2011 UFA and RFA list and cap number please

[polarcat]

I haven't been able to find one that has been accurate and released in 2011. Anyone have a guide or a link to this summer's free-agent-to-be's and how much money we have in the kitty to spend? Barring a Memphis re-sign, I know Marc Gasol will be available, and would looooooooove to bring him onboard. I think he instantly vaults us into the top 5 in the East, and that is without adding anyone else via draft, trades and other free agents.

[Chef]

I haven't been able to find one that has been accurate and released in 2011. Anyone have a guide or a link to this summer's free-agent-to-be's and how much money we have in the kitty to spend? Barring a Memphis re-sign, I know Marc Gasol will be available, and would looooooooove to bring him onboard. I think he instantly vaults us into the top 5 in the East, and that is without adding anyone else via draft, trades and other free agents.

there is no cap number or cap space information because no one will know what it will be until after the cba.

[The Prodigy]

Are you that high on Gasol, or do you think we are just a good center away from being a solid team? Personally, I dont know much about Gasol, and was wondering if he was really that great of a player.

[Chef]

gasol is a defensive center and will not be worth what he will get paid unless he has the perfect compliment like z-bo or aldridge he would not be good on our team at all. wilson chandler is not going to be worth the long term contract. he will never be more than the 3rd option on a good team. we need to stay away from these guys. keep our money and only try to swing for the fences for someone like chris paul. unlikely, but if it doesn't work out, stay flexible. we can not commit money to guys who aren't going to be #1 options.

in the past 5 years we have used up most of our cap space on horrible deals from the following guys: oakafor, carroll (which we actually got rid of and then took back?!), nazr, diop, crash, jax. of those only jax and crash were defensible but only 1 not both of them which we have corrected.

i know jordan was gambling for paul and melo, which has been discussed here extensively as to how likely this was and/or how much of a sucker we were, but the single biggest mistake we made as far as a rebuilding tool was trading chandler's expiring deal. that expiring, given the fact that he is a great pick and roll and defensive center, would have probably allowed us to move diop and gotten back a pick or two or gotten a pick and young players.

the point of all of this is that if we are entering a rebuild we need to protect our cap space dearly and only make/take on expensive role starters if we luck out in the draft and get a superstar who can get us to the finals.

[polarcat]

there is no cap number or cap space information because no one will know what it will be until after the cba.

Thx Chef..... forgot that huge little factor :)


Are you that high on Gasol, or do you think we are just a good center away from being a solid team? Personally, I dont know much about Gasol, and was wondering if he was really that great of a player.


A little bit of both. I like Gasol's game, age, and his ceiling still hasn't been met yet. I think a 25-28 year old athletic (non-lugging/unathletic) big would complete our team. Kwame is okay as a starter, but like Diaw, I prefer him coming off the bench. If we could add a gnarly center (Gasol, DeAndre Jordan, Jason Thompson) with DJ, Hendo, Jack, T2, Kwame, Cunningham and a top draft pick or free agent SF we would be a top-5 team. Let's say we somehow nab one of these centers plus add a drafted SF like T.Jones, Barnes or J. Hamilton, trade Diaw, and re-sign UPS off waivers .....

DJ/Liv
Hendo/FA
Jack/Jones or Barnes or Hamilton
T2/Cunningham/White or UPS
Gasol or Jordan or Thompson/Kwame

Young, athletic and a good blend of talent set up for success for years to come. Not necessarily able to compete with Miami or the Lakers, but a 3/4 seed and a perennial top 4 playoff seed is not out of the question.

[frontpager]

hmm.. take a chance on Oden? risk is worth the payoff. maybe 3 mill a year for two years and second is team option.

[Chef]

hmm.. take a chance on Oden? risk is worth the payoff. maybe 3 mill a year for two years and second is team option.

he is restricted this year coming up. will cost 8mil to resign him for 1 year. he will easily get 5 mil per for 4 years if he is even remotely healthy. just because there are dumbass gm's and owners out there.

[polarcat]

Is Oden the next Kwame? I haven't seen enough of Oden on the court, but is his uber-bust label because he can't stay healthy? Does he have bum knees or is he just not acclimating to the NBA game?

[WrxErik]

Wtf Polarcat. I really need some of what ever you are smoking.

[frontpager]

The next Kwame? I do not consider Oden a bust because he plays well when healthy. I mean he didnt get hurt in a motorcycle accident, he got hurt playing on the court in a game. In the 82 games Oden has played, probably only healthy in 50 of them, he has averaged 9 points, 7 boards, and a block a game. If this guy could stay healthy he could put up some good numbers, depending on the fact that he returns to same athleticism as before ya know. Kwame and Oden should never be compared by the way.

[frontpager]

Kwame is more like Mike Olowakandi(sp?), while Oden is more like i guess you could say Sam Bowie.

[WrxErik]

I know Marc Gasol will be available, and would looooooooove to bring him onboard. I think he instantly vaults us into the top 5 in the East, and that is without adding anyone else via draft, trades and other free agents.

Most homer crazy ridiculous statement I have ever heard. He is on a team out west that sits in 9th place with guys like Zach Ran, OJ, Rudy, (OJ being someone a lot of members wanted on the cats). Yet some how after all the power shift to the east you think that 1 player makes us top 5? Please explain the logic behind that?

[frontpager]

haha... i agree with WrxErik.. Gasol is nowhere near good enough to do that for our team. He isnt Dwight Howard, not even sure if that would put us top 5. probably would but dont feel were deep enough at wing positions.

[frontpager]

HoopsHype might have the information your looking for. And if anyone wants interesting stats, deeper than normal stats obviously, go to hoopdata. good stuff.

[SWedd523]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=FreeAgents-11-12

[polarcat]

Thanks Swedd and Frontpager.... just what I was looking for. Seemed like everything I was coming across was from the spring-fall of 2011, and these look a lot closer to updated.

[spectre]

We're looking at over 50 million in guaranteed salary next season for like 10 or 11 players plus a couple million for our's and NOLA's draft picks. Maybe if the NBA goes to a hard cap of like 60-65 million we'd have some space...but under the current CBA all we basically have available is a MLE type of deal.

[Chef]

We're looking at over 50 million in guaranteed salary next season for like 10 or 11 players plus a couple million for our's and NOLA's draft picks. Maybe if the NBA goes to a hard cap of like 60-65 million we'd have some space...but under the current CBA all we basically have available is a MLE type of deal.

i know everyone (media types) is saying hard cap, but i just don't see it. too many of the championship teams are over the cap and more importantly those teams not in the championship hunt who stay below the cap profit from the luxury tax. i would like to see that stay the same. those teams who think they can make a serious run should be able to choose to go into the cap, while teams like us should look at the landscape and shed salary.

[spectre]

The owners want a rule to keep themselves from spending money.

Unreal eh?

I guess the ownership group is majority rule? If so there are more small market teams than there are big ones. I can foresee some major revisions to help the little guys compete if that's the case.

Hey I know one thing they could do! Let's take that bullshit 75 mile radius lock off that the NBA mandated so teams like Charlotte might possibly grow a fanbase!

[Chef]

The owners want a rule to keep themselves from spending money.

Unreal eh?

I guess the ownership group is majority rule? If so there are more small market teams than there are big ones. I can foresee some major revisions to help the little guys compete if that's the case.

Hey I know one thing they could do! Let's take that bullshit 75 mile radius lock off that the NBA mandated so teams like Charlotte might possibly grow a fanbase!

ultimately, i see a soft cap, no mle (franchise killers) or ungauranteed contracts past 3 years, shorter overall contracts, franchise tag.

oh and hd mandated coverage for the triangle specifically so i can watch my beloved cats on my tv and not pirated internet fe....um a friends tv in greensboro.

[Demon DeaCat]

I'd definitely be in favor of a hard cap. That's going to benefit any small market team like us. Any team that can't easily attract major FAs should want a hard cap. That's the only way we'll ever have a shot at getting any of those types of guys.

One other change I'd like to see in the new CBA (assuming we stay with a soft cap) would be that any team that made the playoffs the previous year wouldn't have access to the MLE. At the very least, a playoff team already over the luxury tax shouldn't get it. There are so many guys out there who can still contribute at a pretty high level, but are just past their prime and don't merit the big contracts anymore, but those guys will never come to us or other small market teams. They'll always go to Boston, Mia, etc. to chase a ring, and the rich just get richer. The salary cap was intended to promote competitive balance. Why then does a playoff team deserve an exception to the salary cap rule? They don't.

[SWedd523]

I think simply getting rid of the MLE and other "exceptions" that count for one year helps out a ton. Or at least putting a maximum length of two years.

[Chef]

while we are at it i would like to see all teams be eligible for the lottery. sure very very rarely a top team will luck out big time, but the system currently rewards tanking and punishes teams for being 6, 7, 8 seeds in the playoffs and that is anti-competitive.

[teej]

Adam Silver is a major proponent of the hard cap, as are most owners. If there is a hard cap, there likely won't be a franchise tag, which is going to come down to which one the owner's value more.

If there is a hard cap, then I think it'll be higher than the current lux. tax limit and the teams over the cap will likely be allowed some sort of way to not get screwed, either by being grandfathered into the cap, receiving compensation or whatever else.