Rumor: Hinrich to Blazers

[jeffhardyfan52]

ewwww no thanks i dont want kirk on this damn team, hes not right for us, we can do better then that

[Effigy]

Can someone figure out how much cap space we'd have if we added Kirk? Assuming MIles doesn't come back we'd still be significantly under the cap, right? Maybe a flat out signing wouldn't be as likely but a sign and trade where we send Outlaw or whatever and take back Vince Carter could be doable still I think.

[taufblazers33]

kirk > Blake

[Agenda42]

People are bagging on Hinrich a lot lately. He would be a good fit for our needs -- he is a better creator than Blake and a better shooter than Sergio, and he plays better defense than both.

I don't think we want to make this sort of deal now, and I certainly don't think anything is imminent. We need to see if we can get something better. However, if Hinrich for RLEC is the best we can do with that cap space, then I'm all for it, it does make us a better team.

[Nonstop]

if we can find a way to get rid of blake as well, then coo... id rather put bayless in the fire and get him in the rotation then blake or sergio honestly

[cucad8]

Hinrich doesn't fix the Blazers problems.

What problems would the Blazers be looking to fix through trade though? Veteran PG with some playoff experience? Improvement on defense and on offense? Hinrich provides that.

[Soulyss]

Couple of Points:

1. Hinrich isn't the defensive player he once was, and honestly you can argue if he's really that good of a defensive player in the first place. Although I think Hinrich is more of a "Nate" PG.

2. I don't see KP giving up Raef's contract until the last second of the Trade Deadline unless the deal is too good to be true, the reported deal isn't close to "Too Good to be True". so I think it's a bunch of "Bull". It's too valuable to either get a impact back or be the third party in a big trade and get a quality piece or pick.

3. Hinrich is hurt, and I don't see the Blazers trading for someone who's hurt.

[PhilipNelsonFan]

I'd give up Bayless before I let Sergio go (fanboyism is strong in this one), but I love this rumor for two reasons: 1) It'll never happen because of how cap-conscious Portland has become and 2) it's driving down Hinrich's value below that of topsoil.

And we are lucky to be graced with the presence of Cliff Levingston, one of RealGM's most sagacious posters.

[Wizenheimer]

I was pushing for hinrich last year, but that was when the deal was lafrentz and the 2009 draft pick. it was also before Miles was determined to have career ending injury. And it was also before we all saw how advanced Rudy was with his game.

Now, about the blake/hinrich comparison. Hinrich is a better player, I think that's pretty clear. He's especially better on the defensive end. As a pure PG comparison, they are probably about even. Blake may have a slight edge in that he's less prone to turnovers. As shooters they are probably pretty close as well. They both have about the same weaknesses: neither is good at dribble penetration or drawing fouls.

So a roy/rudy/kirk backcourt rotation would be better then a roy/rudy/steve rotation...but not by a whole lot.

So then the question comes down to if it would be worth the loss of cap-space. IMO, it may be, but only if Hinrich replaces blake in the roster moving ahead. Adding hinrich to portland's roster(minus blake) would put team salary at around 43 million, with both outlaw and frye set aside. that would leave 14-18 million in cap-space. adding outlaw back in would leave 10-14 million in space. That could still be enough cap-space to facilitate a further trade or sign a free agent.

For instance, would portland be better next season with a starting lineup of hinrich-roy-turkoglu-aldridge-oden? That may be a realistic possibility.

No, Hinrich is not a significant upgrade at PG, but he is an upgrade. Then the problem becomes locating a better alternative. I don't see it and I've looked as have a lot of people. Jason Terry? Raymond Felton? Kyle Lowry?...there just aren't any realistically available.

I'm not enthusiastic about this idea, but I guess I don't oppose it either.

[mojomarc]

Couple of Points:

1. Hinrich isn't the defensive player he once was, and honestly you can argue if he's really that good of a defensive player in the first place. Although I think Hinrich is more of a "Nate" PG.

You could argue whether he was "really that good a defensive player in the first place," but he was an All-Defense 2nd Team player before the collapse of Chicago last year, and up until the collapse last year it was pretty much a given that he would be camping out on that All-D team for years to come. Was he ever that good? Not sure, but he sure looked like one of the few PGs in the game that really could put a heavy duty full-court press on the opposition a couple years ago. Frankly, when we face up against Utah and New Orleans in the playoffs in the coming years, I'd love to have that. We absolutely do not have it now.

2. I don't see KP giving up Raef's contract until the last second of the Trade Deadline unless the deal is too good to be true, the reported deal isn't close to "Too Good to be True". so I think it's a bunch of "Bull". It's too valuable to either get a impact back or be the third party in a big trade and get a quality piece or pick.

This would have been a "too good to be true" offer just a handful of months ago. The only issue now that makes it not one is...

3. Hinrich is hurt, and I don't see the Blazers trading for someone who's hurt.

Yeah--I think this deal doesn't happen until closer to the deadline because of this. I'd love for KP to have an agreement in principle on this based on Hinrich's health status.

[cool007]

As a Bulls fan, here are few things about Hinrich.

We Bulls fans would be really laughing outloud right now regardng this trade if we didn't have Rose. The only reason Hinrich is available as a salary dump is because we have Rose now and he is ready than what people thought (including our GM and coaches), but he turned out to be super right from the start.

Because of that now that Rose is ready to handle about 40 minutes a night, Hinrich is just not needed any more. Hinrich is a very very good player and it's hard to sit him either.

Hinrich would be so good next to Roy/Aldridge/Oden that it's not even funny. I think he will give you chance to win the championship IMMEDIATELY. He is that good of a role player. He will be a super defender and can guard not only both guards position but also can guard a lot of SFs as well. He has guarded Wade/Kobe/Allen/Johnson/and son guards so well that they had below their averages.

I think he will make your team more complete than you realize.

[Wizenheimer]

Can someone figure out how much cap space we'd have if we added Kirk? Assuming MIles doesn't come back we'd still be significantly under the cap, right? Maybe a flat out signing wouldn't be as likely but a sign and trade where we send Outlaw or whatever and take back Vince Carter could be doable still I think.

$6,857,725....pryzbilla
$5,361,240....Oden
$5,844,827....aldridge
$4,300,000....webster
$3,910,816....roy
$2,143,080....bayless
$1,165,320....rudy
$1,118,760....batum
$9,500,000....Hinrich

$40.2 million for 9 players. Now this assumes that blake, outlaw, and frye are not on the payroll. If you add back in Outlaw's salary and a couple of cap-holds for 12 roster spots, the total team salary would be around 45 million, probably a little less. That would leave 12-16 million in cap-space.

That would be enough space for a ton of trade scenarios. It would also be enough space to sign a FA like Hedo Turkoglu (which would negate the need for either outlaw or webster)

[mojomarc]

So then the question comes down to if it would be worth the loss of cap-space. IMO, it may be, but only if Hinrich replaces blake in the roster moving ahead. Adding hinrich to portland's roster(minus blake) would put team salary at around 43 million, with both outlaw and frye set aside. that would leave 14-18 million in cap-space. adding outlaw back in would leave 10-14 million in space. That could still be enough cap-space to facilitate a further trade or sign a free agent.

For instance, would portland be better next season with a starting lineup of hinrich-roy-turkoglu-aldridge-oden? That may be a realistic possibility.

Yes, we would be a lot better. But then again we may be a lot better by just keeping Batum in the starting lineup, too. Hinrich-Roy-Batum-Aldridge-Oden might just be the best defensive group in the NBA. We would have point defense, wing defense, and of course the stopper in the middle. It is one thing to say that Blake individually is only slightly worse than Hinrich (I strongly disagree, but there ya go); it is an entirely different thing to neglect all the non-statistical things that happen when you add a team player who brings very good defense to the position like Hinrich.

[Fitz303]

I would be one of the happiest people in Portland if this went down. Hinrich is really the only upgrade at PG available, and he IS an upgrade. He is a much better defender than Blake or Sergio. My guess is that Blake would then be moved at the deadline when Hinrich is back from injury. A 3 man rotation of Hinrich, Roy, and Rudy would be a very nice trio

[Charlie78]

I wonder if this might not be a ploy by KP to start a bidding war for raefs contract. That contract is worth alot more than just expiring due to the insurance payout especially considering the financial situation for alot of teams. This could be a way to push some other teams into making offers and then playing one of the other.

[Wizenheimer]

So then the question comes down to if it would be worth the loss of cap-space. IMO, it may be, but only if Hinrich replaces blake in the roster moving ahead. Adding hinrich to portland's roster(minus blake) would put team salary at around 43 million, with both outlaw and frye set aside. that would leave 14-18 million in cap-space. adding outlaw back in would leave 10-14 million in space. That could still be enough cap-space to facilitate a further trade or sign a free agent.

For instance, would portland be better next season with a starting lineup of hinrich-roy-turkoglu-aldridge-oden? That may be a realistic possibility.

Yes, we would be a lot better. But then again we may be a lot better by just keeping Batum in the starting lineup, too. Hinrich-Roy-Batum-Aldridge-Oden might just be the best defensive group in the NBA. We would have point defense, wing defense, and of course the stopper in the middle. It is one thing to say that Blake individually is only slightly worse than Hinrich (I strongly disagree, but there ya go); it is an entirely different thing to neglect all the non-statistical things that happen when you add a team player who brings very good defense to the position like Hinrich.

as I said, I've suggested hinrich for months. I also have a hunch that hinrich's game may blossom a bit with a legitimate post presence, something he hasn't played with. I'm OK with the trade idea

The reason I mentioned Turkoglu is because I think portland needs another player capable of ball-handling and initiating the offense. he would add that.

Batum?...I do have hopes for that kid. He just looks to potentially have a complete type of game that would complement the projected blazer roster. But a lot can go off track between now and potential.

[klvanzu]

Hinrich would be a perfect fit on the Blazers.

1. Is an excellent defender at the PG position. He's better than 90% of PGs in the league at the defensive end. He has good size and is a very intelligent player. Kirk also does a really good job against SGs and can bring some versatility to the Blazers in that respect.

2. He's a very good shooter from the outside. Kirk shoots around 40% from behind the arc and has a nice midrange game as well.

3. He's a good distributor, he's just not a complete floor general, which is fine because Roy is the one who's going to be facilitating the Blazers offense.

4. He's a smart, hard-working winner who plays mistake-free basketball and is good in the locker room. He's also playoff tested and has a lot of experience, and is only 27 years old. Not to mention that he's on a front loaded deal that declines every year.

5. Kirk has never played with so much talent around him. His shooting percentages would be a lock to go up when he's the last option of an offense, and his efficiency as a whole would fly through the roof.

This is a great deal for the Blazers. I don't see any other players in the league as perfect a fit for this team that are attainable for so little.

[BlackMamba]

ok, for everyone that is saying that hinrich is not the option and that the blazers can get something better, please name them or list them, thanks.

[Billy]

Can someone figure out how much cap space we'd have if we added Kirk? Assuming MIles doesn't come back we'd still be significantly under the cap, right? Maybe a flat out signing wouldn't be as likely but a sign and trade where we send Outlaw or whatever and take back Vince Carter could be doable still I think.

$6,857,725....pryzbilla
$5,361,240....Oden
$5,844,827....aldridge
$4,300,000....webster
$3,910,816....roy
$2,143,080....bayless
$1,165,320....rudy
$1,118,760....batum
$9,500,000....Hinrich

$40.2 million for 9 players. Now this assumes that blake, outlaw, and frye are not on the payroll. If you add back in Outlaw's salary and a couple of cap-holds for 12 roster spots, the total team salary would be around 45 million, probably a little less. That would leave 12-16 million in cap-space.

That would be enough space for a ton of trade scenarios. It would also be enough space to sign a FA like Hedo Turkoglu (which would negate the need for either outlaw or webster)

Thanks for the break down... that actually puts a bit of perspective on things. Portland still would have room to address some holes. I can't help but think that Portland is going to be looking more and more at the bench than anything else. I think they'd love to pick up a guy like a Millsap to bring in and get rebounds for the Rudy/Outlaw unit.

Upon further reflection, I can certainly see some good arguments for Hinrich, as well as some against it. The Miles situation is much less of a concern now, and even then the free agent market has really taken shape. Outside of Kobe and Hedo there really isn't a great name out there anymore, but the bench possibilities are still pretty good.

I can't argue that Hinrich seems a lot like a McMillan type. Team first mentality with a defense first approach to the game. I suppose there has to be some weighing of injury vs cost. His cost will be at an all time low right now, when healthy--especially close to the trade deadline with vet teams looking to amp up, his cost will go back up.

I'm not 100% sold on this type of move, but I can see some of the benefits are talking about.

To Mamba: I have no clue on who would be better. When I said something may come along that would be better it wasn't as much a statement as it was a guess. At this time last year no one knew Gasol would suddenly be available for nothing. Another Gasol deal ain't going to happen anytime soon, but it's hard telling who could shake loose.

[Wizenheimer]

Can someone figure out how much cap space we'd have if we added Kirk? Assuming MIles doesn't come back we'd still be significantly under the cap, right? Maybe a flat out signing wouldn't be as likely but a sign and trade where we send Outlaw or whatever and take back Vince Carter could be doable still I think.

$6,857,725....pryzbilla
$5,361,240....Oden
$5,844,827....aldridge
$4,300,000....webster
$3,910,816....roy
$2,143,080....bayless
$1,165,320....rudy
$1,118,760....batum
$9,500,000....Hinrich

$40.2 million for 9 players. Now this assumes that blake, outlaw, and frye are not on the payroll. If you add back in Outlaw's salary and a couple of cap-holds for 12 roster spots, the total team salary would be around 45 million, probably a little less. That would leave 12-16 million in cap-space.

That would be enough space for a ton of trade scenarios. It would also be enough space to sign a FA like Hedo Turkoglu (which would negate the need for either outlaw or webster)

Thanks for the break down... that actually puts a bit of perspective on things. Portland still would have room to address some holes. I can't help but think that Portland is going to be looking more and more at the bench than anything else. I think they'd love to pick up a guy like a Millsap to bring in and get rebounds for the Rudy/Outlaw unit.

Upon further reflection, I can certainly see some good arguments for Hinrich, as well as some against it. The Miles situation is much less of a concern now, and even then the free agent market has really taken shape. Outside of Kobe and Hedo there really isn't a great name out there anymore, but the bench possibilities are still pretty good.

I can't argue that Hinrich seems a lot like a McMillan type. Team first mentality with a defense first approach to the game. I suppose there has to be some weighing of injury vs cost. His cost will be at an all time low right now, when healthy--especially close to the trade deadline with vet teams looking to amp up, his cost will go back up.

I'm not 100% sold on this type of move, but I can see some of the benefits are talking about.

To Mamba: I have no clue on who would be better. When I said something may come along that would be better it wasn't as much a statement as it was a guess. At this time last year no one knew Gasol would suddenly be available for nothing. Another Gasol deal ain't going to happen anytime soon, but it's hard telling who could shake loose.

Brandon Bass is going to be UFA and he'd fit that description