ESPN reporting Hawks interested in Greg Monroe

[davefmcl]

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/23 ... reg-Monroe

Thoughts?

[ATL Boy]

I like Monroe, and would like this signing.

[PandaKidd]

Going with the discussion we were having in the other thread.....

Monroe would presumably be the Starting Center........

That would move AH to PF

Is this the end of Millsap? Many people were ADAMANT that Millsap cant play SF. Hes not quick enough.

[Jamaaliver]

Monroe's skillset and size would be a welcome addition to our ball club. He gives us REAL depth at Center, and a big capable of scoring in the post. He's a flawed defender because of limited mobility, but as a third big could be used pretty effectivley on both ends of the floor.

I assume he'd come off the bench most games, but would get plenty of PT. With AL's injury limiting him to less than 30 mpg, Monroe would be an important part of the rotation through out the year.

[theatlfan]

I would like to see us get involved with Monroe. Not only is their frontcourt a bit cramped now, but I suspect it'll get even less comfy after the draft since 3 of the 4 2nd tier guys (IMO) are PFs. I don't think Monroe is a finished product and I would be counting on Coach Bud and staff (specifically, Ham) to develop him into something much more than he is now, but I think the base is there for a very good player.

Having said that, this rumor seems tenuous at best. The tie is that Monroe's agent (David Falk) was Ferry's agent when Ferry was a player. I'm sure there have been deals made due to the comfort a GM feels with a player's agent, but this one feels more like an agent trying to drum up some interest in his client than an actual rumor. Falk knows we wouldn't say anything against the rumor due to the aforementioned ties and the fact that we're naturally tight-lipped anyway.

Some other points from the same article:
- We follow SAS in being a tight-lipped franchise so everything is speculation from the author (Mark Stein) who has talked with people who "know Ferry best".
- Ferry wants another "major piece" and is willing to use any avenue to obtain one (trade, FA, etc). We will value our salary flexibility until we acquire said "major piece".
- Author is still highly intrigued with Dennis Schröder and sees his development this off-season as the #2 story in ATL after Horford's recovery.

[Jamaaliver]

Some other points from the same article:
- We follow SAS in being a tight-lipped franchise so everything is speculation from the author (Mark Stein) who has talked with people who "know Ferry best".

This is actually a really good point, and one that makes me doubtful we'll get Monroe . When Braves GM Frank Wren has been linked to players in rumors, he's shown the aggression and resolve to get a deal done. Think Ervin Santana, Justin Upton. Same goes for Falcons' GM Dimitroff, when he was interested in Julio Jones, Tony Gonzales...he MADE IT HAPPEN. Despite how unlikely a deal seemed.

But whenever Ferry is linked to a player (save confirmed talks with Millsap), he fails to get it done. Maybe the rumors are false leads, maybe he bails with all the press coverage.

Monroe would be a great addition, but I don't have any faith in DF to get it done. I'm sure he'll settle for some low cost alternative instead with short-term gain that doesn't exactly work out in the long run (see: Pero Antic).

[DonVitoReturns]

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/233244/Hawks-Expected-To-Be-Interested-In-Greg-Monroe

Thoughts?

Please, take him off our hands.

[Hawks champs]

Hahaha does one of the comments really say that Orlando and philly will be better than us next year?

[ElectricMayhem]

I assume he'd come off the bench most games, but would get plenty of PT. With AL's injury limiting him to less than 30 mpg, Monroe would be an important part of the rotation through out the year.

I can't imagine the Hawks paying him as much as they'd need to to sign him, just to bring him off the bench. I would assume the Pistons would match most offers unless enough is coming back in a S & T to make them change their mind.

[PandaKidd]

Jaamaliver I think you are very quick to skip out on the really GOOD signings Ferry made (Millsap , Carroll, Korver) hell throw Teague in there, I think we can say matching that salary over Jennings was a good move.

Did he trade Josh , no, I think you and I agree there was a time when I have to believe we could have gotten SOMETHING for him last year, but, we dont KNOW that. There may be a reason Smoov had virtually no interest from any teams in FA.

I am not happy with the draft picks outside of Mike Scott (who still needs LOTS of work) but DS and Muscala remain to be seen what happens with them.

Monroe to me just doesnt make any sense. He is too talented to be off the bench. I dont know anything about the Pistons Rotation, wasnt he their starting Power Forward?

Are we going to have 3 starting caliber PFs now?

To me this smells like AH or Millsap is gone or being shopped. I cant see us chasing a FA to play the bench even if AH plays Center. He an Millsap will be the same position

[ATLHawksfan21]

I want zero part of Monroe. He would be a redundant player and I just assume keep Millsap and Horford instead of going for another PF with a similar skillset. Atleast Millsap and Horford are more versatile on defense.

So, now, it's a failure on Ferry's part when random rumors are thrown out by the media and then he doesn't go after this player? Please. These are rumors, as simple as that. I like the fact that our intentions are never leaked. I see that as a strength and definitely not a weakness.

[PandaKidd]

I think Monroe is a stop gap , something we can get cheap possibly , but IIRC Pistons have the ability to match right?

Millsap contract is up this year, if we dont extend him, I suspect Monroe is being lined up to take his job. Of course, who knows, this is all rumors and speculation.

But if we are interested in Monroe, its def means we are thinking about Millsap and Horford

[azuresou1]

I don't care much for Monroe. He's not a bad player per se, but he doesn't look to fit in to what we're trying to do (Spurs East).

Pros:
- He provides fairly reliable inside finishing, which we lack without Al
- He's still young, at only 24 this offseason
- He is above-average in both rebounding and passing for a big man

Cons:
- He is a TERRIBLE defender
- He is an atrocious shooter who takes too many of them (1/3rd of his attempts are jumpshots, and he has a .270 eFG% on them)... his prior seasons are similar
- He isn't good enough to start over Millsap or Horford, so if we wanted to play all 3 then Millsap goes down to the 3... which then creates further issues since Korver would have to play the 2 and we'd have poor wing creation then
- I value Millsap and Al over him, and signing him would likely lead to one of them getting traded

I'd be upset if we signed him unless we then managed to immediately move Millsap for a top wing player or a very high draft pick. I might do Millsap for Nash/Lakers pick, but that'd be about it.

[D21]

At least he's a better defender at C than PF, and also produce more at C than PF, so if we are searching for a guy playing 30min at C, leaving 18min to backup and eventually Horford when playing small ball, he can be a good signing, depending on the contract.

Here are the details from 82games.com by position :

[PandaKidd]

Hes seeking a max deal according to his agent. What is his max?

[Jamaaliver]

Jaamaliver I think you are very quick to skip out on the really GOOD signings Ferry made (Millsap , Carroll, Korver) hell throw Teague in there, I think we can say matching that salary over Jennings was a good move.

I'm just skeptical of Ferry pulling off a big signing. Re-signing Teague was indeed a brilliant move, though. He's a very valuable asset, and it would have been foolish to let him walk away for nothing.

(Though Ferry attempting to sign Monta Ellis last summer could have been promising also.)

Monroe to me just doesnt make any sense. He is too talented to be off the bench. I dont know anything about the Pistons Rotation, wasnt he their starting Power Forward?

Are we going to have 3 starting caliber PFs now?

I'm thinking this is the long term solution we've been looking for. We lacked a Center off the bench this season capable of playing big minutes. Signing Monroe in 2014-2015 fixes that. But, Millsap is a free-agent in 12 months, so Monroe becomes the starting C of the future while AL moves over to PF. (Finally!) I could see Monroe having an effect similar to what AL Jefferson did this year. Dominating the paint offensively, carrying us through scoring droughts, forcing double teams which opens up the three point shooters. Monroe & AL would complement each other extraordinarily well. Throw in Bebe's athleticism, Pero's 3-pt shooting and that is a very diverse set of bigs that few teams can match.

[D21]

Hes seeking a max deal according to his agent. What is his max?

We will know exactly in July, but based on the projected increase, it could be almost $15M on the first year.

[PandaKidd]

Hes restricted right? So DET would have to match whatever we offer him.

Jamaal is this Millsaps LAST YEAR in Atlanta?

[Geaux_Hawks]

A move for Moose would spell the end for one of Horford or Sap. Honestly, I wouldn't mind it either. If we could sign Monroe and trade one of our current PF's for an upgrade on the wing, we will be in a great position to be a very good-great team for a few years. I think we could honestly contend if we added maybe got a 3 team trade together that landed us Harrison Barnes for Sap I would assume(3rd team).

[Jamaaliver]

Hes restricted right? So DET would have to match whatever we offer him.

Jamaal is this Millsaps LAST YEAR in Atlanta?

Honestly, it's hard to say. But I think it should be. He'll be angling for a raise next summer, and rightfully so. But at age 31, he's not going to improve at 32, 33 from what we have seen. He'll no longer be a bargain. The entire purpose of giving him such a short deal was to have cap space to pursue a superstar in 2015.

Why deviate from that plan after a 38 win season?