** Official 2024 Make or Break Offseason Thread **

[ZarcMumoff]

I’m not paying Melton $10m with his health in question. Vet min with a player option so he keeps his bird rights to get paid in case he bounces back.

Oubre for room exception would be good.

On a 1 year controlled deal, Melton worth that flyer unless his 1 year deal prevents a better signing.

I'm not giving him $10m in cap if we are an under-the-cap team. If we figure out a way to stay over the cap then $10m for one year is fine via Bird Rights.

Any deal would be via Bird Rights. What I said before was that because his cap hold is $15 million, it actually makes sense to sign him early (via Bird Rights) to a lesser deal because his actual salary would be less than the cap hold, thus opening up more space.

Now if his back is ****, then sure, release the cap hold. But if the plan is to bring back Melton, releasing his cap hold and then re-signing him into cap space doesn't make much sense unless they just strike out everywhere.

[sixers hoops]

Lebron, Jimmy and Durant would be the most extreme needle movers of possible outcomes IMO, but the odds of landing any them feel pretty slim.

George, Lauri and Mikal fall into the next bucket down of really good outcomes.

Ingram or Dejounte would require some major mental gymnastics for me to get on board with, but I'm sure I'd get there.

DeRozan or Klay plus another guy around feels like a really low end outcome. Klay in particular feels like a guy I could see Morey overvaluing. Danny Green on steroids! (mostly to keep those joints from swelling)

Not a lot of Durant discussion because it’s not very realistic, but he still is playing at a really high level. If Phoenix wanted to recoup some picks since their experiment likely isn’t working, you wonder if it’s slightly feasible.

Going forward, they have no picks and no cap space, and they got eliminated in the first round. Similar to the Nets with Harden, Durant, and Kyrie, they might want to move those guys for picks while they still can gets some value.

I would think our team with Durant would be significantly better than the Suns squad.

Two years of Durant is definitely better than four years of George.

[sixers hoops]

On a 1 year controlled deal, Melton worth that flyer unless his 1 year deal prevents a better signing.

I'm not giving him $10m in cap if we are an under-the-cap team. If we figure out a way to stay over the cap then $10m for one year is fine via Bird Rights.

Any deal would be via Bird Rights. What I said before was that because his cap hold is $15 million, it actually makes sense to sign him early (via Bird Rights) to a lesser deal because his actual salary would be less than the cap hold, thus opening up more space.

Now if his back is ****, then sure, release the cap hold. But if the plan is to bring back Melton, releasing his cap hold and then re-signing him into cap space doesn't make much sense unless they just strike out everywhere.

Signing Melton to a $10 million dollar deal brings our cap space to about $50 million, which I don’t think they would have any interest in doing. They can figure out the rotational guys later. They need to add a core piece or two before they address rotational guys like Oubre and Melton.

[sixers hoops]

On a 1 year controlled deal, Melton worth that flyer unless his 1 year deal prevents a better signing.

I'm not giving him $10m in cap if we are an under-the-cap team. If we figure out a way to stay over the cap then $10m for one year is fine via Bird Rights.

Any deal would be via Bird Rights. What I said before was that because his cap hold is $15 million, it actually makes sense to sign him early (via Bird Rights) to a lesser deal because his actual salary would be less than the cap hold, thus opening up more space.

Now if his back is ****, then sure, release the cap hold. But if the plan is to bring back Melton, releasing his cap hold and then re-signing him into cap space doesn't make much sense unless they just strike out everywhere.

Also, “any deal would be via bird rights” is incorrect, and likely not the course they are taking. They are likely going to renounce Melton to clear as much cap as possible. If he comes back, it would be if we have any left over cap space or the room exception. Morey isnt going to commit to Melton until he has exhausted options with his primary targets.

[SixthStreet]

I think Durant would be a good get, but I think the new owner hasn't quite learned that you can't just push your chips in again and again and again. You run out of chips eventually but I think he's not yet understood this lesson. I'd be pretty surprised if he traded Durant of his own volition. If he asked out yes, although I doubt Durant would ask/sulk out at this juncture.

[SixthStreet]

I also don't think lebron leaves LA but if he does, what's the point of LA keeping AD? That's another situation I'd monitor because we might be the most asset heavy team that would jump in. He's too old for all the other asset rich teams (Utah, OKC, Houston) and already forced his way out of the all-in FRP rich team (NO).

Who's outbidding us for Davis if it comes to that? Maybe I'm missing a team out there.

[sixers hoops]

Here are some under-the-radar / value free agents that could be a fit as the middle-class gets squeezed under the new punitive CBA rules. Plenty will have to settle for under $10m, under $5m, or even a vet min.

Point Guard
Spencer Dinwiddie (Lakers)
Kris Dunn (Jazz)
Delon Wright (Heat)

Shooting Guard
Malik Beasley (Bucks)
Alec Burks (Knicks)
Gary Trent (Raptors)
Eric Gordon (Suns)
Lonnie Walker (Nets)
Josh Richardson (Heat)
Luke Kennard (Grizzlies)
Talen Horton-Tucker (Jazz)
Gary Harris (Magic)
Justin Holiday (Nuggets)

Small Forwards
Naji Marshall (Pelicans)
Simone Fontecchio (Pistons)
Cedi Osman (Spurs)
Haywood Highsmith (Heat)
Derrick Jones Jr. (Mavericks)
Torrey Craig (Bulls)
Jordan Nwora (Raptors)
Taurean Prince (Lakers)

Power Forwards
Kyle Anderson (Timberwolves)
Kevin Love (Heat)
Jae Crowder (Bucks)
Davis Bertans (Hornets)

Centers
Kelly Olynyk (Raptors)
Andre Drummond (Bulls)
Dario Saric (Warriors)
Jalen Smith (Pacers)
Goga Bitadze (Magic)
Daniel Theis (Clippers)
Xavier Tillman (Celtics)
James Wiseman (Pistons)

Which 4 - 5 guys should we target to fill out the roster around a presumed Big 3?

I primarily just watch the Sixers so I don’t even know who all of these guys are. However, I look at how Brunson, Lauri, Derrick White, Khris Middleton, Aaron Gordon, Caruso, etc, were guys who teams identified in smaller roles, and developed them into core players. Obviously all to different degrees among the examples.

I think Oubre is a really nice player and was a buy low option, but Morey needs to hit on one or two of these types.

[sixers hoops]

I think Durant would be a good get, but I think the new owner hasn't quite learned that you can't just push your chips in again and again and again. You run out of chips eventually but I think he's not yet understood this lesson. I'd be pretty surprised if he traded Durant of his own volition. If he asked out yes, although I doubt Durant would ask/sulk out at this juncture.

Then I wonder, do I want to push in the rest of my chips for Durant. We already pushed them in on Fultz, Tobias, Harden, and you can say Ben as we used a #1 pick and gave him a max.

[ankle420breaker]

Trade draft assets for Butler

Re-sign Oubre, Batum, and Payne

Use remaining cap room to sign Jonas V, Highsmith, Trent Jr, and Saric

Embiid/Valanciunas
Batum/Saric
Butler/Highsmith/Council
Oubre/Trent Jr
Maxey/Payne

Sent from my SM-S901U using RealGM mobile app

[stormi]

Here are some under-the-radar / value free agents that could be a fit as the middle-class gets squeezed under the new punitive CBA rules. Plenty will have to settle for under $10m, under $5m, or even a vet min.

Point Guard
Spencer Dinwiddie (Lakers)
Kris Dunn (Jazz)
Delon Wright (Heat)

Shooting Guard
Malik Beasley (Bucks)
Alec Burks (Knicks)
Gary Trent (Raptors)
Eric Gordon (Suns)
Lonnie Walker (Nets)
Josh Richardson (Heat)
Luke Kennard (Grizzlies)
Talen Horton-Tucker (Jazz)
Gary Harris (Magic)
Justin Holiday (Nuggets)

Small Forwards
Naji Marshall (Pelicans)
Simone Fontecchio (Pistons)
Cedi Osman (Spurs)
Haywood Highsmith (Heat)
Derrick Jones Jr. (Mavericks)
Torrey Craig (Bulls)
Jordan Nwora (Raptors)
Taurean Prince (Lakers)

Power Forwards
Kyle Anderson (Timberwolves)
Kevin Love (Heat)
Jae Crowder (Bucks)
Davis Bertans (Hornets)

Centers
Kelly Olynyk (Raptors)
Andre Drummond (Bulls)
Dario Saric (Warriors)
Jalen Smith (Pacers)
Goga Bitadze (Magic)
Daniel Theis (Clippers)
Xavier Tillman (Celtics)
James Wiseman (Pistons)

Which 4 - 5 guys should we target to fill out the roster around a presumed Big 3?

Gary Trent immediately stands out to me here as a priority target.

DJJ and Kyle Anderson are some versatile do-it-all winning roleplayers.

Kelly Olynyk is someone I've always wanted to see here as a backup 5 / stretch big that could play alongside Embiid.

Drummond, Marshall, Saric, Kennard could all be undervalued to an extent.

[FlyingArrow]

Is it just me, or does the PG gambit seem like it wouldn't work, even if we got him?

We get a big 3, but we have two of those 3 with only about 65-75% availability due to injuries. The likelihood of having PG and Embiid both healthy in the playoffs is about as likely as having PG and Kawhi both healthy for the playoffs. Just not likely to happen. Plus... he'll be so expensive that we have a top-heavy roster with no bench. Haven't we seen that archetype fail all over the league recently?

Not to mention - at 33, that contract will be really, really bad at the end if it's a 5-year max. Really, really bad at Maxey's peak when we should be really good.

A healthy PG is worth a max salary for sure. I'm not so sure he's worth a 5-year max, though, at his age. Much less with his injury history, and even less so given the fact that we have two other max players and have the rest of the roster to fill out. Count me in the camp that hopes we miss out on him. If we do get him - I hope it works out. I just don't like the injury and age-related odds, or the outlook for the rest of the roster with the resulting salary restrictions.

The only way I'm in on signing PG is if the only other alternative is James coming here.

Harden or LeBron?

[Kobblehead]

I wonder if Jalen Smith can start at PF. Apparently he was in Indy until they acquired Siakam.

Smith at around MLE money ($12m / yr) is a potential breakout candidate if he can start at PF next to Jo, then slide to backup C when Jo is out.

I would think about it.

My concern with Smith is I think he's a stationary defender as opposed to a motion defender. Stationary defenders are better suited at C. Probably doesn't have the ability to hold up defensively at PF going up against the likes of Tatum, Butler, Banchero, Antetokounmpo, etc. We'd be at a matchup disadvantage against every Eastern team other than Cleveland (who play twin bigs).

That's my concern as well. If he can hold up defending on the perimeter against big wings then he could be a good option. If not, then he's just a backup center which isn't as valuable.

Nurse did run some lineups with Chris Boucher at PF with the Raptors back in the day so maybe. Some teams would play him off the floor, though.

[mjkvol]

Is it just me, or does the PG gambit seem like it wouldn't work, even if we got him?

We get a big 3, but we have two of those 3 with only about 65-75% availability due to injuries. The likelihood of having PG and Embiid both healthy in the playoffs is about as likely as having PG and Kawhi both healthy for the playoffs. Just not likely to happen. Plus... he'll be so expensive that we have a top-heavy roster with no bench. Haven't we seen that archetype fail all over the league recently?

Not to mention - at 33, that contract will be really, really bad at the end if it's a 5-year max. Really, really bad at Maxey's peak when we should be really good.

A healthy PG is worth a max salary for sure. I'm not so sure he's worth a 5-year max, though, at his age. Much less with his injury history, and even less so given the fact that we have two other max players and have the rest of the roster to fill out. Count me in the camp that hopes we miss out on him. If we do get him - I hope it works out. I just don't like the injury and age-related odds, or the outlook for the rest of the roster with the resulting salary restrictions.

The only way I'm in on signing PG is if the only other alternative is James coming here.

Harden or LeBron?

I would think that any chance of Harden coming here is quite remote.

[davesilver]

Here are some under-the-radar / value free agents that could be a fit as the middle-class gets squeezed under the new punitive CBA rules. Plenty will have to settle for under $10m, under $5m, or even a vet min.

Point Guard
Spencer Dinwiddie (Lakers)
Kris Dunn (Jazz)
Delon Wright (Heat)

Shooting Guard
Malik Beasley (Bucks)
Alec Burks (Knicks)
Gary Trent (Raptors)
Eric Gordon (Suns)
Lonnie Walker (Nets)
Josh Richardson (Heat)
Luke Kennard (Grizzlies)
Talen Horton-Tucker (Jazz)
Gary Harris (Magic)
Justin Holiday (Nuggets)

Small Forwards
Naji Marshall (Pelicans)
Simone Fontecchio (Pistons)
Cedi Osman (Spurs)
Haywood Highsmith (Heat)
Derrick Jones Jr. (Mavericks)
Torrey Craig (Bulls)
Jordan Nwora (Raptors)
Taurean Prince (Lakers)

Power Forwards
Kyle Anderson (Timberwolves)
Kevin Love (Heat)
Jae Crowder (Bucks)
Davis Bertans (Hornets)

Centers
Kelly Olynyk (Raptors)
Andre Drummond (Bulls)
Dario Saric (Warriors)
Jalen Smith (Pacers)
Goga Bitadze (Magic)
Daniel Theis (Clippers)
Xavier Tillman (Celtics)
James Wiseman (Pistons)

Which 4 - 5 guys should we target to fill out the roster around a presumed Big 3?

Gary Trent immediately stands out to me here as a priority target.

DJJ and Kyle Anderson are some versatile do-it-all winning roleplayers.

Kelly Olynyk is someone I've always wanted to see here as a backup 5 / stretch big that could play alongside Embiid.

Drummond, Marshall, Saric, Kennard could all be undervalued to an extent.

Lauri trade (18M)
Olynyk (13M)
Oubre (12M)
Anderson (10M)
Batum (7M)
Lowry (5M)
Melton (1 year min prove-it deal)

My complete guess on market value contracts.
Should add up to ~65M — aligns we decline the Bball option.

Maxey Melton Oubre Lauri Embiid
Lowry Anderson RC4 Batum Olynyk

[sixers hoops]

Speaking of character risks, I'm going to keep banging the drum for Kevin Porter Jr. He must know he's on his last chance and we should be able to get him for a vet min.

Potentially cheap solution for a backcourt partner to Maxey. As long as the money is small there's no risk as we can just cut him if he does something stupid.

He will probably always be a lost cause; however, when discussing low-risk, high-reward, what is the risk of bringing him in for the minimum? He is basically on probation, so he has some motivation to stay out of trouble. He has shown an inability to control his anger on multiple occasions, and I don’t know if that will ever change. I wouldn’t have any concerns about him being a cancer in the locker room, but we can cut him at any moment.

I would think if we did spend a year rehabbing him, he would prob get a long term deal from another team, so prob not a lot of long-term value. I would never commit significant money to him.

[mjkvol]

Here are some under-the-radar / value free agents that could be a fit as the middle-class gets squeezed under the new punitive CBA rules. Plenty will have to settle for under $10m, under $5m, or even a vet min.

Point Guard
Spencer Dinwiddie (Lakers)
Kris Dunn (Jazz)
Delon Wright (Heat)

Shooting Guard
Malik Beasley (Bucks)
Alec Burks (Knicks)
Gary Trent (Raptors)
Eric Gordon (Suns)
Lonnie Walker (Nets)
Josh Richardson (Heat)
Luke Kennard (Grizzlies)
Talen Horton-Tucker (Jazz)
Gary Harris (Magic)
Justin Holiday (Nuggets)

Small Forwards
Naji Marshall (Pelicans)
Simone Fontecchio (Pistons)
Cedi Osman (Spurs)
Haywood Highsmith (Heat)
Derrick Jones Jr. (Mavericks)
Torrey Craig (Bulls)
Jordan Nwora (Raptors)
Taurean Prince (Lakers)

Power Forwards
Kyle Anderson (Timberwolves)
Kevin Love (Heat)
Jae Crowder (Bucks)
Davis Bertans (Hornets)

Centers
Kelly Olynyk (Raptors)
Andre Drummond (Bulls)
Dario Saric (Warriors)
Jalen Smith (Pacers)
Goga Bitadze (Magic)
Daniel Theis (Clippers)
Xavier Tillman (Celtics)
James Wiseman (Pistons)

Which 4 - 5 guys should we target to fill out the roster around a presumed Big 3?

I primarily just watch the Sixers so I don’t even know who all of these guys are. However, I look at how Brunson, Lauri, Derrick White, Khris Middleton, Aaron Gordon, Caruso, etc, were guys who teams identified in smaller roles, and developed them into core players. Obviously all to different degrees among the examples.

I think Oubre is a really nice player and was a buy low option, but Morey needs to hit on one or two of these types.

Ha, I thought I was the only one on here who watched the Sixers and little else, so I'm in the same boat. The names that jump out on that list are Trent, Kennard, Jones Jr., Anderson, Love, Olynyk, Drummond, Saric, and Thies, but I don't know how many of those might be washed at this point.

[sixers hoops]

Here are some under-the-radar / value free agents that could be a fit as the middle-class gets squeezed under the new punitive CBA rules. Plenty will have to settle for under $10m, under $5m, or even a vet min.

Point Guard
Spencer Dinwiddie (Lakers)
Kris Dunn (Jazz)
Delon Wright (Heat)

Shooting Guard
Malik Beasley (Bucks)
Alec Burks (Knicks)
Gary Trent (Raptors)
Eric Gordon (Suns)
Lonnie Walker (Nets)
Josh Richardson (Heat)
Luke Kennard (Grizzlies)
Talen Horton-Tucker (Jazz)
Gary Harris (Magic)
Justin Holiday (Nuggets)

Small Forwards
Naji Marshall (Pelicans)
Simone Fontecchio (Pistons)
Cedi Osman (Spurs)
Haywood Highsmith (Heat)
Derrick Jones Jr. (Mavericks)
Torrey Craig (Bulls)
Jordan Nwora (Raptors)
Taurean Prince (Lakers)

Power Forwards
Kyle Anderson (Timberwolves)
Kevin Love (Heat)
Jae Crowder (Bucks)
Davis Bertans (Hornets)

Centers
Kelly Olynyk (Raptors)
Andre Drummond (Bulls)
Dario Saric (Warriors)
Jalen Smith (Pacers)
Goga Bitadze (Magic)
Daniel Theis (Clippers)
Xavier Tillman (Celtics)
James Wiseman (Pistons)

Which 4 - 5 guys should we target to fill out the roster around a presumed Big 3?

Gary Trent immediately stands out to me here as a priority target.

DJJ and Kyle Anderson are some versatile do-it-all winning roleplayers.

Kelly Olynyk is someone I've always wanted to see here as a backup 5 / stretch big that could play alongside Embiid.

Drummond, Marshall, Saric, Kennard could all be undervalued to an extent.

Lauri trade (18M)
Olynyk (13M)
Oubre (12M)
Anderson (10M)
Batum (7M)
Lowry (5M)
Melton (1 year min prove-it deal)

My complete guess on market value contracts.
Should add up to ~65M — aligns we decline the Bball option.

Maxey Melton Oubre Lauri Embiid
Lowry Anderson RC4 Batum Olynyk

I think Melton gets more than the minimum. I would just flip him and Lowry. Lowry is a nice addition to the roster, but I wouldn’t offer more than the vet minimum. He is running on fumes. I think he will play a pretty limited role for most of the regular season.

[FireMorey]

I have no idea why people want to bring back Lowry. He's hardly playable anymore. The only one remotely worth keeping is Oubre and possibly Melton if his back is 100% healed, but given you'd have to re-sign him in July only a couple months removed from barely being physically able to play, I'd pass. Let them all go, honestly and start over completely.

[Ferry Avenue]

Trade draft assets for Butler

Re-sign Oubre, Batum, and Payne

Use remaining cap room to sign Jonas V, Highsmith, Trent Jr, and Saric

Embiid/Valanciunas
Batum/Saric
Butler/Highsmith/Council
Oubre/Trent Jr
Maxey/Payne

Sent from my SM-S901U using RealGM mobile app

Good plan. There is no personnel overhaul that will result in a championship for this team unless it consists of plugging in an alpha player who can be an effective closer.

[mjkvol]

I have no idea why people want to bring back Lowry. He's hardly playable anymore. The only one remotely worth keeping is Oubre and possibly Melton if his back is 100% healed, but given you'd have to re-sign him in July only a couple months removed from barely being physically able to play, I'd pass. Let them all go, honestly and start over completely.

I'd bring back Oubre and Batum at the right price. Back issues tend to linger and finish careers, so I would pass on Melton as well.