Summer 2012 Free Agents Thread - Part II

[truwizfan4evr]

The Clippers, Pacers, Bulls, Mavericks and Wizards have all expressed interest in Courtney Lee, according to sources.

The Rockets withdrew their qualifying offer to Lee as they attempt to sign Omer Asik and possibly several other free agents.

[truwizfan4evr]

I would to have Lee on are team we be scary with all this depth

[payitforward]

...Crawford's scoring rate went up by 2.3 pts per 40 minutes and his TS% went up by 3.2% compared to his rookie year, in spite of the lockout.

An average 2 guard in the NBA -- not a good one, an average one -- posts a TS% of 53.4%. Jordan Crawford's improved TS% in his 2d year was 48.8%. Hence the rise in his "scoring rate" is a bad thing not a good thing.

Slightly more than 80 SGs averaged 20 minutes or more in the games they played. Of those, exactly 10 had a worse eFG% than Jordan Crawford. It was at that 11th worst rate of 80+ that his scoring rate rose.

Of course, maybe he contributed in a strong way in some other activity -- maybe he's a good rebounder for a guard.... Well, no, he's in the bottom 35% of that same list.

How about turnovers; is he good at avoiding those? No. Only 12 guys on that same list are worse than he in turnovers.

How about steals -- he gets .08 more steals per 40 minutes than the average for a 2 guard. Awright!

You want to get to 14-40? Play Jordan Crawford a lot of minutes; that'll give you the flying start you need to get there.

...we still have 2 years left on his cheap rookie deal. There is no urgency to make the final call on him now.

Unless roster spots are precious, and we are trying to get the best players we can on our team. In that case, what are we waiting for -- a miracle?

[Upper Decker]

The Washington Wizards are looking to keep Cartier Martin after he played well near the end of last season following a stint in China. They have reached out to Martin's representatives and there's a "good chance" he'll return, reports CSN Washington's Ben Standig.

His return isn't quite imminent, though, and other teams, such as the San Antonio Spurs and Orlando Magic, have also reached out to Martin. Standig also notes that Martin likely will not receive quite as much playing time as he did last year. Nevertheless, it looks like there's a good chance Martin will be back on the squad next year.

http://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/7/3/ ... #storyjump

Looks-like me more slot is accounted-for

I don't think his playing time will be decreased compared to last year. The way I see it is Ariza will start and play 27ish minutes. That'll leave 21 back up minutes to Singleton and Martin. I suspect Cartier will beat out Singleton as the primary back up as Singleton was just dreadful last year. Martin is the better shooter and the better defender. Also, there is a chance Cartier might take Crawdad's minutes if he keeps jacking shots.

[payitforward]

... Think about this: over the past 10 seasons, 44 players have played at least 2500 total minutes and had a usage rate of 25 or higher. Crawford is 44th -- dead last -- in offensive rating.

So you're saying that JC has nowhere to go but up.

Not "up" -- "out". Out of the league, that's the only place he has to go. But I'm sure Ernie will pick up his option. Pretty much *any* prospect considered on this forum for our #32 pick this year was likely (as in *guaranteed*) to have a better NBA career than Jordan Crawford (picked #28 in a very shallow draft).

[hands11]

I see no reason not to hope Crawford continues to develop. If he improves again next year he may even have value as a expiring trade chip along with Emeka or Ariza.

I don't have as much problem with his shot selection as his TO rate. He was one of the few that could create his own shot on this team last year and this may have caused just as many bad shots/turnovers as poor decisions. I feel comfortable with him as a third guard at this point in time..... much the same way i feel Vesely and Seraphin will improve I think the same is possible from Jordan, especially in a third guard role. Time will tell, we aren't going to contend for the eastern conference, I think this fits our model before the trade of cheap controlled talent with potential, even if it may be an outside shot.

Considering how we got him, he served his purpose last year and any value increase is gravy. The kid only played 106 total games in his NBA career. That just over 1 season of games. Just maybe he has some room to get better with experience and a more structure mature team. Wall has played 135 and he was very up and down over his first two years. Sometimes he was downright awful and yes... a chucker and a crash dummy.

If I'm not mistaken, Wall had some pretty low efficiency numbers for a PG.

No, I am not saying Crawford is or will be better then Wall. I'm just saying he still stands a chance to become more effective. Specially if he isn't asked to carry so much of the scoring load and he either get better at shooting 3s or doesn't shoot them unless he is set with a clear shot. I think he was better when he did that. If you remove his low percent 3 ball stats, his efficiency gets a lot better. I don't think Randy will give him the green light this year that he had last year.

The floor should be more spread this year also and the offense more structured in the half court. That is going to help everyone. 1+1 = 3 type thing.

Beal is going to help. And if they bring back Mason, he will help earlier in the season then last year where he got a late start.

[hands11]

... Think about this: over the past 10 seasons, 44 players have played at least 2500 total minutes and had a usage rate of 25 or higher. Crawford is 44th -- dead last -- in offensive rating.

So you're saying that JC has nowhere to go but up.

Not "up" -- "out". Out of the league, that's the only place he has to go. But I'm sure Ernie will pick up his option. Pretty much *any* prospect considered on this forum for our #32 pick this year was likely (as in *guaranteed*) to have a better NBA career than Jordan Crawford (picked #28 in a very shallow draft).

And so it was written. And so it should be done.

Come on. Where do you come up with this stuff.

[dangermouse]

I'd do a Courtney Lee for JC sign and trade

Make it happen Ern!

[nuposse04]

http://www.basketball-reference.com/pla ... eco01.html

Lee would be a massive upgrade over JC IMO. He only made 2.2 mil this past season, the fact he can actually shoot the 3 ball very well and has decent SG size should make him attractive.

[nate33]

I'd do a Courtney Lee for JC sign and trade

Make it happen Ern!

Can't do it unless we send filler to match Lee's salary. And I'm assuming Houston wouldn't be interested if their end game is to free up cap room for big name free agents.

But maybe we can sign Lee and then let under-the-cap teams know that they can have Jordan Crawford for nothing.

Whatever the case, replacing Crawford with Lee would be a big upgrade. And we might well have the best defense in the league if we can implement and run a good scheme. With the possible exceptions of OKC and Miami, I'm struggling to think of a team with better defensive personnel.

[jivelikenice]

I'd do a Courtney Lee for JC sign and trade

Make it happen Ern!

Can't do it unless we send filler to match Lee's salary. And I'm assuming Houston wouldn't be interested if their end game is to free up cap room for big name free agents.

But maybe we can sign Lee and then let under-the-cap teams know that they can have Jordan Crawford for nothing.

Whatever the case, replacing Crawford with Lee would be a big upgrade. And we might well have the best defense in the league in we can implement and run a good scheme. With the possible exceptions of OKC and Miami, I'm struggling to think of a team with better defensive personnel.

You can probably throw in Singleton but they may not be interested in two players. Nate's suggestion makes sense. If you acquire him you can dump Crawford to a team w/ cap space for minimal future considerations. It would be a great addition. Lee can start and be effective to begin the season; especially if Beal needs some time to acclimate to the NBA game. Eventually as Beal progresses, Lee can transition to a 6th man role which could be good for him.

The organization has hammered the word competition since the Okafor/Ariza deal, but they only have real comp in the front court. Why not make some of the youngsters in the backcourt earn it too?

[nate33]

Reading on the general board about Lee. People have crazy ideas of what he worth. People are throwing around "full MLE," and, "if Batum makes $12M a year, I don't see why Lee shouldn't make $8M."

I have no interest whatsoever in paying Lee a full MLE deal. I might pay $4M a year. If he wants more, then c'est la vie. Give me Cartier Martin at the vet minimum and be done with it.

[jivelikenice]

I think he's worth the full MLE. Would I sign him to a long-term deal? No, but for 2-3 yrs I'd look into it. he averaged 14 ppg as a starter and shot 40% from the 3 pt line. Would I sign him long-term if I needed a sg to to create offense? No, but he's a great fit playing next to Wall. He great on the corner 3, is effective on the pump and drive game, gets steals, and can run the floor...Wall/Lee/ and Beal can be a great backcourt and with Beal's ability to rebound & our big front court, you can go small at times and play Beal at the 3....

[payitforward]

If I'm not mistaken, Wall had some pretty low efficiency numbers for a PG. .

Sigh.... Among the @65 PGs who averaged 20+ minutes in the games they played, 25 had a better WS40 than Wall -- in other words, he is already above the average. And that includes his *horrendous* start to the season. Run the numbers on the last 1/3 of the season, and he'll likely be among the top ten, maybe the top 1/2 dozen.

If you remove (Crawford's) low percent 3 ball stats, his efficiency gets a lot better.

Gee, really? so you're saying that if I remove a player's bad stats, then his numbers look better? Do I have that right?

Would there be any players for whom that would not be true? Hmmm, no I guess not. So... how does that fact say anything whatever about Jordan Crawford.

I don't get it. What's the deal? Why does Crawford get love when it's obvious he can't play effectively at an NBA level? He does not help his team win; he helps his team lose. He wasn't good in college either, for that matter.

Yes, he got better last year over the previous year. If he continued to improve that same rate for the next four years, year on year, always getting better, he might get to the point where he produces like an average NBA SG. But, you know, that's just not going to happen. And if it did happen, it wouldn't make him worth keeping anyway.

Get rid of him, and get someone else.

[payitforward]

Reading on the general board about Lee. People have crazy ideas of what he worth. People are throwing around "full MLE," and, "if Batum makes $12M a year, I don't see why Lee shouldn't make $8M."

I have no interest whatsoever in paying Lee a full MLE deal. I might pay $4M a year. If he wants more, then c'est la vie. Give me Cartier Martin at the vet minimum and be done with it.

Totally with you on this. Lee is about an average 2 guard, and it's doubtful he has a lot of development left. He wouldn't be much good as a starter, and he'd cost too much for a reserve.

Frankly, I don't think I'd even give him $4m -- not that that's overpaying him in NBA terms, but what real difference will he make to your team's record over Cartier Martin? Martin's not as good as Lee, but he's close, and he's plenty good enough for a guy who'll be your 5th wing.

[willbcocks]

Well, my free agent target, Fields, signed for more than I'd be willing to pay. At this point I'd just continue to be patient and see who's left when the dust settles. We're not in a desparate situation and there's no wings out there worth getting desparate for.

Of the moves that other teams have made since we did our trade, I would likely have preferred getting Marvin Williams or BG + the pick to what we did, though neither is ideal. If I were GM, I'd probably not have made any moves yet.

[closg00]

Nicolas Batum has told the Blazers that he does not want to return to the team, according to a source close to the situation.

"Batum never wants to play in Portland again," the source said. "And has determined that Minnesota is the best for him and his family."

The Timberwolves are believed to have offered Batum a four-year deal that could approach $50 million.

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/22 ... z1zcgcWIlI

And to piggyback on 7-Day's post, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Minny won 26 games last-year and Batum wants to play for them . Just sayin.

[80sballboy]

Nicolas Batum has told the Blazers that he does not want to return to the team, according to a source close to the situation.

"Batum never wants to play in Portland again," the source said. "And has determined that Minnesota is the best for him and his family."

The Timberwolves are believed to have offered Batum a four-year deal that could approach $50 million.

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/22 ... z1zcgcWIlI

And to piggyback on 7-Day's post, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Minny won 26 games last-year and Batum wants to play for them . Just sayin.

And they might have made the playoffs had Rubio not got hurt. Batum sees Rubio, Kevin Love, JJ Barea, Nikola Pekovic, Derrick Williams, Chase Buddinger, Wesley Johnson, Michael Beasley. They have too many forwards and need to make a deal but Batum would solidify the backcourt.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Reading on the general board about Lee. People have crazy ideas of what he worth. People are throwing around "full MLE," and, "if Batum makes $12M a year, I don't see why Lee shouldn't make $8M."

I have no interest whatsoever in paying Lee a full MLE deal. I might pay $4M a year. If he wants more, then c'est la vie. Give me Cartier Martin at the vet minimum and be done with it.

+1

[BruceO]

Option hasn't been picked up yet on Kyle korver... But u think he's injured. I think Ronnie brewer as well but not sure. With the new Cuba teams may not match some offers or pick up certain options...also realized many teams have a lot of cap room. Competition would have been fierce