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Josh and Josh in Atlanta can't reach a deal and both want out

Okafor wants out now

Deng is getting lowballed and doesn't want to sign anymore, if he does get his deal they likely won't be willing to give a big one to Gordon as well...

The Artest talk has been quiet even though Turiaf is gone now...

My oh my what does it all mean for us?

Well 2 main things really. First, now there are some other targets that may be out there as trade possiblities and teams in S&T situations often have to take less then ideal packages to prevent losing a player for nothing.

Second, now there are some third team possibilities to include in the deal if we still want Artest. Now there may be more possibilities to get him without Kenny Thomas.

So what I am wondering is what people think is the best fit out of all this? Which players would work and which wouldn't?

Okafor - while a nice player, it would be overkill to have him as a 3rd big in rotation. Lamar knows the system and can play SF, Okafor doesn't and can't. Doesn't really work for us, but he could be part of a 3 way. Some form of Okafor to Sac, Lamar to CHA, Artest to LA?

Deng - interesting guy, good defender and rebounder. More natural SF then Odom but has similarly questionable shot and range. Doesn't handle as well but finishes well on the break. He'd be a good fit I think.

Gordon - nice shooter and as clutch as they come, would be a nice piece but serves basically the same role as Sasha. He's a little better then Sash imo with a higher ceiling. Much more capable of creating a shot for himself. Interesting thing about him is that if they sign Deng to a large deal, he may be getable for something other then Odom. Possibly a Sasha S&T + pieces? Possibly Odom for Nocioni + Gordon? Management seems to love Heinrich and is more likely to trade Gordon.

Josh Smith - Toughness, rebounding and defense at the 3 spot would fit great for us. Great slasher and finisher. Suspect outside game though. Pretty much the same as Deng except he can fill in at PF at times.

Childress - The cheapest of the bunch and like Gordon, might be had for smaller pieces. ATL could use shooters and either a S&T with Sasha or possibly something around Vlad could be worked out for him. A little redundant with Ariza as they are similar guys but he rebounds and defends well at the 3 spot. Would give us more depth though and he can play a big guard possibly even PG as well. Would give us freedom to try and get a higher value PG for Lamar instead of a SF.


Its interesting though as Lamar fits well on all 3 teams. Both Chi and Atl need a true PF and rebounding and Lamar would fit in an uptempo game with their youth. If they loose Okafor Charlotte is in the same position as well. Also Chi and ATL seem like they could use a guy like Sasha and possibly one of our other bench pieces as well for the smaller adds of Gordon and Childress.

So who is/are the best fit? Still pursue Artest in a three way? Go for one of these guys straight up? Try and get one of the smaller contracts?

You do understand the the SALARY CAP is like handcuffs don't you ? The only one I'd waste the MLE on is Josh Smith, but he wants more than that so there goes the fantasy of this thread.

Deng questionable shot? He's one of the best mid range shooters in the league IMO.

Harsh comment by DEEP3L. But he's got a valid point.

OP, your post relies on the assumption that the Lakers are willing to take on a major contract. Considering the luxury tax, and Bynum's upcoming extension, I think it's going to take a pretty special deal for the Lakers to take on any of those big names. The Lakers let go of Turiaf, a fan and team favorite, and a valuable player, because of the luxury tax.

The Artest talks have died down, presumably because the Lakers aren't wiling to take on KT's contract. Again, luxury tax implications.

Josh Smith, in a sign-and-trade is a difficult acquisition because he'd be a BYC player. Moreover, the contract struggles with Altanta are over his desire for 12m a year, instead of Atlanta's 10m a year. Is he worth close to the max on our team? Is Buss willing to pay for FOUR max contracts?

As far as any major trades, I think the Lakers will play it conservatively unless something big happens and they react to it. For example, injuries or some player struggling mightily.

Re: Chicago, I don't think Deng is realistic. Like Smith, he wants a very big deal, which I think rules him out for us, and I think Chicago will eventually work something out with him, since he's their best player and fills a team need at SF. Odom is a PF, and would play PF in the East, especially on the Bulls.

I think the best major deal is probably for HInrich, since I still think that's the biggest weakness of this team. HInrich is probably the best guard who's most available (not that he's a great point guard, and not that he's very available).

Resigning Vujacic should also be a priority.

Anyways, I wouldn't look too deeply into the lack of signings. A lot of this is posturing, since there isn't much capspace available in the league. Without capspace, the only leverage these rFA's have is threatening to sign their qualifying offers. But if these FA's do sign their qualifying offers, that would kill their current teams. It's a game of chicken, and I think for rFA's, they tend to eventually come to an agreement with their teams. Probably closer to the deadline for extensions, which is Oct. 31.

If i had a chose id much rather sign and trade Lamar for Luol Deng who is a perfect triangle fit because of his Mid-Range jumper from 12 to 18 feet out and ability to play without the basketball. Im not as big a fan of some in Lamar for Josh Smith because i think he would hurt the ball movement. He takes a lot of bad shots.

Deng is the perfect fit. If we can't get him or Artest then i say just come back with the same team.

DEEP i dunno what you are smokin

Sign and Trade man, sign and trade. I'm not talking about any MLE offers.

I agree somewhat Miles, Deng and Smith are likely to be very large contracts, but if you consider the age of those guys they are core guys for a long time and 10-12 mil isn't ridiculous money relatively speaking, especially if we were to shed a less than savory contract in the deal. It would all depend on the deal. You have to consider too that if the team is really really solid, Kobe may be inclined to opt out and take slightly less to keep it together.

I realize that much of it is posturing, but if these teams get pushed too far a Sign and Trade may definitely be in the best interest of these teams, especially given what some of them have said in the media recently. Like I said I think the most intriguing thing about it is how well Lamar could fit on those teams and that draws them into a 3 team deal. We have the least incentive to do anything considering that we just came out of the finals and we already have Lamar for a year. That puts those other teams in the more likely spot to possibly take on a contract like Kenny Thomas in a deal. I'm simply saying it brings more possibilities.

For example, if the Josh Smith deal continues to go south and they decide they need to move him. They send Smith to Sac along with Claxton, they take Odom and Kenny Thomas and Artest goes to LA. Or even just Smith, Artest, Odom straight up. Either way we get Artest without the extra contract.

There are a ton of possibilities.

If anything it would be more likely for us to take on bad contracts than subpar/small market teams because they have to maintain payroll properly for FA signing and taking in large salary via trades. Unless the Kings are no longer pursuing young talent or 2010, they need a third team no matter where they trade Artest to. Contending teams don't value Artest as much as his talent due to his past issues, they are not going to send out promising prospects without great reluctance unless they are certain Artest will agree to an extension(you probably need a mind reader for that). Scrub teams with a lot of young talent will not want Artest because he's not the type to lead a rebuilding team, had this not been the case, he would have been extended by the Kings already.

Like Miles said getting any of these guys would be a stretch. As exciting as it is to add another good player that still has 13 more years to go Buss will not put this team in luxury tax hell.

Hey guys, dont mean to intrude...but considering that im a heatfan, and we need a defensive-rebounding resence down low, wht do you all say tooo...

MIAMI OUT: Marion, filler

CHARLOTTE OUT: Okafor, Carroll

LA OUT: Odom, Walton, Ariza

MIAMI IN: Okafor, Caroll

CHARLOTEE IN: Odom, Walton, Ariza

LA IN: Marion, filler

torres213 wrote:Hey guys, dont mean to intrude...but considering that im a heatfan, and we need a defensive-rebounding resence down low, wht do you all say tooo...

MIAMI OUT: Marion, filler

CHARLOTTE OUT: Okafor, Carroll

LA OUT: Odom, Walton, Ariza

MIAMI IN: Okafor, Caroll

CHARLOTEE IN: Odom, Walton, Ariza

LA IN: Marion, filler

I'll do it if marion will resign with lakers... otherwise no if he's going to be like he was with the suns.

Well like I said, this is just pondering based on the PREMISE that one of these teams needs to make a sign and trade deal happen. The player has refused to sign any offer from the team other then the 1 year qualifying. Its a something rather than nothing position which is why microfib they would take on salaries and players. Its not necessarily likely, 99% of all the trade speculations are unlikelys but its interesting to think about and it would be very smart of the Lakers to keep an eye on it and try and make a great deal.

Some of you are a little too concerned with the luxury. We are already well into the luxury so Buss is obviously ready to pay some of it, its all about what the money is buying. Besides I'm not talking about taking on a ton more salary, the deals would have to be reasonable. People are all excited and want Ron and Kenny but what do they think Ron is going to resign for really cheap? He and Kenny are going to be a 17-19 million dollar contract for the next couple years at least... Same with keeping Lamar (which I'm all for) Do you really think he's going to resign really cheap? Maybe he'll go for 7-8 mil for a few more years, but I almost doubt even that. Its all about the deal my friends, all about the deal

Are you telling me you wouldn't do Deng even on a big contract for Odom straight up? (they have enough trade exemption to do this btw) It'd be cheaper this year, more next year though but Mihm expires, other things happen etc. Its at least probably even money wise as 2 years of Lamar. 3rd year and on it would be pricey but then Vlad will expire, other deals may happen etc. Look at Denver, if its not working and we have to get rid of salary, there will be ways.

Look, I'm for keeping the team as is but I'm also for making a deal if its the right deal and if its the right deal I'm for taking a bit of a risk with salary for the next few years while we have Kobe and the championship window wide open. I've said this in other threads, the 2010 free agent buzz allows us to be very aggressive right now. Think about it for a sec, there will be a TON of cap space in that year with all sorts of teams making efforts to get room to sign those guys. Only a few of them are going to win that race and the rest are going to be sitting around needing to fill rosters. I firmly believe there will be plenty of opportunity to dump salary into all that cap space if we have to. Trust me, there will be teams that will be willing to take Pau or Odom or whoever we trade Odom for for cheap players or draft picks. But! With the right deals we won't need to dump anything at all