependent on what team he goes to. He has had success in Houston no longer than a year ago. He averaged 8 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 53% from the floor. It's safe to say he was a very efficient player there. Just because he had a bad season here doesn't mean he doesn't have value. It just didn't work out like it was supposed. Let's take Hickson as an example. In Cleveland he averaged 14 points and 9 boards. In Sacramento he averaged 5 points and 5 boards. In Portland he averaged 15 points and 8 boards.

Many here would agree that we are doing them a favor by relinquishing them of Lowry. Lowry has even said himself that he doesn't think him and Dragic will be back next year and it is pretty publicly known that him and McHale aren't getting along. if they keep Lowry it's quite possible that he becomes a distraction and nuisance next season. It's very likely that Houston won't be looking for too much in return while trying to rid themselves of Lowry.

There are things about coach Adelman that just cannot be overlooked. He has the uncanny ability to get some ordinary player playing at a very productive level. It is absolutely a sign of a great coach. Throughout his coaching career, he has made average players look a lot better than they actually are by giving them a role that plays to their strengths. The only other current coach that has that ability is Gregg Popovich.

I am sure Houston would not mind having Chuck back with them but I would say that Chuck playing under McHale would be the Chuck we saw under Westphal/Smart and not the one we saw while Adelman was coaching him.

We need to realise that when it comes to Chuck Hayes, we've ****ed up! He overpaid a great deal for an average player and at the moment that contract looks just about unmovable. I say just about as there is a slight glimmer of hope that Houston or Minnesota might be willing to give the Chuck experiment a shot.

We just have to accept that we are likely stuck with Chuck for the next 3 seasons.