BLACKFEET 2010 wrote:Boarder Patrol wrote:There are a few problems with Monroe. On defense as a C he's bad. And being bad as a C on defense can kill a team and seriously hampers that team's ceiling unless you have a generational wing cast like Miami. As a PF he's even worse, to the point where it's hardly even worth it to have him on the floor.
Offensively he's a threat, but I don't think plodding post up defenders are really in high demand. Monroe is a no for me at this point.
His upside is that he seems very coachable, values winning/character (not wanting to stay in Detroit for the money right now), and is very durable.
Again, like the above poster stated, most 24 year old big men are gonna have defensive issues. Most are foul magnets that don't understand how to make individual adjustments dictated by the way the game is being officiated that particular night. And then the game moves so fast that the team principles likely stressed over and over in practice go out the window in the heat of the moment and they instinctively rely on what got them by on other levels, strength, size and athleticism. But everybody on the NBA level is strong, big and athletic. So they are usually neutralized by experience. Fouls get called, substitutions made, coach's eyes roll, player pouts, teammates encourage (hopefully).
But eventually they get a grasp of the terminology and the concepts. The good ones anyway. If the coach allows him to learn on the fly eventually the reps pay off. Thanks Detroit. The thing with Greg is that he's already a very productive player despite the flaws. And we can only imagine what their locker room is like with the personalities on that Piston team. We just gotta plug him in to what we are doing here, get his conditioning up, refine his already good footwork, work on a jump shot, etc. Phil and Fish will be huge for him. Very few big men "get it" right out the gate. He's further along than most.
It takes good coaching and patience.
The real question is what would his price be? We are gonna have to overpay, that's a given. But by how much?
I obviously agree with BLACKFEET 2010' points, especially the fact that most young players are foul magnets, their defense is not up to par, and an initial difficulty in keeping up with terminology as well as their own team-mates in practice. Greg is only 24 years old and we all know the axiom that "Big guys take 5 years of NBA experience to develop…" Obviously, players like Ewing, Olajuwon, Jabbar and Russell were exceptions to the rule—there were others and one guy comes to my mind immediately who needed a change of scenery to get his game up to its highest level and this was Robert Parish. I bring Parish up, since he posted decent statistics after 3 or 4 years in Golden State—but became a Hall Of Fame "Big" and 9 time all-star while in Boston.
There is no need for me to reiterate what was highlighted in the quoted post so I'll add one other little point which another poster here made. If the Knicks acquired Greg Monroe as an UFA, I am seeing him as a front-court player. This kid is not a plodding type center nor do I see him at that position. I see him with a defensive-minded center e.g. Cole Aldrich or Jason Smith. Monroe is an excellent passer already at age 24 and the defense will come since the Knicks will need to over-pay and they aren't going to max Greg Monroe out unless they see his potential across the board.
What will Greg Monroe cost New York? He will not cost the Max, IMHO, since 30 NBA teams were either cap-strapped or had a plethora of cap money available and have First Round Picks on their minds rather than winning games. Case in point. I was literally shocked that two other NBA teams e.g. the Lakers or Philly (who has approximately $30 million in Salary Cap Room) were unable to acquire Monroe for the salary I proposed in one of my recent posts, which was 4 years at $14.5 million. There is no way that the Pistons are going to match this figure or ever approach a 5 year $72.5 million dollar package.
Since winning games is not a priority at this time for Philadelphia and gathering as many high Top 4 First Rounders is, one has to wonder how many other franchises are following suit? I suppose that once the NBA Salary Cap goes up to $80 million dollars in 2016-17, the NBA and its fans will know.
There is something about Detroit and the Pistons organization which doesn't jive with Greg Monroe and I suspect that him signing the Q.O. now right after refusing Detroit's offer may mean several things to many people in the inner circle of Greg Monroe.
If Phil offers Greg Monroe $15 Million for 4 years, I think that he hits Monroe's Current Market Value.
Monroe at $15,000,000 per year may be considered overpaying by some, yet his contract will probably be structured like LeBron James', Kevin Love's (when it is signed, of course), LaMarcus Aldrich's, etc, and have an ETO for the player after 2 years.
Monroe can opt out when the salaries go up to $80 million and he proves himself to be what some folks project him to be. And, in typical Knick fashion, Phil will re-sign him as well as a few other guys I have in mind.
PMFJ always wins
You're back moderating! Didn't take long, did it? Fuq law school. This is much more fun! 
