Davis Bertans "the Latvian Laser"

[payitforward]

If Bertans winds up somewhere else, we will be in a weird situation -- yet, we'll have quite a lot of flexibility.

We'll have 10 guaranteed salaries with Bonga's option for just under $102m. I should think we'd sign Mathews for @$1m. If we make our existing picks, that would give us 13 players for just over $107m.

In that case, we would have flexibility to sign a FA -- most likely at the 4, where Bertans had played.

We'd also be able to accommodate one more rookie -- giving us another reason to think about trading down (depending, obviously, on who was available at #9).

Alternatively, we might re-sign Napier. Or... extend Pasecniks...?...

Whereupon, turn to the couple of 2-way players we'd be able to sign.

[payitforward]

But... I think he will not wind up elsewhere; he'll re-sign with the Wizards. My guess is that an informal agreement with his agent was reached around the trade deadline in February.

Otherwise, how could we have turned down a first round pick in exchange for Davis? It would have been foolish & non-trivial Front Office error.

[nate33]

If Bertans winds up somewhere else, we will be in a weird situation -- yet, we'll have quite a lot of flexibility.

We'll have 10 guaranteed salaries with Bonga's option for just under $102m. I should think we'd sign Mathews for @$1m. If we make our existing picks, that would give us 13 players for just over $107m.

In that case, we would have flexibility to sign a FA -- most likely at the 4, where Bertans had played.

We'd also be able to accommodate one more rookie -- giving us another reason to think about trading down (depending, obviously, on who was available at #9).

Alternatively, we might re-sign Napier. Or... extend Pasecniks...?...

Whereupon, turn to the couple of 2-way players we'd be able to sign.

If they don't sign Bertans, you can be pretty darn sure that they will sign a veteran with the MLE. They're not going into the season with just Beal, Wall and Ish over the age of 23.

[Kanyewest]

But... I think he will not wind up elsewhere; he'll re-sign with the Wizards. My guess is that an informal agreement with his agent was reached around the trade deadline in February.

Otherwise, how could we have turned down a first round pick in exchange for Davis? It would have been foolish & non-trivial Front Office error.

The important thing now is not to overpay Bertans just because the Wizards didn't end up trading him for a 1st round pick- although I agree if that's the case, it will look bad.

[payitforward]

If Bertans winds up somewhere else, we will be in a weird situation -- yet, we'll have quite a lot of flexibility.

We'll have 10 guaranteed salaries with Bonga's option for just under $102m. I should think we'd sign Mathews for @$1m. If we make our existing picks, that would give us 13 players for just over $107m.

In that case, we would have flexibility to sign a FA -- most likely at the 4, where Bertans had played.

We'd also be able to accommodate one more rookie -- giving us another reason to think about trading down (depending, obviously, on who was available at #9).

Alternatively, we might re-sign Napier. Or... extend Pasecniks...?...

Whereupon, turn to the couple of 2-way players we'd be able to sign.

If they don't sign Bertans, you can be pretty darn sure that they will sign a veteran with the MLE. They're not going into the season with just Beal, Wall and Ish over the age of 23.

Absolutely! The problem will be to find the right guy.

But, as I say, I'd be pretty surprised if this is not mostly worked with Davis behind the scenes. From a business POV it's hard to imagine the weeks before the trade deadline didn't include figuring all that out -- actually, if it didn't, I'd call that incompetence.

edit: think about it -- the guy & his agent won't commit for next year, which can only mean they're looking for the best possible deal & there's a good chance we lose him. Now someone offers me a R1 pick for him -- I turn that down? No.

If I have to pay top dollar to keep him, & I'm willing to do it... hell, why not get a R1 pick in the bargain!

[The Consiglieri]

But... I think he will not wind up elsewhere; he'll re-sign with the Wizards. My guess is that an informal agreement with his agent was reached around the trade deadline in February.

Otherwise, how could we have turned down a first round pick in exchange for Davis? It would have been foolish & non-trivial Front Office error.

Isn't that how we roll though? Hell, historically it's been our motto.

[bsilver]

Not unexpected, but there will be a lot of competition for Bertans. Atlanta has lots of cap room, and could make it difficult for us to match a big offer. otoh, Bertans seems to like it here because he get a lot of playing time and has a big role. If playing for a good team is a factor, then the Suns would be tempting since they showed a lot of potential in the bubble.

https://www.nbcsports.com/washington/wizards/sources-hawks-knicks-and-suns-among-teams-pursue-davis-bertans-free-agency

Not buying it. The Suns arent going to throw away a max spot in the 21 draft class to upgrade from Saric (RFA) to Bertans. ATL is possible, but I just dont see them dumping 15M into a backup PF that doesnt compliment Collins.

Not sure what you mean by "21 draft class". 21 free agent class? If so, I get the point. But there's no guarantees and Bertans would help the Suns now, and they may believe they're ready to contend next season.

Bertans would fit well with Atlanta. They currently have no stretch 4/5s. More balance is needed. Trae Young is taking too high a % of the 3s. I don't think he would be playing much while Collins is playing PF. More likely when Collins is out, or playing smaller ball C. Atlanta has so much cap space, 15M would barely make a dent. They'll spend the money somewhere.

[payitforward]

But... I think he will not wind up elsewhere; he'll re-sign with the Wizards. My guess is that an informal agreement with his agent was reached around the trade deadline in February.

Otherwise, how could we have turned down a first round pick in exchange for Davis? It would have been foolish & non-trivial Front Office error.

Isn't that how we roll though? Hell, historically it's been our motto.

But, we haven't seen Tommy do it yet -- so there's hope!

[FAH1223]

If Bertans winds up somewhere else, we will be in a weird situation -- yet, we'll have quite a lot of flexibility.

We'll have 10 guaranteed salaries with Bonga's option for just under $102m. I should think we'd sign Mathews for @$1m. If we make our existing picks, that would give us 13 players for just over $107m.

In that case, we would have flexibility to sign a FA -- most likely at the 4, where Bertans had played.

We'd also be able to accommodate one more rookie -- giving us another reason to think about trading down (depending, obviously, on who was available at #9).

Alternatively, we might re-sign Napier. Or... extend Pasecniks...?...

Whereupon, turn to the couple of 2-way players we'd be able to sign.

If they don't sign Bertans, you can be pretty darn sure that they will sign a veteran with the MLE. They're not going into the season with just Beal, Wall and Ish over the age of 23.

Wow. I forgot how young this team is.

[Ruzious]

I think the bottom line is we sign him because we can't go backwards as far as talent level, and we don't want to lose a significant asset for nothing. Depending on how the team does next season, we can consider trade opportunities, as there should be a nice market for him.

[payitforward]

Actually, that's very well thought out, Ruz -- they'd have to see another resource in the FA market. I can't see one really.

[long suffrin' boulez fan]

Actually, that's very well thought out, Ruz -- they'd have to see another resource in the FA market. I can't see one really.

Isn’t Gallinari a free agent?

Would the MLE get it done?

Is he an equal option to Bertans at a lower price?

[nate33]

Actually, that's very well thought out, Ruz -- they'd have to see another resource in the FA market. I can't see one really.

Isn’t Gallinari a free agent?

Would the MLE get it done?

Is he an equal option to Bertans at a lower price?

Yes.

No.

No.

I'm pretty confident Gallo will cost more than the MLE. If he does sign for just the MLE, it will be with a contender having a real chance at a title, not with the Wizards so that he can win 42 games and maybe squeak into the the 8th seed. My guess is he costs roughly the same as Bertans.

I think Gallo and Bertans are roughly equal in value. Gallo is bigger and bulkier, more or a pure PF, so he rebounds better and doesn't get dominated as a post defender. He is also a better one-on-one shot creator. But Bertans is quicker, moves better without the ball and has more range and a quicker release; his off-ball gravity helps an offense more than Gallo. One big concern about Gallo is his injury history. They guy is always hurt and that's not going to improve with age.

[payitforward]

It's an extremely interesting comparison on the numbers, actually.

They are both really good scorers, & their 2 & 3 pt. FG %s aren't far apart. Yet, Davis has a much better efg%, because he takes so few 2-point attempts. OTOH, Gallo gets to the line much more & -- good as Davis is at the charity stripe -- Gallo is even better.

Overall, they seem about equal as scorers. Davis has an edge in TS%, but Gallinari is close -- & on higher usage.

As to the rest of the stuff, if you look at rebounds, assists, turnovers, steals & blocks they really couldn't be much closer overall. But... Gallinari commits less than half as many fouls as Bertans -- even though Bertans is average in that regard; he doesn't foul a lot.

OTOH, Gallo hardly ever fouls -- 1.5 per 36 minutes. Got to be one of the lowest rates in the league. Does it mean he's an extremely skilled defender? Or, does it mean he doesn't defend at all? Who knows?

[doclinkin]

When healthy Gallo is a significantly better defender. Smart team defense. Active and willing one on one defender, intelligent positional defender.

[Dark Faze]

I think the bottom line is we sign him because we can't go backwards as far as talent level, and we don't want to lose a significant asset for nothing. Depending on how the team does next season, we can consider trade opportunities, as there should be a nice market for him.

Even if we have to go a bit high to keep him, I'd consider doing it because we desperately need salary to include in potential trades.

Long term though, the Rui, Bertans, Bryant combo looks doomed to failure. There's no way to hide any of their weaknesses with the way the team is constructed.

[doclinkin]

John Hollinger's BORD$ formula says:

Davis Bertans — $19,055,733

Washington has openly signaled its desire to pay whatever it takes to keep Bertans, and that could be a pretty penny after he hit 42.4 percent of his 3s while taking an absurd 13.9 attempts per 100 possessions. Only James Harden and Buddy Hield flung triples more often, and that figure doesn’t include the many times Bertans was fouled taking a 3 … something that happened so often he had nearly as many free throws as 2-point attempts.

Washington has enough room below the luxury tax line to pay Bertans in this range, but they may not have to. As with Gallinari above, the question of “Who else would pay him?” looms large over Bertans. He turns 28 in November, so he’s not quite a rebuilding candidate, and some of the teams with cap room have quality 4s already.

The Wizards want Bertans’ number as low as possible because it could allow them to use some or all of their mid-level exception to address other weaknesses, like signing somebody who actually plays defense. Also, having Bertans on a salary in the high teens would likely cause the Wizards some real luxury tax concerns a year from now when Bradley Beal’s $34 million extension kicks in … assuming he’s still a Wizard then.

The Athletic

[pcbothwel]

John Hollinger's BORD$ formula says:

Davis Bertans — $19,055,733

Washington has openly signaled its desire to pay whatever it takes to keep Bertans, and that could be a pretty penny after he hit 42.4 percent of his 3s while taking an absurd 13.9 attempts per 100 possessions. Only James Harden and Buddy Hield flung triples more often, and that figure doesn’t include the many times Bertans was fouled taking a 3 … something that happened so often he had nearly as many free throws as 2-point attempts.

Washington has enough room below the luxury tax line to pay Bertans in this range, but they may not have to. As with Gallinari above, the question of “Who else would pay him?” looms large over Bertans. He turns 28 in November, so he’s not quite a rebuilding candidate, and some of the teams with cap room have quality 4s already.

The Wizards want Bertans’ number as low as possible because it could allow them to use some or all of their mid-level exception to address other weaknesses, like signing somebody who actually plays defense. Also, having Bertans on a salary in the high teens would likely cause the Wizards some real luxury tax concerns a year from now when Bradley Beal’s $34 million extension kicks in … assuming he’s still a Wizard then.

The Athletic

Lol, Double the Full MLE... Not a chance. Bye Davis. Enjoy the Knicks or Hawks.

[Ruzious]

That's the thing - who's going to bid his price up? Is the Knicks' goal really to be a .500 team? That's the only way they spend that kind of money on him. And would the Hawks really pay that much for him to be a backup? Phoenix already has his clone to be in Cam Johnson. So, in my mind - it's really only the Knicks that might bid him up in that range - and only if they're trying to be a .500 team.

[doclinkin]

Wouldn’t be the Knicks. He’s not a Thibodeaux type player. The Penguin doesn’t play one way specialists. Unless the one way is defense.