Wednesday, June 24, 2009
What is an Acceptable Deal from Minnesota?
Posted by Chris Herrington on Wed, Jun 24, 2009 at 7:14 PM
ESPN.com's Andy Katz has a strong story up about the status of the Grizzlies' trade negotiations involving the #2 pick.
The core graph:
Memphis discussed sending the No. 2 to Minnesota for the No. 5 and No. 6, but the Timberwolves have been consistent that they don't want to give away two top 10 picks. The TWolves also rejected the offer for No. 6 and Love. The Timberwolves offered either No. 5 or 6 and Craig Smith for the No. 2, but Memphis rejected that trade, too. The source said there was never any discussion involving Minnesota's No. 18 pick.
Katz also reports that the Wolves are the only team the Grizzlies are in active trade discussions with for the #2 pick.
It doesn't surprise me that Minnesota is unwilling to pair the 5 and 6 or the 6 and Love to get to #2. I wouldn't do those deals either, though I wonder if larger deals based around those particulars were discussed. Wouldn't #2, Darrell Arthur, and the Lakers pick in 2010 for either of those package be more reasonable? Similarly, I think the Grizzlies would be wise to not do #5 and Craig Smith, a one-position bruiser who doesn't upgrade the team's current power forward rotation and likely wouldn't play a huge role for the team.
Assuming both of those Wolves combos are entirely off the board, what would be an acceptable deal for the Grizzlies? I think it would have to be either the #5 OR Kevin Love paired with the #18. Love and the #18 I would do, but then I'm probably a bigger Kevin Love fan than most. For the #5 and #18, I would probably want some slight sweetener. Perhaps an exchange of Brian Cardinal's expiring contract for Marko Jaric's two-year deal. Or a potentially useful extra player such as Ryan Gomes or even Corey Brewer.
Complicating matters is the draft board that Katz reports the Grizzlies are working from:
Thabeet is atop the Grizzlies draft board with Memphis' Tyreke Evans second, followed by Syracuse's Jonny Flynn and Davidson's Stephen Curry. The Grizzlies have given up trying to get Ricky Rubio and the source said they didn't want to deal with the buyout issues.
I believe that Thabeet and Evans are at the top of that board. The Jonny Flynn thing surprises me to the point that I don't quite believe it. I know the team likes him very much as a player, but Flynn is a one-position point guard who couldn't function in a three-guard rotation with Mike Conley and O.J. Mayo. Stephen Curry could and has been mentioned much, much more in conversations with team officials. I suspect that with Thabeet and Evans off the board, Curry would be the player the Grizzlies would turn to.
But, how much more do the Grizzlies like Thabeet and Evans than Curry? Trading down to five would risk losing the two top players on the team's board as Oklahoma City could easily take Thabeet at #3 and Sacramento could easily take Evans at #4. Certainly players such as James Harden (OKC), Flynn (Sac) or even Curry (either one) could jump up and make Thabeet or Evans available at #5. But if the Grizzlies were committed to coming out of the draft with either Thabeet or Evans, would they be willing to take Rubio (Minnesota's presumed target) at #2 without knowing if one of those players will still be there at #5?
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I cannot figure out what angle the Grizz are playing in telling everyone that Rubio is completely off their radar. For any team that is considering Rubio, it means the serious offers will be made to OKC -- and the Grizz will get lowballed unless they actually pick Rubio. There really is no reason for Minnesota or Sacramento or anyone else to make a serious offer to the Grizz when they can get Rubio at the #3 less expensively.
Am I missing something? Or are the Grizz being way too honest in a dishonest game?
we suck....even when the season is over....ugh
Givony is reporting at Draft Express that it's a done deal that Thabeet is the pick at #2. Surprisingly enough, this decision was reached at the meeting last night that hasn't, according to Wallace, isn't scheduled until tonight?
My head hurts...
haven't you seen Lost? It can happen....
I think that saying that they won't pick rubio is genius if and only if they actually pick him at two. Immediately war rooms of teams that actually want rubio get desperate and desperation results in dumb deals being made.
Anyway doubt it's what we are doing, but would be awesome and logical if it was what we were doing.
Ugh! This is getting so depressing! We would have been much better off staying at 7 instead of moving up. Then, at least, we would have had a chance at getting Derozen or even Hill. Tabeet? This must be coming from Heisley. I can hear the collective air being forced out of the room as we speak with that pick. Awful strategy from Wallace in not hyping Rubio. He made sure we weren't going to get any trade value for him. If Rubio turns out to be a big star, then Wallace will be forever known as the worst GM ever!!!
bamboozle8 - Wallace knows what Rubio will likely turn out to be. This pick will be 100% Heisley and Hollins. Wallace is only there to gather fact and for procedural purposes. Sad, but true.
And Wallace will get the blame too when it flops big time. Rubio is/was the consensus 2nd pick until we got the pick. I just hope Minny will save us somehow. I would even take the 5th and 18th picks over picking dabeat. Minny offered OKC those two picks for the 3rd pick. You would think we could try to work something out like throwing in Darko or Hakim.
If Kevin Love was in this draft, it would be a 2-man class at the top with him and Griffin, or maybe a 3-man class with Griffin and Rubio. I like the suggestion of Love and the 18th pick from Minnesota for the 2nd pick, but I would even take Love and the 28th pick or Love alone. It would make up for last year's trade for Mayo, which isn't a disaster, but ended up with the better player (Love) in Minnesota and a very useful reserve (Mike Miller) also being lost. It would have been a 30-win team, at least, with Love and Miller on this year's team rather than Mayo. So no matter what, I'm praying we get Kevin Love back!
If we value Flynn over Rubio then we don't stand a chance. How are we the only team that doesn't think Rubio is the second best player in this draft. What's weird is that we have decent depth at center with Gasol, Darko, and Hadaddi but we have absolutly no depth at pg.
2 seasons ago CW was ok with bringing in 3 pgs bc he figured that evrything would sort itself out and the others could be used as trade bait if necessary. But today CW would rather go into the season with Jaric backing up Conley? Right or wrong Rubio is the best choice for us. What happened the last time a team decided to not draft the consensus number two player and instead drafted a bigman? Darko over Carmelo that's what!
Man the more videos and interviews I see of Rubio the more I wish he was coming here. He is interesting. He has amazing charisma and he could charm the pants off of statue. lol Everything about the guy says TICKET SALES to me. On the ESPN.com interview with him from today they do the word association thing and they say "Memphis" and he lights up and says "Marc Gasol" with a big smile on his face.
I think I blame Dan Fegan for this... I believe in a couple of years we will all be blaming Memphis and Chris Wallace and Heisley for this ultimately but by then the Grizzlies will be the Las Vegas Highrollers and Heisley will STILL be a billionaire and Chris Wallace will be selling cars on Lamar.
It's a painful thing to think about what could have been.
It's a painful thing to think about what could have been.
Draft hasn't happened yet....
Good to see Wallace turning down the tempting-but-not-quite-good-enough offers. If the Wolves want to get up to #2 bad enough, they'll throw in Kevin Love. If not, our front office is going to take the top player on the draft board. Sounds solid to me.
Draft might as well have happened.
I hope Memphis can surprise me but it just looks like no team in the league has respect for the Grizz.
NY is talking to Oklahoma about the #3 pick for a sign and trade with David Lee
Minn is trying to deal with OKC now also
Everyone is just fixed on Memphis taking Thabeet just like they were fixed on the 76ers taking Bradley lol.
Unless a miracle happens this is a disaster
I think I agree with Z. This has GOT to be smoke and mirrors coming from the Grizz about Thabeet. Ricky Rubio is clearly the second best player in the draft and all the rumors we hear about bad workouts and the such coming from SAC is just because they are praying he falls to them. When the Grizz take Rubio number 2, teams will panic and put us in the ultimate position of strength.
With that said, if they do just take Thabeet, I might break my tv
I really hope that Rubio's name is announced 2nd tonight. I also hope that Conley is packaged for a pick between 5-10. They could then just select best talent available. The offseason goal has to be to get a legit PF to put next to Gasol2.0.
From GrizzleGM: "I really hope that Rubio's name is announced 2nd tonight. I also hope that Conley is packaged for a pick between 5-10. They could then just select best talent available. The offseason goal has to be to get a legit PF to put next to Gasol2.0."
QFT!!!
Hasheem Thabeet, C, 7-3, 265, Connecticut, Junior, 13.6 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 0.5 apg, 4.2 bpg, should be the pick, the knock on Thabeet is he cant score the knock on Rubio is he can't score. I would like to have a 7'3'' center that cant score than a point guard that cant score
Hasheem Thabeet, C, 7-3, 265, Connecticut, Junior, 13.6 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 0.5 apg, 4.2 bpg, should be the pick if the grizz feel he is the second best prospect in the draft we should take him. The knock on him is that he can't score. the knock on rubio is that he can't score, give me a big man that can't score over a pg that can't score.
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