(10-02-2020, 01:12 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: Just getting caught up with stuff. A few points:The 76ers have been better asset managers. But they've also had 3 GM's in like 6 years. It doesn't mean they will use the assets wisely. Hinkie was the asset acquisition guy, whether you like his methods or not, he did it incredibly well. I said they had clearly acquired more valuable assets. And they have. If you think the non Luka/KP assets the Mavs have are more valuable than let's say the non Embiid/Simmons collection of assets the Sixers have (players and picks), you are in dreamland, whether you think Horford and Harris are overpaid or not. Even if you were to include KP as a tradeable asset for the Mavs and Simmons as a tradeable asset for the Sixers, it's an easy win for the Sixers in terms of desirable assets. The rest of the stuff is irrelevant. I specifically said a bad GM can ruin any roster. They have wasted a few of the assets they have had over the past few years through poor management and decision making, but they had acquired the assets to build a great team. I'm only saying they've been better at acquiring assets to put them in better positions to build a great team, not that they actually will use them effectively. That was the main point.
1) Dundalis lost 100% of his credibility with me when he cited the Sixers as great asset managers who are in a wonderful position. LOL, that someone would think that. They have tens of millions sunk into Al Horford and Tobias Harris, and have few trade assets. They are a trainwreck, and Doc's laissez-faire crap on the court and in the lockerroom is going to hurt, not help.
2) I think nearly everyone in this discussion is losing sight of the fact that we have a player who is by authoritative consensus the fourth-best player in the league - with a freaking bullet. To argue that he cannot compete for a title in 2020-21 with the right roster is a b!tch-slap to him (he has the mindset of wanting to win-now for sure), and a b!tch-slap to the intelligence of basketball minds around the world. Moreover, we are less than a calendar year away from the time to tender him a qualifying offer. If he wants to Gordon Hayward us - see, it does happen, because it has historically happened before - that is when it will happen. We live in a world where superstar players dictate to their current teams and league as to where they want to play. The clock is ticking for the Mavs, and the time is far shorter than virtually anyone on this board takes it to be. They don't need to do anything stupid (KL's concern), but they need at the naked minimum to add a player who will not necessarily be a star, but will be the third-best player on the team right now (which I have said many times over is *not hard to do,* because this team outside of Luka and KP consists of two guys who could compete for being the 5th-best starter on a contending team in THJ and DFS, and a crew of bench players - the Mavs of course believed erroneously that pre-injury Powell was a starter; Powell recovering from an Achilles injury is by all objective measures a bench-level player *at best*). IDGAfreak if they do it by the draft (probably need to move up to do it), a trade, or free agency. They don't have the real-world option not to do it. Moreover, given the quality (snort) of our roster outside of Luka and KP, the guy can certainly be a rental (someone who expires in '21) to keep next summer's options open - it will still mean a more competitive team on the court. If THJ isn't here next year for some reason, then the burden is on them to get two of those players, but that is of course not necessarily harder in the sense that it probably happened by virtue of THJ opting in and the Mavs trading him for one of those guys. Bottom line, relying solely on 18, 31, and the MLE to improve the team would be quite dangerous and foolish (caveat - *unless* the MBT has an internal assurance that the guy or guys they get in the draft are Brunsons whom they know by virtue of their scouting confidence will be able to contribute right away, and *unless* they get a guy with the full MLE who fulfills my above criteria of third-best player - but, that's not at all how at least one person here is thinking), IMnotsoHO, and I'm very glad that people who think that way aren't running this team, whatever the MBT's shortcomings might be.
3) Since when can't we bundle 18 and 31 to move up? Last I heard, we could use them to move up between 2-8 places. If they have a super-Brunson (not position, but readiness) player in mind who would be more likely to be on the board at that point, why wouldn't they do that?
Your second point has a whole bunch of exagerrated hyperbole in it. Lol at "it's a bitch slap to him" to live in reality. I'm sure Luka believes he can compete for a title every year, but I doubt he's home crying right now because we lost. He's resting up, and then will be trying to get better and improve his own game, because that's what hyper talented young 21 year old NBA players do, regardless of their supposed standing in the league. They are not acting bitch slapped because they aren't on a contender at the age of 22. I've heard the Luka will leave argument so many times now. I guess I won't go out and drive because there's a chance I might get into a car accident and die. The whole anectodal "look it happened this one time, see!!" is way overdone. If Luka does leave it will probably because we made some bad moves with a win now mindset looking to win it all in the next 2-3 years with age inappropriate players on bad contracts, then when Luka actually enters his prime, we have to rebuild again with limited resources and he asks for a trade. Because typically, NBA superstars are FAR less accepting of roster building or rebuilding when they are in their actual prime, than when they are in their early 20's and years away from it. Who would have thought that. We would get an absolute kings ransom for him, which I guess would be one consolation.
Look, I'd love for the Mavs to win next season. I'd also equally love for them to win in 5 seasons and 10. And if the reality is that it's "unlikely" they are in genuine contention next season, then that is fine as long as valuable asset acquisition moves are being made. It being "unlikely" is a fact for anyone that isn't a total homer, it's not just the current playoff teams, but the younger developing teams that will get better as well as some superstars that will return from injury that will likely make next season even more competitive than this one past. I won't even get into how I think a bunch of Mavs totally overachieved with career shooting years all at once this season past and are probably more likely to regress to the mean than maintain it. Given the state of the team with a 21 year old superstar, I'd hope the MBT understands that they are building for the next 10-15 years like Cuban harps on about, and actually makes the best moves with that in mind. Rather than this panicked emotional hand wrangling because there's this little percentage chance (i.e zero chance) Luka might leave after his rookie deal or be upset we aren't up with the best in the NBA in his third season when he's years off his prime. There's no evidence to me the MBT are any good at that kind of long term roster building, so I'm hoping to see it, that's all. I'm not even commenting on specifics of individual moves made, because I'm not against bringing in for example an older player who fits a role and is likely to only help within the next season or two. But if the team is consistently foregoing longer term roster building moves at the expense of winning right now moves (and yes I get they are not mutually exclusive, if they fit both criteria, great), we'll see what happens I guess, but I'm willing to bet it will bite them a lot harder than another year or two of roster building while Luka is young (while still being a playoff caliber team obviously) for longer term sustained contention.