Okafor

shrink · Post #1 » by **shrink** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 7:00 pm

Larry Brown told the Charlotte Observer last week he was concerned about a possible ownership change with the team apparently for sale. Michael Jordan, of course, is mentioned prominently. But franchise sales in this market are difficult, and rather than continuing to take losses, some executives believe Charlotte will follow the Memphis model and "gift" someone Emeka Okofor because of his big contract and maintain a payroll that can break even until a buyer is found. ...

It's from an unreliable Sam Smith, but this is a situation I continue to keep a very close eye on.

Devilzsidewalk · Post #2 » by **Devilzsidewalk** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 7:11 pm

Okafor isn't a gift, he's a friggin trojan horse

shrink · Post #3 » by **shrink** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 7:21 pm

He's a big defensive center like we've never had, but that contract is almost too big to swallow:

10,497,500 11,495,000 12,492,500 13,490,000 14,487,500

delux55 · Post #4 » by **delux55** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 7:23 pm

He is a bit undersized but plays better interior defense than anything we got. He did get a heft contract but of the supposedly available big men he earns his contract more than the others by far.

I would be interested in to see what the asking price would be. Obv cardnial or miller would have to be involved for contract purposes. But what else would need to be added. Pick 18 most likely is not enough. Would the 6th pick be to much? Would Brewer, pick 18 and cardinal be enough.

Esohny · Post #5 » by **Esohny** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 7:34 pm

If he were consistently making 8-9 million over the life of the contract, I could get on board more easily with this.

the_bruce · Post #6 » by **the_bruce** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 7:38 pm

I'm only down with crash.

4ho5ive · Post #7 » by **4ho5ive** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 8:28 pm

From what i have heard, Cats fans think Okafor is a much better player at the 4 then he is at the 5. Take it for what its worth

Post #8 » by **Basti** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 8:38 pm

hasn't he had some injury troubles too?

funkatron101 · Post #9 » by **funkatron101** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 9:12 pm

the_incredible_basti wrote:hasn't he had some injury troubles too?

Played every game the last two seasons.

JMillott · Post #10 » by **JMillott** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 10:12 pm

Esohny wrote:If he were consistently making 8-9 million over the life of the contract, I could get on board more easily with this.

If that was the case he'd be unavailable or damn hard to get.

No doubt Emeka Okafor is over paid as he is very limited offensively (can post a bit and dunk no passing ability period) and as good as he is defensively he still gives up size at C. He can play at PF but his lack of shooting range and ball handling skills make him even more limited offensively at PF and PF's with range can limit his defensive impact.

It is impossible for him to truly earn the back end of that contract without making major improvements offensively that he really has shown no signs of making. On the other hand he is one of the few bigs in this league that is basically a guaranteed double double and is an impact team defender.

The question here is basically if Okafor and Jefferson could play well enough offensively to justify the cost? I think it's a good enough combo to win and make the playoffs but it would clearly require a top tier perimeter player to get any meaningful success.

Esohny · Post #11 » by **Esohny** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 10:51 pm

It's also why he's not a desirable trade option at all. Even then, 8-9 million(in today's NBA dollars) would still be a little much for what he brings.

Krapinsky · Post #12 » by **Krapinsky** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 11:13 pm

shrink wrote:He's a big defensive center like we've never had, but that contract is almost too big to swallow:

10,497,500 11,495,000 12,492,500 13,490,000 14,487,500

He's pretty close to the same size as Jefferson. His standing reach is 2 inches longer according to DX, but Jefferson may have even grown a little since he got in the league.

Post #13 » by **revprodeji** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 11:32 pm

No..Okafor needs a big body next to him. Not sure if Al can be that guy for him. Okafor also has no where near enough offensive value to justify the contract.

big3_8_19_21 · Post #14 » by **big3_8_19_21** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 11:44 pm

I'd rather slightly overpay for Gortat than heavily overpay for Okafor.

cpfsf · Post #15 » by **cpfsf** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 12:41 am

That's a lot of power forwards. I'd rather just wait till 2010.

skorff26 · Post #16 » by **skorff26** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 1:44 am

I am a big Okafor fan, but if we were to trade for Okafor, I'd rather wait until the summer of 2010.

Dewey · Post #17 » by **Dewey** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:00 am

Okafor would be a consideration if we had our PG and SG in place ... at this point we cannot seriously consider adding him..

JMillott · Post #18 » by **JMillott** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:17 am

Dewey wrote:Okafor would be a consideration if we had our PG and SG in place ... at this point we cannot seriously consider adding him..

This is basically how I feel.

Okafor would be worth taking on if you already had a quality team in the hunt looking to get over the hump and willing to pay the luxury tax to do so. He is making top 2-3 money but is only good enough to be a 4th guy on a serious contender.

If the Wolves had Brandon Roy and Al Jefferson in place then you'd consider this. But with Jefferson and Love you just can't consider this.

Steve_Holiday · Post #19 » by **Steve_Holiday** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 12:43 pm

shrink, after a 19 page thread on kirk hinrich and countless posts about the importance of "raw cap space" and "kingmakers," you're bringing okafor up?

funkatron101 · Post #20 » by **funkatron101** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:56 pm

If Okafor came with Wallace and Augustin, for some sort of combination of Miller, Cards, Gomes (maybe Foye) and our later picks or rights to Pekovic, I would be all over that. But no way in hell the Bobcats would go for that.

Okafor alone? Doesn't really help us, IMO.

A lot of people are pretty high on Wallace, but man, is he injury prone. I never really looked at his season to season stats until yesterday. I would think never playing a full season in his career would put a dent in his stock.