Hey, how are you SoCal? Disappointed the Knicks didn't even bother to give Cousin a look at all anytime this year..What are ya gonna do? Time to move on I guess..
My initial plan going back weeks ago was to grab Cousin AND Jeff Adrien if Adrien became available (I think he will, unless GS turns around now and gives him a similar commitment to the one the Rockets just gave Cousin)..TOGETHER, those two would've satisfied the immediate need for height, rebounding and some more-than decent support for the interior, all on the cheap..Two good players (D-League all-stars this year in fact) that we could've gotten for a very good price..Adrien remains a possibility for me until I see otherwise..
Two other DL standouts, SF/PF DeShawn Sims and PG Curtis Stinson, are also players I find very intriging for us -- here are two guys we could probably add at a very reasonable price that could really go a long way in improving our bench play for next year...Sims I kinda look at as an even better version of Wilson Chandler and a guy that could slide into Shawne Williams' role if Williams commands too much money to return this offseason which I think could be a very real possibility...And Stinson, the best PG in the DL by far, is a guy, if I could get him cheap, I wouldn't mind seeing next year in the Anthony Carter role if Carter isn't retained for the same reason as Williams..Dude's got nice size for a PG (6'3", 215), he's tough and strong, very good passer/orchestrator/assist man, very good penetrator, decent mid-range shot and he plays defense..This guy reminds me of Chauncey Billups of a few years ago just w/o the 3-pt range..
With Cousin, Adrien, Sims and Stinson all in tow on the cheap (with Billups re-signed and TD still his understudy/scoring guard off the bench), I would've been prepared to switch gears away from a big and a PG in the draft and look long and hard at 6'5" Providence SG Marshon Brooks --- firepower off the bench, a nice contrast to what Fields brings to the position which is great, only problem is Fields might eventually price himself right out of our plans -- it wouldn't surprise me to see Landry demand and get something close to what Wes Matthews Jr got from the Blazers this past offseason. A contract like that, which basically amounts to a full MLE-type deal, might be too rich for our blood. This is why I'd like to get a good 2G in this draft if I could, provided I found other ways to plug holes up front...We have decent depth on paper right now at the 2 but that could change in a hurry: someone could sign Fields to a crazy offer sheet at the end of next year and steal him away; Mason's gone; so is Billy Walker I'm thinking; Rautins could be packaged with cash for a 2nd pick-----there could suddenly be a big hole at the 2 within the next year or two. I think Brooks could fit the bill nicely...2nd leading scorer in the nation behind Fredette..He went for over 50 against Notre Dame and over 40 against G-Town this year..One-man gang on a terrible Providence team that managed something like 25 ppg on over 48% from the floor in probably the toughest conference in the NCAA---damn impressive considering that production came with other teams' defenses solely predicated and focused on stopping him...And what I like most: if you watched him closely, he's more than just a good scorer. He can handle the ball well and set up teammates, he rebounds well for an off-guard with his decent height and long arms and he can play some defense (over 7 rpg, over 1 steal & 1 block per as well). This guy doesn't get any love in any of the mocks out there but I think he's real good NBA-ready value around 17, 18 in this draft..
But now that Cousin's off the table and say if GS or someone else signs Jeff Adrien, then I might have to go for a big man...Not many legit Cs that will be there when we pick (I was high on Keith Benson at one point but not so much anymore) but there are several PFs that can help us: Ken Faried & Maryland's Jordan Williams are probably the two best rebounders in this draft; JaJuan Johnson looks like a good all-around PF...I like Tristan Thompson's defense/toughness/upside (dude reminds me of a young Buck Williams) and Georgia's Trey Thompkins is very polished offensively...
With Cousin no longer a possibility I might draw up my wish list like this now:
1. Sign C Jerome Jordan, Jeff Adrien, DeShawn Sims, Curtis Stinson all to reasonable deals to fill out the bench (500-800K range?)
2. Draft either Faried or Jordan Williams OR 2G Marshon Brooks if I can get the rebounding/size somewhere else
3. Jump all over shooter Jon Diebler with a camp invite if he goes undrafted, esp if we part ways with Rautins who as of right now is under contract for next year but who knows..I think this dude's the best shooter in the nation and he has good height..He'd be fine replacement for the inconsistent Bill Walker.
4. If we draft a big and don't consider a guy like Brooks at off-guard, maybe give 6'6" SG Sylven Landesberg a shot if he's available...I liked him a lot last year and I know Mike had him in for a workout -- Virginia SG went undrafted and went to go play overseas (in Israel I believe) but he should be available to NBA teams again this summer. I doubt he signed anything longer than a 1-year deal to go play there... 6'6" AD Vassallo is another guy I'd look at if he's available. Former VA Tech SG is very smooth and a very good shooter..I think he's in France right now and playing well..Like Landesberg, he most likely makes himself available to NBA teams this offseason...
As of right now, and it's early--we'll have to see how the Combine and individual workouts go, it's all about filling in around Amar'e and Melo now at all positions (I want improved rebounding, a better C alternative than what we have now and more wing depth)..I wanna see us strenghten the bench and come up with potential replacements so we're not left without a chair when the music stops at some key positions. I'd like to accomplish this w/o blowing all my cap flexibility this summer so I can make a serious run at 2012 FAs, specifically Chris Paul..
Gimmie your thoughts SoCal -- what direction do you see us going with things this offseason?
My initial plan going back weeks ago was to grab Cousin AND Jeff Adrien if Adrien became available (I think he will, unless GS turns around now and gives him a similar commitment to the one the Rockets just gave Cousin)..TOGETHER, those two would've satisfied the immediate need for height, rebounding and some more-than decent support for the interior, all on the cheap..Two good players (D-League all-stars this year in fact) that we could've gotten for a very good price..Adrien remains a possibility for me until I see otherwise..
Two other DL standouts, SF/PF DeShawn Sims and PG Curtis Stinson, are also players I find very intriging for us -- here are two guys we could probably add at a very reasonable price that could really go a long way in improving our bench play for next year...Sims I kinda look at as an even better version of Wilson Chandler and a guy that could slide into Shawne Williams' role if Williams commands too much money to return this offseason which I think could be a very real possibility...And Stinson, the best PG in the DL by far, is a guy, if I could get him cheap, I wouldn't mind seeing next year in the Anthony Carter role if Carter isn't retained for the same reason as Williams..Dude's got nice size for a PG (6'3", 215), he's tough and strong, very good passer/orchestrator/assist man, very good penetrator, decent mid-range shot and he plays defense..This guy reminds me of Chauncey Billups of a few years ago just w/o the 3-pt range..
With Cousin, Adrien, Sims and Stinson all in tow on the cheap (with Billups re-signed and TD still his understudy/scoring guard off the bench), I would've been prepared to switch gears away from a big and a PG in the draft and look long and hard at 6'5" Providence SG Marshon Brooks --- firepower off the bench, a nice contrast to what Fields brings to the position which is great, only problem is Fields might eventually price himself right out of our plans -- it wouldn't surprise me to see Landry demand and get something close to what Wes Matthews Jr got from the Blazers this past offseason. A contract like that, which basically amounts to a full MLE-type deal, might be too rich for our blood. This is why I'd like to get a good 2G in this draft if I could, provided I found other ways to plug holes up front...We have decent depth on paper right now at the 2 but that could change in a hurry: someone could sign Fields to a crazy offer sheet at the end of next year and steal him away; Mason's gone; so is Billy Walker I'm thinking; Rautins could be packaged with cash for a 2nd pick-----there could suddenly be a big hole at the 2 within the next year or two. I think Brooks could fit the bill nicely...2nd leading scorer in the nation behind Fredette..He went for over 50 against Notre Dame and over 40 against G-Town this year..One-man gang on a terrible Providence team that managed something like 25 ppg on over 48% from the floor in probably the toughest conference in the NCAA---damn impressive considering that production came with other teams' defenses solely predicated and focused on stopping him...And what I like most: if you watched him closely, he's more than just a good scorer. He can handle the ball well and set up teammates, he rebounds well for an off-guard with his decent height and long arms and he can play some defense (over 7 rpg, over 1 steal & 1 block per as well). This guy doesn't get any love in any of the mocks out there but I think he's real good NBA-ready value around 17, 18 in this draft..
But now that Cousin's off the table and say if GS or someone else signs Jeff Adrien, then I might have to go for a big man...Not many legit Cs that will be there when we pick (I was high on Keith Benson at one point but not so much anymore) but there are several PFs that can help us: Ken Faried & Maryland's Jordan Williams are probably the two best rebounders in this draft; JaJuan Johnson looks like a good all-around PF...I like Tristan Thompson's defense/toughness/upside (dude reminds me of a young Buck Williams) and Georgia's Trey Thompkins is very polished offensively...
With Cousin no longer a possibility I might draw up my wish list like this now:
1. Sign C Jerome Jordan, Jeff Adrien, DeShawn Sims, Curtis Stinson all to reasonable deals to fill out the bench (500-800K range?)
2. Draft either Faried or Jordan Williams OR 2G Marshon Brooks if I can get the rebounding/size somewhere else
3. Jump all over shooter Jon Diebler with a camp invite if he goes undrafted, esp if we part ways with Rautins who as of right now is under contract for next year but who knows..I think this dude's the best shooter in the nation and he has good height..He'd be fine replacement for the inconsistent Bill Walker.
4. If we draft a big and don't consider a guy like Brooks at off-guard, maybe give 6'6" SG Sylven Landesberg a shot if he's available...I liked him a lot last year and I know Mike had him in for a workout -- Virginia SG went undrafted and went to go play overseas (in Israel I believe) but he should be available to NBA teams again this summer. I doubt he signed anything longer than a 1-year deal to go play there... 6'6" AD Vassallo is another guy I'd look at if he's available. Former VA Tech SG is very smooth and a very good shooter..I think he's in France right now and playing well..Like Landesberg, he most likely makes himself available to NBA teams this offseason...
As of right now, and it's early--we'll have to see how the Combine and individual workouts go, it's all about filling in around Amar'e and Melo now at all positions (I want improved rebounding, a better C alternative than what we have now and more wing depth)..I wanna see us strenghten the bench and come up with potential replacements so we're not left without a chair when the music stops at some key positions. I'd like to accomplish this w/o blowing all my cap flexibility this summer so I can make a serious run at 2012 FAs, specifically Chris Paul..
Gimmie your thoughts SoCal -- what direction do you see us going with things this offseason?
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