1. Kandi: I like Sterling, I really do but what he's done to Kandi is despicable (
). Assuming Kandi waits until next year when he thinks teams will have more cap room, Kandi will actually sign a smaller contract than the 7 year 63 million dollar contract the Clipps have on the table. Next year 4 teams other than the Clippers are poised to be under the cap, but Seattle is going to re-sign Lewis and Payton, Detroit has to worry about re-signing Stackhouse to an extension, Denver is going after Lebron and is doing what the Clipps did in the late-90's, and San Antonio has to worry about Duncan(who appears to be edging to re-signing with the recent signing of Emanuel Ginobili who is a Euro superstar). The Heat are the only "X" factor, if the choose to re-sign Zo they have no cash, but if they go after Kandi the Clipps are handed Zo, so there's a backup plan. With all of that said I think Kandi signs with the Clippers for 7 years 60 million next year. Also the other FAs looking for big money that are better than Kandi are( not including Clipps): Tim Duncan, Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Alonzo Mourning, Jerry Stackhouse (opt out), Rasheed Wallace (opt out) and other lessers are Keon Clark, Elden Campbell, James Posey, and Richard Hamiltion.
2. Elton Brand and Andre Miller: There is a reason Dre demanded the max from Cleveland, the city stinks. In LA, Dre's where he wants to be and will take less, also with advertisement opportunities to make up for the cash difference I see him taking a flexable contract. Both Elton and Dre are classy guys who love LA, I think they will end up taking 7 years 60 million becuase they'll want to stay together and in LA when they see that money in LA is easy to come by through ads and endorsments. For example Elton is on an ESPN commercial now. So they're in the bag.
3. Lamar Odom: The guy loves LA, I see him at JFD in Westwood and the Westwood Arcade all the time (Q, D Miles, and Corey are also hang in Westwood, well not D Miles anymore though). Lamar doesn't intend to play anywhere else in his career right now, and after the Clipps stuck with him through tough times he's ready to pay them back. He's publicly stated that, taking into account his recent problems, staying in LA not money is his primary concern. I think Lamar puts 7 years 55 million on the table and gets the same as Brand and Dre back from the Clipps.
So that's 4 guys signed to around 7 years 60 million. But here are the complications:
4. Corey Maggette: I think he's really going to explode this year because he's moving back to SG. I've always thought he's similar to VC, but with better D, and if you look at his age and statistical progression it's similar to VC's. Maggette has worked on his J and handles this summer and is ready to play. Corey's been talking about a 7 year 35 million or 6 year 30 million dollar contract, which is perfect. I'd keep Corey, he's going to be great with someone and I'd like it to be with the Clippers.
5. Quentin Richardson: This is what bothers me. Q is a good player but is he worth 8 million per year? At the moment I'd give him 5 million, but why is he talking about an extension a year and a half before he's even eligible? If Q learns D, improves his handles, and becomes a better inside shooter he's worth 6 million, but not much more. If push comes to shove, I'd trade Q in 2 years when he's a restricted FA.
So LO,Dre,Brand,Kandi, and Maggette are bagged, assume Q and Ely are sticking around, what to do with the rest?:
1. Dooling- if he'd take like 2.5 mil/year he'd be a great backup.
2. Jaric I think, Denver's offer should be taken, and that basically gives the Clipps Denver's 04 1st, Washington's 04 1st (traded for James Posey), and the Clippers own future 1st which Orlando traded to Denver.
3. Wilcox I'd love to trade for a very young center-project. James Lang is perfect and Kosta Perovic works too. You can never have to many young bigmen.
so what do you think will happen?
FAs:
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