RealGM

I'm always interested in figuring out the value of players.

Let's say an owner of an average NBA team approached the Heat with a trade request for Lebron. They were willing to trade as many first round picks as necessary to get Lebron. As an example they were willing to trade their 1st round picks from 2014-2024 for Lebron.

How many first round picks would it take you to ship Lebron out?

For purposes of this hypothetical imagine such a trade was allowed under league rules.

It'll take more than every draft pick for the next decade for me to consider. Depending on the team, I'd want someone--scratch that, numerous players back before even considering returning said owner's phone call/e-mail.

I'm not sure if any amount of first round picks would be worth it when you really break it down. Imagine the financial hit of trading Lebron.

sp6r=underrated wrote:I'm always interested in figuring out the value of players.

Let's say an owner of an average NBA team approached the Heat with a trade request for Lebron. They were willing to trade as many first round picks as necessary to get Lebron. As an example they were willing to trade their 1st round picks from 2014-2024 for Lebron.

How many first round picks would it take you to ship Lebron out?

For purposes of this hypothetical imagine such a trade was allowed under league rules.

None. You don't trade the best player in the NBA for draft picks, you're giving up on the dynasty for draft picks. If LeBron demanded a trade, then I'd ship him out to Indiana for Paul George, Roy Hibbert, and a couple of 1st round picks like I did in the last GMAT. Won the championship with Rio, Wade, George, Bosh, and Hibbert as my starting 5.

nyrangers08 wrote:I'm not sure if any amount of first round picks would be worth it when you really break it down. Imagine the financial hit of trading Lebron.

That's my thought as well but at the same time I would at least consider a really crazy proposal from a basketball perspective. I think you have to at least consider 30 1st round picks.

Why would you trade Lebron for hopes of finding another Lebron in a draft that rarely ever comes along.

Unpossible. Nothing is worth trading Lebron for.

GTFO with any trade for lebron.

sp6r=underrated wrote:I'm always interested in figuring out the value of players.

Let's say an owner of an average NBA team approached the Heat with a trade request for Lebron. They were willing to trade as many first round picks as necessary to get Lebron. As an example they were willing to trade their 1st round picks from 2014-2024 for Lebron.

How many first round picks would it take you to ship Lebron out?

For purposes of this hypothetical imagine such a trade was allowed under league rules.

The problem is :

IF you give them LeBron, then they are no more an average team so you will never get a top12 (if i am not wrong) pick in the 1st round. So you can get 10 1st round pick if they become contender, it's not interesting

Right now it's not going to happen with Lebron, regardless of the numbers, not when his team is going for a three peat.

Durant is a better study case. Still very high level player, but not making history at the moment.

I think a rational GM would consider giving him up for let's say...25 first round picks. At least some of those will be very high ones, and you can trade for very good players using some of the others. You're going to build a very good team for almost 3 decades in return to giving up 1 player that will probably slow down in around 9-10 years.

Maroko wrote:

sp6r=underrated wrote:I'm always interested in figuring out the value of players.

Let's say an owner of an average NBA team approached the Heat with a trade request for Lebron. They were willing to trade as many first round picks as necessary to get Lebron. As an example they were willing to trade their 1st round picks from 2014-2024 for Lebron.

How many first round picks would it take you to ship Lebron out?

For purposes of this hypothetical imagine such a trade was allowed under league rules.

The problem is :

IF you give them LeBron, then they are no more an average team so you will never get a top12 (if i am not wrong) pick in the 1st round. So you can get 10 1st round pick if they become contender, it's not interesting

I mean that's only an obvious issue for the first 5-10 years they have LeBron, but you have other bigger issues after that.

For one, around the league you'll be known as the franchise that dealt the best player in the world in his prime. Other players will remember that, other agents will remind their clients of that.

Also, by the time one of those first round picks might actually be worth something, whoever makes up the front office of your team will already be long gone.

Now, if you could change it to something like trading LeBron for the first pick in the next 3 drafts in a row or something, then it gets a lot more interesting, but there's no way to guarantee something like that. Even then, I'm not sure how many #1 overall picks you'd need... for a guy like Riley, you probably can't come up with a number just because he doesn't have many years left anyways and would rather take the sure thing.

Without knowing what pick the receiving team would give then its a crapshoot, you don't trade a sure thing. Also, if you consider that the receiving team would get much better with Lebron running the show, then its definitely not worth it.

It wouldn't make sense for a team that has Bosh and wade already to trade for Draft picks.

I think the trade for Hibbert and George would make the most sense.

Though ideally you'd want to trade him out of conference. Maybe to the Trail Blazers for Aldridge and Lillard.

Lillard
Wade
Beasley
Aldridge
Bosh
+
Not having to beat Lebron to get to the Finals.

vs.

Rio
Wade
George
Bosh
Hibbert

Tough. Lebron would still have a pretty tough team in Indiana.

Maybe some sort of deal where you traded him for Howard and Harden--but sent Harden to the Spurs for Leonard and Parker?

Parker
Wade
Leonard
Bosh
Howard

And Lebron would be in Houston with nothing around him.

Neither I, nor my protege Pat Riley, would trade Lebron for draft picks. We'd only trade him for a package involving another star and only if he demanded a trade. We were in such a position with Shaq before and traded him to a "contender" at the time for decent return package. This was old Shaq too.

Draft picks are as useless as used toilet paper to the Heat. Our MO for building has usually been through trades/free agents. We got lucky with Wade.

Trade LeBron in hopes of landing another LeBron in the draft? No thanks.

There's no way I'm trading him for draft picks. In fact, the only offer I'd accept in a two team trade would be Kevin Durant+Russell Westbrook. Nothing else. I'd consider Roy Hibbert+Paul George, LaMarcus Aldridge+Damian Lillard, Dwight Howard+James Harden and Anthony Davis+Jrue Holiday but would eventually reject them all.