Realistically, Love for Hayward is the only deal that works cap-wise. I’d pass on that unless Danny has private information suggesting GH might not want to stay for the long term.
Outside of Smart, the Celtics really have no middle of the road salary they can deal, which hamstrings them in most deals.
Agreed, doesn't make sense
Now it makes sense. Let's not forget who runs a good percentage of player movement in this league.
If the Blazers are as all-in as they seem to be, they should give up Whiteside+ for Love, and then find a package Phoenix would do for Baynes. Not sure how Hood's injury affects their thinking though. A Semi-type wing would also make sense for them to go after if they can get Love, since they'll have plenty of offense at that point.
If Danny doesn’t want to pay GH after this season, what are his alternatives? With the Jaylen extension kicking in, I’m assuming he can’t free up anything close to a max slot. Love might be a better option than whatever their cap room or MLE will bring.
I can sort of kind of see the appeal. You’re adding a really good offensive player who also adds size so that the opening/closing lineups make a bit more sense. Love matches up fine against most non-Embiid 5s and is a nightmare for the opposing big.
He'd also really stretch out Milwaukee. Horford killed Lopez with pick-n-pop, and Love is much more dangerous from out there than Horford, just because of release quickness.
If we go down the rabbit hole of dealing Gordon Hayward, which I really don't like. I'd rather explore ways of extracting a younger, more defensive-minded player. If that means attaching draft stock so be it
Yeah, let me be clear: I don't think that Hayward goes for Love. I think that if, somehow, the trade does happen, it will be roughly for the reasons I mentioned.
Yea most of this Love trade stuff is just a thought process. AND I always like/encourage the discussion around here. Fake trades/speculation only happens 1% of the time. So hopping up on a soapbox and criticizing posters for discussing the pros/cons of trade concept is assinine IMO. Appreciate all the opinions for/against adding Kevin Love
This is where I’m at as well. With respect to offensive counting stats, Love seems to be having a very good season however my impression is he is not good defensively. Also he is more of a wing, where the Celtics have good depth, than a 5 which in my view is more of a position of need. Basketball Reference shows his height as 6-8. For some reason I thought he was taller around 6-10. Finally he 31, he is due to make $31.3M each of the next two seasons. has a lot of mileage, a history of injuries and I think a decline in performance is on the horizon.
Is there another possibility that works cap-wise and might makes sense for both teams? I couldn’t come up with one, but I didn’t spend a ton of time on the exercise.
Sorry, I meant that no deal happens with Boston. I assumed it would have to be Hayward, since Smart + all the centers makes even less sense imo.
If Kanter can at least not embarrass himself against Embiid and Jocic posts, I suspect that TL can become competent there eventually. He's still raw and easily outsmarted by experienced players near the hole, but he shows guile with his hands and his BBIQ exceeds my expectations for his age overall.
As a better version of Theiss whose cost is flotsam and a low first or two? He’s precisely the kind of guy you look at.
In the first matchup against Den, TL actually did fine against Jokic. He got pushed around like Theis, but he has so much length that he altered Jokic's shot just by putting his hands up.
The hard decision that has to get made is what you do with Hayward when Smart's next contract comes due. Smart will be going into his age 28 season as a UFA, and definitely will get paid more. From a roster construction standpoint, I don't think you can pay Jaylen $28M, Tatum $35M, Hayward $35M, and Smart $20M+ to all play the wing. I guess the alternative is if Kemba is cooked after year 3 and the Cs want to pay someone to take his last year, then you could make a case for keeping all 4.
A better version of Theis? Longer, yes. You could maybe talk me into Nance over Theis. But what's the flotsam? 7MM plus Theis leaves, plus picks.
Wouldn’t you rather be trading a valuable asset in a still good Kemba or Hayward to clear space at that point that just not have a player under contract? I’m having a hard time seeing many scenarios two summers from now where I’d prefer to own Love’s FA rights v. Hayward’s contract rights for another year or two.
I think you deal Whiteside and figure you have to win just enough games to stay in the playoff race until Collins/Nurkic are back. Could be a 7/8 seed that no one would want to face type of deal.
Yeah, after thinking about it, I basically agree with you. I can't see any scenario where Love makes sense unless the FO just has a completely different evaluation of him than we do.
Whiteside is an expiring so he gets the Cavs out from under Love's deal in one shot.
All sounds about right. Good for the Cavs in recouping a bit of value for Love if they are able to; I didn't think that contract was a positive asset when it was signed.
No. Absolutely not. Had Love been born five years earlier he’d be capping up a Hall of Fame career rather than limping through his prime and into his declining years as a guy without a position in the modern NBA.
Longer, more athletic, better mass. Theiss is better defensively, little Nance better offensively. If you’re Boston and looking for bodies to put at the C spot next summer he’s definitely someone you keep an eye on.
No problem with Nance in a mickey mouse 5 rotation like we have now, at 5M. Not sure why anyone would want to trade 12M worth of stuff off a good team to take on his meh.
