sidsid wrote:YogurtProducer wrote:sidsid wrote:
The issue is that Giannis is not staying here to play with basically the same type of team which was barely competitive with the contenders, but without the star Dame cache (BI isn't selling him on anything here, considering he's a mercenary on a short show-me contract like Giannis would be) if Barnes isn't here. He's planning his exit in that second year or asking out after the first if he hasn't just nixed the deal outright, which is more likely.
This is the problem with retooling. You don't have enough assets and you don't have enough core. Hard to make the big deals pay off.
The only alternative is this draft pick, which isn't moving the needle unless it jumps into the top 2 or 3. If it does, the question would be moot anyway, as the Bucks would demand the pick instead, with its cost controlled contract and 7 years of runway as opposed to a player starting his second contract on a max now.
Giannis won in 2021 with a lineup of Jrue/Middleton/Tucker/Lopez around him. That is not significantly better than IQ/Ingram/Barrett/Poeltl any if at all. Ingram arguably could be considered the 2nd best player of the bunch.
Also, Dame of 2024-25 is not the Dame of his stardom days. We got a poor mans Dame in IQ right now, and a much better supporting cast in the 3rd thry 10 spots than MIL does now to. Kuzma and Prince are starting in MIL right now.
IQ/Agbaji/Ingram/Giannis/Poeltl is a contending core from day 1.
Then he was all in on trading Jrue for Dame (a perception of a top tier superstar, which he's not) because he didn't believe his team had enough. The same team that was going to bow out to Durant and scrubs in his chip year.
Part of why he'll accept that on the Bucks and not here is because he was drafted there. His claims of loyalty, the roots he built there, what he wants his legacy to be. Same as how Steph won't ask out of GS (or Dame staying in Portland forever). Meanwhile Durant/LeBron/Kawhi had zero issues walking out of GS/Miami/Toronto after chips.
There are big advantages to drafting and developing your own talent. Mercenaries are going to have higher standards unless the big market was the attraction all along.
This team will not have the veteran star power that Giannis expects to stay. Regardless of what we think of BI or anyone else. This is the same scenario of Siakam vs. Paul George for Kawhi. The only way the risk works is if the top end talent stays and he thinks this team is better, and that will require Barnes.
The Bucks team that won the ship just kept losing pieces (Donte, Tucker, etc.) and the ones they kept just kept getting older. That is why they made a last hurrah move for Dame. Middleton was there #1 offensive option when getting a bucket, and he was breaking down. Dame was suppose to replace that.
But that doesn't change anything about us. IQ/Agbaji/Ingram/Giannis/Poeltl (RJ 6 man) is a championship level team that is immediately in a position to make further win-now moves. Especially if you keep Barrett that is a lot of salary you can attach picks to to get another stud player on board.
Stars are not lining up to play with Barnes. In fact, I would bet league perception would be Ingram > Barnes especially for a guy like Giannis. Ingram and Giannis are actually a great fit (just like Middleton and Giannis were) as Ingram can be the bail out option on the offence and Giannis can be a dominant 2-way force.
There are not a lot of other teams that can trade for Giannis and be competitive after. There is the whole $50+M you need to match to send for him, and a lot of team would have to move their stars to acquire Giannis. Even OKC would likely be hesitant because it would require moving Jwill or Chet and it is tough to know if they would wanna give up on their young core that is already competing regardless.
SAS maybe, but again they would be paying 3 very big contracts to Wemby/Fox/Giannis within 24 months and have to get rid of one almost immediately. IT really just isn't feasible anymore to have 3 max guys.
