(02-07-2025, 11:53 AM)mvossman Wrote: 1 I guess we will see if it was truly an asset trade. He is 29, appeared to have peaked several years ago and was underperforming in Philly (not to mention damaged goods). Grimes is 24, was playing better and the Mavs gave up an asset. I would put money on Grimes over the next 4 years, but maybe he will end up costing more.
2 Maybe they are expecting a lot from Exum, but as you said yourself we probably shouldn't read too much into current lineups when so many of the key players are out. I find it hard to believe they are banking on a player that Kidd did not trust during the playoffs and is clearly made of glass, but I guess I shouldn't find anything hard to believe anymore.
1 You are ignoring the value equation imo, which is not "which is the better 3rd stringer to have" but rather "which might be a better trade chip in the summer, Martin or nothing," because between now and then, Grimes had just been demoted to 3rd string and almost no minutes, with the arrival of Christie. And it fortuitously ended up a swap of picks, with the pick this year actually being unusable for the Mavs (due to roster limitations) and the 2030 pick having potential to be just as good (unless you think Philly will get better somehow).
2 I understand the issues with Exum. I just don't accept they are the defining answer. I think we have to admit how good he has been, and how valuable he can be when healthy, and how he's a clear upgrade over SD and very much the model of the secondary PG we want in the mix, and how SD is still here just in case. I'm just saying let's see what it looks like when they add AD and PJW (which adds top-tier size and lessens the minutes from the smaller guys), before we jump off the ledge over the PG position, okay?