Miami Heat
The Heat are in a catch-22. The more appealing the team, the less money there is available to offer Thomas a contract. And if reports that Lebron James is seriously considering moving to a new team are true, it opens up the requisite cap space but makes it much less appealing for a player looking to win.Still, if the Heat bring the big three back and if Thomas is willing to take a salary of less than $8 million then the Heat are a real threat. But those are some mighty big ifs. Also, and perhaps most importantly, the lower the salary Thomas is willing to accept, the more likely it is that the Kings match the offer.
Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers are awash in cap space and are hoping to attract some serious talent to join Kobe Bryant. Their first attempt is trying to lure Carmelo Anthony with the promise of a maximum deal. That would mean he'd make an average of $24 million for four years, and that means that it would be extremely difficult for the Lakers to have enough available cap space to offer Thomas a competitive deal. And, to reiterate, the lower the contract offer, the more likely it is that the Kings will match.And let's say that the Lakers don't sign Carmelo. Who could they sign to entice Thomas? They'll have Bryant, who will take the ball out of Thomas' hands quite a bit, Steve Nash and Robert Sacre. The team would have about $18 million to play with, but if they don't land Carmelo, they will likely hoard cap space in an effort to sign Kevin Love next year.
Detroit Pistons
Now, we can finally talk about the Pistons. Detroit is obviously interested as their $24 million offer shows. Thomas would represent an upgrade over incumbent Brandon Jennings, and fits better with the core of Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe.If the Pistons gave Thomas $8 million a year, the Kings would not be able to match without stretching a player because it would take them over the apron. More importantly, the Kings would be able to get more in return from the Pistons than they would from the Heat or the Lakers. Before the draft, the Kings and Pistons were reportedly in deep discussions about a trade involving Josh Smith and Jason Thompson. Detroit reportedly walked away from the deal, but it makes sense to revisit it with Thomas a primary piece.For example, the Pistons could trade Josh Smith, Will Bynum and Josh Harrellson. This represents $17.5 million in outgoing salary. The Pistons could take back Isaiah Thomas at $8 million, Derrick Williams at $6.3 million and Jason Thompson at $6 million. This represents $20.3 million. This allows the Kings to sign Collison to the full MLE and also keep the Kings under the luxury tax line.
Detroit's has a lot of leverage here, unless kings make another move. If i'm detroit i'm asking for Mclemore to be included.
http://www.detroitbadboys.com/2014/7/4/ ... akers-heat
