Nice game by IQ, but this was the first game he has shot 50 % or better since Dec.5th .

The Raptors scored 145 points. It seems like losing Butler had a big effect on their defense.

if KAT is still performing fairly well (he may not fit great with jalen – but he’s a top 10 center and a top 10 power forward) – that just might be one heck of a valuable expiring contract…

don’t seriously he will get to that point, he’ll most likely re-sign either here or somewhere else next season…

by the end of this thread – the vibe will be we can’t get rid of this guy soon enough…

feed the KAT – helping to fuel an offense, and grab a lot of defensive rebounds (cuz he’s tall) is what he does best, figure out how to reduce his time at center…

memo from coach: jalen/clarkson/tyler if he ever plays again – keep giving KAT the ball, for as long as he’s still here…

That’s because they’re … cough, cough … duplicative. Again foreseeable.

OG’s better than Mikal. No real dilemma there.

While the article does draw that conclusion, it’s a strange conclusion given that the duo work very well in other lineups. Meanwhile, the lineups with only one of them have the net margin they do because of an unsustainably high ORtg around 135, which is around 13 points over the league record.

KAT (similar to say, Julius) is a very valuable player with the right guys around him.

I can’t find that team other than maybe the Magic or Hawks.

I only think he’s valuable to a team that wants to get to the middle, i.e. a team like us in 2019 when we signed Randle. Teams without title aspirations like the Hornets, Kings, Pelicans, or Wizards, would love KAT because they’ve been in the gutter and need a playoff team to sell tickets. Most of these teams have nothing we need.

He’s only 23 and you can’t teach speed. Seemed to have some pop in his bat for a short guy. I wouldnt be surprised at all if he turns into a late bloomer. As to Robert Jr., he’s definitely better now and maybe he still has room to develop, but man does he whiff a lot.

Get Zubac without giving up KAT and they’re in business.

Impossible.

And quite frankly it might be impossible to get Zubac for KAT.

Sort of, but not really. Randle was a 2X all-NBA player in his prime. DDV was on what was viewed as one of the best contracts in the NBA. I thought more draft picks would be required, but seems like Minny was anxious to dump KAT’s salary. But as you and everyone else knows, I was not a fan of KAT on his contract at any price, beyond the business considerations.

“That means KAT declined from Point A (say, a year before the trade) to Point B (the time of the trade). And you believe (rightly IMO) KAT is at his nadir now, so that’s Point C. That’s a three year downward trend.”

Fair. although I think before last year’s deadline, KAT was putting up MVP-type numbers, so maybe his trade value was higher then.

“The reason people were wrong about Randle (and recall I argued vehemently that they were wrong) is because they were overreacting to short term performance. But KAT’s short term performance isn’t the reason his value is declining so sharply.

KAT’s trending towards zero (like Trae Young) because he is a fatally flawed player with a pre-apron contract in a second apron economy. And unlike Julius Randle, that’s not going to change if KAT starts shooting better.”

Here’s where I most vehemently disagree. I dont think KAT is fatally flawed in the way that Trae is. KAT (similar to say, Julius) is a very valuable player with the right guys around him. I would compare him more to a guy like Zach LaVine or maybe even Devin Booker than Trae Young, who I think is an injury away from being Kemba’d. Or maybe AD, who is on a similar deal but with different concerns.