2022-2023 NBA Season Thread

[Shanemansj13]

This isnt the NFL.

1st round picks arent really that important especially on a team that isnt likely to be drafting in the lottery anytime soon. More often than not when you use a 1st round pick on a player, especially in the later round, that player instantly becomes a negative to the team. You have the guaranteed money owed to them. And then on top of it there are very, very few players that are positive basketball players in their 1st couple of seasons. And a lot of them are never positive players.

Once the teams have their core, 1st round picks are throws in here and there for role player trades of marginal value. This is why teams before the internet went crazy with draft talk just used to sell these late round picks for cash back in the day. They knew how little value the picks had.

And modern NBA teams are finally wising up to that. Once you have your core players to build around, the rest just falls into place every season. The Wolves will have their top 4 position players locked up soon for a LONG time (Gobert, Towns, Ant and McDaniels). Filling in a roster after that isnt that damn hard. Especially in the NBA where players in the league from range 150 - 300 best players in the league are literally just given away.
Again. This wasn't in any shape or form a good trade (like most trades the only thing good about it was the intentions). But calling it the worst sport trade in history is just idiotic. That's a completely different bar. You have to set the franchise back. This didnt really set the franchise back much. We are still on the same projection we were before the trade was made.....hoping that KAT and Ant can develop into something special instead of two guys that are just good at some things but not good at others. And then filling in around those 2 guys. And filling around KAT is hard. People still dont seem to understand that. He is both great and horrible all in the same breath.

Sure what you said about 1st's is true but that was only part of the trade. Kessler has the same role as Gobert and is doing a great job in that role but making $40M less. The contract is another issue. Minny is paying Gobert $40M to rebound, block shots and play defense and he doesn't add the value like Draymond does bc Draymond is also a great facilitator. Not to mention once Edwards get paid they will be in the luxury tax...which is fine if you are a contending team. They have a long way to go to become a contender. If their core is getting them to play-in now what are real expectations? The problem is their ceiling is maxed now bc of a one-way player and his huge salary. Forget the 4 1st's and good depth they gave up. Gobert and his contract alone make this a negative trade.

 

[Mebert]

LOL at Minny fans defending that trade.

That is a trade you do for KD or an elite player like that...

I don't defend the trade, even if the fit had been seamless it was an extreme overpay. I did honestly believe that KAT could not possible be a worse defender on the perimeter than he was in the paint.....whoops

 

[flyerhawk]

It was a travel by letter of the law

Yeah. Pretty clearly a travel.

Refs may sometimes let it go but that doesn't make it not a travel.

 

[DJ Fieri]

Sure what you said about 1st's is true but that was only part of the trade. Kessler has the same role as Gobert and is doing a great job in that role but making $40M less. The contract is another issue. Minny is paying Gobert $40M to rebound, block shots and play defense and he doesn't add the value like Draymond does bc Draymond is also a great facilitator. Not to mention once Edwards get paid they will be in the luxury tax...which is fine if you are a contending team. They have a long way to go to become a contender. If their core is getting them to play-in now what are real expectations? The problem is their ceiling is maxed now bc of a one-way player and his huge salary. Forget the 4 1st's and good depth they gave up. Gobert and his contract alone make this a negative trade.

They need to consider trading KAT to recoup the picks lost in Gobert trade....and so they can pay Edwards in a few years.

Build around him.

 

[Shanemansj13]

I don't want to make this seem like I am in any way defending that trade, but KAT played 29 total games. Any offense rating will plummet when you lose the best scorer on the team. Especially when Ant refuses to take over games like he should.

Still worst trade in Wolves history.

Fair enough. Their stars not playing or Ant not stepping up in big moments definitely is a big factor as well. I would just not prefer to pay a one way player $40M/year who can't distribute.

Ant was disappointing in that play-in game but in his defense he didn't look right.

 

[Mebert]

Sure what you said about 1st's is true but that was only part of the trade. Kessler has the same role as Gobert and is doing a great job in that role but making $40M less. The contract is another issue. Minny is paying Gobert $40M to rebound, block shots and play defense and he doesn't add the value like Draymond does bc Draymond is also a great facilitator. Not to mention once Edwards get paid they will be in the luxury tax...which is fine if you are a contending team. They have a long way to go to become a contender. If their core is getting them to play-in now what are real expectations? The problem is their ceiling is maxed now bc of a one-way player and his huge salary. Forget the 4 1st's and good depth they gave up. Gobert and his contract alone make this a negative trade.

They have to pay McDaniels too.

 

[Stakesarehigh]

That's the thing though, we may not know how bad this trade was for a couple years.

It's similar to the Lakers getting Westbrook. The biggest problem wasn't so much getting Westbrook as it was what they were paying him. His salary added to Lebron and AD's made it impossible to add quality depth.

Yea was going to use LA as an example of how having 3 max guys makes flexibility to add to the roster impossible unless you've managed home grown guys like the Warriors did and were willing to spend what it took to stay competitive.

LA did what they had to do and broke Russ's deal into several players. I fear Minny will have to do the same thing.

All my ranting aside I'd rather be a Minny fan right now watching competitive basketball than a Pistons fan.

I will let you know how I feel on lotto day after that.

 

[Shanemansj13]

They need to consider trading KAT to recoup the picks lost in Gobert trade....and so they can pay Edwards in a few years.

Build around him.

That would just depend on the return. I'm not sure the return would be equal to trading KAT. Then you are stuck with Edwards and Gobert as your core and whoever you get in that trade. The Gobert contract is basically untradeable or I would say start over with just Edwards...the other issue with that, no picks for a long time. I think they would just stick with this core and try their best to build around it before they pay Edwards, so basically one more year.

 

[Mebert]

Fair enough. Their stars not playing or Ant not stepping up in big moments definitely is a big factor as well. I would just not prefer to pay a one way player $40M/year who can't distribute.

Ant was disappointing in that play-in game but in his defense he didn't look right.

I am going to say something I rarely ever say. I like Bill Simmons take on Edwards. He has always been the most physically gifted player on the floor so he never had to build the dominating mindset the greats have. He is still young, but if he never wants to be dominant he has hit his peak, and that is not good enough.

 

[Shanemansj13]

That's the thing though, we may not know how bad this trade was for a couple years.

It's similar to the Lakers getting Westbrook. The biggest problem wasn't so much getting Westbrook as it was what they were paying him. His salary added to Lebron and AD's made it impossible to add quality depth.

Yeah it's been one year. What if they don't make the playoffs next season? Now if they start to turn a corner, KAT is healthy, Edwards becomes a true superstar...that is a contending team or close to it.

 

[Mebert]

That would just depend on the return. I'm not sure the return would be equal to trading KAT. Then you are stuck with Edwards and Gobert as your core and whoever you get in that trade. The Gobert contract is basically untradeable or I would say start over with just Edwards...the other issue with that, no picks for a long time. I think they would just stick with this core and try their best to build around it before they pay Edwards, so basically one more year.

They ironically had the perfect player to put next to KAT, it was Vanderbilt. He did EVERYTHING on defense, and was happy to get out of the paint an switch to backdoor cuts for his 6 points. Love Vanderbilt, might be the most team friendly contract in basketball right now.

 

[Mebert]

Yeah it's been one year. What if they don't make the playoffs next season? Now if they start to turn a corner, KAT is healthy, Edwards becomes a true superstar...that is a contending team or close to it.

Maybe, but they can't afford Naz, and have no way to replace him at all. My guess is Anderson is gone because they have to quintuple down on Gobert, Connely is almost too old. Probably lose Mclaughlin.

Even after trading all of their depth this was probably the deepest the Wolves team was going to be for the next 5 years.

 

[The Q]

Only good thing is lowry trade value as an expiring contract is going up. He's been damn good since his return

He was never bad

He’s been fairly neutral

Maybe slightly underwater, but not by a lot

Fit wise tho, a 3 team trade that turns Lowry into Tobias Harris makes sense

Just not sure what team needs Lowry and sends Philly what they need.

Could be Charlotte with oubre and hayward or something like that. Idk.

The hard thing is not a lot of contenders need pgs

 

[trojanfan12]

Why is this debatable?

It's not other than there are more egregious examples that don't get called.

But, he moved his pivot foot (twice) which is traveling.

 

[The Q]

Maybe, but they can't afford Naz, and have no way to replace him at all. My guess is Anderson is gone because they have to quintuple down on Gobert, Connely is almost too old. Probably lose Mclaughlin.

Even after trading all of their depth this was probably the deepest the Wolves team was going to be for the next 5 years.

They can, they just choose not to pay the tax.

Which is fine for a contender, but also means they should’ve traded him and Nowell for something Imo.

 

[Mebert]

They can, they just choose not to pay the tax.

Which is fine for a contender, but also means they should’ve traded him and Nowell for something Imo.

Nowell was a crushing disappointment for me. He was finally get his chance to be a 6th man and was not good. I had real high hopes for him.

 

[The Q]

It's not other than there are more egregious examples that don't get called.

But, he moved his pivot foot (twice) which is traveling.

It’s fair

But if that’s not called, what are we even doing here?

Just ban calling traveling if you’re not gonna call that

Jmo

 

[The Q]

Nowell was a crushing disappointment for me. He was finally get his chance to be a 6th man and was not good. I had real high hopes for him.

Ironically might be a chance to bring him back due to that

Get a more reasonable deal


Supposedly he wanted Beasley money before the year

That ain’t happening now

 

[flyerhawk]

It's not other than there are more egregious examples that don't get called.

But, he moved his pivot foot (twice) which is traveling.

There are plenty of missed calls. All the time. I certainly wouldn't be bothered if he wasn't called for that.

But, as you say, it was clearly a travel.

 

[trojanfan12]

They ironically had the perfect player to put next to KAT, it was Vanderbilt. He did EVERYTHING on defense, and was happy to get out of the paint an switch to backdoor cuts for his 6 points. Love Vanderbilt, might be the most team friendly contract in basketball right now.

He is my favorite player from that trade. He reminds me of AC Green on the Showtime Lakers.