how does keeping andre miller help us?

[freshie2]

Devin Harris, expirings, and a first rounder would be very interesting. I don't think you lose any appeal to potential FAs by bringing Harris in, you have more money (although the $$ may be better next year as has been pointed out by others) and you throw in a #1. Dallas has upgraded with Kidd, NJ remains viable with Miller, and the Sixers get a good (not great) young PG, cap space, and a pick.

Need the crystal ball...not sure what Miller lands you next season, but this deal would be pretty good.

You can make this work without getting too crazy...Dampier and Magliore need to swap teams and send Stackhouse to the Nets as well. Harris is only 24, shoots a nice percentage from the field and the foul line, and definitely plays into the Sixers 'up tempo' approach. That may be a tough deal to turn down, especially if they throw in a #1.

[tk76]

I still do not know if Lou can be a full time PG- but I hope we have a better sense by the end of the season.

I think management may have decided he will stay a bench player, given how often they have him out there aloingside another pg (Miller or Oliie.) If they really projected him as the PG they would not be putting Ollie next to him as they have recently.

[sec-106]

Agree with above, which is why if another PG is brought in, he must have decent size to offset LW playing at SG (sound familiar?).

[tk76]

At this point, it would be hard to turn down a good pg just because he doesn't fit with someone Lou. I may still be on his bandwagon, but he could always be moved in a sign and trade for other assets in a year or two.

At this point we still should just try to raise the talent level and not worry so much about fit beyond trying to continue being athletic.

Sort of like how people complain Dala and Young might not be a good fit. They are both athletic and on the rise. Just see how it plays out and we can always trade one of them in a few years if thats whats needed to make the next step.

[dbodner]

I think keeping Andre Miller really boils down to whether or not you think the Sixers are close (a player or two away, not necessarily), or if you think the Sixers are a superstar away. It boils down to whether you feel the sixers are close because they're only 1 game out of the playoffs, or whether you feel the Sixers are a long ways away because they're 10 games under .500.

This team isn't close. This is a bad team. If we were in the west, we'd be 10+ games out of the 8th seed. Playing in a bad conference doesn't make us closer to contention, it just gives us false optimism.

This team NEEDS to acquire a #1 offensive option. Someone to command a double team, and someone to take pressure off Iguodala and Thad. Keeping Miller prevented hurt our chances of doing so last offseason, and keeping miller hurts our chances of dong so next offseason. Whether or not Andre Miller is a good player is irrelevant IMO if it lessens our chances of taking the next step. Trading Andre Miller might force us to take a step back, but we're not good now anyway.

And Andre Miller is hardly irreplaceable. Andre Miller might not grow on trees, but he's not exactly a hard commodity to find, either. 10-15 teams have been able to find a PG better than him.

[Johnny Broad-Street]

If we can find a PF and another scoring ball handler in a combination of draft and FA, Miller looks nice on this team

[dbodner]

Well, but that's the point. Keeping Miller lessens our possibility of doing that in both the FA and the draft.

[Johnny Broad-Street]

To an extent. How much expiring money can we realistically get back for Miller? I've combed the teams and most of it is unlikely or undesireable. Not to say it can't/won't happen....just really hard.

As for the draft, we're pretty much picking between 7 and 11 whether we lose Milelr or keep him, so I'm not really sweating it

[dbodner]

We don't really need all of it back, even if we get 5 mil back in expiring, we can then offer a max contract (or two contracts starting in the 8 mil range).

Yeah, we're pretty much stuck between 7-11. That just shows what a mistake it was keeping him for this long. No reason to compound the mistake and keep him longer.

[kingofthecourt67]

My only real problem with Miller is how he has and is hurting our draft position. Like dbodner said, we need a superstar player, and that superstar doesn't necessarily have to come through free agency. This draft is really talented and I know that might mean we can get a quality player at 7-11, but we're potentially missing out on some exceptional players in 1-5.

However, it is too late now for us to get a top 5 pick, but it is not too late for Miller to sneak us into the playoffs. If we got into the playoffs somehow because we are playing Miller extended minutes while everyone else is shutting down, then it will be a setback.

[sweetlou23]

If we keep pyrite, how long do you think lou will be satisfied coming off of the bench?

[Dedicated_76ers_fan]

Lou hasn't exactly wowed us with his PG play, homer boy.

[sweetlou23]

1. speak for yourself
2. ixnay on the name calling
3. a substantive response is preferred

[dond]

And Andre Miller is hardly irreplaceable. Andre Miller might not grow on trees, but he's not exactly a hard commodity to find, either. 10-15 teams have been able to find a PG better than him.

Sometimes you do not know what you have until it is gone. The Sixers may NEVER get another point guard (a real point guard) with the skills of Miller. I cannot recall, even 1, from the past. I do not have a memory of Cheeks so I cannot speak to that, but I sure hate to give up what he brings to this team. I would be absolutely against it unless some team was so desperate to win THIS YEAR that they would make a trade that gives up their future for now ... and I am not sure what that could even be.

One other thought .... The OLD saying ... A Bird In The Hand Is Worth Two In The Bush ... may apply here. Miller is close to All-Star material ... probably should have been already but he isn't dynamic enough ...

To dump him for a CHANCE to draft someone of equal or better value is a gamble. Just getting a higher draft choice is no guarantee you get someone of his stature. There are plenty of examples of high draft choices turning into just mediocre players ...

[Sixerscan]

Miller is close to All-Star material ... probably should have been already but he isn't dynamic enough ...

Miller is probably not even one of the 50 best players in the NBA right now.

[noone]

First of all, I don't think anybody has overrated Andre Miller more than you just did right now.

And secondly, nobody has ever suggested to dump him only for a chance to draft someone of equal or better value. There are several other factors you're forgetting that help us in the long run by trading Miller.

[freshie2]

It's not a bad general thought...Miller is a very valuable piece to this team. The difficult issue is that this team is not ready for that key piece he brings, and probably won't be for another year or two.

IF the Sixers land a high level RFA in the offseason (Okafor), and end with a top 5-8 pick (Lopez/Thabeet), and get an outside shooter like Lofton or Carter in the 2nd round, they could be in decent shape next season to compete in the East with Miller. If they don't make any noise with FAs, and miss on the draft pick, they probably are in a similar position again next season and I'm not sure Miller would have any greater value on the market then as he does now.

His contract will be expiring, but will he be playing at this high a level?

Is anyone going to have a fire sale like Memphis did with Gasol??

What type of deal can they get now??

All questions we can't answer...it's a tough decision/gamble.

As for Cheeks, they are completely different players. Mo was more a defensive menace who didn't have the offensive skill set that Miller has. He was very good at getting to the rim and finishing, and could hit the open jumper. I think both he and Miller have the mindset to pass first, but Miller is kind of forced into a scoring role now. They probably are the best 2 PGs the Sixers have had in recent memory...Snow was nice, but not at the level of Cheeks or Miller.