Hello Nic. So long, a whole hell of a lot of cap space!

Cap space doesn't score any points, pull down any rebounds or dish out any assists, but it does present a lot of opportunity. The 2013 FA class is pretty good. Throughout the remainder of this offseason and into next regular season, quality players are going to be moved so other teams can realize the opportunity of cap space--players that could have helped the Blazers, conceivably, even more than Batum.

Barring more maneuvering, we chose to not make the playoffs next year (and who knows how long) with Batum and without some $11.5 mil, rather than not make the playoffs without Batum and a whole lot of money.

I like Batum, but would have liked the flexibility much better.