NBA Trade Thread #13

[2weekswithpay]

I'd argue against targeting Sabonis for a few reasons.

The Kings would want assets for, and he's under contract for 3 more seasons at 40M+. We can afford to acquire him, but that doesn't mean we should. We can use these resources elsewhere.

I don't think Sabonis moves the needle. I don't think his defense is as bad as people think, but he still is an undersized 5 that can't protect the rim. His offense tends to be overrated, Sabonis can't shoot, and he can struggle creating offense. In 2023, the Warriors had Looney sag off and dared him to shoot, and it was very effective.

The Kings were at their best offensively when they ran a DHO heavy offense and surrounded Sabonis with shooters. The Bulls do not have the shooting, and I'm not confident a DHO heavy offense would benefit the players.

[sco]

If you're arguing against Sabonis as a target, I would ask - who are the Bulls realistically going to be able to sign in FA who's anywhere near as useful?

Sabnis, Matas, Giddey is an interesting core. As a starting five with Coby and Okoro for a full season, with Tre and Ayo and Collins leading the reserves, that's probably a 47-50 win team over a full season. Make some smart moves in the next two offseasons and you could put together an actual contender.

I guess it depends how you define useful. Sabonis has useful skills, passing and rebounding, but those are not the skills we need from a C because we have them already. We need a C who can defend, first as a rim protector, but a guy who also can contest on the perimeter would be a nice plus. Give me a Robinson or Claxton 10/10 over Sabonis.

To the broader point, we need a true #1 option (likely to replace Coby), and Sabonis' salary gets in the way of that. Did anyone know Luka was going to be on the block? IMO, we have the assets to make a big swing for a star if one comes up.

[sco]

I agree.. I dont think Sabonis or KAT are the right fits for Bulls. KAT maybe a bit more, because he offsets bad D with big O, but still..

Despite my comments on my prior post, I'd do a deal for KAT. He may close enough to a #1 option to take the swing. I think Coby would need to go either to make the deal work or just to make the roster work. We might be able to do a line-up of something like: Giddey, one of Okoro/Ayo/Jones, Matas, Smith, KAT.

[Infinity2152]

I think the concept that you can't win without a defensive center went out of the window when Jokic won a championship and stays in the MVP running every year. He's not a shot blocker or laterally fast. He may be a little better than KAT defensively, but he's been running with Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr for years, two 6'9, 6'10 players. Team defense is really a thing. When guards/forwards don't get by screens or play lazy defense on pick and rolls, the big man ends up having to cover both players, like what has happened constantly to Vucevic. Our guys can't stay between their guy and the basket, and a slow big is going to look really bad. I think OKC barely played their center in the Finals, they didn't need to.

It's 2025, three-point shooting is THE premium skill. Much easier to find cheap guys who can play good defense. We're not close to winning a championship. Even so, is anybody prepared to say a team can't win a championship with KAT as one of their BIG 3? And Giddey as the fourth best player? Given his low salary, I'm willing to say a true contender should be willing to go deep in the tax, at least to the first apron, meaning we could add two more players more expensive than Giddey.

There are what, maybe 2-3 centers in the entire league that have averaged 24+ multiple seasons with good 3 pt shooting? Of course, ideally our center is a great defender, but don't think it's the only way to build a winning team.

[jnrjr79]

I think the concept that you can't win without a defensive center went out of the window when Jokic won a championship and stays in the MVP running every year. He's not a shot blocker or laterally fast. He may be a little better than KAT defensively, but he's been running with Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr for years, two 6'9, 6'10 players. Team defense is really a thing. When guards/forwards don't get by screens or play lazy defense on pick and rolls, the big man ends up having to cover both players, like what has happened constantly to Vucevic. Our guys can't stay between their guy and the basket, and a slow big is going to look really bad. I think OKC barely played their center in the Finals, they didn't need to.

It's 2025, three-point shooting is THE premium skill. Much easier to find cheap guys who can play good defense. We're not close to winning a championship. Even so, is anybody prepared to say a team can't win a championship with KAT as one of their BIG 3? And Giddey as the fourth best player? Given his low salary, I'm willing to say a true contender should be willing to go deep in the tax, at least to the first apron, meaning we could add two more players more expensive than Giddey.

There are what, maybe 2-3 centers in the entire league that have averaged 24+ multiple seasons with good 3 pt shooting? Of course, ideally our center is a great defender, but don't think it's the only way to build a winning team.

I don’t think anyone believes you can’t win without a defensive center. And yes, if you have the greatest passing center who has ever lived and he is good for 30 ppg, you can win. But if you have a Sabonis-level center, you darn sure need great point-of-attack defenders.