Blazers Exercise Contract Options on Four Players
by Dave on Oct 26, 2008 2:33 PM PDT
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PrintFrom the Portland Trail Blazers communication department:
TRAIL BLAZERS EXERCISE OPTIONS ON ALDRIDGE, ODEN, RODRIGUEZ AND ROY
PORTLAND, Ore. - The Portland Trail Blazers exercised fourth-year options on the contracts of forward/center LaMarcus Aldridge, guard Sergio Rodriguez and guard Brandon Roy, while exercising their third-year option on center Greg Oden.
The moves, announced today by General Manager Kevin Pritchard , keep all four players under contract through the 2009-10 season.
The Trail Blazers acquired Aldridge, Rodriguez and Roy in 2006 draft day trades.
Portland selected Oden with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft.
There's no big surprise here, as not exercising these options would mean letting the players go off of their rookie contracts for no compensation, an obvious impossibility in three of the four cases and a highly unlikely scenario in the last (that of Sergio Rodriguez...only a complete bridge burning or failure would make such a move make sense). Don't get too excited about names you don't see here. Players up for restricted free agency like Channing Frye, Martell Webster, and Ike Diogu are handled through a different mechanism, which there is still time to exercise.
--Dave (blazersub@yahoo.com)
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The Sergio surprise
I don’t think to many of (outside of "animart") would’ve predicted Sergio would be in the same “category” as the big 3, but he’s been very impressive in camp. Viva the “Spanish Air-mada”!
So…does anyone expect Webster, Frye or Diogu to get contract extensions before next Friday?
(me either)
Before Martell’s foot injury I thought he had a shot at a LTC, but I think KP will “ride it out” with the 3 expirados and see how well they play alongside the “big 3” before making a binding decision
I hope the Spanish Air-mada thing catches on
Gavin Dawson is going with The Spanish Fly Offense or something like that. I like yours better, and no connotations of consequence.
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
I hate the
use of Spanish Fly term, very juvenile
There is probably no more terrible instance of enlightenment than the one in which you discover your father is a man — with human flesh.
Paul Muad'Dib - Dune (Frank Herbert)
My Translation: My Dad is a dude just like me, and my sons are dudes like me also. I love that.
Season Tix: Section 315, with my sons
text gaviv Dawson tomorrow morning during his radio show on 95.5 and tell him
I will do the same. I like Airmada, and our own two4larue came up with it
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
Gavin Dawson
The text number for 95.5 The Game is 45495.
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
It's an aphrodisiac, amongst other things
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Voisin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_fly
The term is also associated with “date rape”, by means of slipping the victim a potion. Kind of like a code…
Sexual connotations, oftern unseemly.
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
Ther reference has been around for centuries
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
Right - it's not a recent development like, say, rohypnol.
And I just wanted to seize the occasion to remind everyone that the most troubling phrase ever is
“St. Josef’s Roofies’N’Viagra For Children”. Thank you for your time.
"Mister Oden is a very, very big human being." - Jerryd Bayless
Thanks
Maybe someone can slip a note to Wheels and Barrett? If they start using “…the Spanish Air-mada!” every time Sergio throws a lob to Rudy, chances are it’ll catch on pdq
I'll text it to Wheels during his radio show on 95.5.
Text number (during the show to be effective) 45495.
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
OK I text messages Dawson to use Air-mada.
Volume is good. Credit blazers edge contributor two4larue. # is 45495
"The match in Los Angeles is a good opportunity to begin to demonstrate that we want to make war." Rudy Fernández (translated)
oh yeah they like edgy tone.
"The match in Los Angeles is a good opportunity to begin to demonstrate that we want to make war." Rudy Fernández (translated)
Eh. They didn't go for it
Trashed me on the air haha! They like fly. Try wheels later.
"The match in Los Angeles is a good opportunity to begin to demonstrate that we want to make war." Rudy Fernández (translated)
Spanish fly, ay?
Hmm..that won’t last…I like Air-mada, but the Spanish Inquisition is a thought as well
it will last
but on his show only. It won’t catch on outside of that.
Rule #1 of nitpicking is to get it right.
yep. I'll drop a suggestion to wheels straight up.
I already heard A. Harvey say the S Fly thing won’t work
"The match in Los Angeles is a good opportunity to begin to demonstrate that we want to make war." Rudy Fernández (translated)
ehh
go back to sergios rookie year…he was part of the “big 3” before oden joined in. then he kinda dropped out of it last year. SergioFTW has been sergios biggest fan however.
by Philthyanimal on Oct 26, 2008 10:23 PM PDT up reply actions
Don't mean to burst the bubble
but this has everything to do with year drafted and little to do with talent or position. The big message/surprise would come if one of these guys wasn’t picked up, which would mean the team had officially given up on him. It was Sergio’s year to make that decision along with Roy and Aldridge (same draft). It could mean that the team is thinking more highly of him but it also could be a situation like, “Hey, honey, on your way home pick up a cheesecake, some nice champagne, oh…and a loaf of Wonder Bread.” Picking up the option wouldn’t tell one way or another…just that the Blazers haven’t sworn off Wonder Bread yet.
—Dave
I love it
Great move by Pritchard, develop some consistency.
Sergio, grab the playing time by the horns.
This definitely goes under the category of no-brainer.
I mean, were the Blazers ever going to cut any of these guys?
Good that we have four players on cheap rookie deals. Roy and Aldridge are going to make a much bigger salary soon.
By then...
We will need to have solved the PG & SF position with the long term starter(Whoever rises to the occaision & seizes the great opportunity in front of them). Get rid of the other players at the position and find a cap friendly backup. With the addition of RLEC… Pritchard should be ready to start giving out big contracts for those who earn it.
Sergio, grab the playing time by the horns.
by TheGreatDane17 on Oct 25, 2008 9:52 PM PDT up reply actions
Well, at least it means Sergio won't be back in Spain any time before summer 2010.
That was not completely clear a few months ago. It doesn’t mean he couldn’t be moved before then to another NBA team, but not back to Europe since the leagues respect their contracts (only buyouts would be possible if both parties agree). Good luck with the second unit Sergio, show that you are a keeper.
Odenied: If you're given lemmings—make lemming-ade (Bow4Meow)
It'd be reassuring to have a good backcourt defender in the second unit, but ...
at least Rudy Fernandez and Sergio Rodriguez are a dynamic tandem on offense.
This doesn’t bode well for Petteri Koponen, although next season he’d be a nice third-string point guard.
Joel Freeland may come over here, too, but that’s just if Ike Diogu and Shavlik Randolph are utter failures.
Jeez - I forgot about Freeland and The Petter.
So much good stuff . . .
"Mister Oden is a very, very big human being." - Jerryd Bayless
Bayless?
If the Blazer’s defense is getting shredded by a penetrating point guard, Nate can always insert Jerryd.
Regardless, I expect Blake, Roy and Rudy to get 90% of the guard minutes
well its a small sample but
against Deron Williams…Sergio defended him a lot better than Jerryd did. Sure its just one guy…but pesky quick guards like Deron are guys we had the most trouble with last year.
by Philthyanimal on Oct 26, 2008 10:26 PM PDT up reply actions
I still wonder about Rudy defending quick point guards.
He seems to have the quickness and active hands necessary for that.
I could live with a Roy/Rudy backcourt with Roy PLAYING the point on offense,
just so long as he doesn’t have to DEFEND point guards.
"Mister Oden is a very, very big human being." - Jerryd Bayless
Rudy Fernandez ...
gambles way too much defensively to be trusted with guarding opposing point guards.
agreed
he has been pretty successful this year at the gambling however.
by Philthyanimal on Oct 27, 2008 5:47 PM PDT up reply actions
Koponen signed for four years, I think
He’s got a good buyout, but I don’t think they want him over just to sit on the bench as a third-stringer next year. Better, since he’s already got a contract, to stay and play than to flit and sit.
If Sergio doesn’t pan out over the next two years, PK might come over then. But summer of 2010 at the earliest, I would guess, unless A) he tears it up in Europe this year and B) we have an injury or C) trade one (or even two) of our PGs.
The most amazing thing about my amazing ego is I have amazingly little about which to be egotistical.
The pick and roll this year will emphasize "roll" followed by "dunk", followed by the wailings and lamentations of your women.
Oh, and Freeland
might come if Diogu and Randolph are failures or if we have a bad injury or if we make a trade involving a couple of big men.
The most amazing thing about my amazing ego is I have amazingly little about which to be egotistical.
The pick and roll this year will emphasize "roll" followed by "dunk", followed by the wailings and lamentations of your women.
Wonder how Przybilla's status affects Freeland.
As in, if Przy holds his form, Freeland may stay in Europe a little longer,
but if Przy starts going into decline (health OR performance), Freeland smells an opening.
Still, Przy IS only 29, so I don’t see a decline anytime in the next 2-3 years, at least.
But it’s not unthinkable.
"Mister Oden is a very, very big human being." - Jerryd Bayless
There is no hurry on either of these guys.
Both are young and the contract clock doesn’t start for them until Portland actually signs them.
Kopponen is what 20? 21? At the end of his 4 year deal he’ll be 25, with some decent experience under his belt. A lot can happen in 4 years.
hakkaa päälle !
Joel Przybilla is a center, while Joel Freeland is a power forward.
Freeland’s possible airline ticket to America next year doesn’t hinge on Pryzbilla, but rather Channing Frye, Ike Diogu, and Shavlik Randolph.
I don't
I thought Martel had a shot at one, and might have gotten it depending on his preseason play. Ike, no way in heck. Channing is not likely either.
If the cap space thing next summer wasn’t an issue, I think it would be much more likely to see the PTB try to sign Martel and/or Frye for reasonable contracts.
Rule #1 of nitpicking is to get it right.
but if they don't get extended...then the cap hold thing comes into play right?
The faith (and I'm a guy) perverts. :)
I've never fully gotten the cap hold burden.
Couldn’t we still talk to free agents without any cap space? I’m sure agents would be aware that we would have potential cap space if we renounced our RFAs. I’m thinking about Orlando with Rashard Lewis and Darko Milicic. Am I just remembering this situation wrong?
If this is the case, I don’t know why it’s so important to trade/extend these guys ASAP. If there’s no one really that valuable in the free agent market, we could just resign the guys we’d be willing to extend the qualifying offers to, right?
right...
but I think signing free agents is about timelyness more than it is about other things.
I mean if we(team x) wanted free agent Z for 10 mil. per year for 3 years….and we had the 12+mil cap hold things, and we were close to the cap, but not quite over.
team C (who free agent Z used to play for) could offer our 12 mil cap player…a contract and draw out his signing…keeping him on the cap (becuase of his hold) until….player Z (that we wanted) signed with someone else….(assuming we still wanted “cap hold player”) otherwise we’d lose em for nothing right?…..
so they’d be traded before the deadline in anycase ……??? wait a min…can we trade a player who’s in their last year?….I’m so confused,….never mind me, unless you think I’m makeing sense…..
The faith (and I'm a guy) perverts. :)
basically
the 08-09 season ends. Before the end of June, we have to decide whether or not to offer the QO to Ike, Webs, and Frye. Let’s say we don’t Ike, and do the other two, which seems like the most likely scenario. That right there puts a cap hold of $20 million on our books, but gives us the right to match all offers. At that point we are at the mercy of them and their agents. If they sign other offers, than we get 7 days to match.
At that point, if we want to sign someone to a big deal, we have the following options:
Before July 23:
1) We can rescind our QO to either or both of them, making them unrestricted free agents.
2) We can resign either or both of them to a new deal, which removes the cap hold and sets their cap value at the new contract rate.
After July 23:
1) We can resign either or both of them to a new deal, which removes the cap hold and sets their cap value at the new contract rate.
2) We can hope either or both of them sign offers with other teams, then elect to match (lowering their cap value to the new amount), or not (removing the cap hold).
3) We can convince them to allow us to rescind the QO (it’s their option at this point), making them unrestricted.
so, as you can see, after July 23, we are pretty much at the mercy of those guys, their agents, and other teams if we want to sign someone to a big deal. Before that, we have a narrow window of time to rescind the QO and sign a free agent. Doing this on a restricted FA would be very risky, as his team could match, leaving us without the new guy and our two old guys.
Rule #1 of nitpicking is to get it right.
This is accurate
and invalidates your prior comment, where you said
If the cap space thing next summer wasn’t an issue, I think it would be much more likely to see the PTB try to sign Martel and/or Frye for reasonable contracts.
Here, you’ve just demonstrated that having them unsigned is a complication to our cap space next summer. So the cap space next summer being an issue makes it more likely, not less likely, that they will be signed for a reasonable contract in the next couple of days.
I think it would be a mistake for Martell to sign. He probably thinks he is ready to demand more than he can get right now, but he didn’t get a chance to prove it in preseason. They may try to sign him, but he is probably looking for more than they are prepared to offer.
Channing might be extended.
IDEC.
The most amazing thing about my amazing ego is I have amazingly little about which to be egotistical.
The pick and roll this year will emphasize "roll" followed by "dunk", followed by the wailings and lamentations of your women.
yes and no
I wouldn’t say it invalidates my earler statement, just complicates it. Look at it this way: Extending them now will remove the cap hold complication burden for next summer, at the cost of reducing our overall possible cap space. Not extending them leaves open the ability to clear the absolute most amount of money under the cap possible, with the downside of having to deal with the complications I outlined above.
If we were destined to be over the cap next summer anyway, then there would be no downside in extending them now (assuming we know we want them and can get them at a price we like). I believe in that hypothetical scenario it would be much more likely. But in reality, it seems KP likes maintaining the most flexibility possible. Not extending them retains the most flexibility, which is why I believe that is a more likely scenario.
Rule #1 of nitpicking is to get it right.
Hmm
It only retains the most flexibility if he’s not yet convinced they have a role to play. If either of these guys has convinced KP & Nate that he’s part of the solution, then we have more flexibility by extending them now and taking the cap hold out of the picture. Especially since, in all likelihood, we could do it cheaper now than we could after they have good seasons.
The other potential problem is if KP sees them as potential trade assets. If you extend them now, then you have all those poison pill or BYC or whatever provisions that complicate things. I don’t understand all that stuff, but I know they are easy to trade during this season if we don’t extend them, but difficult if we do.
The most amazing thing about my amazing ego is I have amazingly little about which to be egotistical.
The pick and roll this year will emphasize "roll" followed by "dunk", followed by the wailings and lamentations of your women.
exactly
The flexibilty point is two fold:
1) Not extending them gives you the potential to clear the most possible cap space, should you want to do so.
2) Not extending them makes them MUCH more tradeable this season.
Rule #1 of nitpicking is to get it right.
My prediction is as follows
I don’t think Webster, Frye or Diogu will get an extension.
I think that qualifying offers will be given to Webster and Frye (Diogu will be allowed to walk and the Blazers will renounce his Bird rights so that he no longer counts against the cap).
I think that the Blazers will negotiate with Webster and Frye starting on July 1. I also think they will negotiate with other free agents. If the team cannot agree to a new contract with either one within a week or two, that qualifying offer will be withdrawn (this can be done up until July 23) and the player’s Bird rights will be renounced (thus eliminating the cap hold). After all, the team can still re-sign the player later using cap space if no other FA signings or trades use up all the cap room.
I think that the Blazers will then continue to negotiate and will use their cap space as they see fit.
by Storyteller on Oct 26, 2008 2:18 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
Storyteller
Can you please summarize what the BYC code means on your spreadsheet? Specifically’ in regards to Travis’ contract? Thanks.
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
First of all
if you’re looking at a spreadsheet where Travis Outlaw is listed as BYC, then you’re looking at last year’s salaries. For the current sheet, check out www.storytellerscontracts.com and click on “Player’s Salaries” in the far right hand column.
OK, now to explain BYC. I don’t know what understanding you might already have, so excuse me if I cover ‘basics’ that you already know about salary cap management by NBA teams.
The basic rule of the salary cap is that if a player acquisition (free agent, trade, etc.) puts the team salary more than $100,000 over the salary cap figure – they cannot do it, unless there is an exception to the cap that allows such a transaction to take place. In the case of trades, there is an exception called the ‘Traded Player Exception’. This exception says that a team over the cap can still trade players if they either:
1) Take back no more than 125% + $100,000 of ‘salary out’ in player salaries immediately. By ‘salary out’ I mean how much the outgoing player(s) count against the cap for trade purposes. By immediately, I mean that the incoming player(s) are obtained at the same time that the outgoing player(s) leave.
or
2) Take back no more than 100% + $100,000 of ‘salary out’ in player salaries sometime in the next year. This is often referred to as a “Trade Exception”.
Now, (and we’re getting to the answer, trust me) some teams in the past tried to get around this idea of having to match salaries in trades by signing their own free agents to big contracts so that their new salary could make the trade work. In order to try to prevent this kind of circumvention of the cap, the Collective Bargaining Agreement was written with a provision known as Base Year Compensation. What it says is that if a FA is signed using the Larry Bird Exception or the Early Bird Exception and gets a raise of more than 20% over what he previously made, he becomes a Base Year Compensation, or BYC, player.
Remember that the amount that a team can take back using the Traded Player Exception is limited to 125% + $100,000 of ‘salary out’. Well, a BYC player counts less as ‘salary out’ in a trade than his actual salary. Using your example of Travis Outlaw, his actual salary in 2007-08 was $4,000,000, but his ‘salary out’ as a BYC player would have only been 2,000,000 if he had been traded. That makes it tough for teams to match salaries in a trade unless they are trading with a team that is under the cap, or unless they are trading with a team that has a large Trade Exception, or unless multiple players are included in the outgoing package (which increases that 125% + $100,000 figure).
Oh, and most BYC players’ status concludes when the next salary cap year begins on the next July 1st. And on my player salary spreadsheet, you can find out the amount of a player’s BYC ‘salary out’ in the Notes column on the far right hand side of each player’s row.
http://members.cox.net/lmcoon/salarycap.htm#Q73 is where Larry Coon explains BYC in his amazing FAQ on the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Oooops! I was somehow looking at last year's spreadsheet. However,
the BYC classification is the class I least understand. So thanks for posting this. I think you have it online somewhere…or maybe I saw it here in a post???, but anyway this is what I was looking for to study. Thank you very much!
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
Totally price-dependent.
If Frye is willing to settle for backup-forward money, I bet the Blazers front office would extend him.
It’s his willingness to sign on for that price level that is in question, methinks.
And I guess the same could apply to MarWeb – does the injury bring down his asking price?
I’m guessing it doesn’t, at least not far enough for the Blazers to say, “Done!”
"Mister Oden is a very, very big human being." - Jerryd Bayless
My guess is
they would extend Frye for an in-between salary — more than your typical backup, but less than your typical starter.
The most amazing thing about my amazing ego is I have amazingly little about which to be egotistical.
The pick and roll this year will emphasize "roll" followed by "dunk", followed by the wailings and lamentations of your women.
Outlaw, Blake options - decision next summer?
A related topic I don’t see addressed here is when the Blazers decide whether or not to pick up the 2009-10 options on Blake or Outlaw (is there one more player?). Can someone clear this up? Is it by June 30 next year? Thanks.
put a body on 'em
RayBourque -
BTW, love that name…..
Blake and Outlaw actually don’t have options for 2009-10. Instead, each of their contracts is written so that their salary is not guaranteed if waived before June 30, 2009. This is similar to a team option but is actually more advantageous from the Blazers’ perspective. For example, both can be traded on Draft Day next year, which would not be possible if they had a team option – unless the team option were picked up first. They can essentially be traded as an expiring contract after the Blazers’ season concludes.
And no other current Blazer player has a pending option for 2009-10 (either player option or team option).
Steve Blake and Travis Outlaw's ...
contracts don’t have team options; on the contrary, they have non-guaranteed salaries for the 2009-2010 season — which are worth $4,000,000 and $3,600,000, respectively — that’ll become fully guaranteed if they’re not waived prior to 6/30/2009. Anyhow, Storyteller explained everything in greater detail than me.
underrated vs. overrated
Question here for anyone to answer. I asked this to various teams bloggers as we (the Lakers) advanced through last years playoffs. Yeah I am gloating a little, LOL.
Anyway here goes. Do you guys have a player on your team that the league, other fans, and the media have overrated? In other words is there a player that real Blazer fans (you guys I assume) can’t stand, but everyone else seems to like? If so, who?
Secondly the opposite. Is there a player that the league doesn’t know or isn’t high on that you guys think will be good? I am talking fairly unknown here, not someone like Greg Oden, etc.
Just curious. This started last year in the playoffs when the announcers constantly referred to Luke Walton like he was an important piece of our puzzle. Laker fans (real ones, not the front row, Hollywood, leave early fans) can’t stand him and think he should be released, traded, whatever. Our pet nickname is Puke or Waltard.
If I had to pick an unknown player that Laker fans are very high on it would be either Trevor Ariza or Josh Powell. Ariza is fairly well known, but Laker fans are much, much higher on him than the mainstream. Powell was a great pickup. Kind of a Ronny Turiaf with better skills, less enthusiasm.
Anyway I would love a reply or two.
but...I'm in the minority on bayless ,oops, and in no position to be answering for this site.
The faith (and I'm a guy) perverts. :)
here's a
Excellent question...
My opinion:
PLAYERS WHICH OUTSIDERS VALUE MORE THAN MANY HOME FANS
1. Bayless; 2. Outlaw; 3. Frye.
Not to say any of these are necessarily “overrated” by outsiders — just that there are GMs who would be willing to pull the trigger for them and some fans who would be willing to pack the suitcases. For example, Bayless in two years may well be mopping the floor with the corpses of his victims — but not immediately; while the assumption around the NBA is that he’s going to be a major minutes guy out the gate, which is incorrect.
PLAYERS WHO ARE GREATER THAN WHAT OUTSIDERS KNOW
1. LMA (underrated borderline star); 2. Przybilla (as rebounder and defender, seriously underrated); 3. Fernandez (not 1/2 the hype of which his talent is worthy, but that will change fast).
"It's not a joke -- it's not a game." — B-Rex
IMO only
+ 1) Outlaw 2) New aquisition [My Man] Ike Diogu
- 1) Aldridge. Not unknown, but frequently under-emphasized in media features on the Blazers. 2) Joel Pryzbilla The Vanilla Godzilla. Would start on a lot of teams.
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
if I've gathered one thing about the people who post here
it’s that some people love Sergio (for example) and some don’t. Some people want him traded and some just don’t care. Same goes for Bayless, Outlaw, Martell, Batum and pretty much everyone outside of our Big 3 and Rudy. So, what I mean is, it seems to vary from person to person. I don’t think there is a universally loved ( loved more than the other Blazers ) player or one who is widely disparaged. Maybe Randolph, but that doesn’t really count.
I don’t think there will be great consensus, but I’ll throw out some names I’m high on.
Sergio has been looking good in the preseason and thanks to his rapport with Rudy, he’ll probably be the 2nd string PG. He could have a big season.
I really like what Batum has been doing considering he’s a 19 rookie from France.
Pryzbilla will be a monster off the bench. There isn’t a better backup center in the league. He’s the garbage man. He does the dirty work that needs to be done.
Many of us hope that the brief glimpse we got of Martell in the first preseason game is what he’ll play like once he’s fully recovered from his foot injury.
The Big 4 is another story. I think everyone around here is very high on all of them. Aldridge, like faith said, is probably the most underrated around the league. With all the attention that Roy and especially Oden will get, he’s going to be a monster. A lot of people around here are predicting him to lead the team in scoring and I must say, I agree with that prediction.
Roy will be the steady assassin. You won’t notice what he’s doing until it’s too late and he does it every game to the tune of (roughly) 18,6,5 with 2 steals.
Rudy will be our human highlight reel. He’ll get the most instant replays and will be constantly electrifying the crowd. He’ll be a momentum shifter and game winner.
Oden will be the team’s breadbasket. The source of the “whole grains”, the basics (reb, pts in the paint, defense) that the team needs in order to win games.
One guy I’m not high on is Outlaw. A bad preseason isn’t the end of the world, but when basically everyone else on the team is working hard in the offseason and showing improvement, it’s not good to be treading water.
WWKPD?
Ambassador to the Miami Heat
I don't think Randolph is widely disparged, or at least I hope not
There does seem to be a vocal minority though, and when Steven of Nazereth Hill is properly mourned, I think he’ll warm on people for all the right reasons.
I put no stock in the non-basketball stuff posted re: Randolph (I throw out the data points).
Actually…there is one for “my” list in the under-rated column…S. Randolph had a near “Perfect Boxscore” off the bench vs. Atlanta in the pre-season. Check it out:
http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=281010022
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
hmm
overrated – trout…i’m leaning towards throwing jbaylless in here as well, but i think i’ll need to see him more before i can fairly throw him into overrated
underrated – sergio and frye
by Philthyanimal on Oct 26, 2008 10:31 PM PDT up reply actions
hmmmmm.....
interesting. It sounds like maybe Outlaw is the consensus overrated player and Pryzbilla is the underrated one. As an outsider I would agree with that in the sense that Outlaw seems to get a fair bit of press and Pryzbilla, not so much. I can’t agree with the Aldridge part as it seems to me that he is pretty high on most radar’s.
Thanks for the reply(s) Just curious, before today what was your opinion of Luke Walton. (If I hear the phrase High BBall IQ one more time I am going to go postal) LOL
Re:Walton
meh. I wouldn’t really want him on the Blazers. Maybe he fits somewhere besides the Lakers, uh, the team he’s currently on.
The only reason I strike the team name is that it is in the “rules”, I think it is silly though.
"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum
I think Luke Walton has a deep voice and he made a nice shot in that last Lakers preseason game that I saw...
……………………. I can’t really conceive of where he’d fit in on the Blazers.
"It's not a joke -- it's not a game." — B-Rex
................... It's like he's a few inches shorter than the game he plays.
………………………… He’s not big enough to be a real banger low and he’s not quick enough to play high either. A decent benchplayer with a decent shot and a famous last name.
"It's not a joke -- it's not a game." — B-Rex
interesting comment
Funny you should say that because he has a history of getting his interior shots blocked…….alot. Like all the time. nice call
What are we talking about here (Walton)?
If we’re talking about the Luke Walton from last year, then yes, he was bad. Really bad. The year before that however, he was a solid contributing part of the team. That season he played solid team defense and took nothing but smart shots. When you can hit a high percentage of your open 3’s and you play next to Kobe you’re doing your job. I think Luke can be a solid part of a winning team. Laker fans are notorious for over emphasizing the bad play of their exterior guys and the good play of their core. Ariza certainly helps out on the defensive end more than Luke, but on offense it you’re not in transition the guy is next to worthless (at least he knows it).
hmmmm....
It is true that last year he was much worse than the year before. There are three major theories. One is that he succumbed to the pressure of his first big contract. The second is that he never really recovered from injury (leg or ankle, can’t remember). The third (and the one I subscribe to) is that he was a decent player on a bad team vs. a decent player on a good team which by comparison make him look worse. Just my opinion.
OK enough L*ker talk, I am sure you guys have more Bl*zer stuff to talk about. Thanks for indulging me for a while. Good luck Tuesday. Maybe I will be back on Wednesday to gloat, or with my tail between my legs.
Good luck pslakerfan
Here’s and outgoing quote (translated) for you all from Mr Fernández, posted on his blog today:
“The match in Los Angeles is a good opportunity to begin to demonstrate that we want to make war.”
Now, the translation is a Google translation, which is often lacking in proper syntax. However, I think I speak for all of us in that, if this is actually what he said, we like his spunk!
"The match in Los Angeles is a good opportunity to begin to demonstrate that we want to make war." Rudy Fernández (translated)
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