Roster Reset

Here's who we have on the roster, as of 6/22/23 before the draft, assuming the Zinger/Smart trade goes through.


Jayson Tatum
Jaylen Brown
Derrick White
Al Horford
Kristaps Porzingis
Robert Williams
Malcolm Brogdon
Grant Williams
Sam Hauser
Payton Pritchard
Luke Kornet

That's it.  11 players.  Moose and Gallo are gone to Washington.  Smart's gone to Memphis.  Blake was on a one-year that has run its course.  He can be resigned, if he's interested, but that's not a reality so he's 'out'.

We now have the #25 pick in tonight's draft.  Assuming we don't trade that and Grant for someone (I mean, who tf knows what's going to happen next?) the rookie will bring us up to 12.  That's 3 short of a full roster.  Admittedly Brad has all summer to pick up a few odds-and-ends, so this isn't that important, but he cannot be done yet is my point.

Looking at it from another perspective, here it is by position (more or less, given today's positionless NBA):

Bigs - Zinger, Al, RWill, Luke, Grant (smallball big)
Wings - Jayson, Jaylen, Sam
Guards - Derrick, Malcolm, Payton

When you look at it like this our front court is very strong, our wings are thin as is our guards.  My current concern is that the acquisition of Porzingis (and his contract) will make it almost certain that Grant will be gone.  That thins out our big depth a bit, that's ok given how strong it is now, but it could enhance our wing or guard depth with his replacement(s).

Because physicals will not be completed by draft time today the Grizzlies will still be technically picking @ #25 and we will still be picking at #35, but those players will be picked with the intention of satisfying whichever team ends up with those picks post-trade.  So look for who Memphis picks at #25, because that's who will be wearing green next year (assuming, once again, that Brad the Impaler doesn't trade him).  My expectation is that Brad will not trade him, since him and Wyc are clearly intending to stay under that 2nd Apron, which I guess they need to do if they want to trade Grant. Will #25 be a guard?  A wing?  A big?  A defender or a shooter?

This roster reset thread is not a done deal yet, obviously.


Bob


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I believe the core is:

Jayson
Jaylen
Zinger (aka: "Z" for extreme shorthand, as in Z for 3!!)
Derrick
Al
Rob

Semi-safe, but not safe:

Brogdon
Sam

Everyone else should watch their inboxes for messages from their agent.

It's going to be an interesting summer.

I expect Brad to draft a wing provided there is no must draft big available.

Sam is a wing but he is more of a situational player.

At this point my guess is;

We keep...

Tatum
Brown
Zinger
White
Horford
RWIII
Davison

50/50 shot to stay/go...

Pritchard
Hauser
Tonight's draft pick (Get this right; Clowney or Jackson-Davis)

In Limbo...

Brogdon

Going...

Grant
Kornet
Champagnie
Griffin

If we keep only those first 7 I listed, I'm good.

If you're going to shake it up, do it right, not half-way.

My take on it...

1. Decide if you're shooting off all your guns and building for a one-time run at it, pre-CBA revisions, or building for the long haul (I'm sure they have).
    Watch your $ if the following moves are intended to build a long-term roster. You need to keep Tatum past this year, everyone else TBD.

2. Before getting too wild decide if your PG is Brogdon or White, and if one of those, Pritchard or Davison are on your bench.

3. Look to the draft, further trades and FAs for a paint dwelling big for the bench first.

4. Look to FAs or undrafted FAs for another shooting wing 2nd.

Bob


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NYCelt,

I understand why you put JD in your first group, but if another team wants him to be part of a trade, who says no?  Perhaps I should have added him to my second group, Semi-safe.

Unless Kornet is part of a trade, he will be back.  The Celtics love him and he is still under contract.

If Griffin wants another run, I expect he will be back.  They love him too.

One of Grant or Brogdon stays.  The timing of Brogdon's recovery (if he can, if he will, why won't they tell us something?) may determine which one stays.  With Smart gone, need plays a role as well.

My best guess is that White is our PG (only because we have to call one of the 5 starters a PG).  I expect Tatum and Zinger will initiate our offense and once and a while Jaylen will get a turn.  Brogdon is a scoring wing off the bench that can distribute, but that is not his strength.

Smart was available to trade because they had confidence in White to take over there.  IMO, Brogdon isn't the guy.

As far as the draft, do they go after the best player available or go for need?  It will be interesting to see.

gyso wrote:NYCelt,

I understand why you put JD in your first group, but if another team wants him to be part of a trade, who says no?  Perhaps I should have added him to my second group, Semi-safe.

Unless Kornet is part of a trade, he will be back.  The Celtics love him and he is still under contract.

If Griffin wants another run, I expect he will be back.  They love him too.

One of Grant or Brogdon stays.  The timing of Brogdon's recovery (if he can, if he will, why won't they tell us something?) may determine which one stays.  With Smart gone, need plays a role as well.

My best guess is that White is our PG (only because we have to call one of the 5 starters a PG).  I expect Tatum and Zinger will initiate our offense and once and a while Jaylen will get a turn.  Brogdon is a scoring wing off the bench that can distribute, but that is not his strength.

Smart was available to trade because they had confidence in White to take over there.  IMO, Brogdon isn't the guy.

As far as the draft, do they go after the best player available or go for need?  It will be interesting to see.

I put Davison in the keeper ranks, simply because I expect he will stay. I don't think he's valued to the point they wouldn't trade him, but I don't expect anyone else is targeting him either. IF he makes the money work in a deal, so be it. I believe he has PG skills enough to earn some minutes and adds to the bench.

Hard to say why the sudden buildup in severity with Brogdon's injury. I believe he's the better option at point with White first off the bench. Physical condition and contract value could take what I believe and shove it in my ear, however. I'd much rather see Brogdon stay than Grant. Personally I'm not that high on Grant's value.

On the question of best available or need, I'm on a campaign for need. Need being another big, IMO. In my estimation, we now have one reliable big, so drafting a second would help. I guess that makes it my need. OK, I NEED them to draft a BIG!

(Unrelated: Check update in latest Admin topic when you get a minute)

Ok, so here we are post-draft.  We drafted a defense-first (defense-only?) wing that may/won't make the team.

We're most likely going to lose Grant due to the Zingis trade because of salary implications.  That leaves us thin at PF and at point guard.


Who can/should we trade Grant for?  What team has a plethora of point guards and/or PFs.  The one caveat, I suppose, is that the incoming salary(ies) cannot exceed the cost of Grant's resigning number, otherwise we'd just keep Grant.

Portland now has Dame, Anfernee Simons and the freshly drafted Scoot Henderson.  They'd probably love to trade Dame but that's a blockbuster and we can't afford Dame's salary; not even with a new number for Grant, and we're not getting Simons or Henderson for just Grant; or even Grant plus hometown favorite Payton Pritchard.

Dallas has interest in Grant, and they'd love to give us Hardaway, Jr.  He's not a point guard, he's an inefficient, high volume scorer and a lousy defender.  No thanks, as far as I am concerned.  How about Luka (just kidding)?  Kyrie is a point guard but I'd rather hammer a 9-inch nail through my tongue than take him back (besides, we couldn't afford him any better than we could afford Dame).

How about Kyle Anderson of Minny?  A 6'9" point forward.  An efficient (41% last year) albeit not prolific (1.5/game) 3pt shooter but a good rebounder and solid ball handler.  He's making $9M.  Grant for him + TPE?  Something like that?

Larry Nance, Jr. of NOP?  Not a point guard but a solid PF.  Makes $10M.  How about Grant for Nance + picks?  I'll always take NOP picks, they're snakebit.

Orlando is coveting Grant.  How about Grant for Fultz?  Wouldn't that be funny?  I'd crack a rib laughing.  Put The General (Grant) back together with The Admiral (Schofield)?  They'd want to give us Gary Harris.  I'm on record as not favoring that, but let's get something for Grant.

Utah signs-and-trades Jordan Clarkson (player option $14M) for Grant sign-and-trade?


Any other ideas, folks, or are we just so bedazzled and turned around that we aren't going to even try to anticipate Belichick Brad's next move even though we know one involving Grant is almost certainly coming?


Bob


.

Assuming nothing happens this week and we have to wait until after the moratorium,

If Grant gets an offer from another team in July, this could still take a month before it is decided. If he doesn't get a strong offer, this could take another month. Personally, I'd like to keep him for a reasonable amount (75% keep) but part of me is sick and tired of his mouth. WWBD?

After the recent trade action and a bit of action with the draft, we may be done with roster changes for a while. Maybe Brad signs a couple undrafted players for the Summer League and for the G League.

gyso wrote:Assuming nothing happens this week and we have to wait until after the moratorium,

If Grant gets an offer from another team in July, this could still take a month before it is decided.  If he doesn't get a strong offer, this could take another month.  Personally, I'd like to keep him for a reasonable amount (75% keep) but part of me is sick and tired of his mouth.  WWBD?

After the recent trade action and a bit of action with the draft, we may be done with roster changes for a while.  Maybe Brad signs a couple undrafted players for the Summer League and for the G League.

gyso

I think they still need to add a player or two to the roster. Gallo, Moose and Smart are gone plus the kid they signed at the end of the season, maybe no Grant maybe no Griffin and Kornet?

gyso wrote:Assuming nothing happens this week and we have to wait until after the moratorium,

If Grant gets an offer from another team in July, this could still take a month before it is decided.  If he doesn't get a strong offer, this could take another month.  Personally, I'd like to keep him for a reasonable amount (75% keep) but part of me is sick and tired of his mouth.  WWBD?

After the recent trade action and a bit of action with the draft, we may be done with roster changes for a while.  Maybe Brad signs a couple undrafted players for the Summer League and for the G League.

Dboss,

I'm not sure but I believe once a RFA signs an offer sheet the controlling team can match it but they can't sign and then trade him, almost certainly not to the team whose offer sheet he just signed. So Brad has to have his ducks lined up before the moratorium lifts.

Gyso?


Bob


.

dboss wrote:

gyso wrote:Assuming nothing happens this week and we have to wait until after the moratorium,

If Grant gets an offer from another team in July, this could still take a month before it is decided.  If he doesn't get a strong offer, this could take another month.  Personally, I'd like to keep him for a reasonable amount (75% keep) but part of me is sick and tired of his mouth.  WWBD?

After the recent trade action and a bit of action with the draft, we may be done with roster changes for a while.  Maybe Brad signs a couple undrafted players for the Summer League and for the G League.

gyso

I think they still need to add a player or two to the roster.  Gallo, Moose and Smart are gone plus the kid they signed at the end of the season, maybe no Grant  maybe no Griffin and Kornet?

No doubt that we need to add more players. My post was mostly about Grant, because that is what BobH was discussing. My point there was that we may have to wait a bit for that to come to fruition and meanwhile, we got undrafted guys to get excited about.

Repost warning:

Kornet is under contract for another season. The Celtics love him. Unless he is part of a trade (doubtful), he will be back.
IMO, if Griffin wants another go-around, he'll get it. By all accounts, they love him in the locker room.

Unfortunately, most of the trading and all of the free agent signings don't start until the second week of July. So we wait.

bobheckler wrote:

gyso wrote:Assuming nothing happens this week and we have to wait until after the moratorium,

If Grant gets an offer from another team in July, this could still take a month before it is decided.  If he doesn't get a strong offer, this could take another month.  Personally, I'd like to keep him for a reasonable amount (75% keep) but part of me is sick and tired of his mouth.  WWBD?

After the recent trade action and a bit of action with the draft, we may be done with roster changes for a while.  Maybe Brad signs a couple undrafted players for the Summer League and for the G League.

Dboss,

I'm not sure but I believe once a RFA signs an offer sheet the controlling team can match it but they can't sign and then trade him, almost certainly not to the team whose offer sheet he just signed.  So Brad has to have his ducks lined up before the moratorium lifts.

Gyso?


Bob


.

Bob,

Unless I am mistaken, only teams with cap space can provide an offer sheet for Grant to sign.  That eliminates most of the teams in the league.  In this case, if the team that makes the offer (verbal at this time) wants to get something additional from us (draft pick, cap relief, etc.) then they can agree to negotiate a S&T.

A team without cap space can dump salary to make cap space, so this opens up possibilities to other teams during the summer.

If they don't want to pursue a S&T, and Grant doesn't want to help us out, they just get Grant to sign it and our only recourse is to match the offer or let him walk for nothing in return.

Grant's agent can also approach teams without cap space and see if there is any interest in a S&T.

Anyway, that's how I understand the rules.

Our Big Dog Marcus Smart is headed to the Barbecue capital of the world, The radio home of BB King and Rufus Thomas. My former radio home at WLRM and WDIA.

The musical home of Stax records that produced massive hits by The Staple Singers, Issac Hayes, Sam & Dave, Johnny Taylor, “the Blues Wailer” (Thats my nickname and its patented so don't even try it) and The great Otis Redding.
What Chu know bout that? Don’t play.

Okay okay, I got a bit carried away. Back to basketball-

Once (if) Grant is gone we’ll be left with a Kennel full of pups.

We need a big dog, somewhat ferocious, intimating with a stank eye. A take no S**T enforcer type who….can also play basketball.

Any suggestions??

Teams can renounce CAP holds to free up money.

Grant is in a tough situation.  As teams navigate the new CBA numbers you would expect some level of frugality.

There are a lot of free agents out there.  Many will resign with their old teams.

I would bet that Grant does not get any substantial offers ($10 + million range)  

Rumor has it that the Celtics may offer KP a 2 year extension.  That would pretty much eliminate Grant.   The Celtics made an $8.4 million  QO to him.  The Celtics can withdraw that offer.  I do not see a sign and trade because it would hard CAP the Celtics.  KP could have opted out but he chose to opt in so that he could be traded to Boston.  

With respect to MB if the Celtics tried to trade him once they will try again.  His elbow injury is no big deal but the achilles issue is something to watch.  

Do you guys remember that he did missed a game or 2 because he had a sore achilles?  Check this link out

https://www.foxsports.com/nba/malcolm-brogdon-player-injuries

I think they keep PP for the time being and I also think JD Davidson is safe.  I really like Davidson's PG skills in terms of pace, handle, passing (8.7 APG) and finishing at the rim.  He looks like a pure point guard to me. It may be time to move our 2-way guys on to a regular contract and sign some new guys (Undrafted FA to 2 way deal)

The Celtics can fill out the remainder of their roster with vet minimum salaries and maybe one of their summer league guys makes the roster.  The kid they just drafted has work to do on his offense but defensively he can play right now.

Ktron wrote:Our Big Dog Marcus Smart is headed to the Barbecue capital of the world, The radio home of BB King and Rufus Thomas. My former radio home at WLRM and WDIA.

The musical home of Stax records that produced massive hits by The Staple Singers, Issac Hayes, Sam & Dave, Johnny Taylor, “the Blues Wailer” (Thats my nickname and its patented so don't even try it) and The great Otis Redding.
What Chu know bout that? Don’t play.

Okay okay, I got a bit carried away. Back to basketball-

Once (if) Grant is gone we’ll be left with a Kennel full of pups.

We need a big dog, somewhat ferocious, intimating with a stank eye. A take no S**T enforcer type who….can also play basketball.

Any suggestions??

I would love to trade Grant for Isaiah Stewart of the Pistons, they probably don’t need Grant, but they have an abundance of bigs? Maybe something could be done, Stewart would be our enforcer and could provide good depth as you never know what your going to get from RWill and Al.

This could be a very interesting productive line up, White/Brogdon Jaylen Jayson Stewart Porzingis.

Could also substitute Naz Reid in there, I like Grant, but he’s not getting 25 mill a year from us.

It makes no sense for Detroit to trade Beef Stew(art) with his cheap salary for an expensive Grant Williams.  Yes, Grant can hit 3s but is that enough for all that extra money?  I don't think so.  Sorry, Cowens, I just don't.  I hope I'm wrong, that has happened (it was sometime last century, but I have been wrong), but I doubt I am this time.  I'd be happy if I am, I'd love him here too.

The list of teams that can sign Grant outright is short.  The list of teams that can't do that but would be interested in a S&T is longer, but the catch is that we need to take back less salary in any Grant sign-and-trade than we give them, to stay under the 2nd Apron, that's our reason for trading Grant in the first place, and that might winnow the list of possible suitors down even further.  The good news is that the same salary crunch that's putting him on the block might be the same salary crunch that's keeping other teams from making him a Godfather Offer.  We could end up keeping him.  Not likely, but conceivable.

The roster is now:

Tatum
Brown
Zinger
Al
Rob
Malcolm
Derrick
Sam
Payton
Luke

I'm leaving Grant off this list because the addition of Z makes his retention unlikely.  That leaves us with 10 players under contract.

Bigs - Z, Al, Rob, Luke
Wings - J1, J2, Sam
Guards - Derrick, Malcolm, Payton

Clearly there is a lack of depth behind the Js and not a lot of depth behind Derrick either, especially given Malcolm's injury.

This is a great opportunity for Jordan Walsh.  As a 6'6", 7'2" wingspan wing defender he has a better chance of making this team at this time than most 2nd rounders do.  We are thin at wing and, based upon highlight films and what knowledgeable people are saying, his defense is NBA-ready.  He won't last in this league if he doesn't develop his offense but you can make a team and stick for a season or two if your defense is NBA-ready.  Jaylen Brown was exactly that when we drafted him #3.  His jumpshot for the first 2 years was not very reliable, if you remember, but he put the work in offseason and now he's a killa.  If you scroll down to 'Shooting' and look at his fg% by distance over the years you'll see steady improvement in Jaylen's fg% across every shot range every year, but early on?  Not so good.  I'm not sure Jordan Walsh will ever come close to being an All-NBA player like Jaylen, but he could be a defensive stopper and a reliable shooter given a few years.  We commonly refer to such players as 'solid rotation role players' which are needed in the league as much as superstars because someone has to be on the bench, and acquiring such a player with #38 is a steal.  In fact, if you pull back and look at it from 50K feet Brad turned a #35 into a #25, then turned the #25 into a bunch of 2nd rounders only one of which is Jordan Walsh.  Those additional unused 2nd rounders, which can be traded in the future for depth at guard and/or wing, makes Walsh practically free.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/brownja02.html

If we give a roster spot to Walsh that brings us up to 11 players, still 3-4 players short.  Roll the dice with Davison we're still only up to 12 and our depth at guard past Derrick is shaky given Malcolm's injuries and Payton and JD's youth and current limitations.

As I said in an earlier post, don't unbuckle your seatbelts yet folks, the ride's not over and Brad's gone full Belichick like even Danny rarely did.


Bob


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https://www.nba.com/celtics/news/sidebar-offseason-20230623-what-the-celtics-are-getting-in-jordan-walsh


What the Celtics Are Getting in Jordan Walsh


Taylor Snow
Sr. Writer

June 23, 20236:18 PM EDT


BOSTON – While Boston’s plethora of Draft Night trades are in the process of being finalized, it’s time to get to know the lone selection from the 2023 NBA Draft who is expected to join the team: the No. 38 overall pick, Jordan Walsh.

But first, let’s break down why the 19-year-old wing is expected to end up in a Celtics uniform.

Boston is expected to pull off a flurry of draft night deals that all started with the blockbuster, three-team trade that landed Kristaps Porzingis in the Bay State. In one of Boston's proposed trades, the Celtics will acquire the rights to Walsh, who was selected with the 38th overall pick.

The C’s initially owned the 35th overall pick, but that was dealt to Washington along with Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala as part of the Porzingis trade. Memphis, the third team involved in the deal, acquired Marcus Smart from Boston in exchange for the 25th overall pick and a 2024 first-round pick (via Golden State). Memphis also sent Tyus Jones to Washington to complete the three-way deal.

That is the only Celtics trade that has been made official so far, while the following deals are still being processed.

Boston acquired (i) the 31st pick and two future second-round picks from Detroit in exchange for the draft rights to the 25th pick (Marcus Sasser); (ii) Boston then acquired the 34th and 39th pick from Charlotte in exchange for the draft rights to the 31st pick (James Nnaji); (iii) Boston then acquired the draft rights to the 38th pick (Jordan Walsh) and a future Dallas second-round draft pick from Sacramento in exchange for the draft rights to the 34th pick (Colby Jones); and (iv) acquired a future second-round draft pick from Atlanta in exchange for the draft rights to the 39thpick (Mouhamed Gueye).

In simpler terms, the following second-round picks will be acquired by the Celtics once the trades have been finalized:

The No. 38 overall pick (Walsh)
Dallas’ 2024 second-round pick
The best of Detroit’s, Golden State’s, or Washington’s 2025 second-round pick
The best of Minnesota’s, New Orleans’s, New York’s, or Portland’s 2026 second-round pick
Atlanta’s 2027 second-round pick

OK, now with all that chaos out of the way, let’s talk about No. 38.

Walsh just completed his freshman season at the University of Arkansas where he served as a long, explosive athlete with a strong defensive skill set.

Celtics President of Basketball Operations sees the 6-foot-7, Dallas native as a raw talent with plenty of upside.

“He's a good prospect,” Stevens said after the completion of Thursday night’s Draft. “He's young. We don't expect him to come in and take the world on fire in the first couple of months, Summer League, first year. He has a special ability laterally with his wingspan (7-foot-2) to swallow people up defensively. Like he really creates havoc with his arms and with his energy and with his ability to move his feet.”

Walsh was a part of a stacked Razorbacks team this past season that also included the No. 6 overall pick, Anthony Black, and the No. 27 overall pick, Nick Smith Jr. All three were one-and-done.

In his lone season at Arkansas, Walsh averaged 7.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 43.3 percent from the field and 27.8 percent from long range. Although shooting was his perceived weakness, Stevens believes claims that Walsh is a better shooter now than he was a few months ago, judging by the two draft workouts he had with the C’s.

“He is just getting better and better,” Stevens said of Walsh’s shooting. “I've always thought his touch looked good, but he looked hesitant at times. And so, I think over time he'll become a really good shooter who has the athleticism to finish and drive closeouts. But he'll be ahead on the defensive end from the start.”

Aside from Walsh, the Celtics also gained tremendous value by obtaining four future second-round picks. Second-rounders are a hotter commodity than ever now that the league is facing a new financial landscape under the terms of the upcoming Collective Bargaining Agreement. We have seen just how coveted they are through various trades across the league over the course of the past couple of weeks.

“We were excited what we were able to get out of [Thursday night] with more picks to be used in any variety of ways,” said Stevens, “and then a good player in Jordan.”

Plan to see Walsh in action two weeks from now, as he is expected to take part in NBA Summer League alongside last year’s second-round pick, JD Davison, and several other young, rising players.


Bob
MY NOTE:  Jordan Walsh won't be on any stat leaders board, because defense is an underquantified contribution, but rest assured Brad and Joe and other coaches will be watching closely.  The first game in Vegas (Boston is only playing in Vegas) is Saturday 7/8 vs Miami.  I expect our SL players will convene in Boston to practice under an assistant coach around 7/1 - 7/3.  That gives them 4-6 days of practice before they have to get on a plane.

7/1 is one week from today.  We're still in "flurry mode" and will stay in it until the second week of July when the initial rush to sign first and second tier free agents is done.  NBA free agency, when teams can start talking to free agents, is also 7/1.  I anticipate a flurry of trades around the league this week as teams look at their rosters post-draft, other teams' rosters post-draft and then start thinking about what they want their rosters to look like one week from today when they start pitching free agents.  Salaries, where they fall vis-a-vis the Aprons and roster balance are all going to be put under a microscope by GMs and coaches this week.

.

I don't know if anyone has posted this yet, but it was a good interview.

Here's another:

From what Brad said, MB should be ready when the season begins.

I expect to see him back in the 6th man role.  Now that I have seen his injury history I can understand why the Clips do not want him.

I believe they will try to move him after next season.  With Smart gone, the Celtics are unlikely to move him any time soon.  The Celtics are high on KP and an extension seems possible.  However I read that a two year extension could be done in July but they can also wait until Dec and be able to offer more years.  The injury risk cannot be overlooked.  I think a wait and see is prudent.  Test Drive and if he actually fits well and is healthy do the extension.

Grant is not coming back.  They want to avoid the 2nd apron.

Look for Brad to build out the roster with minimum salary players. I would like to see JD moved up.

With draft night behind us the 11 under contract are…

Bigs: Kristaps Porzingis, Robert Williams III, Al Horford, Luke Kornet
Wings: Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, Justin Champagnie
Ball-handlers: Derrick White, Malcolm Brogdon, Payton Pritchard

Davison and Walsh could potentially make it 13.

With Porzingis possibly being the only big capable of being on the floor every night, and questions about Brogdon’s elbow and surgery, another big and a point could still be needs. Another wing wouldn’t hurt either.

Brad has said he’s not done. No reason to think a couple of more significant changes aren’t on the way.

Warning, the following was posted in another thread, but this part is relevant to this conversation:

IMO, the 15 player roster will not include Walsh.  He will get offered a 2-way.  He needs coaching and playing time.  He will get that in Maine.

The biggest decision for Brad and Co. is to decide between Brogdon or Grant.  It seems like he can keep one or the other, but not both, in order to stay under the 2nd Apron.  Trading Brogdon or S&T Grant away could bring in a rotational piece or just cap relief.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

After that is decided, the bulk of the roster will be filled by ring wraiths.  Veteran players.  There may be a trade or two involving the deep bench, but that is mostly shuffling deck chairs.

This is where I am totally puzzled. Last year we were touted as one of the deepest teams in the NBA, now we trade away Marcus Smart, a move I did not see coming, but many did. Then I open up stories about Brogden, how he will probably be ready to start the season, and I see trade after trade after trade including him. So.....where is our depth at that position now? Please do not tell me that Pritchard will walk into Brogden's spot, he is no Brogden. So our backcourt will be White and Jaylen? Pritchard on the bench? Hauser who no one seems to mention? Is one of these guys going to put on a superman costume and take over and be a hero? NOT. So, it is money that is forcing this issue? Someone please explain to me. Is there some terrific point guard out there that will be a free agent and sign with us???? Questions, too many I know, this mind is just constantly wondering??????????