RunDogGun wrote:NapoleonII wrote:
Yes, it was a tanking move. They traded an all-star for a rookie big that will miss 75% to 100% of the season. But you have to look at the scope. Philly WILL not make the playoffs. They will lose more games this year, get a high pick, and roll the dice on Noel being an all-star in his career. They will be better for it in 3 years.
I'm enjoying the wins too, and I'm a firm believer in that there's many ways to build a contender. I'd rather not go the route of the Bucks or the Bobcats, who continually suck, continually are in franchise purgatory. But you can't deny that OKC systematically moving their pieces to suck for 1-2 years, getting Westbrook and then Harden wasn't the right move for any GM. If they kept Harden, they'd be looking at 4-5 years of having a legit chance for a ring.
Keeping Beasley and Brown would have immediately gotten the job done, but in the long-run it doesn't make sense. Those guys are trash, will never have a future for a team that wants to contend with them as a legit option.
I'm very happy in seeing Plumlee, Goodwin, Len get some burn and develop. I'm happy seeing Dragic come into his own, and Bledsoe tapping into his potential/securing a contract.
But I'm also happy that we have a young team with no expectations before a year with a loaded draft. I want Wiggins or a top 3 prospect AND I want a team with a "never say die", WINNING atmosphere. Our GM is trying to give us both. Sit back and enjoy the wins/losses/development, we as Suns fans are in for something special in the next 5 years.
It wasn't tanking to move Jrue, if they felt confident that MCW could fill that spot for a fraction of the cost, while also yeilding future assets. But many fans can't get past that.
One can't use the OKC model without acknowledging that there was a huge amount of luck involved, before the results of sucking. Would you be saying the same thing about them if Portland drafted KD? So did they trade Harden to go back to their suck to success model you crave so much? Portland used that same model of sucking for success, how has that worked for them. Moreover, OKC has one of the best home crowds in the league, which plays a huge part in player performance. Do you think we are even close to that?
I'm not going sit back and enjoy any losses, sorry, never been that kind of fan, but I'm not going to get upset about them either thinking it's in the grand plan to draft the next whoever. I don't put too much stock in the draft, and if Len doesn't pan out, I'm not going to be too excited about our ability not to draft another deep bench player, or someone that won't develop until after their rookie contract.
Again, I don't think many understand the meanings behind words they use or misuse.
I understand words just fine, as it's actually my job.
There was no "luck" in the OKC model, it was good GMing and a smart rebuild. Your example of Durant over Oden was not even a decision and not even what I'm addressing. Oden WAS the better prospect, the more proven product, the obvious choice. They didn't luck out in Durant, they avoided a bullet that Portland fans are still biting. You can't blame or admire OKC's rebuild on Oden's glass body, it's completely irrelevant.
I'm talking about how they built their team around Durant after they got him and then got him to the finals, something we haven't done in twenty years. How did they do this? By systematically sucking and drafting well. Low-balling and trading Harden is also irrelevant, as it's a general consensus that THAT was stupid, and probably the reason why they're not a dynasty.
Not sure why you're bringing up "home crowds".
You should be very concerned about the draft. This isn't the NFL. The NBA will always be star-heavy and star-dependent. Look at the last 25 championship teams and every team outside of Detriot has drafted their number 1 or number 2 option, or both.
I'm not saying it's the only way, as I'm very much a fan of how Houston has rebuilt their team through free agency, grit and drafting gems, but that's one out of 30 teams. Our best chance for a ring in this decade is next year's draft.
