LMA on whether Portland is 1st option: "We'll see"

[DaKnicksAreBack]

LA to LA. Do it Mitch!

It will definitely be an option.

Clarkson
Randle
Aldridge
Top 5 pick
Houstons 1st

Future would look bright!

I think LMA wants to go East.

[NBAfan3024]

Could see him in San antonio

[deanwoof]

The whole Texas and Florida no income tax thing is moot when the players are paid based on the games when they are in a different state. Spending 41 games away and paying taxes in those states equally isn't really saving as much money as one would think.

[TKainZero]

LA to LA. Do it Mitch!

It will definitely be an option.

Clarkson
Randle
Aldridge
Top 5 pick
Houstons 1st

Future would look bright!

I think LMA wants to go East.

I think if lakers get Aldridge, than the lakers might move randle and something else for another star (cousins)

[Westbreezy]

LA to LA. Do it Mitch!

It will definitely be an option.

Clarkson
Randle
Aldridge
Top 5 pick
Houstons 1st

Future would look bright!

Yeah, if he's willing to suck for 3 years the future looks decent. Pretending that team is top 8 in the west material next year though is a joke dude.

I actually think Aldridge makes that team a worst case scenario treadmill team winning 40-45 games a season. Good enough to win too many games to actually get any reasonable picks. In my mind it is clearly a step down from the roster the Blazers have now, even if Matthews takes a while to get back to his former glory.

If the 76ers don't get our pick this year (17% chance they do get it), they'll get it next year for sure (its only top 3 protected), and then the following year I believe we owe our pick to the Magic for the Dwight Howard trade.

So we don't really care about bottoming out since theres no pick as a reward for the next 2 years. Might as well try and be as competitive as possible

[HeartBreakKid]

Portland is a good team, but they're more gate keepers then title contenders. How many people really picked them to win the NBA title this year? They're like around the same tier as the Grizzlies or the Rockets (though the Rockets are improving due to multiple factors). They're like the Western conference version of the Wizards.

If they tie up Lillard and Aldridge with big contracts, and try to keep everyone else - it won't be enough to win a championship. They're good enough to compete, but he's not leaving gold by leaving Portland.


I would say that LMA goes to San Antonio, but that article about him growing bored of small markets does put some doubts in my mind. Unlike Marc Gasol and Kawhi Leonard, I am not sure that LMA stays with his team, I think he'll likely be the biggest FA to move.

[DaKnicksAreBack]

It will definitely be an option.

Clarkson
Randle
Aldridge
Top 5 pick
Houstons 1st

Future would look bright!

I think LMA wants to go East.

I think if lakers get Aldridge, than the lakers might move randle and something else for another star (cousins)

Interesting.

[Chuck Everett]

Aldridge is a good player, but he's not a game changer. It would suck for Portland, but he's not taking a team to the next level, unless they already have players better than him on the roster. So for example, if Duncan were to retire and Aldridge replaces him. Aldridge would have to add rim protection and more rebounding to his game to even be close to the impact Duncan has, even when he's not scoring.

I like Aldridge as a player, but I have a feeling if he goes somewhere else, fans of that team will be disappointed in what they think they are getting. In a perfect world, Matthews would have been healthy and Batum would have been playing up to tremendous potential (but it's clear he's just a tease, like Diaw). That was the only way Portland was ever going to contend for a championship in the West. In the East, they'd be in a better spot of course, but out here, good luck.

[Fresh360Waves]

We'll see sounds like he's leaving.

[Fresh360Waves]

I could see him signing with Dallas if they have enough capspace.

This is what I see as well.

Isn't Chandler expiring after this season or is it next season?

Dirk-LMA front court would be dynamite offensively.

Not very strong defensively. Dallas just needs to blow it up and start fresh. There is no point in staying mediocre.

[Naija Boy]

Lol at the Knicks and Laker fans trying to say that he wants to go to a big market in hopes that he'll sign with their teams.

First and foremost for any free agency signing are WINNING and MONEY. Since the Lakers and Knicks can offer neither more wins or more money they are not contenders to sign him. They have the same chance as the Raptors (which is zero).

Inb4 somebody tries to shift the focus to our playoff sweep. Yes we got owned in record-breaking fashion, please leave your straw men at home.

[Fresh360Waves]

It will definitely be an option.

Clarkson
Randle
Aldridge
Top 5 pick
Houstons 1st

Future would look bright!

I think LMA wants to go East.

I think if lakers get Aldridge, than the lakers might move randle and something else for another star (cousins)

It would probably have to be Randle, top 5 pick, and Clarkson which I don't really want the Lakers to do. Lakers would probably have to take on the contract of Thompson or Landry as well. I wanna see the Lakers build from the ground up for once. I know that's not the "L.A. way" but they really need to learn some patience.

[Lithium]

I hate to say it as a Blazers fan, but I don't see how Portland takes the next step with their current roster. I'm not sure they had a legit chance at a championship before the Matthews injury, but they were certainly in a lot better shape then. I don't know how you could make the Blazers a contender, beyond internal improvement. Lillard seems to have taken a huge step backward, Lopez doesn't look the same since coming back from the hand injury, Batum has been in a funk for most of the season, Matthews may not be the same player he was pre-injury, and Kaman/Blake aren't getting any younger.

I really hope Lillard gets it figured out, because I think he has the talent to be an All-star caliber player, but he hasn't played like it in months. The Blazers hopes of improving really depend on Lillard continuing to progress.

I think one of the main problems for Portland is that none of their players are efficient scorers. Lillard and Aldridge are both high-volume shooters. Problem is, they never make a lot of them. Batum and Matthews have long cold stretches. The closest thing they have to an efficient scorer is probably Chris Kaman.

I would hate to see LMA go but again, I don't see how this team improves.

[marcush]

Lol at the Knicks and Laker fans trying to say that he wants to go to a big market in hopes that he'll sign with their teams.

First and foremost for any free agency signing are WINNING and MONEY. Since the Lakers and Knicks can offer neither more wins or more money they are not contenders to sign him. They have the same chance as the Raptors (which is zero).

Inb4 somebody tries to shift the focus to our playoff sweep. Yes we got owned in record-breaking fashion, please leave your straw men at home.

Maybe winning is not the be all and end all to this guy, sure its preferable but other things like the big lights may interest him. He already has a pretty nice team, so not sure what his motives are.

Hope he stays at Portland but I guess its his prerogative, he has given them good service.

[Naija Boy]

For all the talk about the Knicks and Lakers being free-agent hotspots. That is only true when all other things are equal and they actually have competitive rosters.

The Knicks have only signed one major free agent (Amar'e) and that was because they were the only team willing to give him the max. He did not sign there because it is New York, he signed because they offered him the most money. The Lakers have also only ever signed one major free agent (Shaq) and that was coming off a 53 win season. Also Shaq had major beef with Orlando and its fanbase because they were saying he wasn't worth the max, wasn't a franchise player and Penny was becoming the face of the team, not him.

[Dame Lizard]

I hate to say it as a Blazers fan, but I don't see how Portland takes the next step with their current roster. I'm not sure they had a legit chance at a championship before the Matthews injury, but they were certainly in a lot better shape then. I don't know how you could make the Blazers a contender, beyond internal improvement. Lillard seems to have taken a huge step backward, Lopez doesn't look the same since coming back from the hand injury, Batum has been in a funk for most of the season, Matthews may not be the same player he was pre-injury, and Kaman/Blake aren't getting any younger.

I really hope Lillard gets it figured out, because I think he has the talent to be an All-star caliber player, but he hasn't played like it in months. The Blazers hopes of improving really depend on Lillard continuing to progress.

I think one of the main problems for Portland is that none of their players are efficient scorers. Lillard and Aldridge are both high-volume shooters. Problem is, they never make a lot of them. Batum and Matthews have long cold stretches. The closest thing they have to an efficient scorer is probably Chris Kaman.

I would hate to see LMA go but again, I don't see how this team improves.

Our best shot is that Lillard deservedly, misses All NBA, and isn't eligible for the D Rose max, and we use those savings to get more depth. We're more in that Washington/Memphis category of not having a superstar as such, so we have no choice but to get deeper or finding another All Star would be great!

Lillard needs to get a mid-range floater happening. He's probably the worst starting PG at floaters in the league. I'm trusting he will revert back to his career 3P% prior to this year, which was ~38% on high volume.

Rudy Gobert would have made this team the best in the league without Matthews' achilles injury, mind you, you could say that about a lot of teams!

[basketballbeans]

From 2 years ago..

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/22 ... -Too-Small

If he thought Portland was small and boring I don't think he's gonna love San Antonio...

Yeah he's from Texas but if he's looking for a larger city Houston and Dallas are the places he should aim for, and I can't see Houston really being a realistic option given their cap situation or Dallas because they're kinda in flux

This article sounds like a guy looking for a big market..And he'd be wise to go East if he's trying to avoid he gauntlet out West

That quote about Portland being to small and boring is misleading. I can not find the follow up that was done but he was asked about that and he was referring mostly to the local media reporting on everything he did. Since he is a private, stay at home kind of guy I don't see wanting to move to a large market. If he does leave I highly doubt it is because Portland is small and he wants to be in a large market. He will leave for his family.

Yeah LaMarcus really isn't a party type of dude but that doesn't mean he wouldn't prefer the city life.

Portland is still a city. Not like he's playing out in rural North Dakota here... lol.

[TKainZero]

I think LMA wants to go East.

I think if lakers get Aldridge, than the lakers might move randle and something else for another star (cousins)

It would probably have to be Randle, top 5 pick, and Clarkson which I don't really want the Lakers to do. Lakers would probably have to take on the contract of Thompson or Landry as well. I wanna see the Lakers build from the ground up for once. I know that's not the "L.A. way" but they really need to learn some patience.

I think you do it
If you can get cousins, you get cousins

A allow rebuild would be fine, but lakers owe draft picks. First to Philly for Steve Nash, then to the magic for Dwight

[Effigy]

I still don't believe he's leaving. Portland can offer him that fifth year. He'll get something like $30 million for that year. No other team can offer him that, and he probably shouldn't assume he'll get that kind of money on a new contract when he's 35-6. But I guess we'll see.

Unless he wants to take advantage of the exploding cap... Maybe he wants to take a 2 year deal and then sign a longer term contract when each teams salary cap exceeds $100 million

I suppose that's possible. He will only have just turned 32 at that point, so he could get another big contract probably.

[Rafael122]

So what would be the Spurs' cap situation with a maxed out Leonard and a max LMA? They've got $33 million tied up in Parker, Diaw, Splitter, and Mills. Maxing out both guys would put them near the cap already would it not?