Comments on: Knicks Morning News (2024.09.10)

By: Donnie Walsh

Donnie Walsh — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 05:29:50 +0000

George was great last year, and cost the Clippers a lot to acquire. Letting him go to avoid the 2nd apron isn’t nothing.

By: Z-man

Z-man — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 04:04:33 +0000

Paul George will be 34.5 years old when the season starts and before this past season went 4 straight seasons where he never played more than 56 games. He still managed to convince a team to pay him $50+ AAV for the next 4 years despite not hitting the 4.0 BPM mark since 2020-21. If anything, it proves the point that it you try to lowball that kind of player, there will be a taker and you will lose him, which is exactly what happened.

By: Donnie Walsh

Donnie Walsh — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 03:42:26 +0000

“The goal was to get [Paul George] as much money as possible, but we still have to add to the team by managing max cap space in 26-27 and being out of the second apron in 25-26. We’re trying to win a championship, that’s why we brought this group together. That’s why we gave up so much to get Paul and Kawhi. The unfortunate part of it, we only had one healthy postseason. That’s not anybody’s fault, but that’s the reality.”
-Lawrence Frank, July 15th 2024

He says he did pretty much exactly what TNFH said good teams were going to do to these kinds of second-tier players when it comes to paying them in the apron era. You can believe he’s lying, or incompetent, or whatever, but George is no longer a Clipper, so there is a reality to it.

By: Owen

Owen — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 01:29:21 +0000

Alan, I liked the thread!!!

And I would want to pay Ingram 50 m about as much as I want a rash on my butt….

By: Z-man

Z-man — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 00:47:52 +0000

“Bidiong, I like everything you said except “If he stays healthy he’ll likely make All-NBA this year.” I don’t think so. He won’t be THE man anymore”

I sort of agree, but Randle was super-dominant in January with Brunson and OG in the fold, and I think Mikal might actually help Randle as a 3PT threat. The key for me is whether Randle a) is healthy and b) can cut down his turnovers. It may also help that he’s playing for a contract.

The important thing is that he’s proven that he can play at an all-NBA level. He did it twice and was on his way a third time. And it’s in Brunson’s best interests for Julius to actually play like an all-NBA player, so he will be happy to defer enough for that to happen.

By: Z-man

Z-man — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 00:38:09 +0000

At the end of the day, I don’t think this question is likely to be resolved any time soon. Randle does not have to decide on his player option until after the season, and it doesn’t seem like Leon is in any rush to extend him. Hopefully Randle will play so well that folks will come around on him.

In a larger sense, I don’t see a championship in our future unless either Randle or a replacement starting forward of his caliber is a part of it.

By: Raven is a Big Black Bird

Raven is a Big Black Bird — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 00:27:22 +0000

Bidiong, I like everything you said except “If he stays healthy he’ll likely make All-NBA this year.” I don’t think so. He won’t be THE man anymore — with Brunson, OG, and Mikal, not to mention Divo throwing flame, he’ll be lucky to average 22-10. Which is about what I expect, so maybe All-Star, but All-NBA doesn’t seem likely unless it is clear he’s somehow carrying the team. Which probably means something bad has happened.

But I would be very, very happy with 22-10, and I think that’ll be a critical piece to this puzzle.

By: Hubert

Hubert — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 00:02:54 +0000

Bad teams are likely the ones who will bid up Randle.

Zach Lowe previously and comprehensively picked apart the apron excuse for the Clippers:

The “blame the apron” logic does not quite hold. The Clippers appear to have simply concluded the George-Leonard team had run its course. The window had closed, and so there was no point investing much more into it. Paying George almost $60 million in that fourth year, at age 38, is almost certainly going to be bad business.

https://www.espn.com/nba/insider/story/_/id/40496545/clippers-nuggets-convenient-fear-second-apron-first-week-nba-free-agency

By: Donnie Walsh

Donnie Walsh — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 23:22:30 +0000

Even the fugazis like Tobias Harris are still getting paid.

There’s still a salary floor, so players willing to go to bad teams will still be able to get overpaid. The squeeze is going to come from good-but-not-great teams not wanting to go over the apron to re-sign non-vital free agents. That’s why Paul George is in Philadelphia now and not LA. Ballmer Bucks, like Dolan Dollars, can’t be tossed flippantly around anymore. It’s not a rule, but it does look like things are trending away from the Big Three model, which leaves the #2/#3 guys in a bit of a lurch.

By: bidiong Chip or bust

bidiong Chip or bust — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 23:14:09 +0000

I think people underestimate how willing Randle is to playing team basketball. I truly don’t believe he wants to be the #1 guy. I think he likes having less pressure. He facilitated very well last season. Let’s be realistic as well… When Brunson sits for his 6 minutes a half, it’s perfectly fine if Randle takes up 20 seconds of the shot clock every possession slowing the game down because it helps mitigate the other team while Brunson is on the bench. Randle is a damn good basketball player and trading him would be a mistake. If he stays healthy he’ll likely make All-NBA this year. I’d personally like to see him healthy in the playoffs to see what he can do. He’s not a great defender in the team sense, but he’s adequate 1 on 1. We have more than enough on the defensive end that he’s not a deficiency there. I’m looking forward to seeing how this team comes out of the gate. My birthday is on the 22nd and I can’t wait to celebrate a W against the Celtics!