Gomes' future

[TrentTuckerForever]

^I see your point. Maybe Walton or Boris Diaw are better comparisons? (although Gomes is more physical than those guys...) In any case, I think Devilz is right that Gomes main value is that he allows the Wolves to play small.

[shrink]

My concern is longterm. I would hope that the plan is that Corey Brewer will soon be taking more and more minutes from Gomes at SF, since he is certainly very athletic. Winning the lottery and getting Beasley would really squeeze Gomes. I hope we add a big defensive center, but small teams are also really the only time we can use Craig Smith, because of the size difference on defense.

Add a summer of development on our players. Without Gomes, we can still go:

Against Bigs: Brewer/Al Jefferson/Big FA

or

Against Smalls: Brewer/Craig Smith/Al

(Snyder and Jaric play some SF to spell Brewer)

Right now, we're clearly better with Gomes, against both big and small line-ups. However, I'm concerned about giving him four years and seeing him rot on our bench. I've been amazed with Gomes, and he's my favorite Timberwolf, but despite his composure and effort, his physical limitations put a cap on his ceiling. I don't think it would be fair to us, or him, to lock him to the bench as the better pedigreed youth develop on their physical skills and usurp his playing time.

[the_bruce]

My main problem with extending gomes for to many years. Is that MN already has players capable of filling the roles he plays. Brewer should be the future of the sf position for the wolves. Jaric can do everything Gomes can do on the wing, except better. Why lock up an additional 4m a year to replicate functionality MN already has? Nobody is taking Marco near term.
Cookie and Al are both better playing inside. Sure Gomes plays inside out better than any of the players listed, and hell the tweener 3/4 mismatch threat is generally some uber athletic freak who has mad D. Gomes is meh athletically and the only reason he gets by is the kid is smart.

Sure Gomes can play some small ball here and there and be lights out, against a few teams, but against bigger teams where our frontline is masively outmatched its just blah.

Lets not get into this whole offer players to much money for to long thing that hasnt worked out so well in the past. Use that 4m to get a big guy up front imo. I'd rather the team lock up a guy like diop for 7m a year and let gomes walk then resign something we dont desperately need.

We need a bigger more athletic front court gomes doesnt help us there at all imo.