Zeller or Plumlee?

The Bucks and Celtics have both retained their holds on Plumlee and Zeller with qualifying offers for them extended. Plumlee's is for 3.1 million while the Bucks have somewhere between 6-8 million in cap space left and Zeller's is for 3.7 million while the Celtics have somewhere between 8-9 million in space left.

I personally would rather have Plumlee. He is a slightly better defender than Zeller, averaged 2 blocks and 9.6 boards per 36 minutes and shot 57% the past two seasons. Zeller got 1.1 blocks, 9.3 boards and shot 53% from the field the past two seasons. They are basically the same size and age and those are the numbers that matter to me. 

I'd have preferred Ezeli to either of them. 

What do you think Danny is trying to do with the precious little cap space he has left? We might be able to keep the Bucks from matching Plumlee on a 1 year 8.5 million deal. It is likely Zeller gets 1 year around 6 million just like Sully. But from who?

I would stick with Zeller because he already knows the system.

dboss

Plumlee...but I'd rather have MASON.



with Horford bringing a mid range game (same as Zeller) I'd think Miles would be an upgrade over the Z-man. Though I still think Zeller will be back.

Well, they have not renounced his rights, so he is either sticking around or they are trying to include him in a trade of some sort.

Well, they have not renounced his rights, so he is either sticking around or they are trying to include him in a trade of some sort.

Sign neither. Its flotsum vs jetsum If we can't do better than that save the money for future signings. As it stands now, neither is the final piece that makes the Celts a serious contender. Get the horses 1st then worry about the complimentary pieces.

swish

I would doubt that there are any centers still available that the Cs would want beyond either Cousins or possilbly Okafor so a Plumlee or Zeller type player will still be needed.

I agree with dboss and desire Zeller back over Plumlee because he knows the system, the coaches and the teammates especially if he comes at a smaller salary. The extra 2 or 3 M in their salaries could help squeeze in another player or even two.

swish wrote:Sign neither. Its flotsum vs jetsum If we can't do better than that save the money for future signings. As it stands now, neither is the final piece that makes the Celts a serious contender. Get the horses 1st then worry about the complimentary pieces.

 swish

How do you save cap space you want to give someone for ONE year for future signings?

No, I don't want Zeller or Plumlee for the 3/22 like Cole Aldrich got, which is probably their market value. This post discusses who you want more on a ONE year deal between 6-9 million.

Ram wrote:

swish wrote:Sign neither. Its flotsum vs jetsum If we can't do better than that save the money for future signings. As it stands now, neither is the final piece that makes the Celts a serious contender. Get the horses 1st then worry about the complimentary pieces.

 swish

How do you save cap space you want to give someone for ONE year for future signings?

No, I don't want Zeller or Plumlee for the 3/22 like Cole Aldrich got, which is probably their market value. This post discusses who you want more on a ONE year deal between 6-9 million.

That extra 6-9 mil might come in handy down the road if some team is looking to dump the salary of a good player that is making 15 mil or so.

swish

swish wrote:

Ram wrote:

swish wrote:Sign neither. Its flotsum vs jetsum If we can't do better than that save the money for future signings. As it stands now, neither is the final piece that makes the Celts a serious contender. Get the horses 1st then worry about the complimentary pieces.

 swish

How do you save cap space you want to give someone for ONE year for future signings?

No, I don't want Zeller or Plumlee for the 3/22 like Cole Aldrich got, which is probably their market value. This post discusses who you want more on a ONE year deal between 6-9 million.

That extra 6-9 mil might come in handy down the road if some team is looking to dump the salary of a good player that is making 15 mil or so.

 swish

Possible but unlikely. I'd love to see a list of how many guys making 15+ million were traded during the year to a playoff team able to accomodate half his salary. Heck the C's tried to get something, anything, for David Lee and failed. 

Maybe a guy will be bought out and the teams with the most cap space have the edge. But I think having ONE legit center on a team that currently employs three hybrid PF/C types going into the season would be pretty important.

Ram wrote:

swish wrote:

Ram wrote:

swish wrote:Sign neither. Its flotsum vs jetsum If we can't do better than that save the money for future signings. As it stands now, neither is the final piece that makes the Celts a serious contender. Get the horses 1st then worry about the complimentary pieces.

 swish

How do you save cap space you want to give someone for ONE year for future signings?

No, I don't want Zeller or Plumlee for the 3/22 like Cole Aldrich got, which is probably their market value. This post discusses who you want more on a ONE year deal between 6-9 million.

That extra 6-9 mil might come in handy down the road if some team is looking to dump the salary of a good player that is making 15 mil or so.

 swish

Possible but unlikely. I'd love to see a list of how many guys making 15+ million were traded during the year to a playoff team able to accomodate half his salary. Heck the C's tried to get something, anything, for David Lee and failed. 

Maybe a guy will be bought out and the teams with the most cap space have the edge. But I think having ONE legit center on a team that currently employs three hybrid PF/C types going into the season would be pretty important.

Looks like we have a standoff here - Your leaning towards the importance of a legitimate center - I'm leaning toward more cap space for the future. Is there room here for a compromise?

swish

Yes, Zeller can accept his QO of 3.6 million and leave the team with like 5 million in space. 

The NBA isn't the NFL however, where having that space has come in handy for Belichick when adding players mid-season. Once Ainge spends to the cap (like he always seems to do) the C's will get a 3.6 million exception to use if a player is bought out. They also have more than enough expiring contracts and cheap contracts to make any type of trade work during the season. Players who are bought-out either go to a destination they like (Joe Johnson - Miami) or a contender. The ability to pay 3.6m vs. 6-7 million to a guy who likely just made 15 million and was paid 95% of that in a lump sum is rarely the #1 reason a guy signs somewhere late in the season. 

A reliable back-up center was one of the two things Stevens said this team still needs (along with shooting). Ignoring it to stay under the cap would be foolish,

Plumlee.

Every NBA team gets one, and there seems to be enough to go around.

Ram wrote:Yes, Zeller can accept his QO of 3.6 million and leave the team with like 5 million in space. 

The NBA isn't the NFL however, where having that space has come in handy for Belichick when adding players mid-season. Once Ainge spends to the cap (like he always seems to do) the C's will get a 3.6 million exception to use if a player is bought out. They also have more than enough expiring contracts and cheap contracts to make any type of trade work during the season. Players who are bought-out either go to a destination they like (Joe Johnson - Miami) or a contender. The ability to pay 3.6m vs. 6-7 million to a guy who likely just made 15 million and was paid 95% of that in a lump sum is rarely the #1 reason a guy signs somewhere late in the season. 

A reliable back-up center was one of the two things Stevens said this team still needs (along with shooting). Ignoring it to stay under the cap would be foolish,

I'll stick with my thoughts on this subject and consider the importance of a backup center only if and when this club has the talent to be a legitimate challenger for  the ring.

swish

Fair enough. It is simply not how things are usually done in this league. Especially after the HC sites having a legit strong center as a top remaining need for the club.