I don't buy this narrative at all because at the time of the deal it was Brogdon going out by all reports. I think the Clips backed out and Stevens pivoted to this trade - which they had clearly explored - but I don't think they were absolutely dealing Smart this off-season.
It was definitely Brogdon going out; no one disputes that.
At this point its academic and we likely won't know how it all went down vs plan. My sense is that there are narratives at play but maybe that's completely wrong.
OKC is the one to keep an eye on... Kenrich money would fit the exception.
Agreed, total minutes is a sub-optimal way to look at it. Context matters. Playoff games always have 1-2 days off.
Yep and the "who's going to play those regular season minutes" question is honestly not that important to answer. Get used to a steady diet of Hauser, Pritchard, and Kornet. We will lose some games in the regular season because of this. That is not a bad thing. What's important is that the rotation is set for the playoffs. Pretty much everyone in this thread could cobble together a strawman minutes breakdown for the 82 in excel right now.
Poku is on the wrong timeline and I don't see OK just taking more draft picks for him. I mean they already have more draft picks than they know what to do with.
OKC only has one set of shower skis though, and Poku is lower on the food chain than Chet.
The bolded feels right and should be referred to when there are screeds against Mazzulla after dropping a game to Washington in early February.
BTW, do we know whether the "no aggregation" applies to incoming players as well as outgoing players? I would suspect not (as it make it super hard for teams to reduce salaries, which I suppose is the goal) but I remember Bobby Marks mentioning this as a possibility early in the summer when only the Term Sheet was available.
Had the same thought this morning. Coming off a postseason in which the Heat showed how little regular-season results can mean (and the C's generally struggled at home), we're still going to lose our shit over regular-season losses.
Just to check: The question is "Can I, as a second apron team, trade a $12 mil guy for two $6 mil guys" yes? I don't know the answer, just ensuring I have question right in case I run across it! Good question given speculation about Jaylen deals.
yes, you can trade a 12M guy for two guys making 6M. You’re not aggregating there, the other team is. As long as you’re not adding salary, it’s legal.
That's certainly the case today, and I have not seen reported otherwise for next year other than the speculation early on noted. But do you have a cite for that, or just saying that's your understanding?
that is the case for next year.
Yeah, just to be clear, the new rules actually include a lot more than just salary aggregation limitations...that's my point (no cash in deals, can't carry over TPEs, etc.) I hear your point that splitting a salary into two would likely not be aggregating, and that may be the answer. It had been speculated that the scenario WBCD raised may also be prevented and I hadn't seen specific info either way. Though, perhaps the absence of anything suggesting that is restricted is sufficient?
So I decided to look as the CBA is readily available: https://ak-static.cms.nba.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/06/2023-NBA-Collective-Bargaining-Agreement.pdf.
Well, if I was PoBOBS I would tell CJM that if anyone in his top 7 is injured when the playoffs start he’s fired. I’m exaggerating, of course, but they should be treating their starting 5 with kid gloves all season.
This makes my brain hurt more. So a team can aggregate down, but not up - which teams -are- allowed to aggregate up?
Everyone who's under the second apron. In normal NBA trades, you can aggregate in any manner you want. Not being able to aggregate up is a new thing for second apron teams.
It's quite simple....
....and if you are over, you can still split a larger one into smaller ones. Which is useful for the Celtics going forward.
Ehh. They almost won in 2021; added a great piece in Brogdon; had the Ime situation; almost got back to the Finals again anyway; and only now just took a risk after not winning it all with the same core for the last two years. I think he would have caught more flak if they just ran it back and didn’t make the Finals again but YMMV.
If he didn't make any of these moves, he would also catch blame for sitting on his hands while the upper echelon of the league improved themselves. When you're at this level, you have to take risks or you become Ernie Grunfeld. I think he's squeezed the most out of all of the transactions he's done and there wasn't a better realistic pathway for this team.
Brad got the team further than it had been in more than a decade. He is a Steph Curry heater and a Tatum ankle away from 2 straight Finals appearances and 1-2 titles.
As it should be if his moves all turn out badly. And I think Stevens would agree.
This is true but at some point he also needs to win it. Ainge's rebuild that began in 2013 with the Brooklyn trade was excellent, but as soon as the progress stagnated, he was ushered out. I think Stevens is in a similar place - but with higher pressure because Tatum and Brown are in their primes.
His willingness to go all-in shows that he gets it. I expect him to upgrade further a bit this year, and then his next big test will be how he handles the coming CapPocalypse in 2025 or so.
Fact. Brad wasn't a week into the job when he punted Kemba for Horford. Upgraded all starting positions & bench in the last 2 yrs.
I'd agree if not for the years.
