Kings interested in trading for Iman Shumpert

[twslam07]

We don't have to go through convoluted shenanigans to get roll players. We are filled with ill fitting roll players and now we can just let the clock tick off and get us some more roll players. As is said, they can't pick and chose so why the preparation to get in a good position to get one? I honestly have never understood that except perhaps discussing such moves is just plain fun. I have nothing against fun and applaud people who exercise their brains.

I think Sacramento will become a destination for all FAs. In the recent past, player's agents HAD to tell their free agents that Sacramento was not the place to go. Does anyone doubt that? I think when the arena is built and people become (hopefully) impressed with Ranadive, that will change. Great players want to go where they can win and enjoy playing. Some may need a big city but I sincerely wonder how important that is for the vast majority of players. The big time FAs go to big markets because the big markets are willing to pay the luxury tax and therefore shower them with oodles of money. As the years pass and punishments for going over the luxury tax line increase, even that may be less of an issue.

You said it yourself. We are filled with ill-fitting rollplayers. You're right. All we have to do is wait for their contracts to expire. Unfortunately, Landry's clock has a lot more tick in it. This trade takes him off our books and gives us more cap space. It's as simple as that.

There were many people who disliked the Landry signing. In fact, it was probably the majority of this board, but now when there is a proposal to trade him away for cap space, people (not you) seem to be against the idea. I find it odd.

 

[Glenn]

You said it yourself. We are filled with ill-fitting rollplayers. You're right. All we have to do is wait for their contracts to expire. Unfortunately, Landry's clock has a lot more tick in it. This trade takes him off our books and gives us more cap space. It's as simple as that.

There were many people who disliked the Landry signing. In fact, it was probably the majority of this board, but now when there is a proposal to trade him away for cap space, people (not you) seem to be against the idea. I find it odd.

I don't believe for a second this FO signed Landry just to trade him. Not. One. Second.

 

[twslam07]

So it makes no difference if we trade this person and that to get cap space. Cap space will occur as contracts expire.

Who are we creating this cap space for? Role players?? Honest?

We rid ourselves of Landry's contract who is signed through 2017 thus giving us an extra 6.5 mil in cap space. It's not like we're just trading enders for enders.

And yes you use the cap space on role players. You're definition of a role player might be different than mine so that might be where the disconnect is happening. For instance, I consider Noah and Ibaka roleplayers who would be very nice complements next to Cousins. However, it's going to take more than 2 mil a year to convince them to come play here.

 

[twslam07]

I don't believe for a second this FO signed Landry just to trade him. Not. One. Second.

I've mentioned this earlier in the thread, but there have been so many posts by me I can't blame you for missing it. Many of the trades I post on this forum aren't indicative of what the FO would do. It is what I would do if I were in the FO's position. It's similar to those threads that ask you to predict the starting lineup. There are many people who post what they think the coach will go with and then there are others who post what they would like to see. I happen to be the type of person who likes to come up with unique solutions rather than predicting what solutions the FO has in store for us.

I think this deal becomes more realistic if Thompson is the one involved rather than Landry, but again, I included Landry in this deal because I thought it would be much more difficult to move Landry by himself for a 2015 ender. It's possible by next year's trade deadline that some team would be willing to take him on for an ender, but I think we would have more luck if that player was Thompson.

 

[Glenn]

This is why I stay away from this. Any discussion that is made up to entertain oneself instead of having a practical possibility in the real world is a not the way I want to use my time.

 

[twslam07]

I'd like to see Vivek, Cuz, and Malone make it through the next 3 years with that plan in place.

McLemore, 2 1st round picks (if the Cavs don't get one), and a bunch of 2nd round vets (that belong to the Kings only conditionally). As a role player, tell me there won't be more attractive situations, especially considering by that time the team hasn't won in a decade. So the Kings will have capspace to overpay for roleplayers, and we've seen that result.

It's only 2 years. 2013-2014 season and the 2014-2015 season then we will have arrived at the point in time where the reconstruction would take place.

You're forgetting Cousins in that list, but yes a young core of Cousins, McLemore, Wiggins/Parker/Smart, 2015 1st round pick, McCallum, 2014 2nd round draft pick, and a 2015 2nd round pick would be very attactive to free agent rollplayers. We might as well add Malone and a new arena to that list too because those are attractive pieces for luring free agents as well.

Also, I'm under the impression that our 2014 and 2015 2nd round picks are top 55 protected which essentially makes them ares unless you plan on us making a deep run into the playoffs in the next two years. I could be wrong on the conditions though.

 

[twslam07]

This is why I stay away from this. Any discussion that is made up to entertain oneself instead of having a practical possibility in the real world is a not the way I want to use my time.

And the moment I bring up a more realistic possibility you shut down in civil debate.

 

[upinsmoke]

Cap space is not strictly used for FA signings btw the flexibility it allows you is invaluable especially in the right market condition.

 

[Section 101]

It's only 2 years. 2013-2014 season and the 2014-2015 season then we will have arrived at the point in time where the reconstruction would take place.

You're forgetting Cousins in that list, but yes a young core of Cousins, McLemore, Wiggins/Parker/Smart, 2015 1st round pick, McCallum, 2014 2nd round draft pick, and a 2015 2nd round pick would be very attactive to free agent rollplayers. We might as well add Malone and a new arena to that list too because those are attractive pieces for luring free agents as well.

Also, I'm under the impression that our 2014 and 2015 2nd round picks are top 55 protected which essentially makes them ares unless you plan on us making a deep run into the playoffs in the next two years. I could be wrong on the conditions though.

And you risk losing Cuz if he feels the team is not trying to win.

 

[Glenn]

And the moment I bring up a more realistic possibility you shut down in civil debate.

I don't exactly know what you mean. I seldom get involved in these trade ideas and that' going back 13 years. I REALLY don't want to take part in a debate conversation concerning something that can't happen in the real world. That's my right, I presume.

 

[twslam07]

And you risk losing Cuz if he feels the team is not trying to win.

False. Nobody is saying this team won't compete game in and game out. That was evident by Malone's actions last night. I think Cousins is just as aware as everyone else of the salary situation of his co-workers. He knows they are currently setup for huge cap relief in 2015. There's no way he can expect this team to compete with the current personnel, and he was probably more than aware that the size of their contracts makes them pretty difficult to move before he signed his massive extension. Bottom line is that he knew what he was getting himself into. We'll have Cousins for the 2015/16 season which is the "turnaround" year as well as the 2016/17 and 2017/2018 season. I'm sure we'll be more than competitive by the time he's up for another extension.

 

[twslam07]

I don't exactly know what you mean. I seldom get involved in these trade ideas and that' going back 13 years. I REALLY don't want to take part in a debate conversation concerning something that can't happen in the real world. That's my right, I presume.

And you are entitled to that right. All I was saying is that we could easily swap out Landry for Thompson and make this deal much more realistic. You said "I don't believe for a second this FO signed Landry just to trade him. Not. One. Second." which I agree with. However, Thompson is completely different. He is a remnant from the old regime and thus thought of as a more expendable piece.

It seemed to me you're only argument against the trade was that the FO wouldn't do it because Landry was involved. Now that he is replaced with Thompson to make the trade more realistic, do you have any more objections?

 

[sdballer]

No offense but do you really not understand why people seem confused by this proposal?

Either you include Landry, which we all know the FO wouldn't do as they just signed him and would likely be paying more overall next year for a useless player (amare).

Or we swap expirings next year for cap space the following year while getting less useful pieces right now.

Which is all basically justified so that we don't add anyone this offseasob. What? There are a bunch of reasons teams make trades and none of them apply to what you are suggesting.

 

[twslam07]

No offense but do you really not understand why people seem confused by this proposal?

Either you include Landry, which we all know the FO wouldn't do as they just signed him and would likely be paying more overall next year for a useless player (amare).

Or we swap expirings next year for cap space the following year while getting less useful pieces right now.

Which is all basically justified so that we don't add anyone this offseasob. What? There are a bunch of reasons teams make trades and none of them apply to what you are suggesting.

I understand why many of you are confused, but I will try to clarify.

I do not like the Landry signing. He does not fit the mold of what you should pair next to Cousins hence he should be moved. I acknowledge the fact that the FO is unlikely to move him because they just signed him, and we have yet to see him play a single minute for us this season. It would be a rather big pill to swallow for our FO to trade a player a half of a year after signing him. It would come across like they don't know what they're doing.

With that in mind, we can offer Thompson as an alternative to Landry. Thompson doesn't make as much as Landry which means we'll have to throw in another player. Fredette would have to be shipped to the Knicks to make salaries match. By doing this trade, we rid ourselves of Thompson's contract (extends through 2017) which give us more cap space in 2015 (this is the justification part in case you were wondering) than if we were to not make a trade at all.

I would then suggest moving Landry for a 2015 ender by the 2014-2015 trade deadline. Maybe by then the FO will see how he doesn't quite compliment Cousins.

I think in the end this deal has pretty much all of the 'player value' going to New York while Boston gets a young piece and cap space next offseason and we get cap space the following offseason. With Rondo, Thompson, and Fredette all headed the Knicks way it might make sense to see if we can snatch their 2015 1st round pick. Although it might not be available to be traded since their 2016 pick has a condition on it.

 

[Cold]

I would be open to a deal that brings Stoudemire over.

Celtics Get:
Iman Shumpert
John Salmons
Patrick Patterson

Celtics Give:
Rajon Rondo


Knicks Get:
Rajon Rondo
Carl Landry

Knicks Give:
Amare Stoudemire
Iman Shumpert


Kings Get:
Amare Stoudemire

Kings Give:
John Salmons
Carl Landry
Patrick Patterson


Why for the Celtics?
I think it's quite obvious that the Celtics are in rebuild mode. They want to acquire as many young, talented players and ultimately end up in the lottery with a chance at a high draft pick. With Rondo on the roster, it makes them a much more competitive team. With Rondo shipped out, it will help them get that higher pick. They also get Shumpert who is an up and coming SG in this league that has potential. Salmons and Patterson are included to act as ending contracts to give them more cap flexibility next offseason.

Why for the Knicks?
The Knicks do this deal to become more competitive this year while also ridding themselves of Stoudemire's contract. Rondo would instantly become their starting PG when he returns from injury and would push Felton to the bench. Landry will be able to provide them with low post scoring off the bench in a similar role that Stoudemire was playing but for much cheaper. When their team is completely healthy their lineup will look like this:

PG - Rondo/Felton/Progioni/Udrih
SG - Smith/Hardaway/Murry
SF - World Peace/Anthony
PF - Anthony/Landry/Martin
C - Chandler/Bargnani/Aldrich

Why for the Kings?
The Kings have many contracts that are expiring after the 2014-2015 offseason. I think it makes sense to trade away our cap space this offseason for more cap space the following offseason. The Kings will only have Cousins, Thompson, McLemore, 2014 1st round pick, 2015 1st round pick, 2014 2nd round pick, 2015 2nd round pick and McCallum on the books going forward. That gives us approximately 25-30 mil in cap space to surround our young core with complimentary players. I would even prefer if we move Thompson for cap space after the 2014-2015 season. I think he is a great third big off the bench, but a third big off the bench shouldn't be making 6 to 6.5 mil a year. As a small market team, you can't afford to overpay for your roleplayers. If we did end up moving Thompson for cap space, we would have 31-36 mil in cap space that year.

I think a move like this would benefit our franchise tremendously in the long run. 1) It wouldn't make us more competitive this year thus allowing us an easier shot at a high draft pick. 2) We would have roughly the same team next year setting us up for most likely another lottery pick. 3) We would have a massive amount of cap space to use in 2015 to finally establish our roster long term around Cousins, McLemore, 2014 1st round pick, 2015 1st round pick, 2014 2nd round pick, 2015 2nd round pick, and McCallum.

One thing to note is that this deal can't be done until closer to the trade deadline when Landry becomes eligible to be traded.

I like the concept, but execution is terrible. Landry has well above trade value even at his salary and Ppat is a trade asset. The least we could do is bring back an expiring, which is not Amare who has 2 years on top of this year. The way i see it is this team needs an excellent draft this summer and bring in a couple quality FAs and start contending for a playoff spot next year. I don't the fans can wait 2 .75 more seasons of bad basketball.

Having said that, 0% chance Vivek and Malone trade Landry this year. They saw first hand his production in GS and New Orleans and see him a major role on this team going forward.

 

[twslam07]

I like the concept, but execution is terrible. Landry has well above trade value even at his salary and Ppat is a trade asset.

I think where we differ is that you don't put as much value on a 2015 expiring and/or more value on an ill-fitting PF on a bad contract and a stretch PF who is a poor defender and rebounder.

The least we could do is bring back an expiring, which is not Amare who has 2 years on top of this year.

Amare does not have 2 years on his contract on top of this year. He has this year and next year left on his contract. He will be a free agent in the 2015 offseason which happens to be when Thornton, Hayes, Moute, and Outlaw come off the books.

The way i see it is this team needs an excellent draft this summer and bring in a couple quality FAs and start contending for a playoff spot next year.

What free agents are they going to be able to bring in? Our payroll next year (if we don't resign Vasquez, Patterson, Thomas, and Ndiaye) is at 53 mil. Factor in our 2014 draft picks and we'll probably be around 56.5 mil. That gives us 1.5-2.5 mil in cap space depending on the salary cap. So again let me ask you, where are these "couple of quality FAs" going to come from?

I don't the fans can wait 2 .75 more seasons of bad basketball.

Where is this 2.75 years coming from? It's only 1.75 years. We'll be bad this season (2013-2014) and next season (2014-2015). In the 2015 offseason is when everyone will come off the books. I expect us to be a much more competitive team for the 2015-2016 season.

Having said that, 0% chance Vivek and Malone trade Landry this year. They saw first hand his production in GS and New Orleans and see him a major role on this team going forward.

I totally agree that the FO would not trade Landry without even seeing him play in a Kings uniform. This proposal was more along the lines of what I would do rather than what I think the FO will do. To make this deal more realistic, I would replace Landry with Thompson. As much as I like Thompson as a third big off the bench. He is overpaid. I don't want us paying bench bigs 6-6.5 mil a year. That's not a recipe for success. For that reason, I wouldn't mind seeing Thompson replacing Landry in this trade idea.

Ideally, we get a pick or two back in this trade in an attempt to negate the talent difference going out, but to me, gaining a 2015 expiring (Amare) while shipping out a contract that doesn't expire until 2017 has value. Just because you lose the player value test in a trade it doesn't mean that you lose the trade. This is where I think a lot of the disconnect between myself and fellow kings fans lies. Cap space has value and the fact that we could potentially have all of our unwanted contracts expire in 2015 makes it all the more valuable.

 

[Entity]

you do realize Salmons is off the books after this year. that is another 6+ million

 

[twslam07]

you do realize Salmons is off the books after this year. that is another 6+ million

Yep, that is factored into my analysis already.

 

[Cold]

I think where we differ is that you don't put as much value on a 2015 expiring and/or more value on an ill-fitting PF on a bad contract and a stretch PF who is a poor defender and rebounder.



Amare does not have 2 years on his contract on top of this year. He has this year and next year left on his contract. He will be a free agent in the 2015 offseason which happens to be when Thornton, Hayes, Moute, and Outlaw come off the books.



What free agents are they going to be able to bring in? Our payroll next year (if we don't resign Vasquez, Patterson, Thomas, and Ndiaye) is at 53 mil. Factor in our 2014 draft picks and we'll probably be around 56.5 mil. That gives us 1.5-2.5 mil in cap space depending on the salary cap. So again let me ask you, where are these "couple of quality FAs" going to come from?



Where is this 2.75 years coming from? It's only 1.75 years. We'll be bad this season (2013-2014) and next season (2014-2015). In the 2015 offseason is when everyone will come off the books. I expect us to be a much more competitive team for the 2015-2016 season.



I totally agree that the FO would not trade Landry without even seeing him play in a Kings uniform. This proposal was more along the lines of what I would do rather than what I think the FO will do. To make this deal more realistic, I would replace Landry with Thompson. As much as I like Thompson as a third big off the bench. He is overpaid. I don't want us paying bench bigs 6-6.5 mil a year. That's not a recipe for success. For that reason, I wouldn't mind seeing Thompson replacing Landry in this trade idea.

Ideally, we get a pick or two back in this trade in an attempt to negate the talent difference going out, but to me, gaining a 2015 expiring (Amare) while shipping out a contract that doesn't expire until 2017 has value. Just because you lose the player value test in a trade it doesn't mean that you lose the trade. This is where I think a lot of the disconnect between myself and fellow kings fans lies. Cap space has value and the fact that we could potentially have all of our unwanted contracts expire in 2015 makes it all the more valuable.

sorry. thought amare had 2 yrs left.
when i said "quality FA's", i should have been more clear. not star level pieces, but productive role players.

 

[twslam07]

sorry. thought amare had 2 yrs left.
when i said "quality FA's", i should have been more clear. not star level pieces, but productive role players.

Even then, who are they going to be able to bring in with 1.5-2.5 million of cap space? They could use the mid level exception and bring in a player at 5 mil/year over 4 years, but if we release all the players I talked about (Salmons, Vazquez, Patterson, Thomas, and Ndiaye), this will be our roster:

PG - McCallum
SG - McLemore/Thornton
SF - Outlaw/Moute
PF - Thompson/Landry
C - Cousins/Hayes

Add in a 2014 1st round pick and 2nd round pick. Is this team really going to be competitive enough to compete for a playoff spot with only 1.5-2.5 mil of cap space and a MLE to work with? I don't think so.

On the other hand we could resign Vasquez, Thomas, Patterson, and Ndiaye (which would tie up all of our cap space) and let Salmons and Fredette walk. If we do that, our roster will look like this:

PG - Vasquez/Thomas/McCallum
SG - McLemore/Thornton
SF - Outlaw/Moute
PF - Thompson/Landry/Patterson
C - Cousins/Hayes/Ndiaye

Add in a 2014 1st and 2nd round pick and a MLE. This team is pretty much a repeat of this year's team with a 1st round rookie added into the mix. Do you think this team will be competitive enough to compete for a playoff spot? I don't think so.

Again, I see 2015 as the year for us to make an impact in this league and be competitive again.

 

[Cold]

Even then, who are they going to be able to bring in with 1.5-2.5 million of cap space? They could use the mid level exception and bring in a player at 5 mil/year over 4 years, but if we release all the players I talked about (Salmons, Vazquez, Patterson, Thomas, and Ndiaye), this will be our roster:

PG - McCallum
SG - McLemore/Thornton
SF - Outlaw/Moute
PF - Thompson/Landry
C - Cousins/Hayes

Add in a 2014 1st round pick and 2nd round pick. Is this team really going to be competitive enough to compete for a playoff spot with only 1.5-2.5 mil of cap space and a MLE to work with? I don't think so.

On the other hand we could resign Vasquez, Thomas, Patterson, and Ndiaye (which would tie up all of our cap space) and let Salmons and Fredette walk. If we do that, our roster will look like this:

PG - Vasquez/Thomas/McCallum
SG - McLemore/Thornton
SF - Outlaw/Moute
PF - Thompson/Landry/Patterson
C - Cousins/Hayes/Ndiaye

Add in a 2014 1st and 2nd round pick and a MLE. This team is pretty much a repeat of this year's team with a 1st round rookie added into the mix. Do you think this team will be competitive enough to compete for a playoff spot? I don't think so.

Again, I see 2015 as the year for us to make an impact in this league and be competitive again.

I don't have a clear picture of the Kings' cap situation so I can't comment. But you can always make the numbers work. If the Kings (or any team for that matter) think they're a a solid rotation player or 2 away from being a good team, they'll make it happen. Look at GS's summer. They had no cap space, no picks, nothing, and managed to upgrade the roster with a few moves. Give the FO a chance.

 

[twslam07]

I don't have a clear picture of the Kings' cap situation so I can't comment. But you can always make the numbers work. If the Kings (or any team for that matter) think they're a a solid rotation player or 2 away from being a good team, they'll make it happen. Look at GS's summer. They had no cap space, no picks, nothing, and managed to upgrade the roster with a few moves. Give the FO a chance.

But are we a solid rotation player or 2 away from being a good team? And even if we are, is that team going to be sustainable or will we compete for the 8th spot for a few years and then be back on the decline?

Golden State essentially made room for Iguodala by trading 2014 enders and two 1st round draft picks and two 2nd round draft picks. They were loud and clear about competing now by giving up their draft picks (one was a 2014 1st round pick). You could argue that the Warriors (who played very well in the playoffs last year) were one player away from competing for the championship this year. They happen to think Iguodala is that guy. Whether he is or isn't is a completely different debate. Are the Kings close to that state? Does it make sense for them to shed bad contracts and forgo their future through picks in order to sign one or two guys that will put them "over the top?" I don't think so, but maybe it's just me.

 

[Cold]

But are we a solid rotation player or 2 away from being a good team? And even if we are, is that team going to be sustainable or will we compete for the 8th spot for a few years and then be back on the decline?

Golden State essentially made room for Iguodala by trading 2014 enders and two 1st round draft picks and two 2nd round draft picks. They were loud and clear about competing now by giving up their draft picks (one was a 2014 1st round pick). You could argue that the Warriors (who played very well in the playoffs last year) were one player away from competing for the championship this year. They happen to think Iguodala is that guy. Whether he is or isn't is a completely different debate. Are the Kings close to that state? Does it make sense for them to shed bad contracts and forgo their future through picks in order to sign one or two guys that will put them "over the top?" I don't think so, but maybe it's just me.

Middle late first round picks can be purchased. If you believe you're contending for a playoff spot it's not that big of a deal to trade them away.

They were over the cap, no room to sign anyone let alone Iggy. Had to get rid of Biedrins (10 mil per), Richard Jefferson (9 mil per), and injured Rush (4 mil per). It looked impossible, but it was done.

Which garbage on the Kings is on a worst contract than Biedrins and Jefferson's contracts or is a less productive player than those 2?

 

[twslam07]

Middle late first round picks can be purchased. If you believe you're contending for a playoff spot it's not that big of a deal to trade them away.

Exactly, but we are not close to competing for a playoff spot.

They were over the cap, no room to sign anyone let alone Iggy. Had to get rid of Biedrins (10 mil per), Richard Jefferson (9 mil per), and injured Rush (4 mil per). It looked impossible, but it was done.

Which garbage on the Kings is on a worst contract than Biedrins and Jefferson's contracts or is a less productive player than those 2?

I'm not arguing that we can't move our contracts. I'm arguing that it will cost us our future if we do. Like the Warriors they had to give up picks to make room for Iguodala. The Kings need their picks to rebuild their team. We're in no shape to be competing for a playoff spot so now is definitely not the time to get reckless with trading our picks away for cap space to go after that "missing piece" in free agency.

 

[upinsmoke]

Sacramento trades

JT/MT/Salmons(amnesty option)

NY trades

Amare/Iman

Sacramento gets out of three contracts who are not in the long term plans of the team and in return receive a NBA quality starter to help bring the rookie along. Money wise Sac has that money tied up anyways in players who are log jamming their positions and there is no real cap relieve coming this summer anyways but NEXT summer we would be looking at a huge ammount of money coming off the books.

NY finally throws the towel in with Amare and gets something at least servicable in the time being. To be honest JT and MT might even flourish in NY's uptempo offense and they could amnesty Salmons if they choose to do so.

 

[Mass]

Sacramento trades

JT/MT/Salmons(amnesty option)

NY trades

Amare/Iman

Sacramento gets out of three contracts who are not in the long term plans of the team and in return receive a NBA quality starter to help bring the rookie along. Money wise Sac has that money tied up anyways in players who are log jamming their positions and there is no real cap relieve coming this summer anyways but NEXT summer we would be looking at a huge ammount of money coming off the books.

NY finally throws the towel in with Amare and gets something at least servicable in the time being. To be honest JT and MT might even flourish in NY's uptempo offense and they could amnesty Salmons if they choose to do so.

NY can't amnesty Salmons. They already used their amnesty option on Billups. Every team can use it just once, and for players who were under contract before the new agreement. They would have to wait until the end of the season when John's contract can be waived for just 1 million.

About the trade, Stoudamire is the last player I would like to see in a Kings uniform. Bad attitude, horrible contract. He could also be a bad influence for DMC.

 

[TheBadGuy]

About the trade, Stoudamire is the last player I would like to see in a Kings uniform. Bad attitude, horrible contract. He could also be a bad influence for DMC.

and bad knees.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

This whole proposal seems to be based on a false premise: if the point of this exercise to to have cap space for the 2015 offseason, then why do we need to trade anybody? Salmons, Thornton, Hayes, Outlaw and Mbah a Moute all come off the books at the end of the 2014-15 season, and the only one of those guys with better than a 25 percent chance of being resigned is Mbah a Moute. Even if we keep him, that's still $25M coming off the books in 2015.

Let's just pretend, for the sake of argument, that re-signing Thomas is a given. And let's further presume that we also re-sign Mbah a Moute. That means, at the end of the 2014-15 season, we figure to have a roster consisting of:

Cousins
Thompson
Landry
McLemore
Vasquez (or whoever replaces him)
Mbah a Moute
Thomas
McCallum
2014 First round pick
2014 Second round pick

That's ten guys under contract, with two draft picks coming, at least one of which is likely to get signed. And $25M with which to sign two guys to complete the roster. Explain, please, why you think we're going to need more than that?

 

[upinsmoke]

You have Thompson in that list of yours slim and I'm really trying to get out of his deal. With the exception of Cuz & IT ridding ourselves of petries guys and bringing in players who fit into malones system is a top priority imo.

 

[hrdboild]

Sacramento trades

JT/MT/Salmons(amnesty option)

NY trades

Amare/Iman

Sacramento gets out of three contracts who are not in the long term plans of the team and in return receive a NBA quality starter to help bring the rookie along. Money wise Sac has that money tied up anyways in players who are log jamming their positions and there is no real cap relieve coming this summer anyways but NEXT summer we would be looking at a huge ammount of money coming off the books.

NY finally throws the towel in with Amare and gets something at least servicable in the time being. To be honest JT and MT might even flourish in NY's uptempo offense and they could amnesty Salmons if they choose to do so.

I was thinking of something very similar. Salmons doesn't need to be amnestied though, only $1 million of his contract next year is guaranteed so he's essentially an expiring contract now with a $1 million buyout tax. That's a drop in the bucket for just about any NBA ownership group. The trade also works with either Landry or JT, whichever one New York wants more. We'd be sacrificing a little bit of salary cap flexibility this season to get another 4 year contract of the books and add a valuable role-player. The long-term implications for us would be that we enter the new arena year with only 4-5 sizable contracts on the books (Cousins, Landry, McLemore, 2014 first round pick, 2015 first round pick). That leaves something like $25-30 million in cap space to work with that year. Enough to be the high bidder on whichever free agent fits best with our lineup at the time.

I can see New York wanting to get out of the Amare deal and adding in Thornton and Thompson/Landry at least gives them some guys they can work in to the rotation right now. They have no draft pick this year, so there's some level of urgency to start winning games. Actually, that probably rules out Landry. The sticking point here is that we're obligated to do something with Amare. At his current level of "production" he's worse than any of our current PFs (pretty hard to believe, but it's true). You don't want to overshoot this though and end up playing yourself out of a good draft pick. I would also think about packaging IT in the deal. Why? Because he makes the offer more enticing in a "win-now" context for New York, and he's probably not going to be re-signing with us anyway.

So... Amare and Shumpert for IT, Thompson, Thornton, Salmons?

Eh, that sounds like an overpay to me. Thomas and Thompson are really only assets to certain teams though. Thomas would be worth a lot more if he weren't expiring and Thompson represents a 4 year commitment. I'd be reluctant to part with both of them in one deal, but the goal here is to consolidate some future salary cap flexibilty and swap some of our current mismatched parts for another young player who should fill a need for us (wing defender, backup SG). Shumpert might be the better long-term asset here, either as part of our rotation or as another young and talented trade chip. I'm not sure I pull the trigger on that deal yet, but I'd think about it. We probably get worse in the short-term and better in the long-term, depending on how highly you value Shumpert, which is what we want right now.

That's a lot of moving parts but essentially it boils down to a swap of backups (IT for Shumpert) and combining 3 sizable contracts (1yr, 2yr, and 4yr) into one big 2 yr contract which becomes a big expiring contract in approximately 5 months.