2014 Free Agency Period: News and Discussion

[Walter White]

Polar opposite situations.

I was kidding. And I like Griff way better.

 

[mhi]

That is the difference between him and Chris Grant.

Yep, Chris Grant would have signed Oden by now.

 

[Benedict_Boozer]

A quick reply to Sam The Bullshit Whisperer's tweet:

This is interesting to me. If anything given the fact the T'Wolves literally need to trim their guaranteed's so they can sign their rookie (the Michigan kid, Glen Robinson III) and we could have easily matched the salaries I"m still not convinced Griff couldn't have extracted Turiaf in the Love deal.

Water under the bridge but they are loaded at Center already with both Dieng and Pekovic needing minutes.

Flip must have really drawn a line in the sand.

 

[MirORich]

I think it's more likely the Cavs wanted to keep their options open for bigger fish than Turiaf at the time of the Love trade. If they decide that's the best they can do for now with just 1-2 of the Utah contracts, then they have a likely match with the Wolves with the Wolves need to shed a guaranteed contract or two

 

[oracio]

Just for fun, Ronny Turiaf 14 Points/4 Dunks/3 Blocks vs Chicago:

http://youtu.be/nDQnzrqlhdg

 

[TransplantII]

Look for AL Horford to be a target in the off season now that things have changed in ATL.

 

[Lee]

Look for AL Horford to be a target in the off season now that things have changed in ATL.

Based on our need for more offense or on Horford's rim protecting/shot blocking ability?

 

[VAIN1]

ESPN ranks the Cleveland Cavaliers as the 5th best team in terms of under 25 talent
By Justin Rowan @Cavsanada on Sep 22 2014, 2:00p 149

David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
The Cavaliers are not only a team with the ability to win now, they are also among the league's best in terms of young talent.

Tweet (8) Share (24) Share 149 Comments
It is that magical time of year where actual NBA news is scarce, so the NBA community turns to rankings players, teams, logos, jerseys and everything else under the sun. While these rankings should normally be taken with a grain of salt, they do provide great conversation pieces for those who want to talk basketball year round. Today ESPN released a ranking showing where teams stand in terms of talent under the age of 25. These rankings can fluctuate dramatically from year to year depending on what teams get high draft picks, or when a team trades young talent in order to cash in to acquire veterans.

The Cavaliers certainly gave up a fair amount of young talent this summer with the departure of Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, Tyler Zeller and Sergey Karasev. Despite these departures, the Cleveland Cavaliers remain loaded with young talent and were ranked 5th in the league by ESPN (insider only). The Cavaliers would be higher on this list if Kevin Love had not turned 25 a couple weeks ago, but still possess some high-end young talent.

Amin Elhassan had this to say about the Cavaliers:

Remember when I said some teams cash in their youth for "win now" vets? That's exactly what Cleveland did when it moved players such as Tyler Zeller and Sergey Karasev in cap-clearing deals to sign LeBron James, then traded Wiggins and Bennett in the Kevin Love deal. The Cavs are a markedly better team, projected to contend for a Finals appearance, but they managed to still hold onto a few young pieces, most notably FIBA World Cup MVP Kyrie Irving. He's racked up several individual accolades in his young career, but the next stage is more difficult: figuring out how to fit his brilliance within the context of the needs of the team, and the inevitable sacrifices that come along with that.

His fellow backcourt mate Waiters has that same struggle ahead of him, and if he had issues being perceived as a second banana to Irving before, it remains to be seen how he'll handle being the fourth option. Still, he's a power guard who can play either backcourt position, so that gives Cleveland some flexibility. Thompson is an energy big looking to take a leap into being something more than just energy, and Dellavedova has been a pleasant find as a backup point guard.

In all, the Cavaliers have eight players under the age of 25. Kyrie Irving (22. Yes, he's actually only 22 years old), Dion Waiters (23), Tristan Thompson (23), Matthew Dellavedova (24), Dwight Powell (23), Joe Harris (23), Eric Murphy (23) and Alex Kirk (22). It's unlikely that all these players will make the final roster, but any players at risk of being released would be unlikely to move the needle in these rankings.

While I understand the questions Amin raised about Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters adjusting to the elevated status of the Cavaliers as well as the infusion of talent. I personally do not feel like it will be an issue. The fact that I am also a fan of this team may cloud my judgment, but I really did feel that both Irving and Waiters showed growth towards the end of last season. It was apparent that neither was happy with either the teams management or coaching last season.

Despite that, the team was able to perform well down the stretch, differences were put aside and they were both able to play for the team rather than themselves. Both Irving and Waiters appear to be alphas with a lot of pride. The losing that has plagued this franchise for the past four seasons has been overwhelming to watch at times, and I can understand their desire at times to try and turn things around on their own. Their past mistakes and missteps are understandable, but not excusable. Both have acknowledged that they need to be better in the future and have worked to prepare for the changes next season.

With the Cavs committing to Kyrie Irving this summer with a max contract, the ball is in the hands of the explosive Waiters to determine where he will fit within the dynasty that David Griffin is trying to build. Given his growth last season and relationship with both Kevin Love and LeBron James, he appears to be in a situation that will help him transition into the do-it-all guard that the Cavs need him to become.

The team likely has a bright future for a long time with Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love, Dion Waiters and Tristan Thompson. LeBron James isn't exactly an aging veteran either at 29 years old. The mix of youth as well as battle-tested veterans that the Cavaliers possess positions them perfectly to capitalize on LeBron's prime and contend in the short-term, as well as two elite talents in Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love that will compete to inherit the title of the team's best player for the next decade.

http://www.fearthesword.com/2014/9/...nd-cavaliers-as-the-5th-best-team-in-terms-of

 

[Man Called X]

Wait, what's Turiaf making? Package up those damn Utah guys and get me Turiaf if you aren't going to get me Mozgov.

 

[kovanovich]

Wait, what's Turiaf making? Package up those damn Utah guys and get me Turiaf if you aren't going to get me Mozgov.

Turiaf makes $1.5M. Would take only Lucas or maybe only Thomas (I think Murphy wouldn't be quite enough salary-wise).

Why would Minny do this without any further inducement? It would save them $1.5M and allow them to keep GRIII and the rest of their roster.

They'd prefer to dump Barea. No one will trade for him though. They can buy him out, but the buy-out would probably have to be $3M or so since Barea makes $4.5M.

So is keeping Turiaf worth $4.5M to them (his $1.5M salary which the Cavs can make disappear, plus the amount of a Barea buy-out)? He's their 3rd string center behind Pek/Dieng.

I think it is unlikely a trade happens because it surely would have happened as part of the Love trade.

 

[ThirdWorld]

Amundson + Turiaf

Damn Varejao might come off healthy the entire season

 

[Snowblind]

Turiaf makes $1.5M. Would take only Lucas or maybe only Thomas (I think Murphy wouldn't be quite enough salary-wise).

Why would Minny do this without any further inducement? It would save them $1.5M and allow them to keep GRIII and the rest of their roster.

They'd prefer to dump Barea. No one will trade for him though. They can buy him out, but the buy-out would probably have to be $3M or so since Barea makes $4.5M.

So is keeping Turiaf worth $4.5M to them (his $1.5M salary which the Cavs can make disappear, plus the amount of a Barea buy-out)? He's their 3rd string center behind Pek/Dieng.

I think it is unlikely a trade happens because it surely would have happened as part of the Love trade.

Yeah I agree that if it was going to happen it would of happened with the K Love trade. Lucas + cash (I think the max is $3mil in a trade) for Turiaf would work for both sides. We get a decent bench big and the Wolves open up two spots (one would go to GRIII) if they use the cash from the trade to buyout Barea.

 

[wuck]

Lucas + cash (I think the max is $3mil in a trade) for Turiaf would work for both sides.

The Cavs can send out around $3.3M cash in all trades for the year. They reportedly have already sent out cash in the Haywood trade and more cash in the Utah trade. Not sure on an exact figure, but published estimate range in the $1.5 to $2M range.

If the Cavs make another trade they can send out cash but it's likely to cap around $1.5M or so. Not as high as $3.3M.

If they wanted Turiaf so badly, the Cavs surely could have got him when the Love trade went down. I think they still have their eyes on other players or are hoping someone shakes loose as training camp rolls along or later in the season.

It would be a shame if they had to cut the Utah players without something to show for it.

 

[Jack Brickman]

That article had Dion listed at 23, but he's still only 22 as well. His birthday is in December.

 

[Man Called X]

Wouldn't adding Turiaf to the Love deal have made it harder to match salaries? I thought it would've made the amount too much and caused harsher trading rules?