Here is the latest on the Supersonics.
Expectations are the in the next day or two you will see a 5 year 14.6 million dollar offer sheet from the Minnesota Timberwolves to Damien Wilkins. According to numerous reports the Wolves have already used 2.5 million of their mid-level exception to sign Eddie Griffin leaving just 2.5 million to start to offer for Wilkins.
There is a little game of cat and mouse going on here as the Wolves have delayed announcing the Griffin because it allows the Sonics to know what they are going to offer Wilkins in an offer sheet. Remember the Sonics have to use their mid-level to re-sign Wilkins.
Wilkins and his agent Mark Bartelstein have told the Sonics that Wilkins would rather not return to Seattle because he doesn’t want to be behind Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis for the length on the contract. The Wolves have told Wilkins he would start.
The Sonics have the deal done for Vitaly Potapenko and he is going through physicals and all of that before it is announced.
However, the Sonics are not done on the center front. DeSanga Diop is out of the picture as he is expected to sign with Dallas, but the Sonics are still in strong conversations with Dale Davis and his agent Chubby Wells.
Detroit is hot after Davis as well but they may have to use their entire mid-level to sign newly release Michael Finley. Finley to Detroit would be good for the Sonics quest after Dale Davis.
The update on Finley is Detroit, Phoenix, San Antonio and the Heat are all hot after him.
The Sonics have their entire mid-level to use for both Wilkins and Davis and may end up with both of them.
One other note I am hearing around the league that the Spurs are trying to move Brent Barry only after one year with the team.
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43 comments:
So if we get Davis then we'll have him along with Swift, Potapenko, Fortson, and Collison to play the 4 and the 5. What does that mean for Reggie Evans, I really want him back but if we get Davis I'm not seeing many minutes for Reggie.
I have some doubts the Sonics will actually end up getting Dale Davis but it would be a nice pick up if they did. Gets the same amount of rebounds as Reggie but in 5 more minutes. Could be a strong sign Reggie isnt coming back if this in addition to Potapenko signing. Davis far better than Reggie at defending the center position and he actually does an even better job of shutting down power forwards with a low 42% FG allowed against PFs. Davis finishes 66% of inside shots for buckets compared to 56% for Reggie. He was in top 15-20 in league for total rebounds and at 15 rebs per 48 minutes had one of the higher rebound rates of guys playing big minutes. Jumper poor 25% on them compared to reggie's 20%. Got 1.3 blocks a game last year.
Still a championship contender seems more likely but if he really wants the minutes on the court and perhaps he plans to retire in the northwest, then the interest in the Sonics may be deeper. Hope it isn't more than 2 year deal.
How does Wilkins get off in thinking he is a starter for having a few good games?
Did everyone hear Locke foamin at the mouth about TO's jersey being a hot seller right now?? That is so great, Locke will never understand things like this because he is culturally blind, he only sees the white side of things. Of course TO pisses of Locke. Locke is Eric Powers' twin brother, they are two of the biggest posers ever. BLACK PEOPLE ARE BUYING THE JERSEY DUMMY!!!!! We love TO, get that money playa. You've got all these fat white men getting sooooo rich off of black athletes. Hey Locke, Kids love TO, this is just the beginning of things to come, Ya'll get paid, we gettin paid too. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I LOVE TO HEAR LOCKE ALL PISSED OFF, HE'S SOOO CUTE. LOL HAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Why give someone who has proven nothing this kind of money? I'm anxious to see if last year was a fluke. You can name off the sonics roster all day but look at every NBA roster there is talent to keep the sonics out of the playoffs.
Damien Wilkins is worth 3 mil a year. In his rookie season he showed flashes of the player he might be if he's given some playing time. He's got great basketball instincts and he's only going to get better. If he expands his game and continues to improve he will be a steal at that price. If not, then he's still another good 3 point option to help spread the floor if and when Vlade moves on. The argument I can see against is that ultimately he's what amounts to be a backup player at one of the most easily replacable positions in the NBA, but I think in the age of the salary cap you have to grab underpriced talent when you can, and the Sonics have an opportunity here to get him locked up at a bargain price. He's a young talented player, and if push comes to shove, I don't think the Sonics will have problems moving him in the future and maybe getting something in return.
(In response to the comment above) Black people are buying TO's jersey?! If that's true then that's a sad, sad statement about how messed up the priorities of the black community are. TO has been a cancer to every team he's been on. Talented, sure, but he's a selfish glory hound. His classless antics belong on a Jerry Springer episode, not in the NFL. It's no way to be successful in life or your interactions with other people. If he's the role model you're showing to your kids, then that seriously calls into question your parenting skills.
Hey dogbutzzzzzzzzzz!!!!
If black people are the only ones buying TO's jersey, then they must be really stupid to fork up $150 on something worth $5. No wonder why you ain't moving up in the world!
Diesel -
S.Hunter signed with Philly for around $4 mil./year. The Sonics would've had to use most of their $5 mil/mid-level which would prevent them from bringing back Wilkins. Davis makes a lot more sense because he's cheaper & we only need someone to fill in at center for a year or until Swift & Petro are ready for heavy minutes.
Tractor Traylor? We already have Danny Fortson, their game & size are almost identical.
A center rotation of Davis, Potapenko, Fortson & Swift is still an improvement over James, Potapenko & Fortson last year.
You want Larry Hughes over Ray Allen? It would be like starting all over again. Why would you wanna get rid of the guy who single handedly won you a few playoff games and was the heart & soul of the team that fell 1 game short of reaching the Western Conference Finals?
I love the heart & effort that Reggie Evans brings to the team, but anytime he's on the floor we're basically playing 4 on 5 on offense. Teams don't even bother guarding him which makes it harder for his teammates to get open shots. His inability to make wide open layups killed us in the Spurs series. With Collison, Radman, & Fortson all playing at the 4 this year unfortunately there's no minutes left over for Reggie especially at his asking price of $5+ mil/year. In my opinion it's time to let him go.
I agree with the previous guy that Wilkins is well worth $3 mil/year. I think in a few years he's gonna prove to be a steal for that price. Coach Casey knows him as well as anybody & he's allready willing to hand him the starting job in Minnesota. The Sonics should do everything they can to bring Wilkins back.
bring damien back!
Sounds like Finley will go to Miami, meaning the Mavs will still have the money to pursue Dale Davis. Also, the Pistons are reportedly after DD as well, meaning he can choose between Detroit, Dallas, or Seattle. I'm guessing he'd pick Detroit and a chance for a title. I love the Sonics, but of those 3 teams, Seattle is obviously the worst of those 3 teams and has far less of a chance to win a title next season.
MYK,
(Let me precurser this by saying my absence from this blog for a while is because it has dissintegrated from a site where intelligent fans discussed basketball and held reasonable debates to a typical blog/message board)
According to Dan Rosenbaum's defensive rating for guards, Larry Hughes finished 6th or 7th.
I personally preferred Hughes to Allen because Hughes led all guards last year in rebounds and posted nice assist numbers from the off guard position.
Shooting guards do not traditionally age well (Allan Houston, Glen Rice, Eddie Jones). This deal may be a Penny Hardaway albatross at the end.
WRT a 3 pt shooter, the Cavs added one in Donyell Marshall, which will be a matchup nightmare for opposing 4's.
Hey Jeremy,
It's not like anybody missed you or even noticed you were gone, so there was no need to mention that stupid crap. Thanks though. :)
Probably that 1-10 season, with not much chance of being better for at least 2 more years.
Dog,
You and Black are the primary targets of my rant. What I said was more for the value of Locke who initially wanted this blog to be a place for people to discuss relevant sports and not to cater to immature thread hijackers.
It was my favorite blog for about 3 days.
yeah i hear you jeremy. i probably wont bother coming back with these dipshits stinkin up the place
GOOD!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
FAG!!!!!!
Black,
Did you see the topic? "Sonics expect Wilkins.... to seattle" Do you see anything in that topic that suggests a discussion about Terrell Owens?
That's what I meant by hijacking a thread.
I'm glad you feel you want to have a voice on African American issues, but stay on topic, please?
HAHAHAHAHA
You idiot "priorities of the black community" LOL. When did I say buying TO jerseys were a "priority".
You are a JACKASS, you should shoot yourself, Kurt. HAHAHAHA
I just wish that this blog had a spell checker. For crying out loud it is hard to understand some of the posts here. How about checking out a dictionary?
anybody that names themselves dognutz...the joke is you. somebody that gets their kicks trying to piss people off is a flea on the dogs nutz. you need this trashtalk. i dont so, it is back to basketball...
i might include lance armstrong in top 100 athletes of the century but i wouldnt go much farther. i dont think many sports fans of any color would put him that high. there are pretty of great sports stories. enjoy the ones u want and let the rest slide by. hype is everywhere.
a lot of TO supporters support TO, fine go ahead. some just hate the TO haters and use TO as an excuse for that game and that just makes them another kind of hanger on, equally a drag. that isnt really about sports or being a fan but people play the game they want.
What the f*** was that??? That made no sense.
Hey Joe, I got your spell check right here.
sorry if you can make sense of it, you are one of those hangerons playing that hate the hater game.
wilkins signed his minnesota offer sheet.
i'd guess the sonics let him go.
15 mil over 5 years is chump change almost anywhere in the league except Seattle. Evans and Davis score almost the same number of points per minute. Niether are prolific, but at least Evans is younger. If you're going to spend the money, it might as well be on the younger guy. Evans could get better, Davis is garenteed to only get worse.
who would really want rad this year or next? hard to say. possibilities include: golden state ( and then move dunleavy), the clippers, maybe the lakers, houston, utah, or maybe san antonio. in every case but the clippers a sign & trade would be more likely.
with locke's mention of barry being shopped would u consider barry & udrih for radmanovic? i'd have to think about it more but if the sonics didnt want to commit to rad for 6 years with the need to soon pay ridnour and collison, maybe something fair can be worked out.
i threw it out, spur of the moment, because both barry and udrih could help back up pg and sg if wilkins and murray go. udrih i think has more talent that could show if he got more time and he would a lot cheaper for a couple years than rad. and allow them to free up time for collison and increase the chance they keep reggie.
and it would be partly to bring brent back cause he is entertaining. and could maybe end up in management or coaching here.
maybe add a draft pick.
barry or allen can play a few minutes at sf with small lineups they have in the past.
both barry and udrih would allow you to keep pushing the ball well luke sits. brunson is more half court.
they obvious dont fit in san antonio but i think they fit the sonics style better especially if you want to play faster.
but i just threw it out as an experiment. matching players who they want to move to a player who wants to move. there are probably better deals but it isnt completely unthinkable.
udrih becomes the sole back up of luke after a year, probably wont demand big money in the future or sqawk about big minutes. barry is the spot up shooter from the bench like rad has been. helps as almost an assistant coach too.
it was hard for either one to make a case to play in the playoffs with ginobli and bowen and parker ahead of them.
udrih at point guard regular season held opponents to 41% effective FG% while shooting 52%.
ridnour shot 45% eFG while giving opponents 47%. maybe you move luke to somebody that wants a pg. like utah or something.
if you got nice pieces back only of course.
i said it partly to get a rise out of a few people. turnabout. glad you enjoyed
but seriously if luke ridnour asks for and can get antonio daniels level money in two years (debatable, i think he will ask and can get, frank hughes in e-mail to me thinks no), i am not sure i want to give him that much cash. obviously it depends on how much he improves between now and 2007.
udrih isnt a great passer but he can shoot and play defensive and may learn to pass. if you could keep him 3 more years for $1 million a year, i think he would be a useful tool in the bargaining discussion the sonics and ridnour will eventually have.
"None of this matters, they do whatever stupid crap they want, we can type until our fingers fall of it doesn't make a difference."
i agree with that and that is why i hadnt proposed a trade on a bard in about a year. i guess i slipped.
i thought about that too but nothing really minnesota will part with they we want and neither team has a trade exception.
i'd like trenton hassell but i dont think minnesota gives up anything to get wilkins. they will just wait and see what the sonic do and live with it either way. there are still others out there.
maybe you could threaten to sign him and get $2 million and a draft pick. i'd try it, but i think minnesota just hangs up.
To work out a sign and trade, the team wanting the FA has to think the team with the FA will match. Walker and the Supes have proven so cheap that I can't imagine any team would believe that they would match.
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