Since this is a slow day, I want to ask everyone to avoid political discussions here until further notice. Please help me enforce this by gentle spreading of the word and, if necessary, using report comment (dots … menu, bottom right of comment)
Past political threads have been mostly respectful, so this is not anything personal against any past commenters. Politics are extremely stressful right now and I’d like to keep this one of the few places online where I and others can escape from that. I encourage you to be politically active in your own lives, but not here. I understand that there are sometimes edge cases where politics and basketball intersect, and I’ll consider this case by case.
Thank you. (Reminder: I also delete replies to pinned posts.)
Reading about how there are a lot of players in front of Moody. But based on this deep analysis, Moody might be the front runner or at least in competition with one other player for minutes.
Only 8 players from the 2021 draft played more than Moody on winning teams: Wagner, Mobley, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy, Suggs, Kuminga, Giddey & McBride.
And I think most would agree some of those played too many minutes, and that most of them are better than Moody at the moment.
I think Moody was less underplayed than most fans think, especially given how young he is, and there are lapses in his game that the coaches see a lot better than we do. But as he continues to improve, he'll definitely play more and more!
"Clippers sending draft rights to Balsa Koprivica, the 57th pick in 2021 NBA Draft, the right to swap 2030 second-round picks with Utah and $4.3 million in the Westbrook-Dunn sign-and-trade"
Or maybe it's the opposite; Ainge realized he could keep LM and still <verb> for Cooper, all he needs to do is give Westbrook the green light to shoot whenever he wants!
“Clint Capela Atlanta was one big that the Knicks checked in on. I don’t know how far talks went. I don’t know if they’re active at this very moment. But they did check in on Capela”
Like TJ D., per Basketball Reference, Capella cannot shoot threes, or free throws well. Like TJD he can rebound and he does make about 10+ points on average a game. Unlike TJ D. he does not have his own atoll. He is, in addition, 1 inch taller. Can’t remember from watching Houston what makes him particularly special.
It's too bad that the Hawks drafted Risacher, because Wiggins for Capela + filler might've been doable (if you're in the Wiggins salary-dump camp, which I go back and forth on)
Edit: it's actually really hard to match salaries with ATL, the only trade that I could get to work was Wiggs for Capela and Mouhammed Gueye.
". . . Tim Kawakami: I have heard that Kuminga is not a great trade asset around the league because of that money…
Anthony Slater: By the time Podziemski is owed a raise, Draymond Green is off the books, Andrew Wiggins is off the books, even Steph Curry is technically off the books. It’s a different financial matter [than Kuminga and Moody]...
Tim Kawakami: If they get Markkanen and they do it without giving up Kuminga, I think they would have to trade Kuminga eventually."
> ". . . Tim Kawakami: I have heard that Kuminga is not a great trade asset around the league because of that money…
What this tells me is that if the Warriors can't trade Kuminga, they should not extend him this summer and they should instead be willing to take it to restricted free agency.
By that logic, they should do the same with Moody, since he seems to be even less desired around the league.
At some point, you either bet on a player or you don't ... if either of them sign a one year deal, they are gone in summer 2026, even if you match the deal. Even if they sign a contract the team wants to match, then you've created some tension between player and team.
The only similar circumstance I can think of is Ayton, and that didn't really end well.
I have not gotten the sense from reports that Moody seems less desired by the league. Less desired by the Warriors, absolutely. But that's a different topic. I also have not gotten the sense that Moody is going to ask for around the max. If he does, they'd be morons not to let him go to RFA too.
> if either of them sign a one year deal, they are gone in summer 2026, even if you match the deal
? I don't really know what this means but if you match a deal then by definition you keep the player. Did you mean that they would sign a qualifying offer? That's an option in theory, but who actually ever does that? It's not a realistic threat tbh.
> At some point, you either bet on a player or you don't
And that point can be in restricted free agency. It was for Tyrese Maxey, who just re-signed with Philly. It was for Patrick Williams, who just re-signed with Chicago. Quickley probably would have as well if the Knicks didn't trade him midseason, instead he signed a deal with the Knicks. Just how the NBA goes.
> Did you mean that they would sign a qualifying offer? That's an option in theory, but who actually ever does that? It's not a realistic threat tbh.
I think we mean the same thing ... some other team signs Kuminga to a one-year deal, and the most the Dubs can do is match it and keep him for that season (2025-2026). Then, he's a UFA.
At some point, I think it will happen. I agree it's not likely, but I think it's a non-zero possibility to happen. Maybe less likely for Kuminga, since his family probably needs the money, but who knows? Kuminga has shown irritation towards the team (and was rumored to have demanded a trade) for far lesser slights.
edit: Your references are on point, but I don't think any of those guys think of themselves as the future team #1, and I'm willing to bet Kuminga does.
It also means you do not think that Jon Kuminga will progress and become a much better player. I'll admit the past seasons' results have been inconsistent and the jury is still out regarding his future potential . As a Warriors fan I'd like to see more of what he can do before before giving up on the investment as a high draft pick ...
There are risks no matter how the Dubs handle this. I think beli would like to trade JK but his point here is that a big extension now, before he has proven he will progress, might be financially imprudent as against letting the market determine his value next summer and re-signing him for less (maybe) in restricted free agency. I can see that point. The flip side is that it risks another team deciding JK is worth more than we're willing to match in free agency and we lose him for nothing.
Can't the Warriors just say they will match any offer and maybe other teams wouldn't bother offering him the offer sheet, similar to what happen with Reeves and he signed way below market value.
I'd agree no need to extend him, or trade him, now.
Let him play this season and see how he and the team does.... just like they did with Klay.
Yes, there are risks... but right now, as I understand it, the Ws' salary structure is such that standing pat with the current roster makes sense to me.
Could be. Like I said, there are risks no matter how the team handles it. They signed JP to a big extension and had to trade him to unload it. If the Dubs think JK's ego is that fragile, and he doesn't realize it's a business, I guess they can risk megabucks and pray.
Maybe Lacob is frustrated with Kuminga's asking price on his extension and he's doing his usual test-public-opinion-though-TK thing. It at least tracks with rumors than Ainge wants Podz instead of JK, though.
Not great timing with the Lauri trade ("hey, I heard it's going to be expensive to sign JK long term! Danny, are you still there? Hello?"), unless he's already approved either Podz leaving or ending negotiations for a while.
Lacob devaluing jk's value while propping up Podz so Danny will feel good about getting Podz over jk when really Lacob wants to keep jk over podz, light years.
Darn it... the Pelican'ts are losing big the Grizz... SL Dubs almost certainly gonna have to actually beat the worst team in Summer League to make the tourney...
I don't see either the Bulls or the Bucks doing this... I get that the Bucks would get a better defender... but I doubt they see GP2 as better than Connaughton... the Bulls get marginally better, but with no path to contention, why are they giving up second round picks to get marginally better? The trade would make more sense with GP2 & 2x 2nd round picks going to the Bucks, but I'm still wondering why...
I think Connaughton has declined to a below average rotation player. Not quite replacement level, but pretty close. GP2 is a lot better even factoring for injuries I think. I'm also pretty sure the Bucks would give up a pick just to get off the 9M has on his contract next year.
The Bulls would definitely want a pick or two. He's not going to make them better.
Still thinking about how Lonnie Walker randomly turned into prime Kobe against us in the 4th quarter of Game 4 and then we never heard from him again after that
Great stuff this summer, ERIC, you are really killing it. Today, I particularly enjoyed your trip down Summer League DUBS Memory Lane. Seeing ''Playoff BARNES''. DRAY, AND, KLAY do their thing was special; reminded me how great/ahead these guys were when they were kids....
For those who believed things that made no sense, let me also confirm that the Clippers were never in on Tyus Jones and this transaction finally closing for Kris Dunn ends all of that talk
A humble request, SOL: you've been doing a lot of copy-pasting from links without quotation marks or other clear signifiers of attribution. The attribution is typically implied by the hyperlinks you provide — and I love all the great content you bring here — but I think you could make it a lot clearer by either (1) providing the link before the quoted text instead of after; or (2) adding quotation marks or a ">" to indicate a quote. Or ideally both.
As it stands, I don't think I'm the only one who has started reading your posts and only later realized the words weren't your own. (Indeed, another poster recently expressed confusion about whose words you were posting).
That’s so funny how he said Chris Young, who went on to pitch in the big leagues (at 6’10”), was the toughest guy he faced in college. I watched a lot of baseball in the years of Young’s career, and I remember him being a bit of a stiff even by MLB standards lol. Clearly the athleticism was hiding in there.
OT. As we all read about how much money the NBA players are making in Abu Dhabi, and the luxury resorts they are visiting, I thought everyone might like to read the small blurb from Human Rights Watch. The NBA seems to be very interested in this region. Currently. I hope it is not too political.
“Emirati women live under male guardianship.[11] Whereas men can marry multiple women and unilaterally divorce, women are required to obtain a court order to divorce their husband.[11] Honor killings can go unpunished, as the victim's family can pardon the murderer.[11] Marital rape is not criminalized in the UAE.[11] The UAE is a major destination for sex trafficking.[12]”
The NBA is like the PGA, and most other businesses. They are in the Middle East for the same reason that Willie Sutton robbed banks; that is where they keep the money. To be perfectly honest sports leagues being in bed with human rights abusers actually bothers me a bit less than being in league with gambling. Maybe it shouldn't, but gambling ruins a lot of lives Something like 10% of all bankruptcies in the US are due to gambling losses. So kudos to Apricot for resisting the urge to pollute this site in exchange for a handful of easy dollars.
ESPN Sources: The Los Angeles Clippers are sending guard Russell Westbrook, a second-round pick swap and cash to the Utah Jazz in a sign-and-trade agreement for guard Kris Dunn.
Westbrook is expected to agree on a contract buyout with the Jazz, clearing the way for him to eventually join the Denver Nuggets after clearing waivers, sources tell ESPN.
I believe the Warriors had to pay a far higher price to dump Iguodala to Memphis - they had to send a lightly-protected FRP and only got Julian Washburn and a TPE in return.
Once Russell Westbrook clears waivers, the expectation is that he’ll join the Denver Nuggets as a free agent and bring them another veteran to bolster the team’s bench and be available as a spot-starter.
I really think Russ has gone from being over rated to under rated. As long as he doesn't shoot away from the rim, he is a pretty good backup point guard. It isn't his fault that some GM's thought he was worth a max contract.
fair enough, but backups shouldn't be getting much run in the playoffs. I'm not a big fan of Russ due to the indifferent defense and lack of shooting, but if the Nuggets just need a guy to drive and kick for 12 minutes or less a game, they could do worse. That said, they will have to surround him with shooters to make it work.
His combination of USG and TS are still horrible but at $4M, I guess you can't expect much more. And Reggie Jackson's numbers looked even worse so I guess it's still an upgrade for DEN.
Dunn is pretty good — was on my backup PG wishlist before we got Melton — but he was a FA who I think had already moved on from Utah. I think the sign-and-trade was just a way to get him and Russ to their desired destinations at the right price.
Since this is a slow day, I want to ask everyone to avoid political discussions here until further notice. Please help me enforce this by gentle spreading of the word and, if necessary, using report comment (dots … menu, bottom right of comment)
Past political threads have been mostly respectful, so this is not anything personal against any past commenters. Politics are extremely stressful right now and I’d like to keep this one of the few places online where I and others can escape from that. I encourage you to be politically active in your own lives, but not here. I understand that there are sometimes edge cases where politics and basketball intersect, and I’ll consider this case by case.
Thank you. (Reminder: I also delete replies to pinned posts.)
Reading about how there are a lot of players in front of Moody. But based on this deep analysis, Moody might be the front runner or at least in competition with one other player for minutes.
Podz - short arms
Melton - bad back
GP2 - chronically injured
Buddy - can't defend
Beekman - who?
Wiggins - low motor
Waters - healthy and NBA length arms
Only 8 players from the 2021 draft played more than Moody on winning teams: Wagner, Mobley, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy, Suggs, Kuminga, Giddey & McBride.
And I think most would agree some of those played too many minutes, and that most of them are better than Moody at the moment.
I think Moody was less underplayed than most fans think, especially given how young he is, and there are lapses in his game that the coaches see a lot better than we do. But as he continues to improve, he'll definitely play more and more!
Gee based on this, it sounds like Waters is competing for a starting spot! 😂
…and he’s not Moody
"Clippers sending draft rights to Balsa Koprivica, the 57th pick in 2021 NBA Draft, the right to swap 2030 second-round picks with Utah and $4.3 million in the Westbrook-Dunn sign-and-trade"
https://x.com/wojespn/status/1814128927515795660
LM’s replacement confirmed! It’s coming!
Lol
Or maybe it's the opposite; Ainge realized he could keep LM and still <verb> for Cooper, all he needs to do is give Westbrook the green light to shoot whenever he wants!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RE1MX2Kq3k
You guys think Buddy Hield will let the team practice at his house when they come to Dallas this year?
“Clint Capela Atlanta was one big that the Knicks checked in on. I don’t know how far talks went. I don’t know if they’re active at this very moment. But they did check in on Capela”
— More from Ian Begley
https://x.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1814047419191239052
Like TJ D., per Basketball Reference, Capella cannot shoot threes, or free throws well. Like TJD he can rebound and he does make about 10+ points on average a game. Unlike TJ D. he does not have his own atoll. He is, in addition, 1 inch taller. Can’t remember from watching Houston what makes him particularly special.
It's too bad that the Hawks drafted Risacher, because Wiggins for Capela + filler might've been doable (if you're in the Wiggins salary-dump camp, which I go back and forth on)
Edit: it's actually really hard to match salaries with ATL, the only trade that I could get to work was Wiggs for Capela and Mouhammed Gueye.
Clint next to Dray doesn’t really inspire me all that much…unless Dray gets back to his traymond ways
On 2nd thought, it would be completely and utterly lobtastic with a lineup of Steph Podz JK Dray Clint on the floor
Great rebounding too
It would be a salary dump for an expiring.
True. That too.
". . . Tim Kawakami: I have heard that Kuminga is not a great trade asset around the league because of that money…
Anthony Slater: By the time Podziemski is owed a raise, Draymond Green is off the books, Andrew Wiggins is off the books, even Steph Curry is technically off the books. It’s a different financial matter [than Kuminga and Moody]...
Tim Kawakami: If they get Markkanen and they do it without giving up Kuminga, I think they would have to trade Kuminga eventually."
https://old.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/1e6qcij/tim_kawakami_if_the_warriors_get_markkanen_and/
original source: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5jXCXEfm9G8WbLADKFMO8T?si=O6eaTxdBQqKo9qSMHEGUlA&t=703&context=spotify%3Acollection%3Apodcasts%3Aepisodes&nd=1&dlsi=d9e5866106244490
> ". . . Tim Kawakami: I have heard that Kuminga is not a great trade asset around the league because of that money…
What this tells me is that if the Warriors can't trade Kuminga, they should not extend him this summer and they should instead be willing to take it to restricted free agency.
By that logic, they should do the same with Moody, since he seems to be even less desired around the league.
At some point, you either bet on a player or you don't ... if either of them sign a one year deal, they are gone in summer 2026, even if you match the deal. Even if they sign a contract the team wants to match, then you've created some tension between player and team.
The only similar circumstance I can think of is Ayton, and that didn't really end well.
I have not gotten the sense from reports that Moody seems less desired by the league. Less desired by the Warriors, absolutely. But that's a different topic. I also have not gotten the sense that Moody is going to ask for around the max. If he does, they'd be morons not to let him go to RFA too.
> if either of them sign a one year deal, they are gone in summer 2026, even if you match the deal
? I don't really know what this means but if you match a deal then by definition you keep the player. Did you mean that they would sign a qualifying offer? That's an option in theory, but who actually ever does that? It's not a realistic threat tbh.
> At some point, you either bet on a player or you don't
And that point can be in restricted free agency. It was for Tyrese Maxey, who just re-signed with Philly. It was for Patrick Williams, who just re-signed with Chicago. Quickley probably would have as well if the Knicks didn't trade him midseason, instead he signed a deal with the Knicks. Just how the NBA goes.
> Did you mean that they would sign a qualifying offer? That's an option in theory, but who actually ever does that? It's not a realistic threat tbh.
I think we mean the same thing ... some other team signs Kuminga to a one-year deal, and the most the Dubs can do is match it and keep him for that season (2025-2026). Then, he's a UFA.
At some point, I think it will happen. I agree it's not likely, but I think it's a non-zero possibility to happen. Maybe less likely for Kuminga, since his family probably needs the money, but who knows? Kuminga has shown irritation towards the team (and was rumored to have demanded a trade) for far lesser slights.
edit: Your references are on point, but I don't think any of those guys think of themselves as the future team #1, and I'm willing to bet Kuminga does.
What you say is logical. The only thing is, it requires taking something Tim Kawakami wrote seriously. Otherwise, yeah, that makes sense.
It also means you do not think that Jon Kuminga will progress and become a much better player. I'll admit the past seasons' results have been inconsistent and the jury is still out regarding his future potential . As a Warriors fan I'd like to see more of what he can do before before giving up on the investment as a high draft pick ...
BTW ... same with Moses Moody.
He’s just taking longer to develop because of his lack of actual bball experience. Considering that, he’s def not reached his ceiling IMO
There are risks no matter how the Dubs handle this. I think beli would like to trade JK but his point here is that a big extension now, before he has proven he will progress, might be financially imprudent as against letting the market determine his value next summer and re-signing him for less (maybe) in restricted free agency. I can see that point. The flip side is that it risks another team deciding JK is worth more than we're willing to match in free agency and we lose him for nothing.
Can't the Warriors just say they will match any offer and maybe other teams wouldn't bother offering him the offer sheet, similar to what happen with Reeves and he signed way below market value.
I'd agree no need to extend him, or trade him, now.
Let him play this season and see how he and the team does.... just like they did with Klay.
Yes, there are risks... but right now, as I understand it, the Ws' salary structure is such that standing pat with the current roster makes sense to me.
Could be. Like I said, there are risks no matter how the team handles it. They signed JP to a big extension and had to trade him to unload it. If the Dubs think JK's ego is that fragile, and he doesn't realize it's a business, I guess they can risk megabucks and pray.
Maybe Lacob is frustrated with Kuminga's asking price on his extension and he's doing his usual test-public-opinion-though-TK thing. It at least tracks with rumors than Ainge wants Podz instead of JK, though.
Yeah, anything you hear from TK has been run by Lacob first, so it's definitely a negotiation tactic.
Not great timing with the Lauri trade ("hey, I heard it's going to be expensive to sign JK long term! Danny, are you still there? Hello?"), unless he's already approved either Podz leaving or ending negotiations for a while.
If Ainge doesn’t want JK, then the deal is most certainly dead…like I suspected anyway. Podz won’t be part of the deal at any point. Non-starter
Lacob devaluing jk's value while propping up Podz so Danny will feel good about getting Podz over jk when really Lacob wants to keep jk over podz, light years.
Lacob to Ainge: "You know Danny, Podz is a future all star, so we're not giving you picks in a Lauri deal; you're giving us picks. Think about it." 😉
Darn it... the Pelican'ts are losing big the Grizz... SL Dubs almost certainly gonna have to actually beat the worst team in Summer League to make the tourney...
Ways to keep Moody:
GP2 to Bucks
Pat Connaughton to Bulls
Jevon Carter and 2nd round pick to Warriors
We already have Moody at home.
Are there rumors that Moody isn't staying/can't stay?
I don't see either the Bulls or the Bucks doing this... I get that the Bucks would get a better defender... but I doubt they see GP2 as better than Connaughton... the Bulls get marginally better, but with no path to contention, why are they giving up second round picks to get marginally better? The trade would make more sense with GP2 & 2x 2nd round picks going to the Bucks, but I'm still wondering why...
I think Connaughton has declined to a below average rotation player. Not quite replacement level, but pretty close. GP2 is a lot better even factoring for injuries I think. I'm also pretty sure the Bucks would give up a pick just to get off the 9M has on his contract next year.
The Bulls would definitely want a pick or two. He's not going to make them better.
Yeah, I’m just throwing together possibilities.
I don't understand. We don't need to make a trade to keep Moody, Kerr just has to give him a chance to earn minutes. Then we'll know more.
Yes, but we've seen Kerr can't control himself so we need to limit his options.
Any picks would have to go to the Bulls I think.
Same trade but replace Carter with Davion Mitchell from the Raptors. I know Sleepy would love this one.
Still thinking about how Lonnie Walker randomly turned into prime Kobe against us in the 4th quarter of Game 4 and then we never heard from him again after that
Do we have to? :/
Also Lakers 18/18 from the line. Just a few misses and the game and series are very different… sigh
If we'd have won that Game 4... I'm still convinced we win that series. Then I dunno... we probably lose to Denver, but maybe not...
Yep
Would have at least got a classic Game 7 instead of that beatdown
Lonnie Walker having ended our run is like that little kid shooting Omar. Of all people...
All Wire references get a like. It's a league rule.
Great stuff this summer, ERIC, you are really killing it. Today, I particularly enjoyed your trip down Summer League DUBS Memory Lane. Seeing ''Playoff BARNES''. DRAY, AND, KLAY do their thing was special; reminded me how great/ahead these guys were when they were kids....
For those who believed things that made no sense, let me also confirm that the Clippers were never in on Tyus Jones and this transaction finally closing for Kris Dunn ends all of that talk
PG: Harden, Dunn
SG: Mann, Powell
SF: Jones, Coffey
PF: Leonard, Batum
C: Zubac, Bamba
https://x.com/LawMurrayTheNU/status/1814007588679463280
A humble request, SOL: you've been doing a lot of copy-pasting from links without quotation marks or other clear signifiers of attribution. The attribution is typically implied by the hyperlinks you provide — and I love all the great content you bring here — but I think you could make it a lot clearer by either (1) providing the link before the quoted text instead of after; or (2) adding quotation marks or a ">" to indicate a quote. Or ideally both.
As it stands, I don't think I'm the only one who has started reading your posts and only later realized the words weren't your own. (Indeed, another poster recently expressed confusion about whose words you were posting).
I have been (quietly) confused many times
I get boisterously confused.
Are Clippers fans whining about #WastingKawhisPrime ? Seems like a fine group, but not really that scary.
I won't ask what other teams are saying about our lineups.
Kawhi has been #WastingHisFans'Primes
Clippers fans, by definition, are past their primes
2012 roster also had Jeremy Tyler haha🔥Somewhere sitting around, I got a Jeremy Tyler & Charles Jenkins autograph (from the Warriors 2012 draft party)
Charles Jenkins went his entire career without missing a mid range jumper
Pre-evo of Shaun haha
David West Details Jaw-Dropping Steph Curry Workout! | Jefe Island: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BE6nG9gXO6Q
Several other things covered here (the title topic is brief and not very interesting), always fun to see David West talk.
That’s so funny how he said Chris Young, who went on to pitch in the big leagues (at 6’10”), was the toughest guy he faced in college. I watched a lot of baseball in the years of Young’s career, and I remember him being a bit of a stiff even by MLB standards lol. Clearly the athleticism was hiding in there.
World Series-winning Rangers GM Chris Young
The Clippers have recovered pretty well (considering) from losing PG13.
OT. As we all read about how much money the NBA players are making in Abu Dhabi, and the luxury resorts they are visiting, I thought everyone might like to read the small blurb from Human Rights Watch. The NBA seems to be very interested in this region. Currently. I hope it is not too political.
“Emirati women live under male guardianship.[11] Whereas men can marry multiple women and unilaterally divorce, women are required to obtain a court order to divorce their husband.[11] Honor killings can go unpunished, as the victim's family can pardon the murderer.[11] Marital rape is not criminalized in the UAE.[11] The UAE is a major destination for sex trafficking.[12]”
The NBA is like the PGA, and most other businesses. They are in the Middle East for the same reason that Willie Sutton robbed banks; that is where they keep the money. To be perfectly honest sports leagues being in bed with human rights abusers actually bothers me a bit less than being in league with gambling. Maybe it shouldn't, but gambling ruins a lot of lives Something like 10% of all bankruptcies in the US are due to gambling losses. So kudos to Apricot for resisting the urge to pollute this site in exchange for a handful of easy dollars.
Besides, human trafficking is famous for ruining almost no lives whatsoever.
Yes, I see your point. Morality, addiction, culture….very big topics.
https://x.com/wojespn/status/1814003406669029499
ESPN Sources: The Los Angeles Clippers are sending guard Russell Westbrook, a second-round pick swap and cash to the Utah Jazz in a sign-and-trade agreement for guard Kris Dunn.
Westbrook is expected to agree on a contract buyout with the Jazz, clearing the way for him to eventually join the Denver Nuggets after clearing waivers, sources tell ESPN.
I believe the Warriors had to pay a far higher price to dump Iguodala to Memphis - they had to send a lightly-protected FRP and only got Julian Washburn and a TPE in return.
That's got to hurt Westbrook's ego - traded for Kris Dunn and Clips had to add some cash and a pick swap to do the deal. MVP! MVP!
HE's getting what he wants though so I don't think he's butt hurt at all.
Another horrible offseason for Denver. Maybe we can catapult them in the standings!
One more trade to Utah, and Westbrook will be automatically enrolled as a Mormon.
It's state law.
Once Russell Westbrook clears waivers, the expectation is that he’ll join the Denver Nuggets as a free agent and bring them another veteran to bolster the team’s bench and be available as a spot-starter.
https://x.com/wojespn/status/1814010258999906754
Good luck with that, Denver...
He's better than Reggie Jackson at least...right? That's what Nuggets fans think.
I really think Russ has gone from being over rated to under rated. As long as he doesn't shoot away from the rim, he is a pretty good backup point guard. It isn't his fault that some GM's thought he was worth a max contract.
He was solid in the regular season but abysmal in the playoffs
fair enough, but backups shouldn't be getting much run in the playoffs. I'm not a big fan of Russ due to the indifferent defense and lack of shooting, but if the Nuggets just need a guy to drive and kick for 12 minutes or less a game, they could do worse. That said, they will have to surround him with shooters to make it work.
His combination of USG and TS are still horrible but at $4M, I guess you can't expect much more. And Reggie Jackson's numbers looked even worse so I guess it's still an upgrade for DEN.
Westbrook traded from LA to Utah, and then quickly seeking a buy out again?!?!! He really must hate Utah...
But seriously, if the Jazz are starting to make some of these types of moves, doesn't it feel like they're moving on from the Markkanen discussion?
Or they traded Dunn to make room for Podz and/or Moody . . . *tinfoil hat off*
Is Dunn that bad? Wasn't he a good defender?
Dunn is pretty good — was on my backup PG wishlist before we got Melton — but he was a FA who I think had already moved on from Utah. I think the sign-and-trade was just a way to get him and Russ to their desired destinations at the right price.
I see, thanks. I was sort of hoping he'd make it into the Lauri trade, but that was never an option.