Schilly

Just a few thoughts.

Here we are a season away from around 13 mil or so in cap space, probebly a little less. Here is what they have under contract for next season...

Anderson 9mil
Patterson 6.4mil
Telfair 1.7mil
Khryapa 1.1mil
Outlaw .9mil
Commited 19.1 mil

Throw in Randolphs Qualifying Offer of 2.7mil an then you are up to 21.8mil. Also add in another draft pick for about 1.5 mil or so an the blazers are up to around 23 mil. Add in Monia total is up to 24 mil or so. And lets assume that the Blazers also keep Hassell for 4.5mil next year brings it up to about 28.5 mil.

Then Factor if the Blazers resign Miles starting at 5mil takes the team pretty close to 33.5mil.

So the Blazers would be an estimated 10.5 mil (assuming they renounce all FA's Stoudamire, Ratliff, Rahim, Stepania, NVE, Woods) under the cap with this lineup.

PG Telfair
SG Anderson/Hassell/Monia
SF Miles/Patterson/Khryapa/Outlaw
PF Randolph
C ? (Draft pick)

So 10 players under contract and only about 10 mil to go out and sign players and that's assuming they walk away entirely form those that expired.

That to me would be the end of the Blazers for a long long time.

Meanwhile they have several expiring deals that they potentially move for accomplished players (Kidd, Carter etc...) that are not so much of a question mark as to what they bring to a team. Granted they give up their cap flexibility, but let's be honest would they really be all that flexible in the above situation? I don't think so. Especially depending on how th Zach Randolpgh thing shapes up next summer. They could be looking at a situation where right out of the shoot they are forced to match Zach for a 9-10 mil deal which would only leave them the MLE to rebuild their roster with.

Portland should not be afraid of big contracts if they are attached to players like Jason Kidd, but if they are Derek Anderson type deals then they should.

Trader Ed

Revisting the team salary cap thread


You take your estimated salary of $33.5 mil or so and add back in Ratliff for at least $8 mil and we only have about $2 mil left

IMHO Ratliff is the one we keep of all of our FA's

We might get Damon to sign again for about $6-7, but if you do that you were better off not renouncing him. Plus I think we need to look elsewhere ot let Telfair go all out at our PG spot.

Zach will need more $ IMHO

Miles and DA can be traded and exchanged for an upgrade somehow to fill out the roster

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"The whole is greater than the sum of its parts..."

Heart, desire and hustle! Its the fire within that makes a champion.

Schilly

I doubt anyone takes DA and his 9mil 3 year deal for what he brings to the court.

I honestly think htat Portland gunning for capspace will be also gunning for their own feet. And therefore should not be something that prevents them from taking on a Kidd size deal.

Storyteller

Schilly,

Also, for every player less than 11 on the roster (ie, unrenounced FA's and players under contract), the team is charged a "cap hold" in the amount of a rookie minimum salary. Next year, each of these cap holds will probably be just over $400,000.

Stepping Razor

Schilly, I agree with everything you've said.

Unless we can move both DA and Rube for expiring deals -- not bloody likely, IMO -- then there is just no way we can have meaningful capspace without gutting the team to the extent that no free agent in his right mind would want to come here.

Use those expiring contracts to bring in talent via trade, now!

Stepping Razor

Fork

So, when you make the qualifying offer, that much is basically held and you can't use that space...then, we could conceivably go sign a FA for say $12 million, putting us right near the salary cap. Then, re-sign Zach for...say, $10 million, putting us over by 10 million? Is that legal?

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Schilly

Not sure how that works, But I know one thing they would have to renounce everyone that is a FA except Randoph for that to work.

Trader Ed

It depends on all the other salaries combined...

the qualifier is a place holder until the actual amount is determined. Once its determined the actual value gets assigned to the team total

This is basically the same as the RFA or Bird right players. BUt there place holder values range from 150% to 300%

whether you are $12 mil under or so to get a FA at $12 mil remains to be seen based on the others

__________________
"The whole is greater than the sum of its parts..."

Heart, desire and hustle! Its the fire within that makes a champion.

Storyteller

If he receives a qualifying offer Randolph will count $5.4 million against the cap until he is signs a new contract.

The rule is that either his FA amount or the qualifying offer counts against the cap, whichever is larger. In Randolph's case, 300% of his 2003-04 salary is larger.

Schilly

What if he receives a max offer on the first day, and signs the offer sheet, is that then the ammount that counts?

Storyteller

Yep. Or if he signs an extension this summer, it's the amount that he'll actually make next season that counts.

Ed O

Portland simply CAN'T still be angling for cap space next summer. So many things would have to fall just so for us to be able to sign someone decent that I find it hard to think Portland's going to take that chance.

Ed O.

__________________
"In the end, it all comes down to talent. You can talk all you want about intangibles, I just don't know what that means. Talent makes winners, not intangibles. Can nice guys win? Sure, nice guys can win -- if they're nice guys with a lot of talent. Nice guys with a little talent finish fourth, and nice guys with no talent finish last."

-- Sandy Koufax