01-08-2026, 09:12 PM
(01-08-2026, 08:11 PM)F Gump Wrote: "to create a team around AD and Flagg" -- I'm not sure what makes you think I was suggesting everyone gets traded, other than AD, where they start over. I'm close to the polar opposite of that, in fact.
Here's my pov. REALLY GOOD TALENT is hard to acquire, and getting a roster that has a lot of it is a long hard exercise. The Mavs imo have already done the hard part. They have a LOT of really good talent. They just don't have the right mix in that talent.
So swap talent for talent, not for air. Yes, pick up extra picks when you can. (Presti, please.)
Yes, do what you can to get rid of bad contracts that Nico saddled them with (Hardy, Martin, DAR) - while keeping in mind to not pay a high price to fix that, because even bad deals will expire eventually if you can't find a quicker solution. But the goal is to always end with more talent, not less.
.... In that vein, I don't sell my best talent (AD) to fix the problem of too much payroll from having bad contracts on the roster. If they didn't have Hardy, Martin, DAR clogging their cap, they wouldn't even be a taxpayer! Keep the good talent itself (or swap it for similar talent), and look for ways to get rid of the bad clogs (perhaps as you do so). Nico was really EXTREMELY bad at cap planning and management, as well as lots of other skills, but it doesn't have to be that way.
Let me add that I am not a "timelines" guy. It's about who is talented and fits to make the team better. Work to win, and keep winning, and adjust your roster as you go, a piece or two at a time, talent-for-talent when needed, rather than try to be all youngsters or all veterans. You won't have the same roster in 4-5 years anyhow, no matter what you do.
That's what I would do. An expert GM is the guy to do it.