(05-26-2023, 05:54 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: I love the weekly inner thoughts omnibus of Dan.

Rui is way more interesting, but my excitement wanes if he's going to come on a deal bigger than 4/55. He's an okay player, but again he's flawed. 

You also have to demand Vanderbilt in such a trade. His archetype of defense and hustle does fit around the most important player on the roster, regardless of whether or not he fits next to a center we're trying to wrangle. 

Rui+D-Lo+Vanderbilt+29+#17 makes sense for the Mavs on paper. But I have a feeling seeing Kyrie jump ship in less than 4 months here can't bode well to keeping Luka happy. Who knows?
 

(05-26-2023, 05:18 PM)omahen Wrote: I would take just 2029 and Vandy (might be a pipedream to get both) and Lakers send Russel and whatever salary they need to to a third team. Mavs create a huge TE that works like cap space. But please remind me, when do the new rules come into play? 2023/24 or season after? Can we sign FA into TE this season already?

In any case, they have a huge TE, which might be valuable. Teams will be looking to dump salary due to the new CBA. Teams that might decide to start over might be happy to not receive bad salary back. TE opens many possibilities. Russell is just a bad contract, imho. 

(05-26-2023, 08:10 PM)Jakeospikez Wrote: If Kyrie does end up wanting to go to the Lakers instead of signing here, if I were the Mavs, there ain't no f'in way I'm helping them facilitate a S&T unless they're giving up #17. I'd take less valued assets overall like Bamba/Beasley expirings as long as #17 is involved, they can keep their 2029 pick. If Kyrie is out, the team is no longer win asap during his window and it's sort of win as early as you can but stay relevant for the next few years. Be good and continuously improve enough for Luka to stay for another contract. Mavs don't need a 2029 pick for that. They should be able to fill in whatever gaps the Kyrie S&T doesn't fill using #10, #17 and tradable expiring/2 year salaries. Would have to be a handshake deal on draft night though I guess.

(05-26-2023, 09:15 PM)Jakeospikez Wrote: Hmm.. yeah the Lakers 2029 could be used for a trade during FA so maybe it's not so bad. Should be a valuable lotto ticket since it's gonna be post Lebron/AD years. I think the Mavs are more likely to be a 3rd/4th team involved in an Ayton deal though rather than getting him. Also, I don't think the Nets are gonna be willing to do Claxton+22 for #10/Bullock/McGee because they weaken their 5 spot a lot. They're the more likely ones to get Ayton as a 5 swap. Unless there's some plan to get some FA 5 or something.

(05-26-2023, 03:18 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: Problem is, I think Cubes will forget he needs to make an offer that is more than what other teams can offer, based on history.

(05-26-2023, 08:40 PM)DanSchwartzgan Wrote: The new rule lets free agents sign into the MLE as if it were a TPE. 

(05-26-2023, 07:45 PM)DanSchwartzgan Wrote: War and Peace baby.  If you put yourself in LA’s shoes, they aren’t sending out Vandy and Rui.  If Ayton is coming here, we saw in the playoffs Vandy can’t play next to a center who can’t spread the floor (and AD has more of a mid-range game than Ayton).  I personally think you are asking too much of LA.  

It is really important to assign actual numbers to things, especially if there is a S&T involved in the deal.  That first apron can’t be breached and if you have Luka/Ayton and either of KI or D-Lo/Rui, you get to the Barrios r very Quickley.  I do like THJ and Turner to Phoenix and posted something along those lines earlier in the week.  Getting them to take Bertans is probably a bridge to far for what they are receiving.

(05-26-2023, 10:56 PM)F Gump Wrote: Or at least be competitive.

Cuban talks a good game. Remember how he was bragging about how the Mavs could outbid anyone so they were confident JB would return?

Then, when it was time to cut the check, he went cheap. JB didn't want to meet with Cuban, but Cuban has reportedly said he was unwilling to top NY's offer, even if he had been given the chance, In fact, he just wanted a chance to try to talk JB into staying and taking the number the Mavs had in mind.

So there was no reason for JB to come hear that sales pitch. Show me the money. Oh, no money? Then why bother.

Why was Cuban so cheap? Other than a track record saying "he always is," I have to think Cuban's thinking was also driven by the desire to make JB a trade chip, not a long-term keeper. And I think JB got a whiff of the mindset, and saw Dallas wasn't offering a long-term home, while NY was.

With Kyrie, if we want to know what Cuban will offer, maybe we have to ask ourselves what Kyrie's contract would have to look like for him to be in high demand in a trade later on, in 6 months or a year or two. And is that a deal Kyrie will sign? Or will he walk too?

(05-26-2023, 05:23 PM)omahen Wrote: Brooklyn gets 10/Reggie/McGee for Claxton/22

Phoenix gets THJ/Claxton for Ayton
Dallas gets Ayton/22 (for THJ, Reggie, McGee and #10).

I would just keep it simple and take Claxton. Leave Phoenix out.

(05-27-2023, 12:06 AM)F Gump Wrote: It should say "The new rule lets players be TRADED (or claimed on waivers) via the MLE as if it were a TPE."

The fine print:
1 This change is BEGINNING IN SUMMER 2024
2 It is allowed for BAE, and for Room or TxP MLE (but not Taxpayer MLE).
3 The whittling down of those exceptions, when not yet already fully used, won't begin until the trade deadline.
4 There are some technical limits on such use re contract length.

(05-27-2023, 12:27 AM)SleepingHero Wrote: Why should the Mavs be doing any favors here? D-Lo isn't a positive asset at all right now, and hasn't been for the last 3+ years, and the Mavs are being asked to take him on. Is Rui a good enough consolation prize for 1) losing a superstar and 2) taking on a mediocre asset at a probable overpaid salary? 

That's how I'm approaching it. That's why I have to ask for Vando. Sure he can't start and play many minutes next to a guy like Ayton, but he does let the Mavs have more options regarding lineups.


Re: IND trade. Yeah the Bertans thing was just for money matching purposes. I'm not really sure if the Mavs or PHX have what IND really wants. They are receiving a lotto pick for Turner. So if we assume his value is similar we have to toss in a starting caliber player. Does Reggie fit that? I know IND would want either Hardy or Green but again the Mavs are paying too much in such a deal. Can Christian Wood SnT be an option here??

(05-26-2023, 05:18 PM)omahen Wrote: I was thinking about a scenario if Kyrie wants to leave. I think the smarter move would be to go with minimum salary back…So, I would take just 2029 and Vandy (might be a pipedream to get both) and Lakers send Russel and whatever salary they need to to a third team. 

Quote:One thing to bear in mind, whatever we send, there has to be a path for Phoenix to use it to get a center.

(05-27-2023, 10:49 AM)DanSchwartzgan Wrote: _______.       _____.      McGee
Vandy.           Maxi.        Morris
THJ.              Reggie.      Lawson
Green.           Hardy.       Holiday
Luka.            ______.     Wright

Man I am not all that impressed with that starting 4. Really not sure they are better than the starting 4 we had to start this season. I will say, I hope we know if Kyrie is gonna sign with us at the draft cause one of Wallace or Black might be there at 10 and that could turn out to be much better in the long run. 

I’m going to pencil in Powell for some or all of the Room MLE, so that doesn’t reduce cap space.  We can get to an extra $5mm of space if we move on from Reggie.  How do we spend $30-$35mm?

So, my thought is to use that space to increase our buying power in trade. For example: trade Bullock for Collins giving Atl a good size immediate savings (well TPE to be used how they want) and the full contract off the books next year. Maybe we tip them the 30 SRP or something like that. Getting more players back than outgoing with it, something like Bogdanovich, Stewart and Hayes for Bertans and a FRP. That is how I would spend the space as opposed to looking for 1 player to spend all of it on. I'm not focusing on the specific deals, I'm focusing on being creative with the money.

We may know pretty quickly what the KI thing is going to be if we wake up Wednesday morning after the draft and we held onto #10.  I’m putting Wallace in this spot.  It could obviously be Lively or a wing.  If Vandy is the PF, the C needs to be an outside shooter.  Naz Reid is free, so I’ll go there for something north of $12mm.  Reggie is gone and I need another wing to rotate with Green and THJ.  Give me Grant Williams for $16mm.  Maybe we still have Reggie, maybe we don’t depending on what things cost.

I really like that in a losing Kyrie situation. It gets us a point of attack defender at a spot that they should come from that can drive to the hoop well and just needs to focus on adding a 3 pt shot. Oh, and he's on a rookie scale contract. I like the thought of Black slipping that far a bit better cause we already have plenty 6'4-5" players.

Keeping this in it simplest from, the below is what we have.  We do have 2027 and LA’s 2029 to trade.  We certainly could have traded down and created additional space.  Maybe Powell is a minimum (I’m taking the over) and we use the Room MLE on a PG (Carter?).  Clearly other ways to work around this.  But, is getting a shot at these FA’s an acceptable outcome if Kyrie wants to go?

Naz.       Powell.    McGee
Vandy.    Maxi.      Morris
G. Will.   THJ.       Lawson
Green.    Hardy.    Holiday
Luka.     Wallace.  Wright

While that is an upgrade to last season's squad, and I really like Grant Will as a FA signing (maybe sign him then use the rest of the capspace to get a trade we want via the idea above), it's kinda underwhelming. For sure playoff team, probably a 4-6 seed depending on injuries for us and all teams. I guess what I don't like so much is if Luka goes down, just like last season, we have to hope for a weak stretch in the schedule.

Recall also that if you can live with this for a year, you have 25/27/LA 2029 and expiring THJ and expiring McGee to throw at a team for a star.