Ice Man wrote:MrSparkle wrote:Suns are also a reminder of why you should never trade 2 young finals starters with 5 unprotected firsts (inc. swap) for anybody.
I would do that for Wemby. That said, your point otherwise stands. Well put.
Man, I don’t think I’d risk it. Wemby has an ACL tear and then what? The swaps mean you have half a decade of no shot at a top pick, which is also a strong trade asset in itself. Putting 100% of your stock in 2 great players and free agency is very risky, and nearly impossible to build a good team. Especially these days, as most stars sign their max extensions asap without thinking twice, and roleplayers (particularly shooters and 3D wings) command significant cap space on the open market.
Mavs, Suns, Clippers, Lakers, Nets struggles whilst having multiple superstars are proof in the pudding. You need a strong 8-man rotation to cruise to perennial contention. When you do the 5 FRP and 2 good asset/young prospect mega deal, you’re chucking so many uncertain darts that you’re bound to get stung by one (Shai in LAC’s case), and incapable of filling a depth chart.
Celtics, Nuggets, Thunder have 1 thing in common- they never traded more than 1 pick for their rotation pieces (if anything, they got picks with them). Nor did the Heat (and even they struggled with the freebie Big 3). I think Jimmy also costed like, 1 FRP at most in that S&T. LeLakers and Bucks are lucky they got their 1 ring each, as they paid some big prices for Davis and Jrue. (The Dame trade is gonna probably end up a big blunder.)
But yeah… Shai, Jokic, Giannis, Luka, Wemby… would I trade Mikal, Cam and 5 picks if I had Booker? I don’t know. I’d maybe sooner try to trade Booker and much less picks.
The truth with this hypothetical is that a sub-28yo established superstar is literally untradeable. I can’t think of one that’s ever been traded (caveats with Harden, Shai, Butler… nobody knew they’d become MVP caliber, inc. the teams that got them). They are worth more than the farm, but is there anything more frustrating than having a generational superstar and not being able to pass the first round? (KG Wolves, TMac Magic, etc.)