(07-31-2023, 06:34 PM)Jym Wrote: And I'm confident he'd close over Maxi here

(07-31-2023, 03:42 PM)dirkfansince1998 Wrote: Still not interested in overpaid dinosaurs. Just brought him up to point out the difference in perception when it comes to Capela and other bigs. If Nurkic is a negative or neutral asset there is no way that the Mavs should offer more than a couple of 2nds for Capela.
But if the Mavs are still all in on Kidd´s 2020 Lakers pipe dream I would prefer someone like Nurkic over Capela. Most likely way cheaper. Not a pick and roll finisher but a good screener and passer. Capable of making plays out of the short roll. Also showed improved 3-point range. And as a big fan of +/- based metrics. Despite his obvious short comings when he has to defend in space he ranks among the best defensive bigs over the last 3-5 seasons.
If the options are Green/Hardy and/or the 2027st for Capela (not sure if that is the case) or a couple of 2nds for Nurkic it´s not even a question for me.

(07-31-2023, 07:31 PM)The Jom Wrote: The game changes last 6 mins. The refs swallow the whistle. The pressure mounts. The long game doesn’t matter, just the present. Frequent stoppages let you catch your breath. It’s really not the same thing.

Maxi is a pretty good center in those spots. Gonna be hard to find someone to make him sit. Don’t think that should be the goal.

(07-31-2023, 08:42 PM)KillerLeft Wrote: Agree, and to add to this, you just cannot have a guy out there who doesn't have to be guarded during that stretch. The other team KNOWS what you're about to run and has predetermined whether they'll double, and from where, meaning who they'll leave open. They determine matchups based on "pre-switching." 

Now, Ayton is juuuuuuuuust dangerous enough so as not to count as "don't have to guard him" but that sort of means he's going to end up in the paint off of the screen like almost every time, because you OBVIOUSLY can't have him out there on the perimeter. I hope we can all agree on that, at least. 

I, personally, do not WANT Ayton to be the most likely finisher of the majority of plays down the stretch. Others might feel differently, but give me a spread floor with screen setters who can relocate to a variety of different places and be a threat from all of them. More unpredictable, and lends itself more to Luka and Kyrie having the ball in their hands deeper into the clock, which is the goal if you ask me. 

Even if you think I'm crazy about the above, it's fairly clear that Ayton will be one of the biggest defensive liabilities out there for either team during a stretch like that. Most teams spread the floor at that point. You'd be begging for Ayton to be abused, just like he usually has been in PHX. 

This is literally why they want to trade him. Because he makes too much money for this to be even a conversation. You could say the same about Jokic, defensively, but nobody cares because he's Jokic on the other end.

(07-31-2023, 09:25 PM)The Jom Wrote: There are counter moves though. It’s only this simple when the other team has the personnel to do what you want the Mavs to do. Having an Ayton or even a Capela is a useful tool in the drawer. You don’t play the Knicks the same way you play the Warriors. If Ayton only costs the chump change that the Mavs seem to be offering, I don’t know why you say no to that. Just don’t expect to close games with him against the Warriors.

(07-31-2023, 09:44 PM)dirkfansince1998 Wrote: Ayton is a better perimeter defender than Capela. To go with an all time classic "It´s not even close". But his mobility and quickness isn´t helping as long as his head (and heart?) aren´t into it. In theory Ayton is one of the few bigs with the necessary combination of length and athleticism to stay on the floor in late game situations but the last time he showed more than flashes was the Suns finals run. With his contract it would be an extremly risky gamble. I guess slightly better than giving up a first for Capela but still a big no no.

(07-31-2023, 09:52 PM)KillerLeft Wrote: I agree that Ayton's athletic profile suggests that he SHOULD be a useful, modern big. I'd stop short of even saying I've seen him do it, as you're suggesting, but I definitely trust your basketball acumen. 

But, as you say, he has no head and no heart.

Doesn't run the floor. 
Doesn't roll hard to the rim.
Has no post game, yet expects the ball in situations other than rim rolls (we know how that story ends around here)
Doesn't defend, at least not consistently.

I have seen Capela do ALL of that. Fairly recently. There was a time not so long ago when he was the best pick and roll defending big in the NBA. Kind of like Bill Cartwright was the best post defending big in the NBA for a while during his Bulls time. Nobody knew that, but it was a big part of that team.

(07-31-2023, 11:15 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: https://twitter.com/NBATradeReport/status/1686080817997479957?s=20

NBATradeReport (@NBATradeReport)
#Sources — Toronto has cooled off trade talks completely on both Pascal Siakam & OG Anunoby. Raptors will reassess throughout the regular season and into the upcoming trade deadline. #NBA

(07-31-2023, 11:32 PM)KillerLeft Wrote: I feel pretty bad for ATL fans. When Collins was dumped, it seems like they were told (or maybe not, but they got the idea, somehow) it was to make room for a big splash addition that was to happen this summer.

(07-31-2023, 11:46 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: I do think ATL is trying their hardest to make a big splash, but it takes 2 to tango. I think the real story is how Toronto once again leads a team along during the summer asking exorbitant prices for their guys because Masai can't "lose" a trade. 

How many lost deals will it take before Masai is out of a job? The Dragic one comes to mind where TOR lost him for nothing, they just lost FVV for nothing. This Siakam+OG trade pussyfooting has been going on for the better part of 1.5 years. I hope the league freezes Toronto out of the market until Masai realizes he can't just pull one over GMs because he wants to.

(07-31-2023, 04:15 PM)Ghost of Podkolzin Wrote: Nurk is a better solution than Capela.  Nurk is a better solution than Powell/McGee.

The perfect solution would be either Zubac or J.Allen.

---

Please answer...  would Capela be on the floor the final 5 minutes of a Mavs playoff game?

(07-31-2023, 03:26 PM)omahen Wrote: ??? Capella was part of best Houston years. He was traded in the last desperate attempt to turn things around after the "genius" CP3 for Westbrook trade. It was that trade that started the Houston downfall, Capela and his weaknesses were minor problem compared to that trade. Capela was then part of TDL package that got Covington to Houston in an extreme small ball experiment that failed quickly.

(08-01-2023, 08:59 AM)omahen Wrote: So boring time Assuming Mavs don't do anything bigger, a couple of ideas what could be done with McGee and 2 SRP. I assume number one need is a rotation wing (that package won't bring starting centre, imho).

BKN: O'Neale. BKN has a ton of wings, but they might want more for expiring O'Neale. They could use a back-up centre and I am sure DFS and SD can explain what an asset McGee is In any case, that would be great result for Mavs, so probably not realistic
Cha: Cody Martin. Not sure if this one even requires draft assets, as Martin had a very bad year and his contract is even a year longer than McGee. Martin from a season before was useful, could he become that guy again?
Hou: Tate. I think wishfull thinking. Houston needs him way more than they need McGee. Still, the value is probably quite fair
Por: Little. Another wishfull thinking, because they probably value him higher than a couple of second rounders.
SA: Osman. I guess this one could have happened already, if teams were interested. SA could use a center like McGee though, to do a bit of dirty work instead of Wemby
Tor: OPJ. Basically one useless player for another. OPJ is expiring and sometimes could play.
Tor: Young. Fell of a cliff, but would be a better fit in Dal than McGee. Also expiring. Mavs could use some vet presence and hopefully some decent wing minutes

(07-31-2023, 10:28 PM)The Jom Wrote: It’s funny. I agree with so much of the anti-dinosaur sentiment here. But I just can’t get on the no-Ayton bandwagon. He still looks worth it to me.

(08-01-2023, 11:52 AM)Ghost of Podkolzin Wrote: Here's what I would say...  he's a $20m/yr player.  So his 3yr contract is worth $60m, resulting in $41.9m in dead money.

Our dead money...
McGee: worth $0, -$11.7m/2yr
THJ:  worth $11m, -$11.9m/2yr
Holmes: worth $3m, -$18.8/2yr

So to make the numbers match and give back PHX $20m/yr in value, this works.

-Wood (S&T 3yr, $10m/yr)
-THJ
-McGee
for
-Ayton

This would swap -$23.6m (THJ and McGee) of our dead money, resulting in the following overpay for Ayton (given his play stays the same):
2023: +$0.1m
2024: -$12.9m
2025: -$15.5m