Which Big Name Free Agent to Target?

[Mike]

I'd like to see us try and sign one of them top free agents out of: Gasol, Jordan, Aldridge, or Buttler. But to be honest, I don't see any of them being realistic. Gasol probably won't leave Memphis; same with Aldridge and Portland; and while Jordan may desire a greater role rather than being the third piece like he is in LA, he won't be any better off here because of Gay and Cousins. Any of these three would give us an excellent piece to put next to Cousins, and any of these players would help us form a formidable trio. The alternative would be to upgrade our SG position with Buttler, and with his addition, we could either ride with him, Ben and Nik; or try to trade Ben or Nik (and other assets if needed) for a first round pick or an upgrade at PF. Any of these four would be amazing additions, though sadly I see all four staying put.

Of the nore realistic options I'd like is Paul Millsap or Omer Asik, either guy would help improve our team. Greg Monroe would be an intriguing player to target. And Afflalo or Bellinelli would be good impact players off the bench if their contracts are fair priced. There's enough free agents outside the top guys that could come in and help us, so as long as we show ambition and make the necessary upgrades, I'll be happy.

Only player I don't want is Rondo after what happened in Dallas.

 

[Gilles]

You can't put Gasol and Jordan next to Boogie. Same for Asik and Monroe.
Butler is staying in Chicago.
Aldridge want to go to Texas, if he's not staying in Portland. Millsap will have a lot of suitors and will wait, until Aldridge's destination is decided, since he offers a similar skillset and would be a nice consolation prize.
Afflalo is not a clear upgrade over Ben. Wants bigger role. Doesn't want to be a bencher for a lottery team.

Kings just don't have time and money available to chase 1% scenarios. They should go into off-season targeting average players, who are good fits, show their interest at 12:01, July, 1st and try to lock up a couple of players within a few days. That's how they can get quality vets that fit at a reasonable price.

 

[dude12]

I'd try for the bigs in FA but I just don't think they will come here. More realistic options are Danny Green and a healthy Mathews and an overpay for Middleton...or an overpay for Draymond Green. Maybe there could be some sign and trade for the restricted guys where we overpay....force the other teams to let them go. I'd love to see Aldridge next to Cousins. Would try really hard to convince him that Sac is a viable option.

What I don't want to see is an overpay like last years FA's Hawes and Frye......thought they were bad contracts then and the Hawes contract especially turned out to be poor. Otherwise, look for the low to mid level acquisitions......similar to the Collison signing.

If some teams can uncover a Middleton or a DeMarre Carroll or a Draymond Green or Danny Green....why not us? Would be nice to hit on a guy like that.

 

[Gilles]

a healthy Mathews

Who is that, and is he available in July?

an overpay for Middleton...or an overpay for Draymond Green

Those are prohibited by CBA.

 

[dude12]

What's prohibited by the CBA?

 

[Gilles]

Paying more than Max contract, cause both are getting those from their own teams.

 

[twslam07]

That big lineup will really struggle offensively.

Rudy likes to shoot over people and doesn't like to worry about protecting the ball. That's the reasons Durant, George (length) and Leonard, Iguodala (ball pressure) give him most trouble. That and the fact, that those are top defenders at SF. Might be a good idea to give Rudy the ball on the move instead of asking him to create standing beyond the arc with the ball in his hands.

Going into the season with 2 SGs is stupid by itself, let alone the fact, that Stauskas hasn't given a minute of decent production, when games mattered. Signing decent bench SG, who can fill in starter position for a few games, is a common sense. Stuckey and Belinelli look like most worthy realistic targets, since they can shoot, pass (Stuckey also has dribble-drive game) and play passable defense.

Bird doesn't want to bring Watson back due to frequent injuries. Since he got only 22 minutes in POs, I would rather try to steal Cory Joseph from Spurs. After Kings find PF and SG additions thus using all the cap space, they can offer up to $17 million/4 year to Joseph by trading all 3 non-guaranteed deals (Moreland, Mccallum, Stockton). Then bring Miller for vet min as an insurance.

If Kings able to bring Stuckey and Joseph in, they immediately get good penetration AND decent shooting, that they can put at both guard positions.

Yep, I understand that the big lineup would struggle offensively. It would really depend on Amir becoming a consistent 3pt threat which is a big IF, but if you put a guy that has the skillset of Ibaka offensively at the 4 (meaning he can knock down spots up 3s at a high rate), I don't see why that lineup couldn't succeed against teams that have weak SGs. In fact, you just alluded to the fact that Gay prefers to shoot over defenders which is why defenders with length bother him. Playing him at SG would give him more of an advantage in this regard (given that the team doesn't switch their SF onto him). So if Gay only has to only guard a spot-up SG, it could actually work out for us.

Look, I'm not advocating these offseason moves. It's my prediction of what our FO will do or a path that they will take. You've seen plenty of my posts and ideas to know I think otherwise.

Would I rather have Joseph than Watson? You betcha. Would I prefer to bring in Belinelli? Definitely, but I was trying to treat this is as realistic as possible. And in that, the scenario kind of turns into a "worst case" scenario.

 

[twslam07]

What about a trade with Utah to bring in Burks? Not sure how realistic it would be considering Utah is trying to take the next step, but hear me out.

Burks
#12

for

McLemore
Landry
#6

Utah loses their starting SG, but they get McLemore to replace him. With Exum, Burks, Hayward in their starting lineup, they have 3 perimeter players who like to operate with the ball in their hands. Replace Burks with a SG who has 3 and D, off-ball potential, and you can help balance that team out while acquiring another good asset.

Utah also get's the 6th pick, which gives them another shot at bringing in a star level talent. Right now they have Hayward as their start with the expectation that Exum develops into another option. Maybe with the 6th pick, they take Porzingis with the hopes that he turns into a go-to option down the road. I could see a Gobert/Favors/Porzingis frontcourt being one of the best in the league if he pans out. Not to mention having their go-to options at PG, SF, & PF should keep their offensive attack balanced.

They also take on Landry who expires before Gobert needs to get paid, and he actually might be in the best situation he could be in. Landry needs defensive bigs around him and would flourish on a team that lacks low post scoring. Well, that sounds a lot like Utah. I bet Landry would play well there off the bench (granted he's still a negative contract).

The Kings, on the other hand, get a good SG who will give us consistency from that position and help us win now. Not to mention he's a good ball-handler and passer which should help our backcourt be stronger. He's also a very good 3pt shooter. He shot 42% from spot-up threes last year and 43% from spot-up threes this year. He should help tremendously when looking to space the floor.

We also get the 12th pick which should allow us to take a decent player to help our depth. Lastly, we shed Landry's contract and have no more fat on our roster.

The two teams would look like this after the trade:

PG - Exum/Burke
SG - McLemore
SF - Hayward/Hood
PF - Favors/Landry/Porzingis
C - Gobert

PG - Collison/McCallum
SG - Burks/Stauskas
SF - Gay
PF - Thompson/Moreland
C - Cousins
#12

I think from here, we try and pry Gibson away from the Bulls. Something like this could work and has been agreed upon by other Bulls fans:

Gibson

for

Stauskas
McCallum
Lower 2016 pick protection to top 5

Bulls obviously are looking to get young pieces back for their veteran PF to start gearing up for the future. Getting beat by a Cavaliers team without Love and with an injured Irving might be the nail in the coffin to blow this thing up (not to mention signs point to Thibs being out the door).

Kings get a PF who compliments Cousins very well while giving up young pieces that won't contribute much to them winning today.

The two teams would look like this after the trade:

PG - Rose/Hinrich/McCallum
SG - Butler/Stauskas
SF - Snell/McDermott
PF - Gasol/Mirotic
C - Noah

PG - Collison
SG - Burks
SF - Gay
PF - Gibson/Moreland
C - Cousins/Thompson
#12

With the pick, I say we draft Booker to add another sharp shooter off the bench at SG. After these deals and factoring in Bookers contract, we have around $5.54 mil in cap space. I say we offer it all to Cory Joseph. This would be the team thus far:

PG - Collison/Joseph
SG - Burks/Booker
SF - Gay
PF - Gibson/Moreland
C - Cousins/Thompson

With all of our cap space gone, we would only have a room exception and veteran minimum deals to work with. I would offer the room exception to Casspi and veteran minimum deals to Andre Miller, David Stockton, Hedo Turkoglu, Drew Gooden, and Ryan Hollins. This would be the team going into next season:

PG - Collison/Joseph/Miller/Stockton
SG - Burks/Booker
SF - Gay/Casspi/Turkoglu
PF - Gibson/Gooden/Moreland
C - Cousins/Thompson/Hollins

I'd be excited going into the season with that team. That starting lineup would be pretty darn solid. The big man depth worries me, but we can strengthen it a bit more when the cap jumps up dramatically next offseason.

 

[Gilles]

Booker is likely 3-4 years away. I'm taking Mclemore and WCS over Burks/Booker without hesitation.

Bulls are in transit and don't know themselves, what they want to do. I don't think, they decide the fate of their frontcourt by July, 1st. Kings can't pass on some FA for a chance to get 30-y.o. Gibson.

If you're dropping protection, it should be all the way, or change it to something like "top-3 protected, if not conveyed in 2016 turns into 2 2nds", but I would definitely remove protection altogether - Kings can get much more value, if they give up 1.5% chance at top3 pick.

 

[dude12]

Paying more than Max contract, cause both are getting those from their own teams.

I'm not 100% sure of the max contract for these guys....what would be the salary range for them?

 

[Gilles]

That would be $16,775,000-$16,775,000 range.

 

[twslam07]

Booker is likely 3-4 years away. I'm taking Mclemore and WCS over Burks/Booker without hesitation.

Bulls are in transit and don't know themselves, what they want to do. I don't think, they decide the fate of their frontcourt by July, 1st. Kings can't pass on some FA for a chance to get 30-y.o. Gibson.

If you're dropping protection, it should be all the way, or change it to something like "top-3 protected, if not conveyed in 2016 turns into 2 2nds", but I would definitely remove protection altogether - Kings can get much more value, if they give up 1.5% chance at top3 pick.

I think in a reserve role as a 4th guard (Collison-Burks-Joseph-Booker), he'll be what we need him to be. He's not going to be relied upon from the get-go and that's the point. If we're wanting to win now, we should try to upgrade our SG and PF position with players who can contribute right away.

Banking on a SG who hasn't been a consistent performer and a rookie PF is pretty risky. To compete this year, would you rather have Burks/Booker/Gibson or McLemore/Gibson/Cauley-Stein? One of those groups has two players who we know can help us win right now. The other? It remains to be seen.

That's quite an assumption on the Bulls portion of your post, and I think you know that. They have a full offseason to think about what they want to do. These people have full time jobs working on this. You really don't think they will have some sort of idea what they want to do by July 1st? I don't buy it.

 

[ockingsfan]

There are two "Big name" FAs that the Kings would have a chance on signing:

1) Arron Afallo - With ties to Coach Karl and plaiyng some of the best ball of his career with Karl, the Kings have a chance at him if they are willing to over pay. I think you would have to look at something like 3 yr/$27 million or 4 yr/ $32 million contract to get it done. The problem being, I see his production tailing off next year or in the 2nd year of the contract. He could become our new Landry type contract, being that he is on the downside of his career. Also moves Ben Mac (our future SG) to the bench.

2) Jeremy Lin - Can backup both Guard spots and can start when needed. Is a good 3rd Guard and better than any third guard we currently have on the roster. We have a shot being that Vivek wants to control the Asian market and Lin is also a Nor. Cal kid and he would be playing closer to home. I think a 3 year/$17mil or 4 year/ $23mil contract can get it done. Also allows us to move McCallum and/or Nik to try and get another piece. Ben McClemore and Collison would still start and Lin would be the third Guard.

I think Lin may be the better fit as a third guard than Afallo as a starting SG, when you project future production.

Resign Andre Miller at vet min and Casspi to backup Gay. Draft WCS at #6.

Kings new Line Up:

PF WCS/ JT / Moreland
SF Gay/ Casspi
C DMC / JT / Sim
SG McClemore / Stauskas
PG Collison / Lin / Miller

 

[SwishKing]

To compete this year, would you rather have Burks/Booker/Gibson or McLemore/Gibson/Cauley-Stein? One of those groups has two players who we know can help us win right now. The other? It remains to be seen.

The second one. I don't see Burks as big enough of an upgrade(if one at all) from Mclemore to give up Cauly-Stein for.

 

[Gilles]

I think in a reserve role as a 4th guard (Collison-Burks-Joseph-Booker), he'll be what we need him to be. He's not going to be relied upon from the get-go and that's the point. If we're wanting to win now, we should try to upgrade our SG and PF position with players who can contribute right away.

Banking on a SG who hasn't been a consistent performer and a rookie PF is pretty risky. To compete this year, would you rather have Burks/Booker/Gibson or McLemore/Gibson/Cauley-Stein? One of those groups has two players who we know can help us win right now. The other? It remains to be seen.

That's quite an assumption on the Bulls portion of your post, and I think you know that. They have a full offseason to think about what they want to do. These people have full time jobs working on this. You really don't think they will have some sort of idea what they want to do by July 1st? I don't buy it.

Booker will be even less relevant next season as Nik was this year.

Over the last 3 years (http://nbawowy.com doesn't go further) Jazz were worse with him on the floor, than without him - (-3.8 per 100 possessions) vs (-1.9 possessions) with big dropoff on defense. Given the level of SG talent Jazz had over the years I'm not sure he's anymore ready to contribute for a winning team, than Ben, who was a part of top-5 lineup in the league with at least 400 minutes on the floor.

McLemore/Gibson/Cauley-Stein is a superior combination by quite a margin

As for WCS he should be 4th big to start the season anyway with JT as #3 and a vet as #5. I like Amir Johnson as a starter next to Boogie more, than Gibson at this moment, but Taj will fit good as well.

Bulls will likely look to move Noah first, and only then entertain the idea of moving Taj. First likely won't happen until well into off-season, unless Bulls are ready to attach assets to dump Noah, which I don't think they are.

 

[ockingsfan]

Amir Johnson will bring a hefty price tag, probably a 4 year $36-$40 million contract to get it done.

The Problem with signing Amir to such a large contract is if we draft WCS, then Amir would be a probable bench big in 2 years with a $9 mil/yr contract.

How about a cheaper option in Ed Davis. Will come much cheaper, probably a 3 yr/$12 mil contract would get it done.

He still has upside and proved he can play some last year with the Lakers.

Ed Davis could develop into a 10pt/8 reb/ 1.0blk per game Power Forward.

 

[Gilles]

Amir Johnson was alternating between starting lineup and bench late in the season, and now most of local media is considering him gone, unless he agrees to massive pay cut from current $7 million. He's a glue guy, who doesn't have flashy stats. His rebounding numbers are low, but Amir is the best among Raptors players in on/off team reb%. Amir was consistently Raptors' best defender over the last 4 years. Still most articles about FA bigs mention him somewhere in teens. $6-7 million per is getting it done most likely even in the crazy market we will see this summer, if Kings move decisively out of the gate.

Since his career per 36 stats are 12.1p+10.6r+1.7bl, I'm sure Davis can get 10+8+1 in 28-30 minutes. His problem is only 17 shots attempted outside of 10 feet from the basket this year - he's a skinny center, just like Henson.

 

[twslam07]

Booker will be even less relevant next season as Nik was this year.

Over the last 3 years (http://nbawowy.com doesn't go further) Jazz were worse with him on the floor, than without him - (-3.8 per 100 possessions) vs (-1.9 possessions) with big dropoff on defense. Given the level of SG talent Jazz had over the years I'm not sure he's anymore ready to contribute for a winning team, than Ben, who was a part of top-5 lineup in the league with at least 400 minutes on the floor.

McLemore/Gibson/Cauley-Stein is a superior combination by quite a margin

As for WCS he should be 4th big to start the season anyway with JT as #3 and a vet as #5. I like Amir Johnson as a starter next to Boogie more, than Gibson at this moment, but Taj will fit good as well.

Bulls will likely look to move Noah first, and only then entertain the idea of moving Taj. First likely won't happen until well into off-season, unless Bulls are ready to attach assets to dump Noah, which I don't think they are.

Very good analysis.

I do think Booker in a 4th guard role is not a problem. 10 or so minutes is not going to destroy us.

I just can't see the logic in how Ben is better or as ready to play as Burks. I can understand the argument that he may not be 6 draft positions better, but I don't see how a guy who was averaging 16/5/3/1 with 40% 3pt shooting the last month before he got injured is at the same point where Ben is. Not to mention I think he's a better defender than Ben and his handles and playmaking are obviously much better as well.



I happen to like Amir Johnson as well. I think he would be a solid fit next to Cousins. I question his 3pt shooting a little bit because of the low sample size (130 over the past 4 seasons) and because he's not that strong of a free throw shooter. I also question his size/strength and how he'll be able to handle PFs in the west. Regardless, I would be okay with seeing him in a Kings uniform next season, as I do think he could help space the floor and play good man & team defense.

I also really like O'Quinn. He didn't shoot the 3 ball at a good clip this year, but the fact that he's starting to venture out that far tells me he's starting to work on his long range shot 3 seasons into his career. He's already a good midrange shooter (40% from 10-16ft & 36% from 16-3pt line). Knowing he shoots 71% from the charity stripe and he looks to have good form, I think he has a lot of potential as an offensive floor spacer while out there.

In addition to his offense, he's a great passer for a big man who could give us a nice high-low action with Cousins. He's also not that bad in the post. Depending on the matchup, he could give us some good possessions on the block. Ultimately, he'd be a pretty good fit next to Cousins offensively. The selling point is to get him to continue working on that jumper to keep extending that range.

Defensively, I think he could handle most PFs in the post. He might not be as quick as some of the PFs he'll have to defend on the perimeter, but I think he would do fine with his size, strength, length, and IQ. He's a good shotblocker too who would help Cousins patrol the paint.

I like the idea of signing one of these guys, drafting Cauley-Stein and rolling out a Cousins - Johnson/O'Quinn - Thompson - Cauley-Stein frontcourt next year. When the time comes, you have Cauley-Stein take over as the starter, with Johnson/O'Quinn or Thompson as the full time backup (they can duke it out over the next year or two).

We have $13.33 mil in cap space this offseason if we stretch Landry. I'd be totally satisfied if we walk away with Joseph, Belinelli, Cauley-Stein, and Johnson/O'Quinn this offseason. The problem is, I don't think we have enough money to do it. If you substitute Watson for Joseph, I think the other two FAs are doable with the remaining cap as I think Watson would likely be $2 mil/year, Belinelli will probably be $5-6 mil/year, and Johnson/O'Quinn will probably be $5-6 mil/year (with Amir having a decent chance of getting offered a bigger contract).

PG - Collison/Watson/Miller/McCallum
SG - McLemore/Belinelli/Stauskas
SF - Gay/Casspi/Turkoglu
PF - Johnson or O'Quinn/Cauley-Stein/Evans/Moreland
C - Cousins/Thompson

 

[Mass]

If the salary cap is really going up as it's supposed to do, I don't think having Johnson on the book for 9 million will be a big problem. Especially because in 2 years we will finally be free from JT and Landry's contracts.

 

[randymoss1881]

Amir Johnson will bring a hefty price tag, probably a 4 year $36-$40 million contract to get it done.

The Problem with signing Amir to such a large contract is if we draft WCS, then Amir would be a probable bench big in 2 years with a $9 mil/yr contract.

How about a cheaper option in Ed Davis. Will come much cheaper, probably a 3 yr/$12 mil contract would get it done.

He still has upside and proved he can play some last year with the Lakers.

Ed Davis could develop into a 10pt/8 reb/ 1.0blk per game Power Forward.

Disagree even if we give Johnson 11-12mill it's alright. WCS would be on his rookie deal when he's up for an extension Johnson will expire so that cancels out any salary problem. Having 2 good defensive PFs is a problem championship teams have if we have that then we are on our way. Also I don't care what anyone says WCS won't have a major impact next year he's a rookie. Let WCS play 25-30mpg for the next 2 years.

Davis isn't good dude barley played for the lakers how long is the potential talk until someone is who they are

 

[Dreadnought]

There are two "Big name" FAs that the Kings would have a chance on signing:

1) Arron Afallo - With ties to Coach Karl and plaiyng some of the best ball of his career with Karl, the Kings have a chance at him if they are willing to over pay. I think you would have to look at something like 3 yr/$27 million or 4 yr/ $32 million contract to get it done. The problem being, I see his production tailing off next year or in the 2nd year of the contract. He could become our new Landry type contract, being that he is on the downside of his career. Also moves Ben Mac (our future SG) to the bench.

2) Jeremy Lin - Can backup both Guard spots and can start when needed. Is a good 3rd Guard and better than any third guard we currently have on the roster. We have a shot being that Vivek wants to control the Asian market and Lin is also a Nor. Cal kid and he would be playing closer to home. I think a 3 year/$17mil or 4 year/ $23mil contract can get it done. Also allows us to move McCallum and/or Nik to try and get another piece. Ben McClemore and Collison would still start and Lin would be the third Guard.

I think Lin may be the better fit as a third guard than Afallo as a starting SG, when you project future production.

Resign Andre Miller at vet min and Casspi to backup Gay. Draft WCS at #6.

Kings new Line Up:

PF WCS/ JT / Moreland
SF Gay/ Casspi
C DMC / JT / Sim
SG McClemore / Stauskas
PG Collison / Lin / Miller

I'm not a huge fan of Aflalo, but I actually could see Jeremy Lin being a great signing for the Kings. Clearly he would have to be a ball dominant 6th man since that has been the only time he has flourished since Linsanity. I do think we'd have to overpay because of his name, but I think he's a good glue guy, seems to be a guy every team has enjoyed having as a teammate.

 

[ockingsfan]

Disagree even if we give Johnson 11-12mill it's alright. WCS would be on his rookie deal when he's up for an extension Johnson will expire so that cancels out any salary problem. Having 2 good defensive PFs is a problem championship teams have if we have that then we are on our way. Also I don't care what anyone says WCS won't have a major impact next year he's a rookie. Let WCS play 25-30mpg for the next 2 years.

Davis isn't good dude barley played for the lakers how long is the potential talk until someone is who they are

Here is the problem. The draft is before Free Agency begins. If the Kings invest a top 6 pick on WCS, the potential future PF, they are not going to be in position to spend big on a Free Agent big man. They will need the FA money to fill in other holes on the roster.

If we pick WCS, the Kings would be set at the PF/C 3 man rotation with DMC/WCS/JT. They will need to spend their FA money elsewhere.

Therefore, they will need to find a lower priced option, so they can use the rest of the FA money to fill in other needs, such as backup PG and a backup SF/SG.

 

[KingMilz]

I also really like O'Quinn. He didn't shoot the 3 ball at a good clip this year, but the fact that he's starting to venture out that far tells me he's starting to work on his long range shot 3 seasons into his career. He's already a good midrange shooter (40% from 10-16ft & 36% from 16-3pt line). Knowing he shoots 71% from the charity stripe and he looks to have good form, I think he has a lot of potential as an offensive floor spacer while out there.

He's got a really good knack for passing as well, I like O'Quinn he's smooth/skillful but at the same time does not mind dropping the hammer on someone to stop a easy bucket. I think as a 3rd big he would be nice.

 

[KingMilz]

DeAndre Jordan wants 5 year 100million dollars I would 100% pass on that. If I'm the Clippers I'm going after Tyson Chandler (since he and CP3 were good in the Hornets days) and trying to get him as cheap as possible and using whatever other money they plan on wasting on DJ to get a athletic SF.

 

[twslam07]

He's got a really good knack for passing as well, I like O'Quinn he's smooth/skillful but at the same time does not mind dropping the hammer on someone to stop a easy bucket. I think as a 3rd big he would be nice.

I've always thought O'Quinn has had the potential to be a starter in this league. Have you seen anything from him to tell you differently? He's got skills on both offense and defense. He's smart, knows the game, has NBA size & length. Not to mention he's still young at 25 years old.

Anyways, I think grabbing a guy like O'Quinn even if we draft Cauley-Stein would be great. You then start either O'Quinn or Thompson next to Cousins with the other being the third big man off the bench. Meanwhile Cauley-Stein is slotted as the 4th big, and we don't take a risk on having to rely on a rookie to be a main player in our rotation. After this year, Thompson's deal is mostly non-guaranteed. We could release him to make room for Cauley-Stein (if he proves he's ready to contribute) or we can hold onto him if Cauley-Stein needs a little more seasoning. Personally, I'd probably keep Thompson no matter what happens considering the cap will go up and Thompson's deal will be a bargain (and possibly a good asset in trades).

Anyway it works out, you have two veteran bigs around Cousins who compliment him well (O'Quinn & Thompson) with a rookie big who should compliment him as well (Cauley-Stein). People might not realize, but a Cousins/O'Quinn/Thompson/Cauley-Stein frontcourt would be a major, major improvement over a Cousins/Thompson/Landry/Evans frontcourt.

 

[LPKingsFan]

I was intrigued by O'quinn as well when we started talking about him here around midseason. But he barely got off the bench for most of the second half, and that was for a bad Orlando team. Is that not a cause for concern?

 

[twslam07]

I was intrigued by O'quinn as well when we started talking about him here around midseason. But he barely got off the bench for most of the second half, and that was for a bad Orlando team. Is that not a cause for concern?

I guess I like to take an approach that isn't as lazy (don't mean to offend you) and try to know why that happend rather than saying "he didn't start there, so he can't start here."

It is interesting to say the least why he didn't get much time. They do have a lot of guys they can go big with Vucevic, Dedmon, Frye, Nicholson, Harris, Gordon, & O'Quinn. I'm not sure if it can be chalked up to a log jam or not.

I wonder if anyone on this forum follows the Magic close enough to know. If not, I might do some digging on some Magic forums.

 

[randymoss1881]

Here is the problem. The draft is before Free Agency begins. If the Kings invest a top 6 pick on WCS, the potential future PF, they are not going to be in position to spend big on a Free Agent big man. They will need the FA money to fill in other holes on the roster.

If we pick WCS, the Kings would be set at the PF/C 3 man rotation with DMC/WCS/JT. They will need to spend their FA money elsewhere.

Therefore, they will need to find a lower priced option, so they can use the rest of the FA money to fill in other needs, such as backup PG and a backup SF/SG.

Alrigh I was under the impression JT wouldn't be here but if we keep him for the bench is live it. In that case I'd threw 10-12mill at Green. We need defenders and shooters with high IQ Green can guard 1-3

 

[KingMilz]

I've always thought O'Quinn has had the potential to be a starter in this league. Have you seen anything from him to tell you differently? He's got skills on both offense and defense. He's smart, knows the game, has NBA size & length. Not to mention he's still young at 25 years old.

Anyways, I think grabbing a guy like O'Quinn even if we draft Cauley-Stein would be great. You then start either O'Quinn or Thompson next to Cousins with the other being the third big man off the bench. Meanwhile Cauley-Stein is slotted as the 4th big, and we don't take a risk on having to rely on a rookie to be a main player in our rotation. After this year, Thompson's deal is mostly non-guaranteed. We could release him to make room for Cauley-Stein (if he proves he's ready to contribute) or we can hold onto him if Cauley-Stein needs a little more seasoning. Personally, I'd probably keep Thompson no matter what happens considering the cap will go up and Thompson's deal will be a bargain (and possibly a good asset in trades).

Anyway it works out, you have two veteran bigs around Cousins who compliment him well (O'Quinn & Thompson) with a rookie big who should compliment him as well (Cauley-Stein). People might not realize, but a Cousins/O'Quinn/Thompson/Cauley-Stein frontcourt would be a major, major improvement over a Cousins/Thompson/Landry/Evans frontcourt.

I think he can as well but from the bits and pieces I have seen off him I think what might have held him back (at least when he's played bad when I watched) is he's sometimes he's seemed to lack that focus required. I think he should be a better player based on everything you have said than he's shown so far in the NBA (which can be a red flag. What's his conditioning like)?

Cause on the Magic he had some really nice runs/games than you would not see him play for the next 2 weeks. Maybe it was a fit thing in the Magic or style I don't know I didn't watch enough of there games to make any sort of valid claim. The talent is there I have no doubt about that.

 

[Mike]

I think he can as well but from the bits and pieces I have seen off him I think what might have held him back (at least when he's played bad when I watched) is he's sometimes he's seemed to lack that focus required. I think he should be a better player based on everything you have said than he's shown so far in the NBA (which can be a red flag. What's his conditioning like)?

Cause on the Magic he had some really nice runs/games than you would not see him play for the next 2 weeks. Maybe it was a fit thing in the Magic or style I don't know I didn't watch enough of there games to make any sort of valid claim. The talent is there I have no doubt about that.

I think part of the problem with the Magic last season (and previous ones), is that they never seemed to stick with the same line up at SF and PF - in fact, I'm sure line up wise they had amongst the most different line ups. They had O'Quinn, Frye, Deadmon, Nicholson, Harris, and Gordon all start at point last season.

So he'd get a run, then they'd make a change, and for some reason he lost minutes to Nicholson and Deadmon when Borego took charge. But whenever he played he did a steady job. He's not got to blow anyone away offensively, but as a stand-in starter, or rotation off the bench, he's certainly got the ability to be useful.

I think him going in and out was more down to their lacklustre coaching and inability to decide on their best line up, than it was anything O'Quinn did. But to be honest, he did as good a job as any of the rest (maybe bar Harris) when he stepped in.