ejftw wrote:esqtvd wrote:ejftw wrote:If D'Angelo had two years left on his rookie deal prior to the QO, I'd be content with it. As is, I'm iffy, as his expected extension cuts into our 2019 space.
Good point. Still, he'd still only be a RFA so we could match any offer. And if he were to come here and thrive under Doc's tutelage, he'd probably accept any reasonable offer before going out on the open market. D'Angelo is still damaged goods in the NBA even if he has a good season here.
If he did as well as he did in the total bloody mess that is the Nets, I think he'd do far better here. We finished over .500 with CJ, Ty Wallace, Sindarius and Jawun all playing significant minutes, all of whom should have spent the year at Agua Caliente.
D'Angelo only turned 22 in February and has 2 full NBA seasons under his belt, in which he's achieved more than CJ [27], Ty [24 in June], Sindarius [24 in November] and Jawun [only 6 months younger] put together.
Wish those 4 the best and continued success, but let's be serious here. Those 4 wouldn't even have seen the court even on the Nets.
And this conversation's moot anyway, as I sincerely doubt the Nets are gonna give him away for a lousy mid-FRP.
Even being a RFA, he still cuts into cap space with his QO being over $9M, while hoping he doesn't sign an offer sheet until the rest of the cap space is utilized properly.
I also wouldn't count doing 15.5/3.9/5.2 (on his usage) with 3.1 turnovers on 14 shots a game as doing good. I mean, his oRTG of 98 was the 18th best of anyone that put on a Nets jersey (ahead of Whitehead, James Webb, Milton Doyle & Sean Kilpatrick). His VORP was in the positives, though, a 50.9 TS when you have the green light and a usage of 30.8?
And yes, those four would have seen time on the Nets, especially Tyrone and Thornwell. Probably Jawun as well since they seem to be Atkinson type players.
I would much rather take Shai as opposed to deal it for Angelo, just to overpay in a year.
D'Angelo's 3 TOs/gm is the biggest wart, but as you note his usage rate was very high [Top 15] on a bad team whose TO rate was high with or without him.
As for the draft, I added the codicil I would want to wait until draft night to see if anyone I really liked was still on the board. Is that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander? I dunno--I don't follow college ball and even those who do [including pro scouts] have pretty spotty records in predicting who's going to flower and who's going to fail in the NBA.
Hey, D'Angelo himself was the consensus pick at #2 and look how that turned out. I'm less sanguine about #12. On the meta level [not having scouted them as we presume the Clippers have], we have them producing similar numbers
Shai: 14.4/4.1/5.1 in 33 mpg. He's a one-and-done and turns 20 in July.
D'Angelo:15.5/3.9/5.2 in 26 mpg. Already has 3 years of NBA experience and only turned 22 in February.
Yes, there are other factors which might favor Shai, if only Jerry West's opinion [which of course we would defer to]. But D'Angelo has already produced in the NBA on a crap team what Shai did on a dominant college team against immeasurably weaker competition.
It takes a lot of players 3 years to get their feet under them in NBA--if they find their feet at all. Yes, D'Angelo will cost more, but it's illogical to expect Shai--at a scrawny 180 pounds--to hit the ground running in the NBA. The salary savings are usually illusory.
If D'Angelo were 24 and hadn't shot 36% on 3s in the second half I might see the equation differently. But he's still every bit the prospect--and more, IMO--as a mid-round one-and-done.
