Category: NBA Finals (Page 35 of 58)

      Lakers overspend on Sasha Vujacic

      July 25, 2008 /

      I estimated sharpshooter Sasha Vujacic’s value at $3.0 to $3.5 million per season, but the Lakers apparently think he’s worth more, so they inked him to a three-year contract worth $15 million.

      The Lakers original offer was three years, $12 million, a deal worth $4 million per season.

      Vujacic and his representatives rejected the offer and instead threatened to accept an offer from a European team.

      But Vujacic, who had planned to take a red-eye flight from Los Angeles to Europe on Friday, never left Los Angeles.

      Vujacic, 24, and his representatives actually sought a four-year, $24 million deal, but the Lakers weren’t willing to go that long or that high.

      Vujacic had been looking for a deal similar to those of Jason Kapono (4 years, $24 million from Toronto), James Posey (4 years, $25 million from New Orleans) and Mickael Pietrus (4 years, $25.1 million from Orlando).

      Had Vujacic played well against the Spurs or the Celtics in the playoffs, maybe he would have been worth $5 million a season, but he shot 30% against San Antonio and 39% against Boston, and was absolutely shredded by Ray Allen on defense. This contract isn’t as appalling as the one Luke Walton signed – at least Vujacic can shoot – but it’s pretty close.

      I wonder how much of this was a reaction to the loss of Ronny Turiaf to the Warriors earlier this month.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, NBA Finals, Rumors & Gossip

      Posey and Dooling are best of what’s left

      July 10, 2008 /

      As far as the unrestricted free agent market goes, James Posey and Keyon Dooling are the two players left that are likely to have a significant impact on a playoff-bound team.

      Posey has been courted by a number of teams, but most recently has become the focus of the Cavs. His play was instrumental in the Celtics’ title run. He’s a terrific, hard-nosed defender and can knock down the open three, so his game can fit just about anywhere. He and LeBron James play the same position (small forward), but either guy can swing to the power forward spot under certain circumstances and James plays a lot of off guard as well. He is 31 years old, so a three-year deal seems appropriate. He’s looking for the full mid-level, which starts around $5.5 M. Since their over the cap, that’s all that the Cavs can afford. I think that’s a little steep, but you can’t argue with what he did for the Celtics. He’s not the answer for Cleveland’s title hopes, but he could be a valuable piece down the line.

      Keyon Dooling is still available and I’m not sure why. His PER is 25th in the league, ahead of guys like Ray Felton, Stephon Marbury, Derek Fisher, Beno Udrih, Rafer Alston, Kirk Hinrich and Jamaal Tinsley, so he’s a borderline starting point guard in this league. His biggest flaw is that he doesn’t pass the ball very well – his career high in assists was 2.3 in his rookie season – so he’d best fit alongside a talented wing that handles and creates, like LeBron, Kobe, Dwyane Wade, etc. Plus, Dooling is cheap, and you can’t beat that.

      NBA, NBA Finals, Rumors & Gossip

      Nets say “no thanks” to proposed Szczerbiak/Carter swap

      June 29, 2008 /

      The New York Post is reporting that the Cavs offered up Wally Szczerbiak (and the one year, $13 million remaining on his contract) for Vince Carter, who has three years and $49 remaining on his deal.

      This deal would have been a straight salary dump, and if you like Carter’s game (I don’t), it would have been worse for the Nets than the Grizzlies’ donation of Pau Gasol earlier in the year. The deal never went anywhere, but one wonders if the Nets would have bit had the Cavs offered up Daniel Gibson in the deal. For their part, the Cavs were wise not to sweeten the pot. Vince Carter isn’t the missing piece in Cleveland.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, NBA Finals, Rumors & Gossip

      Blogging the NBA Draft

      June 26, 2008 /

      I’ll be blogging the NBA Draft, which starts in less than an hour. Be sure to stop by and let me know what you think of the night’s events.

      As a Bucks fan, the biggest storyline of the night (now that the team has acquired Richard Jefferson) is can Milwaukee come out of this draft with Kevin Love? I’d love (sorry for the pun) to see a lineup of Mo Williams, Michael Redd, Jefferson, Love and Andrew Bogut. If Scott Skiles can get them to play a little bit of defense, they’ll be playoff-bound in the East. It looks like they will have to move up to get Love, and it might cost them Charlie Villanueva, but I don’t think he’s going to fit with Skiles, so he’s expendable. David Lee is also (reportedly) available. He’d be a great fit with that lineup as well, though the Bucks would have to be sure he’d be willing to re-sign once his deal ends. If the team ends up drafting Anthony Randolph, I think I’m going to have a heart attack out of frustration.

      Shifting loyalties, I’m guessing that Cavs fans are sweating a little bit more now that the Nets look like they have enough cap flexibility to snatch LeBron away in the summer of 2010.

      Anyway, check back after the draft starts to see my reaction to the Bulls’ pick. In the meantime, you can peruse my way-too-long draft preview from earlier in the week.

      NBA, NBA Draft, NBA Finals

      Nets and Bucks agree on Richard Jefferson/Yi Jianlian swap

      June 26, 2008 /

      CNN-SI is reporting that the Bucks and Nets have agreed in principle to a trade that would send Richard Jefferson to Milwaukee for Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons.

      This appears to be a good trade for both parties. The Nets get out from under Jefferson’s considerable contract (three years, $42 M), freeing up cap space to make a run at LeBron James if he chooses to opt out of the final year of his contract in the summer of 2010. They also get a nice, young prospect in Yi, who played pretty well (9.6 points, 5.7 rebounds before the All-Star break) prior to a few nagging injuries late in the season.

      The Bucks fill a huge hole at small forward and get out from under Bobby Simmons’ big contract (two years, $21 M). Yi might still turn into a player, but had the Bucks kept him, there would have been a good chance that he would have bolted when he was a free agent, since he and his camp want him to play in a big market. In acquiring Jefferson, Milwaukee gets an experienced, athletic small forward, who averaged 22.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists last season.

      As regular readers know, I’m a Bucks fan, and I’m thrilled with this trade. I don’t think Yi would have re-signed anyway, and getting a proven player like Jefferson adds a lot to the Bucks lineup. Moving Simmons’ contract is the icing on the cake. (And helping the Nets increase their chances to get LeBron out of the Central Division doesn’t hurt either.)

      Looking ahead to the draft, Joe Alexander no longer seems like a no-brainer at #8. He could play some power forward, but I’d like to see the Bucks come out of the draft with Kevin Love, even if that requires the team to move Charlie Villanueva to move up. I think this trade makes it less likely that the Bucks will draft Anthony Randolph. Both Jefferson and Michael Redd are 28, so there’s not a lot of time to mess around with upside guys that have a 10% chance of turning into a player.

      This seems like one of those trades that really worked out for both teams. The Nets get a prospect and a shot at LeBron, and the Bucks get an All-Star caliber player that has a skill set that complements Redd and Andrew Bogut.

      John Hammond gets a thumbs up so far… but it’s early.

      AP Photo by Morry Gash.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, NBA Draft, NBA Finals, Rumors & Gossip

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