Players That MAY Become Available This Offseason

bobheckler wrote:One thought:  if the story about Zion's family wanting him to leave NOP is true (and if he's listening to them) then the chances of Lonzo Ball being on the trade block diminishes down to near zero.  That would only leave Brandon Ingram, and that's not a real NBA team.


Bob


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The story about Zion and family wanting out of NO came out at the same time or pretty close to the same time that Stan got canned.

They are looking for a new coach and I guess Zion and family will get to interview the next guy and give a thumbs up or down.

I think that the chance of Zion being moved is negligible. They have a young roster but they do have NBA quality talent aside from Zion. Ingram and Ball are quality players. Steve Adams is a legit center and developing player Jaxson Hayes is a keeper. Josh Hart can play and rookie kira Lewis has talent and if Alexander-Walker works on his shooting he too becomes a more valuable player.

Zion was drafted to be the face of their franchise but he is not acting like that. But maybe the real issue was with the coach as the comments I read were pretty vague.

I do not think Ball gets traded. I do think he would be a good fit for Boston but NOLA would be stupid to move him.

Spencer Dinwiddie is a volume scorer/shooter, can get hot, but only shoots .318 from 3 for his career. For 25 mill really?? I wouldn’t do it at that price....

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nets-spencer-dinwiddie-to-decline-12-3-million-player-option-for-2021-22-season-per-report/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=news_tab&utm_content=algorithm



Nets' Spencer Dinwiddie to decline $12.3 million player option for 2021-22 season, per report
Dinwiddie played just three games this season after tearing his ACL


   
By Jasmyn Wimbish
21 hrs ago
1 min read



As the Brooklyn Nets prepare for the offseason after losing in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals to the Milwaukee Bucks in heartbreaking fashion on Saturday night, one player who may not be on the roster next season is guard Spencer Dinwiddie. The 27-year-old is expected to decline his $12.3 million player option this summer, making him an unrestricted free agent, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Dinwiddie was sidelined a majority of the season, including the entirety of the playoffs after tearing his ACL just three games into the regular season. It was a significant blow for a Nets team that relied heavily upon Dinwiddie last season when All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving was limited to just 20 games due to various injuries.

By declining his player option, Dinwiddie's taking a chance on the open market to secure a longer, more lucrative deal either with the Nets or another team around the league.

Prior to his injury, every franchise in the league would've jumped at the chance to get a guard like Dinwiddie on the roster, especially after putting up 20.6 points, 6.8 assists and 3.5 rebounds last season while spending a majority of the time in the starting lineup. But now, there may be some hesitancy to offer him a lucrative deal coming off an ACL injury to his right knee, especially given the fact that he also tore his ACL in his left knee while in college.

If Dinwiddie is able to bounce back and put up similar numbers to what he produced last year in a more prominent role on another team, however, then he would be a steal for the right price. There's also the option that the Nets could negotiate a new deal with the guard and bring him back next season. Brooklyn certainly could've used Dinwiddie during the playoffs as Irving and James Harden missed time.


Bob
MY NOTE:  Good news:  he's only 27 and has shown he's a very good player.  Bad news:  he's coming off an ACL, has had ACL injuries in both knees, and thinks that $12.3M isn't enough money.  What he needs to understand is that if he stays with the Nets he is never going to be a starter again.  Occasionally, when Kyrie "Ming Vase" Irving cracks a nail and needs to meditate with his ancestors to try and understand what it means and why it happened to him, he'll get the start but not otherwise.  If he wants to start he has to go to a team that isn't set with their starting point guard.  There are plenty of them out there, but most of them aren't contenders.  We are one of the few teams that are, without any further trades now, in need of a starting point guard and that are already playoff contenders.  Take less money on a shorter term deal, prove you're "back", then the world will be your oyster.


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https://sports.yahoo.com/philadelphia-76ers-need-to-trade-ben-simmons-if-they-want-to-contend-for-a-title-060016293.html



76ers need to trade Ben Simmons if they want to seriously contend for a title


Vincent Goodwill


Sun, June 20, 2021, 11:00 PM·6 min read



The Philadelphia 76ers have a Ben Simmons problem, and it smacked them dead in the face as yet another opportunity was wasted in the playoffs.

Championship windows don’t stay open long in today’s NBA, and it seems like three years have been squandered with the Simmons experiment, people talking themselves out of what they see and into what they’re hoping for.

The 76ers have fashioned themselves as the present and future of the East, but the present keeps disappointing and if the future depends on Joel Embiid’s health and Simmons’ improvement, it’s pretty murky.

For things to improve, the answer is simple: The 76ers must trade Simmons if they’re as serious as they claim.


After another disappointing playoff exit, Ben Simmons' time in Philadelphia might be over. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)


Jimmy Butler is gone, so is Brett Brown. There’s nobody else to blame for Simmons’ lack of development. It certainly looks mental, his downright reticence on offense — and even though he’s a stellar defensive player, that can be replaced.

But he’s more than a liability there, especially when you see how the conference final-bound Atlanta Hawks feed off their point guard, Trae Young. There’s a swagger, and not one in a front-runner type way that it appears with the 76ers. Young’s aggressiveness permeates to the rest of the roster, and even if he isn’t directly feeding players, you can tell the confidence is genuine.

Even when they blew home games, including Game 6 in Atlanta, there wasn’t a sense of this team being broken — there’s a resilience that was a clear difference between both teams this series.

As the Game 7 disaster rolled on, it felt inevitable that the 76ers were playing with a medicine ball instead of a Spalding. The Hawks were playing with poise and weren’t afraid of the moment, drawing energy from the 76ers’ lack of assertiveness.

And even though that often falls on the best player, Simmons has as much of an effect on that as Embiid (31 points, 11 rebounds, three assists) especially with the big man dragging himself up and down the floor on a torn meniscus, often facing triple teams while watching Simmons pass up dunks in the fourth quarter.

“Yeah, I don't know the answer to that right now,” 76ers coach Doc Rivers said when asked if Simmons could be a championship point guard.

Earlier, Rivers said, “Obviously, he struggled from the free-throw line. And that became a factor in the series. There's no doubt about that. I still believe in him. But we have work to do, you know, we're gonna have to get in the gym, put a lot of work in.”

Championship point guards have to run an offense with some level of structure, especially late. So while Embiid’s late turnover to Danilo Gallinari was a backbreaker, had Simmons been trusted to run the offense, Embiid wouldn’t be forced to begin his own offense from 20 feet away from the rim.

Rivers pointed to Young’s off night, crediting Simmons for his part in those struggles — but that should be even more frustrating. It wasn’t the Hawks coming in and shooting the lights out.

The game was there for the taking, and this Game 7 wasn’t like the Milwaukee-Brooklyn slugfest where it looked like fatigue set in for both teams by the time overtime began. The 76ers simply played as if they didn’t believe they could win, especially on offense.

“Offensively, we were just bad,” Rivers said. “We've been a good offensive team all year. Tonight, we were not. We weren't even an average offensive team tonight. Not only were we just missing shots, I don't know how many point blank misses we had at the rim, how many fast breaks we blew.”

That falls at Simmons’ feet.

And if Simmons is as advertised, Embiid wouldn’t be worn down in fourth quarters because someone else could help carry the load in the first 36 minutes. Instead, Simmons is on the bench for the last couple minutes because playing with him on the floor is like playing four on five and even if he does have the ball, he’s clearly not looking to do anything that could remotely result in a trip to the free-throw line.

Shooting 34% from the line in a playoff series is the worst output in NBA history, with a minimum of 70 attempts.

In a way, there was something almost charming about Simmons in the beginning. He was an impactful player who didn’t do it the traditional way, who distributed and played tough defense.

But that was at the start, where the stakes weren’t as high. It feels like for a player that talented to have this big of a blind spot, it’s on purpose — almost like he refuses to develop his game because that would mean his critics were right, that he needed to shoot.

Now, he’s holding the 76ers back and there’s no guarantee Embiid will be the same MVP-type performer next season or any season after, especially with his knee and back issues.


Joel Embiid pulled himself up and down the court on a torn meniscus just to watch Ben Simmons pass up open shots. (Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports)


Embiid’s frustration was on full display after, and even if his shot at the refs was a bit misguided, consider his own journey in the same time span. He’s developed a post game, extended his shooting range and passes better out of double teams while still being a monster on defense.

To commit that much and watch your costar commit to being the same player he’s been since entering the league has to be infuriating.

“I'm a winner, I want to win. I do everything it takes to win,” Embiid said. “Losing obviously is going to take a toll on me. It does and is doing it.”

The 76ers believed they were a bounce away in 2019 from winning it all, falling to Kawhi Leonard’s Toronto Raptors in a thriller. They were swept in the bubble by Boston last year and now this.

There’s no more time to waste for Daryl Morey and Rivers. The 76ers aren’t as far away as it seems, even as they repeatedly fail when it matters.

Call Denver to see if you can begin a conversation on Jamal Murray and parts. Hit up the Wizards to see just how committed they are to Bradley Beal, and vice versa. For all his warts, there’s still a place for Simmons in the league even if he doesn’t improve — and given the evidence, there’s no reason to think he has incentive to do so.

The Eastern Conference is not getting any lighter, and if there was a year to sneak in before Brooklyn comes back at full health and depth, this would’ve been it.

But just as every playoff loss puts a team closer to elimination, every year the 76ers come up short strips at the finite time they have to maximize the unique talents they employ.

And it’s time for one unique talent to go.


Bob
MY NOTE:  I'm not posting this because I'm saying we should trade for Ben Simmons but, as I have said many times when Team A trades with Team B the rosters change for both of those teams and that while the trades may improve them in some areas they also usually weaken them somewhere else.  Case in point:  Our recent trade with OKC made us absurdly deep at big but equally absurdly thin at point guard.  Somebody will trade for Simmons, and when that happens, there will be needs created by at least one of those teams as well as other teams competing with them in their division who want to keep up.

It's situations like this where we'll see whether Brad is good at this job.  I would think he would be.  It's sorta like scouting except that you have to anticipate where those teams are going to be weak without reviewing film on it because the season hasn't started yet and those players have never played together, but let's wait and see.

My problem with Simmons isn't just his poor shooting and fritos, it's that he hasn't improved those weaknesses despite having played 4 NBA seasons, and sat out a 5th with a foot injury when he could have at least stood at the frito line and practiced.


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worcester wrote:Ben's work ethic is not that of a champion. Pure and simple. Move on and move away from Simmons, IMHO.

I agree. That little display during the last game of refusing to shoot, or even dunk when open underneath, sealed my opinion.

worcester wrote:Dinwiddie is a UFA. He can sign with us if we have/spend the money. If we spend the $9M we saved on KW and spend some of Evan's money on Spencer, we may be able to get him. Question remains are Dinwiddie's excellent perimeter defense, size, 3.5 rbpg, 6.8 apg, and 20 ppg enough to offset his .318 3 point shooting?

Yes Gyso, screw the Nets.

I like Dinwiddie too, but as you point out, he is abysmal from downtown, and we all know how much our new GM loves the 3-ball.

worcester wrote:One note of caution on Spencer - he shot .308 from three his last real healthy season on 400 attempts. Four Hundred!!! He may be hard to constrain on his 3 point shooting.

Wow! From glancing at his stats, I figured he was a hesitant 3-pt shooter...

Inre Spencer Dinwiddie, in his last healthy year:

1.  He averaged 16fgas/game.  Remember, Kyrie only played 20 games that season, Durant didn't play at all and they didn't have Harden yet, so he had to take a ton of them to fill the hole.

2.  Of his 16fgas/game, 6.3 of them were 3s.  That's 39.3%.

3.  The 2019-2020 Nets averaged 38 3ptfgas/game.  Dinwiddie took 1/6 of the team's 3s.

4.  Joe Harris, one of the best 3pt shooters in the league, averaged 5.9 3pt fgas/game that year.  Fewer than Dinwiddie despite shooting 42.4% from 3.  Dinwiddie averaged 30.8% 3pt fg%, and he took more than the 42% shooter.  That's not quality point guard decision-making.

5.  The Nets played 7 players 1200+ minutes that season.  Dinwiddie had the worst Defensive Rating of those 7 players.


Bob


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I do not see the Celtics signing any FA except those that get here as vet minimum players.  We still have the BAE and I guess the MLE (not sure which one of those can be used) and several TPE's.  

The sign and trade option hard caps the team as gyso pointed out and that would limit the team.  Therefore SD is not a realistic PG target.

With Kemba gone and more salary wiggle room, EF is more likely to be retained.  The Celtics may feel pressure to keep him.  The other issue when it comes to EF is paying him and then resigning Marcus Smart and Robert Williams.  I just do not see all 3 of them remaining on the team.  

Personally I would not resign EF.  I think this team will suffer from buyers remorse if they do.  I would let EF walk.  I am still high on Nesmith and believe that he can step in and fill the role of our 3rd wing.  But he is still in a developmental stage and the Celtics may not want to wait on him.  While Evan is an above average scorer, his defense is not.

The other side is that you have to resign EF.  You cannot go out and sign a FA of his caliber on offense but you can resign him as your own FA. You can never have enough 3 point shot makers on your team.  And if he lands an $18 million salary it would actually make it easy to make that NEXT bigtime deal to add the 3rd piece while using his contract to make the numbers work.

dboss wrote:I do not see the Celtics signing any FA except those that get here as vet minimum players.  We still have the BAE and I guess the MLE (not sure which one of those can be used) and several TPE's.  

The sign and trade option hard caps the team as gyso pointed out and that would limit the team.  Therefore SD is not a realistic PG target.

With Kemba gone and more salary wiggle room, EF is more likely to be retained.  The Celtics may feel pressure to keep him.  The other issue when it comes to EF is paying him and then resigning Marcus Smart and Robert Williams.  I just do not see all 3 of them remaining on the team.  

Personally I would not resign EF.  I think this team will suffer from buyers remorse if they do.  I would let EF walk.  I am still high on Nesmith and believe that he can step in and fill the role of our 3rd wing.  But he is still in a developmental stage and the Celtics may not want to wait on him.  While Evan is an above average scorer, his defense is not.

The other side is that you have to resign EF.  You cannot go out and sign a FA of his caliber on offense but you can resign him as your own FA. You can never have enough 3 point shot makers on your team.  And if he lands an $18 million salary it would actually make it easy to make that NEXT bigtime deal to add the 3rd piece while using his contract to make the numbers work.

dboss,

As gyso pointed out in an earlier post, not resigning Fournier doesn't suddenly open up that money for someone else.

Kemba shot 36% from 3 last year, which was actually dead-on with his career average. So he wasn't just having a "bad year" from 3. Fournier shot 46.3% from last year in Boston. He shot 38.8% from 3 in Orlando before he got traded. I don't know if that's because of Brad's system or what, but he went from a somewhat better than average 3pt shooter in Orlando to an elite 3pt shooter in Boston. His career average is 37.9%, so he's a better 3pt shooter over his career than Kemba. If we need outside shooting then Fournier is an upgrade over Kemba, at a significant salary discount.

I'd be happy with a speedy, defense-and-passing-first point guard to replace Kemba. Run the offense, run fast breaks, feed the shooters and defend the speed merchants of the NBA like a crazy man by staying in front of them. I could live with that. I realize, in today's NBA, that everybody switches so the chances of a midget getting caught in a mismatch is very real but you have to have a speed merchant and they tend to be undersized, so every coach is in the same boat. If you think you're set because you have a big point guard (e.g. 6'9" Kyle Anderson) then how are they going to stay in front of the Kyries/John Walls/Dragics?


Bob


.

bobheckler wrote:

dboss wrote:I do not see the Celtics signing any FA except those that get here as vet minimum players.  We still have the BAE and I guess the MLE (not sure which one of those can be used) and several TPE's.  

The sign and trade option hard caps the team as gyso pointed out and that would limit the team.  Therefore SD is not a realistic PG target.

With Kemba gone and more salary wiggle room, EF is more likely to be retained.  The Celtics may feel pressure to keep him.  The other issue when it comes to EF is paying him and then resigning Marcus Smart and Robert Williams.  I just do not see all 3 of them remaining on the team.  

Personally I would not resign EF.  I think this team will suffer from buyers remorse if they do.  I would let EF walk.  I am still high on Nesmith and believe that he can step in and fill the role of our 3rd wing.  But he is still in a developmental stage and the Celtics may not want to wait on him.  While Evan is an above average scorer, his defense is not.

The other side is that you have to resign EF.  You cannot go out and sign a FA of his caliber on offense but you can resign him as your own FA. You can never have enough 3 point shot makers on your team.  And if he lands an $18 million salary it would actually make it easy to make that NEXT bigtime deal to add the 3rd piece while using his contract to make the numbers work.

dboss,

As gyso pointed out in an earlier post, not resigning Fournier doesn't suddenly open up that money for someone else.

Kemba shot 36% from 3 last year, which was actually dead-on with his career average.  So he wasn't just having a "bad year" from 3.  Fournier shot 46.3% from last year in Boston.  He shot 38.8% from 3 in Orlando before he got traded.  I don't know if that's because of Brad's system or what, but he went from a somewhat better than average 3pt shooter in Orlando to an elite 3pt shooter in Boston.  His career average is 37.9%, so he's a better 3pt shooter over his career than Kemba.  If we need outside shooting then Fournier is an upgrade over Kemba, at a significant salary discount.  

I'd be happy with a speedy, defense-and-passing-first point guard to replace Kemba.  Run the offense, run fast breaks, feed the shooters and defend the speed merchants of the NBA like a crazy man by staying in front of them.  I could live with that.  I realize, in today's NBA, that everybody switches so the chances of a midget getting caught in a mismatch is very real but you have to have a speed merchant and they tend to be undersized, so every coach is in the same boat.  If you think you're set because you have a big point guard (e.g. 6'9" Kyle Anderson) then how are they going to stay in front of the Kyries/John Walls/Dragics?


Bob


.

Bob not signing EF does not open up money to sign a FA.  That is true and already acknowledged.  However it may impact the willingness of the Celtics to resign Marcus Smart and Robert Williams.  Not because they cannot sign them but because this team is clearly a team that does not want to be a perennial tax payer.

It is all about the money just like the saving derived from trading the 16th pick or Danny trading away a first rounder 2 years in a row.  

We need to address the quality of our PG depth.  It should be noted that PP shot the ball very well in his rookie year.  He is not a blur on the court but more than quick enough to push the pace.  Addressing the PG depth will ultimately be influence by (1) the prospect that MS can be above average (2) PP has a big jump YOY in his play making and passing skills (3) What may be available out there to trade for a BU PG or a starting quality PG.

With respect to size I think you need both options at point.  Speed and size.  it is hard to find that combination in one body.   Right now Boston has size to play the point in Marcus and more speed with PP and waters for example.  But speed along does not always translate into Pace.  You can pretty much bank on it that Boston will be adding another PG

dboss wrote:

bobheckler wrote:

dboss wrote:I do not see the Celtics signing any FA except those that get here as vet minimum players.  We still have the BAE and I guess the MLE (not sure which one of those can be used) and several TPE's.  

The sign and trade option hard caps the team as gyso pointed out and that would limit the team.  Therefore SD is not a realistic PG target.

With Kemba gone and more salary wiggle room, EF is more likely to be retained.  The Celtics may feel pressure to keep him.  The other issue when it comes to EF is paying him and then resigning Marcus Smart and Robert Williams.  I just do not see all 3 of them remaining on the team.  

Personally I would not resign EF.  I think this team will suffer from buyers remorse if they do.  I would let EF walk.  I am still high on Nesmith and believe that he can step in and fill the role of our 3rd wing.  But he is still in a developmental stage and the Celtics may not want to wait on him.  While Evan is an above average scorer, his defense is not.

The other side is that you have to resign EF.  You cannot go out and sign a FA of his caliber on offense but you can resign him as your own FA. You can never have enough 3 point shot makers on your team.  And if he lands an $18 million salary it would actually make it easy to make that NEXT bigtime deal to add the 3rd piece while using his contract to make the numbers work.

dboss,

As gyso pointed out in an earlier post, not resigning Fournier doesn't suddenly open up that money for someone else.

Kemba shot 36% from 3 last year, which was actually dead-on with his career average.  So he wasn't just having a "bad year" from 3.  Fournier shot 46.3% from last year in Boston.  He shot 38.8% from 3 in Orlando before he got traded.  I don't know if that's because of Brad's system or what, but he went from a somewhat better than average 3pt shooter in Orlando to an elite 3pt shooter in Boston.  His career average is 37.9%, so he's a better 3pt shooter over his career than Kemba.  If we need outside shooting then Fournier is an upgrade over Kemba, at a significant salary discount.  

I'd be happy with a speedy, defense-and-passing-first point guard to replace Kemba.  Run the offense, run fast breaks, feed the shooters and defend the speed merchants of the NBA like a crazy man by staying in front of them.  I could live with that.  I realize, in today's NBA, that everybody switches so the chances of a midget getting caught in a mismatch is very real but you have to have a speed merchant and they tend to be undersized, so every coach is in the same boat.  If you think you're set because you have a big point guard (e.g. 6'9" Kyle Anderson) then how are they going to stay in front of the Kyries/John Walls/Dragics?


Bob


.

Bob not signing EF does not open up money to sign a FA.  That is true and already acknowledged.  However it may impact the willingness of the Celtics to resign Marcus Smart and Robert Williams.  Not because they cannot sign them but because this team is clearly a team that does not want to be a perennial tax payer.

It is all about the money just like the saving derived from trading the 16th pick or Danny trading away a first rounder 2 years in a row.  

We need to address the quality of our PG depth.  It should be noted that PP shot the ball very well in his rookie year.  He is not a blur on the court but more than quick enough to push the pace.  Addressing the PG depth will ultimately be influence by (1) the prospect that MS can be above average (2) PP has a big jump YOY in his play making and passing skills (3) What may be available out there to trade for a BU PG or a starting quality PG.

With respect to size I think you need both options at point.  Speed and size.  it is hard to find that combination in one body.   Right now Boston has size to play the point in Marcus and more speed with PP and waters for example.  But speed along does not always translate into Pace.  You can pretty much bank on it that Boston will be adding another PG

Signing Fournier will be similar to the Nets signing Joe Harris. Perhaps even a tad better as Fournier is more versatile. Right? Well, if you plan to put together a contender then that is a good move.

I think that the Celts have to sign Fournier and move Smart to address their need at 1. Between Nesmith and Langford, they can cover what they will lose in trading Smart. I love Marcus but the team has to get better. Bringing in a quality player will need outgoing talent AND salary. It is the second requirement that leaves Smart as the most viable trade option.

Anybody wants to call Charlotte to explore RWill for Miles Bridges?

bobheckler wrote:Inre Spencer Dinwiddie, in his last healthy year:

1.  He averaged 16fgas/game.  Remember, Kyrie only played 20 games that season, Durant didn't play at all and they didn't have Harden yet, so he had to take a ton of them to fill the hole.

2.  Of his 16fgas/game, 6.3 of them were 3s.  That's 39.3%.

3.  The 2019-2020 Nets averaged 38 3ptfgas/game.  Dinwiddie took 1/6 of the team's 3s.

4.  Joe Harris, one of the best 3pt shooters in the league, averaged 5.9 3pt fgas/game that year.  Fewer than Dinwiddie despite shooting 42.4% from 3.  Dinwiddie averaged 30.8% 3pt fg%, and he took more than the 42% shooter.  That's not quality point guard decision-making.

5.  The Nets played 7 players 1200+ minutes that season.  Dinwiddie had the worst Defensive Rating of those 7 players.


Bob


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I never thought he was a good defensive player either