Mike1989

I see the Demarcus Cousins rumors are starting up again. According to Chad Ford the Cavs, Mavs and Bobcats are testing the Kings' interest in trading him. Now I don't think he'll go, for me the Kings new owners and GM will want to build around him, but here's a thought would we be interested? Now at #2 people say there is no legit star, but if we could do a deal to acquire Cousins then we'd be getting a player with all star ability. He could start at C and Vučević at PF, or vice versa. That could be quite a duo, with both guys potential all stars. Highly unlikely to happen, but it would be an interesting thing to consider if Cousins is available. Main issue is his attitude, but under the right coach that could be handled. I think the Mavs could be a good place with Dirk and thir head coach, though I think he'll stay with the Kings.

Parker was and still is an elite PG. Billups was an all star from the mid 2000s until 2010. He might not be elite, but he was certainly an excellent player in his prime at Detroit. Another potential guy is Rondo when he won with the Celtics. Maybe not elite, but like Billups he was an excellent player. I guess at the time the only elite player would have been Parker. Sure there aren't many, but having an elite PG doesn't hurt, you just need to build them a supporting cast. If the Clippers got more support for CP3 they could be more serious contenders.

I think our healthy line up from the start of the season - Nelson, AA, Harkless, Baby and Vučević - could have put us in the same range as the Wizards and T-Wolves (ie around 30 wins tops). We did start very well, and that line up if it fires should have been good enough to do better than the injury hit and experience lacking lineups we had to use. If we then got the same production out of Harris from the bench, or at SF with Harkless dropping o the bench or SG and put AA on the bench, then we probably could have won more games than we did. That being said, other than pride winning those extra games would really not mean a great deal unless we jumped to the 3rd selection.

This has probably been mentioned but I saw a trade rumor where we send AA to the Clippers for Bledsoe and Caron Butler, and at #2 it leaves us the chance to draft McLemore or Oladipo. I'm not sure how good Bledsoe would be as a starting PG, he's shown flashes as CP3's backup that he could be very good, but judging someone off limited minutes is difficult and very risky. I think a combination of him and McLemore/Oladipo could be quite good if all involved develop, but i don't know if Bledsoe would be my ideal PG. He still needs a lot of work, and he'll soon be coming to a new contract and will want decent money. I think I'd rather see us try and trade AA and/or Baby for a mid to late first and grab Larkin or ideally Schroeder if he's still on the board. I think I'd rather us develop a rookie on their pay scale, than take a backup PG and likely have to take a big risk on if they're worth decent money.

I don't think Shabazz is a can't miss prospect, and I don't see a place in the team for him. At forward he won't get past Harkless and Harris, and I'm not convinced that he has the ability to become an elite shooting guard. For me, I'd rather we don't take him. If we miss out on a top two pick then there are other players with tons of potential: Julius Randle, he can play SF or PF, has a very good all round game, and has been likened to Chris Webber; Noah Vonleh has star potential and size to play either SF or PF; and Glenn Robinson III could be another option, and he's been likened to Andre Iguodala. If we haven't taken a point guard this draft, then Marcus Smart should be a top five pick. Now granted Wiggins and Parker are two can't miss prospects, but even if we miss out on a top two pick, next year's draft has lots of depth like 2003 when LeBron, Melo, Bosh and Wade went in the top five. For me, I don't think having Shabazz would be any consolation, nor do I think he's an ideal player for us. I have to agree that Schroeder has a ton of potential. If we trade back then he could be a very good option for us if he is still on the board depending on who we trade back with.

After two decent performances on the road by the Pacers, they then go and disappoint at home. The Pacers really need to step it up in the next game and go back to playing dominant defense, if they don't, the Heat could very well win the next two games without too much trouble.

That I did. Though I stand by my point of preferring MCW over McCollum as a PG.

That could be a decent duo, only issue is that both guys would likely need to time to develop since both are more projects than nba ready studs. That could mean keeping Nelson and AA to start for at least one, if not two seasons. It's risky, but they certainly look to have a lot of upside.

I agree to an extent in that getting dump out of the play offs is not a good thing at all. However, the team progressed every year from 32-50, to 40-26, and to 56-26 and won their first division championship this year. So in regular season he did help take the team forwards and help them become competitive. The issue is in the play offs, so perhaps he is not the right man to lead them forwards not that he has got them to that level, but it is a somewhat harsh conclusion that he is a terrible head coach. I think a few teams would consider him. I wonder if the Clippers would tempt SVG to consider returning to coaching this season...

Agreed, because despite him being raw, he possesses an excellent skill set with lots of upside. I think sitting him behind Nelson for the remaining two years of Nelson's current contract would allow the team to nurture him into Nelson's long term successor. At 6'6 with a 6'7 wing span is pretty unique for a point guard.

I prefer McLemore because if we miss out on a top two or three pick in next year's draft, then it would give us the opportunity draft the guy we originally wanted in Smart. For me, a backcourt pairing of McLemore and Smart would be excellent for this team going forwards. Granted if we go for Burke, then we can go for Harrison or Young the following season, though personally I prefer the first option of a partnership between McLemore and Smart. Also, I think McLemore has more upside, though admittedly Burke is seemingly the better leader. Tough choice, but I'd go with McLemore because we can always shift Afflalo and/or Baby for a late pick and grab Shane Larkin late in the first round. That could kill two birds with one stone.

Schroeder and Michael Carter-Willoams could be both on the board at #9, both guys for me are more natural PGs, McCollum is more suited to SG I think.

As have Tyreke Evans and DeMarcus Cousins at the Kings yet for three seasons that they've played together they've gone 24-58, 22-44, and 28-54. So far the Kings record hasn't improved significantly despite possessing two players with all star potential. Granted they've been mismanaged so that gives us an edge, but having two talentes players like Vuc and Harris doesn't give us a quick fire way back to contending. They are excellent pieces but we could still remain in the 20 wins category if the rest of the team isn't up to it, or if the players we bring in don't develop etc. I'd agree that we have franchise level talent, but despite that there's a long road ahead to get back to being one of the best teams.

I thought the Spurs in the 3rd quarter would push on to an 'easy' victory, but the Grizzlies fought back and came up short in overtime. As it stands I think the Spurs will take his series in the next few games. I guess the Grizzlies could repeat their form in the last two rounds where they won four straight games after going two and one games down to the Clippers and Thunder respectively, though I don't see it. I think the Spurs will hold on and win,

For me: - 2013-14, tank for a top pick. - 2014-15, 30 to 40 win season. - 2015-16, .500 or better season. I think that is a realistic time frame even if we don't land a star in free agency, but it is dependent on our picks turning into very good NBA players. If our picks work out it is realistic, if they take time (or don't work out), then we could see something like: - 2013-14, tank for a top pick. - 2014-15, up to 30 wins. - 2015-16, early 30s. - 2016-17, mid to late 30s. - 2017-18, .500 or better. I'd rather we see a quick turnaround, but there are teams that draft talent and take a few years or more to come into place or don't at all. So I am optimistic that we'll have a good team for the 2015/16 season and return to the play offs. But I wouldn't be surprised if we were still building at that point.

I'd like McLemore, though I'd be happy with Buke. Equally I wouldn't mind seeing us trade back with a team that has two first round picks this year, or see if a team will give us their pick this year and next, or even a pick and talent.

If we keep and start Baby, then that lineup might put us in the 30 win range. Sure the Wizards jumped to three, but personally I think we want to 'tank' one more season to ensure another top four or five pick to and us a top talent like Wiggins, Parker, Randle, Smart, Vonleh etc. Plus Baby shoud have good value. So I think we will try and trade him and AA at some point, and try to find someone to take Turk and Harrington, and if no one oes, cut them. For me, we'll say young next season.

I still think we should draft McLemore now that Noel will likely be gone. Drafting him gives us our shooting guard for the foreseeable future, and he also brings defense. Plus if we have another lottery pick and miss out on the top two or three (ie Wiggins, Parker, Randle), then we can grab Smart next season to pair with McLemore and that should give us a potentially excellent backcourt. I guess trading back could be an option if we aren't sold on one of the top picks, and grab either extra picks or a player and a pick.

That could be a good deal for us. Bledsoe is a very talented but raw PG. He could develop into a decent starting PG, but my only issue is that I don't think he's significantly better than Burke. Plus Burke has proved he can lead a team and be clutch when it matters, Bledsoe didn't at college and hasn't really had the chance in the NBA. So personally I wouldn't take him over Burke. I can't see the Celtics wanting to trade Rondo, but if they did then I think even with his attitude Henny would do a deal if it was at the right price. He might not light up the scoreboard most nights like some PGs, but he's excellent at moving the ball, assisting, and defending. He's a great player and I'd love to see him here, though I think the Celtics would be stupid for letting him go.

You could always create a thread with a poll :bball: As for Burke I think he could be a good pick. He's got an excellent skill set, he's a leader and clutch. But if we did miss out on the first pick and land the second pick overall, and McLemore is still on the board, then I would be happy to see us trade down in the draft in order to secure two first picks (eg. T-Wolves picks for our first round pick, or the Suns if they fall to the sixth pick), or for a first round pick and a talent (eg. T-Wolves lottery pick plus Williams).

Alston did play well in Nelson's absence, but I agree with you that if Nelson had stayed healthy then we I think we may very well have won a championship that year. Though like LaVar said, if we didn't win, it would have gone to seven.

Agreed, it certainly gives you hope that we could see the Magic return to being competitive by drafting well, using free agency effectively, and building a well rounded team. It even shows in the case of the Grizzlies and Pacers that you can compete without a star player like a LeBron etc. If all goes well we might see our Magic back in that position in a few years time.

Otis really had a great year or so when that happened. He traded our first away for Turk and Richardson, and then our 2013 and 2014 second round picks for Harper. It really was great management on his part, shame he ever left... <_< :lol:

I'd be very happy if we came out of the first round of the draft with McLemore and Larkin. That could be another good back court duo. Though I wouldn't rule out Burke at 1 or 2 if Henny is sold on him being our long term answer at PG, though he could potentially trade back in order to acquire him - for instance if we acquired the T-Wolves two picks and they got ours plus AA or Baby, then in that scenario we could grab two very talented players.

I think the Wizards or Portland might go for Shabazz. I think him plus Beal and Wall would be quite a scoring trio indeed, though some might argue he's perhaps a bit on the short side for a SF.