Quote:
The point for Memphis was not to get talent in return, it was to cut payroll - that's it. They wouldn't want impact players like Maggette, Cassell or Brand because they might actually help the team win games, which is NOT what they want. They were already a lottery team with Gasol, moving him was a way of:
A) cutting payroll for the future and
B) improving their chances of a higher draft pick next summer. What would be the point of trading for impact players who will improve your team when you have no intention of re-signing them in the offseason?
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Oh brother. So now youre going to say memphis is purposely tanking? Theyre already owners of about the worst record in the league, no way is there any point in "trying" more, not to mention purposely tanking in this situation is something completely unproveable. Brand is an impact player? How when hes probably not going to play again this season? Kwame >>>> a brand who is on the injured list. Cassell an impact player in that offense? And im sure they must have figured maggette would mean tons of wins on that terrible team, heck look how many games we have won since we have him this year...oh...wait.....
Kwame's contract is just as expiring as cassell. Maggette or brand also good chance of being expiring deals and at worst, great trade bait for sign and trade. (much better than just open market). Even if you could call a cassell an "impact" player for memphis which is down right laughable, if they REALLY thought he was going to win games for them, then they just do what everyone else (including them) have done this year ,and buy his deal out.
You also need to get off your brand train. Hes a great player, but youre missing the point. NOT WORTH MAX MONEY. I AM looking at his history, and he hasnt led us to anything. His "mvp" type year was thanks to a healthy sam cassell, and thats pretty much a given in as much as the year before cassell came, what did brand do, then the year after, when cassell was injured, what did brand do. WIth chicago nor clippers brand has not been able to carry the team on his back. Hes just not on the level of duncan, gasol, garnett, etc. Those guys i would pay max money to, Brand i would not.
We especially do not need to pay max money to brand when we have kamans big deal, and how much less on the dollar we will be getting from kaman, when brand comes back. Brand has proven his whole career he is not a superstar max money guy, he has proven that he cant carry this team anywhere except not being as bad as we were in the late 90's. Maybe youre satisfied with just being a borderline playoff team. However the organization and most other fans will only be fully satisfied when we have a championship. When you have a mix of guys that obviously will not get you a championship, then you dont give them a raise and lock them in, you try something new. Does arenas guarantee a championship? no, but its better than status quo with what we know already doesnt work.