Eyriq

I don't see how we are going to target them both, the MLE can only go so far and I'm sure they are both MLE players. Right?

This is actually quite easy to answer. In Battie and Alston the Magic had over 11 mil tied up in two backups, one of which wasn't even assured of rotation time (Battie). Productivity wise you look at our weakest starting position and you see the 2 spot with neon flashing lights(considering Nelson the starting 1). So Otis takes these contracts along with the current starting 2 guard and trades for Vince Carter, a player with a skill set comparable to Hedo's, only he is better at executing it. Our shooting guard spot is now upgraded for at least the next 3 years thanks to this trade. This also doesn't mention the fact that while Battie was making 6 mil to likely not play or play limetedly, we also got a 4 in Anderson that happens to have a skill set highly prized in our system. Upgrade the starting 2 spot, upgrade the backup 4 spot. Done and done. Brilliant trade.

We took Hedo's skill set, upgraded it, and stuck it at the 2. So what we need from the 3 has changed, and I'd say a player like Marion that makes his money away from the ball is a perfect fit. The proverbial glue guy is now exactly what we need, Marion would be fantastic.

This doesn't change much if anything. The Magic have found a line up that can dominate, and that is Nelson/Lee/Hedo/Lewis/Howard. So bring that back by re-signing Hedo and upgrade the rotation over bodies like Battie and Johnson. You can do that by simply keeping Alston and Gortat. Pietrus, Alston, and Gortat is a pretty good bench rotation.

The Cavs just got one of the better centers in the league for scraps. I don't see how this is a bad move for them at all.

More on why I like Grant Hill: Stan mentioned that part of why he used Pietrus off the bench was because he had to back up Hedo. Hill solves this problem and gives us the option of starting Pietrus. Most bang for the buck. The guy can still shoot, pass, and rebound at an average level for sf's, which is great for a guy taking the vet min and coming off the bench. A vet and a classy guy who will add much to our locker room chemistry, a la Foyle.

quote: Originally posted by Vellassco:Club, write down this list somewhre near your comp. Whenever you see Hedo's name at threads topics, you will also see those names. We have a rational reason to follow his name cuz we are "stinking" Turks. But what about them? what makes them chase his name ? No need to fight-argue with them cuz they will stick their claims even if Hedo win MVP at NBA Final under another jersey. They will find a way to bash him. Because they are Domalanus Ferrous Cranus. DOM TheRevTy SoulBro MrCharisma Kberto Kwerto LewisTheWin emory89 Drain-O no-maam . . . I know There will be some basketball geeks out there who will be willing to add thier names to this list. Huh, funny, this looks like a list of all the sane posters on this site to me.

quote: Originally posted by Drunk on Mystery: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq: quote: Originally posted by Drunk on Mystery: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq:There is nothing "slight" about making your team -1.78 better on defense when you are in verses on the pine. According to that page, Amare Stoudemire makes his team 4.04pts better per 100 possessions when he's on the court, the highest increase on the team of anyone who got legitimate minutes. Are you going to argue now that Amare Stoudemire is a good defender? Hell, according to that stat, the Magic's 3 best defensive players are Hedo, Jameer, and Tony Battie. "That stat" is called APM. The site is solid, consider it another tool to use in analyzing the game. You're an educated guy, I like reading your stuff, but from the way you bash some players defense I think you could expand your repertoire. http://www.sonicscentral.com/a...6dadc663143c2b35715; check out the articles provided as well, they are interesting. Look, I'm not saying that APM is the holy grail of analytics, but it certainly has its predictive and analytical uses. APM is adjusted plus/minus, right? What you were giving was Net Drtg. And now I'm struggling to imagine how they're calculating Drtg, because not only do their numbers not match anyone else's that I've ever seen, but they're listing Jameer Nelson's as the 6th best in the NBA, with Battie 7th and Turk 8th. That's terrifying. Just looking at who the site has at the top of their list of Adjusted +/- for last year reveals a lot about the statistic: The top 10 are mostly obvious choices, with some really random ones, like #4 being Andre Iguodala, thrown in. Here's the problem with statistics like that: a statistical model that manages to predict the patently obvious is a useless one. A statistical model that predicts the ridiculous is laughable. This one seemed to do both at the same time. How much stock can you put into a statistic that suggests Flip Murray is better than Brandon Roy (APM of 4.92 to 4.38)? Yes, that was his net Drtg as estimated using the the same approach as as APM, which is some sort of regression analysis based on net efficiency, not individual stats. That is why this model has a place at the table, because it looks at the big picture and then breaks it down into on/off court production, instead of the standard box score composite ratings that are out there, like PER. I have noticed you use 82games.com quite a bit, so keep in mind that these two sites are closely related and both consider each other highly. Now because it is a metric based on the performance of a unit both with and without the player you will sometimes see things like Murray having a higher APM than Roy. All this means, at least as far as I can tell, is that in Murray's limited role with the Hawks he would create a net advantage during that time. Maybe he should have been played more? I don't know, though an argument ofter heard about Atlanta is that they are poorly managed and coached. Also, it is hard to predict player interaction, so who is to say that taking Murray and moving him to Portland would have a similar effect? In fact you and I would most likely argue that it wouldn't; both teams are completely different entities and don't have interchangeable parts, or at least not if you want to keep the same product. Anyway, while you may say it doesn't pass the laugh test I wouldn't drop it so quickly. Check it out more, it is very promising.

quote: Originally posted by Drunk on Mystery: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq:There is nothing "slight" about making your team -1.78 better on defense when you are in verses on the pine. According to that page, Amare Stoudemire makes his team 4.04pts better per 100 possessions when he's on the court, the highest increase on the team of anyone who got legitimate minutes. Are you going to argue now that Amare Stoudemire is a good defender? Hell, according to that stat, the Magic's 3 best defensive players are Hedo, Jameer, and Tony Battie. "That stat" is called APM. The site is solid, consider it another tool to use in analyzing the game. You're an educated guy, I like reading your stuff, but from the way you bash some players defense I think you could expand your repertoire. http://www.sonicscentral.com/a...6dadc663143c2b35715; check out the articles provided as well, they are interesting. Look, I'm not saying that APM is the holy grail of analytics, but it certainly has its predictive and analytical uses.

quote: Originally posted by Drunk on Mystery: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq:Phoenix was -1.78 points better on defensive efficiency when he was playing, so where this idea comes from that he doesn't play D is beyond me. Being better at something than the person behind you in the rotation doesn't make you good at it. He was, by the stat you just provided, slightly better than his team's average. His team was 26th in the league in defensive efficiency. He's a terrible defender. There is nothing "slight" about making your team -1.78 better on defense when you are in verses on the pine. You can look at most any statistical measure you like and you see a consistent theme, he is a marginally good defender. You can watch him play with your own subjective eyes and see that he is competent.

quote: Originally posted by Drunk on Mystery: quote: Originally posted by Nyce_1: quote: Originally posted by Live or Die Magic:Plenty of other vets out there, better vets even, we don't need Magic retreads. who's better than Grant for the vet min, at that position? I can't think of anyone. Anyone who plays defense? Phoenix was -1.78 points better on defensive efficiency when he was playing, so where this idea comes from that he doesn't play D is beyond me. In fact, you seem to throw that label around quite liberally, and I really think you need to reboot your defensive evaluation process. http://basketballvalue.com/tea...m=PHX&year=2008-2009

He is still effective in a limited role and we could use the help at the 3. Stan mentioned that he can't start Pietrus because he needs him to be able to come in relief for Hedo. So signing Hill to the vet min would make a ton of sense and allow us to start a bigger backcourt with Pietrus instead of Lee.

I was kinda of making a joke of it. It looks like that point kinda got across, lol. Anyway, no real disrespect meant, but I figured one of us would win the debate by default just based on color availability, lol.

quote: Originally posted by Drunk on Mystery: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq: quote: Originally posted by Drunk on Mystery: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq: Hedo is worth a 10 mil to the Magic and a few other teams most likely. I could see Portland making an offer like that, but only because Paul Allen is insane and insanely rich. That'd be funny though, because then Portland could move further towards becoming the true overhyped allstars. A team that starts Blake/Roy/Hedo/Aldridge/Oden might have a defensive rating in the 130 range. Being a 6'10 play maker brings with it intrinsic positives that help a team win, as seen by his very nice Adjusted Plus Minus. Is his PER pretty crappy? Sure, but it is shot selection that kills it, not really anything else. And the turnovers. Good point. He can improve on that. He's been in the league for 9 years, and he's always taken bad shots. His career percentags are .428/.356 from 3. He takes bad shots. It's who he is. This is the logic I don't get. You're convinced that Hedo can improve on a problem he's had the entirety of his 9 year career, but people don't believe there is anyway that ANY player on our team could improve enough to make up for whatever ball-handling Hedo allegedly does? On what planet does Hedo, in his 10th year, have more chance to improve than Courtney Lee does in his second? I think that Lee can develop more of a passing game and he is going to eventually be that kind of player for us. Now, about Turk, I'm not saying he will improve on his shooting, I'm saying he can. This seems more like an experiance related area than a skill related area. Saying something can happen is not really much of an argument, especially when there is statistically significant evidence suggesting it won't. This was his worst shooting season since he was 23 and his worst as a Magic player. It is not beyond probability to suggest that he can find a happy median from here on out, and in fact I'd say he has a greater than 50% chance of doing just that. For a comparision just look at the career of Tony Kukoc. Is he our 4th best player? Sure, but remeber that Nelson is far outplaying his contract (if he maintains his 1st half play) so we have the luxury of paying Hedo what he deserves. Except he doesn't deserve it. No you. Well, petulance is fun. My original comment stemmed from the fact that you said nothing leading up that point to suggest he did deserve 10m a season, besides agreeing he's the 4th best player on the team. I think I've attempted to cover that ground. And yes, being a border line go to guy does garner 10 mil. He's the 4th best player on the team. How does that make him a go-to guy? Because he takes a lot of forced drives? The notion that Hedo is clutch really needs to go away. His percentages during clutch time are ghastly. Due to his ablility to create shots for others, get to the line, and create his own shot he is our de facto best closer. Dwight needs to improve on his Free Throws and passing, Nelson can improve on drawing more fouls, and Lewis on his ballhandling and play making. In clutch time this year, Hedo averaged 26.6pts per 48, to go along with 3.6asts. His percentages were 35.7% from the field and 20% from 3 during clutch time. He's neither adept at creating for himself or for others during clutch time. He's very good at shooting a ton though, as evidenced by his 20+ FGA per 48 during clutch time though. Good points. He is not a bonafide Closer by anymeans, those guys are the Wades, Pauls, Kobes, LeBrons of the world. He is a psuedo closer, meaning that he posses many of the skills that a closer requires, but is limited in the effectivness of those skills. The fact though that he is the one on our team put in those situations should go a long way into validating the idea of his superiority amoung Magic players to fulfil this role as well as my point about him having the ability to be a closer. Think about it, how many guys are out that shoot a ts% that is .50 pts higher than their efg% Any player who shoots bad from the field and well from the line will have that phemona, particularly if they shoot a lot of free throws. Stephen Jackson's TS% is almost .065 better than his eFG%. That's not a positive. It just means he's a good FT shooter and his FG% is terrible. Corey Maggette's TS% is over .1 higher than his eFG%, largely because he's a good FT shooter who shoots a LOT of FTs. The fact that he actually shoots at a decent percentage from the field is overtaken by his FT volume. That's part of the problem with TS%: the closer a player is to 88% from the line and the more FTs they shoot, the more disproportionate the TS% gets from their actual shooting percentages. If there was ever a volume FT shooter who shot ABOVE 88% from the line, the whole percentage concept would break down. You make it sound like these players are a dime a dozen, they are not. Also, the actual benchmark is TS% of .550 or greater along with what is listed below. If Turk actually met these requirments fully we wouldn't be having this discussion, because he'd be a freaking super star. Also, getting to the line is a very valuable skill and adds a lot to a teams offensive advantage, so I don't see how this would indidacte a problem with TS%, it wouldn't. Why would the bench mark for comparison to Hedo include something, a TS% above .550, that Hedo himself did not accomplish? And the problem with TS% wasn't the stat itself, but how you were choosing to apply it. TS% is useful in that accounts for FT shooting in it's calculations, which other shooting percentage stats don't, but it has an obvious flaw in that it greatly overstates its produced percentage for volume FT shooters, making a situation where high volume FT shooters can have their TS% tossed out in such a way as to give the wrong impression of their shooting. For instance, Kevin Martin had a FG% of 42% this year, but his TS% was over 60%. The reason was because he shot a LOT of free throws. That's not a bad thing, but it does skew his TS% in a way that it suggests something that isn't true, mainly that Kevin Martin is an elite shooter. Sorry, I was noting the advised methodology for denoting a bonafide closer. It was more of a side note with the revelance lying in the actualy application of defining a Closer type player. Plus it is helpful to consider how close a player is to fulfilling those criteria. Also, if Martin has a knack for getting points at the foul line, a very effective meathod btw, why wouldn't that be indicative of him being an elite scorer (not saying he is, just wondering why you use ft attempts to say he isn't). , account for over 20% of their teams assists, and can get to the basket and get to the line at least 5-7 times a game? I have to admit, I really wanted Luke Ridnour to qualify so I could go laugh for the next 20 minutes, but sadly, he doesn't shoot enough FTs. Then I though Ramon Sessions probably qualified, and he likely would, except his minutes were kept low, so he too just didn't have enough FTs. Then I remembered, suddenly, a player from my fantasy team this year who almost assuredly qualifed. And he did! BAM: Russell Westbrook: TS%: .490 eFG%: .415 FTAs: 5.2per game(that's .2 more than Hedo!) Ast%: 27.5%(that's a whole heap more than Hedo, good for 20th in the league). RUSSELL WESTBROOK! MAX DEAL! /sarcasm Stephen Jackson also qualifies to those criteria, and his current contract started when he was the same age Hedo is now. His contract averages out to 8.512m a season and runs until he'll be, awesomely for my point, 34 years old. Do you really believe that GS fans will be happy paying Capt. Jack 10.9m when he's 34? Of course not! He's a terrible shooter. His FG% this year was higher than Hedo's. He averaged more points, more rebounds, more assists, more steals AND more blocks. And he's considered very overpaid. What do these players actually do to help your point? Nothing that I can see. Westbrook has the makings of a stud and was a lottery pick, while Stephen Jackson is a pretty good player in his own right and like you said gets paid pretty dang well. Would you give Russell Westbrook 10m a season? It's been one season, lets wait and see what the kid can do first. And my entire point was that both those players do this magical list of things you suggested were so amazing that we should ignore every other basic statistic which demonstrate Hedo to not be a 10m a year player. I provided a short list of several players who qualify for those standards, and no one with a functioning brain would suggest any of them deserve 10m a year. You're actually arguing Jackson is paid very well(and he is), even though he is better than Hedo statistically across the board and he got a contract worth 2m a year less than what you're saying Hedo deserves, which makes no sense I can think of. They are not the same player by any means so this comparison is not the end all be all of comparisons. Also, he gets paid what he does because he has the great ability to create for himself and for others. He suposedly can play defense too. Personally if you really look at the numbers over the last two years Hedo is the better shooter, the better passer, and the better defender (a misconception you have about Hedo). Hedo is worth more money than Jackson because of his better offensive effeciency, better defense, greater versatility, and better shot (emphasis on 3pt shooting here). Not many, and they are payed very well (or will be when their contracts come up for renegotiation). You're right: Stephen Jackson deserves a 3m a year raise! Umm, he already gets paid pretty well. Doh! He's already massively overpaid, and as I said: he makes less than Hedo wants his contract to start at. hyperbole does not become you To whom it may concern: Like looking at fish in a barrel. :insert picture of face palm here: Edited for formating That pink color is an eyesore.

quote: Originally posted by Lewis4thewin:if turk seems destined on leaving what do you guys think about this trade? magic-NYK magic get: Danilo Gallinari Jared Jeffries resigned David Lee NYK get: hedo battie Gallinari looks like he could be a good hedo replacement in a few years. as a rookie he had a PER of 13.4 and shot 44% from 3point range. He's only 20. Jeffries is only thrown in as cap relief for new york as an incentive for them to make the trade. Lee is a hustling PF who can play C in certain situations and would help with our rebounding. if we can keep gortat as well a lineup of nelson/alston?/aj? lee/jj/FA pietrus/ gallinari/FA shard/Lee/jeffries Howard/Gortat/FA doesnt look bad. I dunno i was bored today. Was watching espn and their draft stuff. The knicks want Curry but the knock on curry is his point guard skills. If they had hedo they could delegate point guard responsibilities to him and let curry be a shooter. If we pulled off a trade like this I'd start the Church of Otis immediately.

I am not personally trying to be contrarian to anything that DOM posts, but Lee would fit in quite nicely actually. He does not need to be a top option offensively and earns his money doing the dirty work. We would lose a bit in terms of 3 point shooting but would gain a bit more in 2cd chance points. So all in all I'd say if we are talking about swapping out Hedo for Lee it is an upgrade and if Lee while keeping Hedo it is a very, very solid addition.

quote: Originally posted by Drunk on Mystery: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq: Hedo is worth a 10 mil to the Magic and a few other teams most likely. I could see Portland making an offer like that, but only because Paul Allen is insane and insanely rich. That'd be funny though, because then Portland could move further towards becoming the true overhyped allstars. A team that starts Blake/Roy/Hedo/Aldridge/Oden might have a defensive rating in the 130 range. Being a 6'10 play maker brings with it intrinsic positives that help a team win, as seen by his very nice Adjusted Plus Minus. Is his PER pretty crappy? Sure, but it is shot selection that kills it, not really anything else. And the turnovers. Good point. He can improve on that. He's been in the league for 9 years, and he's always taken bad shots. His career percentags are .428/.356 from 3. He takes bad shots. It's who he is. This is the logic I don't get. You're convinced that Hedo can improve on a problem he's had the entirety of his 9 year career, but people don't believe there is anyway that ANY player on our team could improve enough to make up for whatever ball-handling Hedo allegedly does? On what planet does Hedo, in his 10th year, have more chance to improve than Courtney Lee does in his second? I think that Lee can develop more of a passing game and he is going to eventually be that kind of player for us. Now, about Turk, I'm not saying he will improve on his shooting, I'm saying he can. This seems more like an experiance related area than a skill related area. Is he our 4th best player? Sure, but remeber that Nelson is far outplaying his contract (if he maintains his 1st half play) so we have the luxury of paying Hedo what he deserves. Except he doesn't deserve it. No you. And yes, being a border line go to guy does garner 10 mil. He's the 4th best player on the team. How does that make him a go-to guy? Because he takes a lot of forced drives? The notion that Hedo is clutch really needs to go away. His percentages during clutch time are ghastly. Due to his ablility to create shots for others, get to the line, and create his own shot he is our de facto best closer. Dwight needs to improve on his Free Throws and passing, Nelson can improve on drawing more fouls, and Lewis on his ballhandling and play making. Think about it, how many guys are out that shoot a ts% that is .50 pts higher than their efg% Any player who shoots bad from the field and well from the line will have that phemona, particularly if they shoot a lot of free throws. Stephen Jackson's TS% is almost .065 better than his eFG%. That's not a positive. It just means he's a good FT shooter and his FG% is terrible. Corey Maggette's TS% is over .1 higher than his eFG%, largely because he's a good FT shooter who shoots a LOT of FTs. The fact that he actually shoots at a decent percentage from the field is overtaken by his FT volume. That's part of the problem with TS%: the closer a player is to 88% from the line and the more FTs they shoot, the more disproportionate the TS% gets from their actual shooting percentages. If there was ever a volume FT shooter who shot ABOVE 88% from the line, the whole percentage concept would break down. You make it sound like these players are a dime a dozen, they are not. Also, the actual benchmark is TS% of .550 or greater along with what is listed below. If Turk actually met these requirments fully we wouldn't be having this discussion, because he'd be a freaking super star. Also, getting to the line is a very valuable skill and adds a lot to a teams offensive advantage, so I don't see how this would indidacte a problem with TS%, it wouldn't. , account for over 20% of their teams assists, and can get to the basket and get to the line at least 5-7 times a game? I have to admit, I really wanted Luke Ridnour to qualify so I could go laugh for the next 20 minutes, but sadly, he doesn't shoot enough FTs. Then I though Ramon Sessions probably qualified, and he likely would, except his minutes were kept low, so he too just didn't have enough FTs. Then I remembered, suddenly, a player from my fantasy team this year who almost assuredly qualifed. And he did! BAM: Russell Westbrook: TS%: .490 eFG%: .415 FTAs: 5.2per game(that's .2 more than Hedo!) Ast%: 27.5%(that's a whole heap more than Hedo, good for 20th in the league). RUSSELL WESTBROOK! MAX DEAL! /sarcasm Stephen Jackson also qualifies to those criteria, and his current contract started when he was the same age Hedo is now. His contract averages out to 8.512m a season and runs until he'll be, awesomely for my point, 34 years old. Do you really believe that GS fans will be happy paying Capt. Jack 10.9m when he's 34? Of course not! He's a terrible shooter. His FG% this year was higher than Hedo's. He averaged more points, more rebounds, more assists, more steals AND more blocks. And he's considered very overpaid. What do these players actually do to help your point? Nothing that I can see. Westbrook has the makings of a stud and was a lottery pick, while Stephen Jackson is a pretty good player in his own right and like you said gets paid pretty dang well. Not many, and they are payed very well (or will be when their contracts come up for renegotiation). You're right: Stephen Jackson deserves a 3m a year raise! Umm, he already gets paid pretty well. Doh! To whom it may concern: Like looking at fish in a barrel. :insert picture of face palm here: Edited for formating

Hedo is worth a 10 mil to the Magic and a few other teams most likely. Being a 6'10 play maker brings with it intrinsic positives that help a team win, as seen by his very nice Adjusted Plus Minus. Is his PER pretty crappy? Sure, but it is shot selection that kills it, not really anything else. He can improve on that. Is he our 4th best player? Sure, but remeber that Nelson is far outplaying his contract (if he maintains his 1st half play) so we have the luxury of paying Hedo what he deserves. And yes, being a border line go to guy does garner 10 mil. Think about it, how many guys are out that shoot a ts% that is .50 pts higher than their efg%, account for over 20% of their teams assists, and can get to the basket and get to the line at least 5-7 times a game? Not many, and they are payed very well (or will be when their contracts come up for renegotiation).

HedoGortat

quote: Originally posted by VaBchMagicFan: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq: quote: Originally posted by VaBchMagicFan: quote: Originally posted by jmmagicfan: quote: Originally posted by VaBchMagicFan: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq:Shard cracks the top 30 for sure. No, offensively yes but because of how bad he is defensively he can't be top 30. I can name you 30 guys who play well or at least try on both sides of the ball. Tell you what - try to name 10 better PF? Would I take Josh Smith - depends on what I have to give up. Rafer and Gortat? Absolutely. I don't worry about SVG keeping him in line, I think Dwight would be enough to do that. Gasol,Odom,Aldridge,Al Jefferson,Duncan,Amare,,Elton Brand, Boozer,KG,Dirk Yeah and I could name more. See when you look at it Shard is overrated and is not even top 10 at his own position Pf or SF so how can he be top 30 in the league? At the 4? 1. Duncan (though he is a center really) 2. KG 3. Dirk 4. Bosh 5. Stat 6. Lewis (Mista Dollar Bills) I mean really, is it that hard to give him props? He is the best 3pt shooting 4 in the league, a competent defender, a two time all star, in both the East and the West. Lewis is the worst defender on the team he is horrible, yes I agree he is the best 3 point shooting PF in the league, other than that he doesn't do much. He is not top 10 which is sad considering he is a top 10 payed player in the league and he is not even top 10 at his own position. Did you just call Lewis the worst defender on this team? And you want me to take you seriously? Come on man, do some homework and then get back with me.

quote: Originally posted by VaBchMagicFan: quote: Originally posted by jmmagicfan: quote: Originally posted by VaBchMagicFan: quote: Originally posted by Eyriq:Shard cracks the top 30 for sure. No, offensively yes but because of how bad he is defensively he can't be top 30. I can name you 30 guys who play well or at least try on both sides of the ball. Tell you what - try to name 10 better PF? Would I take Josh Smith - depends on what I have to give up. Rafer and Gortat? Absolutely. I don't worry about SVG keeping him in line, I think Dwight would be enough to do that. Gasol,Odom,Aldridge,Al Jefferson,Duncan,Amare,,Elton Brand, Boozer,KG,Dirk Yeah and I could name more. See when you look at it Shard is overrated and is not even top 10 at his own position Pf or SF so how can he be top 30 in the league? At the 4? 1. Duncan (though he is a center really) 2. KG 3. Dirk 4. Bosh 5. Stat 6. Lewis (Mista Dollar Bills) I mean really, is it that hard to give him props? He is the best 3pt shooting 4 in the league, a competent defender, a two time all star, in both the East and the West.

Shard cracks the top 30 for sure.

I'd rather have McDyess just to eliminate the chance that he'll kill us with timely offensive boards. It also doesn't hurt that he is by far the better rebounder of those 3. Bass would be a very happy 2cd option for me. Smith is an upgrade over Battie, but not by much.

quote: Originally posted by Skywise316:Pfft. Do some of you guys watch b-ball outside of Orlando? Or have you ever..? Rashard Lewis is a small forward that plays power forward for the Orlando Magic. The notion that he's too old to play small forward is, well, silly. Just ask Paul Pierce. This identification system is antiquated; Shard is neither powerful nor small. He is a combo forward and can create mismatches at both positions. As for Gortat, playing him with Dwight has actually been very promising and if we keep him it will mean that management sees a future in it. I loved the above quote from him. Lets keep him and work him gradually into a starting role in 2-3 years.

About finding playing time for 3 small forwards, I'd actually like to see Pietrus used primarily at the 2 anyway.