Post#1212 » by Zerostatic » Fri Jul 7, 2017 5:48 am
A couple of thoughts:
1. The only free agents I want are either young guys with potential (25 is actually my cut off for this so Hardaway fits) or cheap experienced vets who can serve as mentors and promote a good culture. So this signing fullfills my criteria for the type of player I want.
2. This is a definite overpay... sorta. Please don't compare this to contracts signed last offseason (those were all inflated) or 1 year deals this year. However he is a restricted free agent so that is the only way to get the guy. If we offered him his market value (4 years 50 million) with no trade bonuses or player options, then Atlanta matches easily. I mean just go to their board, it was quite clear that their fans would've wanted a match on anything in the range of 4 year 50 million.
3. While I was super pumped watching Dotson today in summer league and am looking forward to see what kind of player he is. Let's be real here. If Dotson was a first team all-rookie selection we've be jumping for joy. You know who was first team all-rookie? Tim Hardaway Jr! And it's not like it was some fluke rookie season, THJ played his best ball last season.
4. The latest rumored Melo trade would fit in perfectly with this signing. It is a a 3 way with Melo going to Houston, Ryan Anderson going to Portland, and Mo Harkless and Myers Leonard coming to New York. Mo Harkless and Myers Leonard like Hardaway are young guys who are 25 or younger and who have shown some potential. Even if they're never anything more than role players they are solid and have probably not hit hit their peaks (which usually occurs around 27 or 28). It would be nice to have guys who actually improve and have their best years with us rather than have them fall apart under us.
5. If Melo & Lee get traded, I can definitely see Hardaway putting up numbers similar to his 2nd half of the season with the Hawks. Perhaps slightly more scoring on slightly lower shooting percentages. He posted his improved numbers playing with Millsap, Schroder, Dwight Howard, and Kent Bazemore. Without Melo here, I'd say his role will probably be a bit larger (depending on who else signs).
6. As for wasting our cap space. I am done entertaining fantasies of having a ton of cap room and having a bunch of superstars sign here. So many teams have this fantasy every off season and then end up disappointed. We have destroyed any appeal for a veteran superstar to sign here. Not competitive, not up and coming, ruthless media coverage etc. We need to build through the draft and go after young guys who are still proving themselves.
Bottomline, if someone asked me earlier today if we should do this signing, I'd say no. I'd have gone with even cheaper guys and I would have used the cap space to take on salary dumps that are packaged with draft picks or cheap young player (like the Nets getting Russell for taking on Mosgov). However while there is definite potential (and in fact I'd say probable) that THJ's contract will become burdensome, there are also some positives in both THJ's growth as a player and future potential and also in that I don't see this as a departure from the go young and rebuild movement. At least with young guys like THJ there is always hope that they'll develop into something good.
Now, if we trade for 29 year old overpaid Ryan Anderson or trade any 1st round draft packs then I'd be singing a different story.
yooooo wtf 70mill? whatever happened to that SMFMB? Dude is a clown. I expected them to sign someone under 10mil. Even worse it's tim hardaway jr. 
