Lakers release Manny Harris

[milesfides]

I think this was a bad move. Yeah, his percentages weren't high, but he came into a mess of a situation. He didn't get shots where he wanted, the Lakers defense was helter-skelter, he played with us on a terrible losing streak.

But I think he's got great fundamentals. I like his ability to dribble and penetrate and finish, and that's something that's sorely lacking on this team. He's pretty athletic and aggressive, he rebounds well, as opposed to Nick Young or Meeks.

I think he's a baller. Like Xavier Henry, Manny Harris is a well-rounded player who has a bit of everything, including a good stroke.

Not a perfect player, but he's young, athletic, and personally speaking, I would hold on to X and Manny as cheap future investments.

It's too bad. Because we've been getting KILLED at shooting guard. Meeks gives you 3-point shooting and hurts you pretty much everywhere else. Harris has got some legit potential, and I don't doubt a team will pick him up. Sucks.

[The Skyhook]

So Meeks goes down with an ankle injury and we decide to release Harris? Makes sense.

[Slava]

I think if all healthy, Blake & Farmar will see mins at SG until X & possibly Kobe coming back. Makes no sense to keep Harris with all the guaranteed contracts already. He will play with the D-fenders and we can always pick him up if needed in the summer.

[BEazy]

So more of one ear Blake and Farmar. Outstanding! Let's give an around of applause to Mitch Kupcake.

[ArC_man]

He played his heart out in his last game, he was told he would be let go before the game as well. I do feel like he was probably let go because with Pau and even Hill out now we might need to bring back another big man on a 10-day. Especially if we trade Pau for someone who's not going to play.

[milesfides]

X and Harris are/were our best all-around wings. Considering we don't have a lot of draft picks, we can do worse than try to grow athletic multi-dimensional guards.

Nash is 40 and done, Blake is game but he can't stay healthy and headed towards mid 30s. We shouldn't fool ourselves thinking we have a glut of guards.

Nick young is fun and has a good heart but he's a ball stopper who doesn't contribute in any other category than points.

If you're trying to invest in the future, can't let go of guys like manny.

[crazyeights]

He never had a chance, IMO. Meaning they were only ever using him as a stop-gap measure. Didn't get to catch many of his games, but it is a shame that guys with potential are getting cut to save money.

How long is Hill expected to be out for?

[Slava]

He got a nice $90k from those contracts. He'll be fine and since he is with the D-fenders they can continue monitoring him and invite him to camp again next year.

[Tiesto_Lakers]

He better hop on a flight to Philly tomorrow. Wouldn't be surprised if we sign him again after the Young injury.

[dockingsched]

So Meeks goes down with an ankle injury and we decide to release Harris? Makes sense.

technically he wasn't released, his 2nd 10 day contract simply expired. the next step would be signing him for the rest of the yr and having his full vet min count against the cap.

i liked him too, but its a numbers game.

[milesfides]

Cost against the cap? Neglible. Lot of other dead weight we can cut.

[Slava]

If they do move Pau for someone like Okafor then every penny counts to get below the cap which I assume is the main reason, none of the other contracts are non-guaranteed. If that wasn't an issue Shawne Williams wouldn't have been cut either. MDA Loves him.

[TylersLakers]

I could see us signing him to a contract the rest of the year after the trade deadline if we make some moves.

[milesfides]

Seriously?

First of all, this year the luxury tax threshold is at around $72m. Lakers current cap is around $77m. They would have to pay around $12.5m in tax, which is nothing. They paid almost triple that last year.

Second, obviously the Lakers are trying to move Pau for picks. Not Emeka Okafor. You guys really think the Lakers will keep a player like that? The Lakers will just waive the trade filler or involve another team.

Third, it's almost difficult for the Lakers to become repeater tax payers next year. Why? Because they have so many expiring contracts, most players on this team will not be paid much, and even if the Lakers relinquish the rights to these players in order to sign big free agents, they still have to deal with the standard cap limits. The only real way the Lakers become tax payers next year is if the Lakers land a couple max free agents, then max out Jordan Hill or something. It's actually pretty unlikely the Lakers are going to be luxury tax payers next year, because of the sad fact that they won't have a collection of great players that will be paid that much.

But obviously, Mitch and the Lakers are preparing for flexibility, so yeah, reports are they are shopping Pau for picks. And I expect them to buy out Nash eventually.

So, again, Manny Harris is the wrong place to look. He's not going to make a difference for any tax situation, and the whole "every penny counts" is silly because if they want to get under the tax, they have to look at Pau and Nash's contracts, not at Manny Harris.

If the Lakers are looking to rebuild and get out of the tax, they should be amassing cheap talent and clearing out players who are not going to be part of our future, to create cap space for the big fish.

So yes, I would have started with Pau, Nash, Kaman, even Meeks and Sacre before cutting Harris.

[WCDYNASTY]

I liked the potential Manny showed as well and I hope we can bring him back this summer.

[DEEP3CL]

Misleading title. ....he wasn't "released", he just was at the end of a 10 day contract. He wasn't going to be signed for the rest of the season.

I liked his game a lot, hope we give him a chance to make our team next season. But it wouldn't be like he has a lot to prove, we know he can play.

[Fresh360Waves]

So Meeks goes down with an ankle injury and we decide to release Harris? Makes sense.

Just happened to be weird timing with Meeks going down plus Harris' 10-day contract expiring. With all the guards the Lakers have now, Manny wouldn't get any playing time. Hopefully he goes back to the D-Fenders so we can keep him around.

[Fresh360Waves]

Would love to see him in camp for the Lakers next season especially if Jodie isn't retained. He would be a great backup 2.

[milesfides]

Well "release" in the general sense, since we had him and let him go, especially since I thought he would be a lock to be signed for the rest of the season - at the very least.

And our entire team, especially our backcourt, has just been killed by injuries. I mean we had five guys tonight. Nash didn't play, Farmar hurt himself again, Nick hurt his knee, and Blake is gutting it out. Not that we're headed to the playoffs, but we want to evaluate talent, and Harris is clearly among the most talented all around players on our team, don't you guys want to see what he could do with Meeks out?

Isn't anybody curious to see how he would do with 30 regular minutes a game, playing with Blake and Farmar who'll get him some shots and let him get into a rhythm? At the least, play his way into becoming an asset?

I know people don't think this is a big deal, especially because of his limited numbers, but Jeremy Lin was passed over by a quite a few teams too. Talented players just need opportunity to start realizing their potential.

Can't mess around pretending talented players are easy to find. They're not. Almost all the players on our roster have pretty serious flaws in their game.

We just let a young, legit baller walk, for a hundred grand. Tell me how many of them are out there for us to get, for any amount of money, let alone a hundred grand. SMH

[milesfides]

I mean, let's scout our team. Cross off Nash. He's done. He's just eating cap space and a roster spot. Blake can't stay healthy and he's getting older. Farmar is struggling with an injury, but his ceiling in the NBA has so far been a borderline starting poing guard. Marshall had been racking up the assists since the offense was going through him, but the team was 3-14 under his leadership and physically he is just slow and can't guard a tree or finish at the rim. Nick Young is likeable but a ballstopper who can't play team ball, and just doesn't contribute in other categories. I've seen a lot of Nick Young, and one thing you can say is he loves being a Laker, but he doesn't know how to play off the ball, and he's not good enough to be a first option every night. Meeks is a terrible defender, is just undersized at the position, punches his number way too many times, can't dribble or make plays, and his drive is always a prayer. He is a 3-point specialist, and that's it. Kobe hasn't proven he can actually recover from his injuries, but the dude is old.

^This is what we know about our backcourt.

So the only guys who I'm high on is X and Manny. These guys are legit ballers. They can stroke it. They can get to the rack. They can play team ball. They are young and athletic. If we are rebuilding, these guys are good, low cost high reward investments. They're plug and play, they just need opportunity, ready to contribute.

Jordan Hill is the most productive player on our entire team. He probably can't play more than 30 minutes a game, but that's OK. Get him a backup and let him keep working on his game.

Wes Johnson, hold onto him too, he's a classic example of a system player at the 3 spot. He has special traits, crazy length and athleticism, great attitude, embraces his limited role. Lock him up for the next few years at a reasonable rate please.

Marshall and Ryan Kelly have some good stuff but some serious drawbacks - but they're so young and cheap it's worth hanging on to them, why not?

Everybody else, who really cares? Nobody else on this team is that special enough to hold onto for the future for a championship-bound team.

You know in Texas Hold Em, when you don't have to bet a lot to see the flop? That's the thing - it would have cost the Lakers almost nothing to see how good Manny is. It's like having a pretty damn good hole cards, but folding because you didn't want to match the measly big blind.

It's just a stupid move, especially for a team that has a high payroll and little talent. Who needs cheap good talent.