Shaun Livingston - A risk worth taking ?

[ahwi_quacoe]

He is an unrestricted free agent , a big point guard and could be looked at as another 1st round pick this year. Why not sign him to a deal less than the Mid-level and see if he can perform . Give him a three year deal , the third year being a team option and see what happens.

[dbodner]

If we strike out on the "names", I would be all over a kid like Livingston. He's not a guy who's going to come in and immediately provide a boost, but he's still 22 years old. The injuries are obviously a worry, but at 22 I'd take the risk, whereas at 32 I wouldn't. When Livingston's played (which hasn't been much), I thought he flashed some nice potential. I'm not sure he's a real fit as he has little in terms of range on his jumpshot, but I'd still risk a 2-3 year deal (I wouldn't go above 3 years, though).

[Gsraider]

I would be very interested and think you could probably get him at a reasonable price for a short term because Livingston probably wants to keep his next contract at a reasonable length so that he can prove to everyone he's healthy and still sign a big contract in the near future. Granted, his injury was pretty bad, so you have no idea if he'll ever make it all the way back, but it wasn't that long ago that he was a big time prospect. And, since he cannot shoot, he'd fit in great here:)

[Sixers1983]

I'd do it if there are no other viable options out there. His situation is similar to jay williams and he might not make it back all the way. He would be down the line but not out of the question.

[51X3RF4N]

Woot Woot. I don't think he's worth it.

[The Guilty Party]

Isn't Livingston a restricted FA? Did LAC not make a qualifying offer to him??

[SendEm]

I wouldn't touch him. He was injury prone and slight of frame before this major injury he suffered. at last check, which was within the last two months, he wasn't even allowed to run yet. This guy is very gifted but it is not within his DNA to be a 82 game plus the playoffs career NBA player. The upside of signing him is not huge because he wasn't even at a high level when he got injured. You can't be out of professional basketball for such a long amount of time and pick up were you left off. Normally these sorts of guys heel for maybe 6-7 months then begin basketball stuff for a few months before coming back. This guy has been heeling for like a year plus and hasn't even begun running yet at last check. I want him to come back, but not for this team. It's not like he had the career of the young Penny Hardaway before he got injured. It will at best take him a while just to get back to were he left off, which wasn't really starter level yet, then you have to roll the dice again hoping that he becomes a better player than he was which is no guarantee at all.

[mhunt]

Isn't Livingston a restricted FA? Did LAC not make a qualifying offer to him??

No Qualifying Offer For Clippers' Livingston?

Jun 29, 2008 4:17 AM EST
Clippers guard Shaun Livingston is set to become an unrestricted free agent with the Clippers declining to tender him a qualifying offer, the New York Daily News is reporting.

Livingston is still rehabilitating from a devastating knee injury, and may be too much of a medical risk for a team that is hoping to add a starting-caliber point guard.

[The Guilty Party]

Well... I'm not sure what this says. I mean, does LAC not have any faith in him returning? What was his qualifying offer... $5MIL? If so, that would seem a bit much to offer him but I'd have interest in him if he came cheap. Then again, because he'll get such a small amount, he can more or less pick any team.

[tk76]

I read that the Clips want/expect to resign him. They just would not invest 5M+.

[The Guilty Party]

I read that the Clips want/expect to resign him. They just would not invest 5M+.

That makes sense. We should hold the Clips ransom in this case. Give us DeAndre Jordan and we'll let you keep Livingston.

[Gsraider]

The point in trying to sign him is not to simply grab every guy whose names pops up as being available. It wasn't that long ago that Livingston was considered a heck of a prospect at PG and while he hadn't exactly lived up to it yet, the potential was still there.

Fast forwarding to today, assuming you give him a rigorous workout and your doctor's feel he is either back to full health again or will be in the near future, then I think he may be worth a look-see at a bargain price for a short time. Like one poster suggested in comparing him to Jay Williams, chances are that he will never be the same, but if he has a chance to get back to 100% and you can sign him to a one-two year deal at low money, I have no issue with that. Unfortunately, he probably won't pass the physical with glowing colors anyway.

[SendEm]

Fail.

[The Guilty Party]

LOL! I somewhat hope Stefanski signs Iguodala to a massive deal, Josh Smith to a massive deal, and Shaun Livingston to any sort of a deal just to make SendEm a very happy man.

[SendEm]

I only desire making moves that do not come with a high chance of us having to correct a mistake. This is a salary cap league you can't have too many bums under contract, you could miss out on being able to acquire a legit player in free agency at some point because all of your bums are hogging the cap. You also can't overpay a player like Iggy hoping that he earns the money at some point.

Again the upside on Livingston is really not that high because you have to roll the dice twice on him. You roll the dice the first time hoping that he can come back and be the caliber player that he was before he got injured. Then you roll the dice again hoping that he can be better than the player he was when he got injured, which was barely good enough to be a full time starter.

[76erinSJ]

How is getting a career ending injury failing? These are the types of post that are uncalled for. How long did it take Billups to develop into a franchise PG? Sign him to a three year deal at the lowest you can. Maybe a three year deal worth 5 or 6 mill with a player potion then a team option.

[ahwi_quacoe]

This is why the sixers never get any high reward players , we rarely ever are willing to take the high risks. IF he pans pout he could help us big time. Wathc the Spurs or Lakers pick him up and we'll all be saying " HOw come Stefanski didn't pick him up" blah blah blah. Oh well we'll see . TIme will tell

[Phillyboy]

I'm sure Livingston is a fine kid who has worked hard to try to get back on the floor. I don't mean to take a purely clinical approach here but if he really was game ready why would the Clips, who have invested time and money in his success, be prepared to part with him for no return compensation?

Another factor to consider is that PG is the longest learning curve to excellence of any of the 5 positions. I heard Billups mentioned and he only makes my point more valid. As a young PG Billups was not the floor leader of a contending team, bad shots, bad decisions, and it took him time to develop into the professional floor general he has become.

I guess some of us see the Sixers, as a team in different contexts. I don't see us as a young team years away. I see us as a surprisingly developed team one large component away from contending. I guess it's a matter of one mindset wants to replace old with new and another that wants to add veteran talent to the mix of veteran and young talent that exists today. I'd rather add then subtract.

Andre Miller needs to stay. He's a developed and polished PG who could be running a championship contending team with the right pieces. Livingston would cost us a chunk of our cap space and effectively end another other major FA move we might have been considering. Too much uneccessary risk for me.

(Still avatar-less)