tOfficial 2015 NBA Draft/Free Agency Thread

[WiggyRuss]

It's pretty obvious to everyone else as to exactly what that was about. Gilbert may have no balls, but he's not stupid. He knew that there was no way he was going to be attracting FA's to Cleveland. So, he wanted a hard cap to completely even the playing field.

By having a hard cap, that means teams can't go over the cap to add necessary players which means top players spread out around the league rather than congregating on the same few teams. At the time, Gilbert figured he had no shot at Lebron coming back and no shot at getting top FA's to Cleveland unless they had severely limited choices.

I agree with SOME of this- but the plan that Gilbert AND Cuban were pushing was the plan that was passed by the vast majority of the NBA owners- because it controls costs and allows teams the best chance to retain their own free agents.

Honestly- everything Gilbert has done since the letter has led to where he is at right now- which is on top of the freaking world- with the best player in the world on his franchise- 2 high level max guys signed to deals that are very reasonable to play with the best player, hundreds of millions in added franchise value, integrating advertising his businesses by levaragining the Cavs and LeBron;s popularity.

I mean- Gilbert got a casino amendment passed to Ohio's constitution that had failed 5 previous times- and he is now majority owner of the Cleveland casino- and he rode his good will from the Cavs to get that passed when so many others have failed.

The guy is a self made man worth 4 billion dollars- and this is the guy Turnup BITTERLY tries to discount as LeBrons pet- when the fact remains Gilbert has leveraged the Cavs success and bringing back LeBron to make hundreds of millions in both franchise value, revenue, and a lot of free advertising.--- and like i said earlier- I GUARANTEE you in that meeting Gilbert told LeBron- we wont leave the mid level open or amnesty guys yo uwant on the team-

honestly- Gilbert could not have played it better....could he have? I mean look at the freaking results he delivered!

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

what the hell does Gilbert lobbying for punative penalties for the luxury tax have anything to do with LeBron coming back?

-all though I have read that those penalties were directly responsible for Arison's cheapness- which led to LeBron leaving, lol....thats what Windhorst wrote that Gilberts lobbying ended up crippling the HEats ability to add around LeBron which led him to leaving

if you ask me Gilbert played it like a freaking genius- and the result CERTAINLY shows he played it perfectly. Team in teh Finals- best player in the league- Kyrie and Love signed long term- and hundreds of millions in franchise value-

While Mickey Arison lost LeBron and is afraid to use his mid level exception because he doesnt want to pay tax, LOL....

dude...you are just SOOOOOOOOO bitter Gilbert just played it PERFECTLY, lol

Are you kidding me?
You are either FOR something or AGAINST it.

Gilberts actions PROVE that you can't believe what comes out of his mouth.
THAT is why James will NEVER trust him, but will OWN him with his annual opt outs.


If you're gullible enough to believe that James left over Miller/Anthony being gone, him worrying about Arison not providing a chance to win every year vs him being given back the power he so greatly missed, knock yourself out.

 

[Black Adam]

I also have similar property and will beat any price Trojan gives you ...

naw, MY properties got the greatest value...AND it comes with serving girls...

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

Re: LeBron's feelings toward Miller being amnestied...

I think LeBron's reported displeasure with that move had a lot more to do with the fact that the Heat were making money-saving moves than it did with the specific player involved being his friend.

Who wouldn't make money saving moves when it doesn't effect the quality of your roster?

Mike was signed in 2010. We needed a shooter.
When he was let go, we had added Allen, Battier, Lewis who were all better options and still had James Jones.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Are you kidding me?
You are either FOR something or AGAINST it.

Gilberts actions PROVE that you can't believe what comes out of his mouth.
THAT is why James will NEVER trust him, but will OWN him with his annual opt outs.


If you're gullible enough to believe that James left over Miller/Anthony being gone, him worrying about Arison not providing a chance to win every year vs him being given back the power he so greatly missed, knock yourself out.

Gilbert just levaraged that to his advantage!!!! he made Arison look like a cheap asshole- and now has just kept his word to LeBron to dig deep to bring a winner!

dude, he PLAYED IT PERFECTLY- you gotta stop the bitterness.

He made it too expensive for Arison to add around LeBron- LeBron left- and Gilbert got him back- because Gilbert will spend what it takes!

I mean- seriously....it worked to PERFECTION- while crippling the Heat and turning them into a lotto team! lol

 

[Black Adam]

sooo...

what's Wiggy's "bitter Heat fan" post count? they're starting to pile up...

 

[LAD]

It's pretty obvious to everyone else as to exactly what that was about. Gilbert may have no balls, but he's not stupid. He knew that there was no way he was going to be attracting FA's to Cleveland. So, he wanted a hard cap to completely even the playing field.

By having a hard cap, that means teams can't go over the cap to add necessary players which means top players spread out around the league rather than congregating on the same few teams. At the time, Gilbert figured he had no shot at Lebron coming back and no shot at getting top FA's to Cleveland unless they had severely limited choices.

Not to mention his team would lose against LBJ in the same conference every season.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

I agree with SOME of this- but the plan that Gilbert AND Cuban were pushing was the plan that was passed by the vast majority of the NBA owners- because it controls costs and allows teams the best chance to retain their own free agents.

Honestly- everything Gilbert has done since the letter has led to where he is at right now- which is on top of the freaking world- with the best player in the world on his franchise- 2 high level max guys signed to deals that are very reasonable to play with the best player, hundreds of millions in added franchise value, integrating advertising his businesses by levaragining the Cavs and LeBron;s popularity.

I mean- Gilbert got a casino amendment passed to Ohio's constitution that had failed 5 previous times- and he is now majority owner of the Cleveland casino- and he rode his good will from the Cavs to get that passed when so many others have failed.

The guy is a self made man worth 4 billion dollars- and this is the guy Turnup BITTERLY tries to discount as LeBrons pet- when the fact remains Gilbert has leveraged the Cavs success and bringing back LeBron to make hundreds of millions in both franchise value, revenue, and a lot of free advertising.--- and like i said earlier- I GUARANTEE you in that meeting Gilbert told LeBron- we wont leave the mid level open or amnesty guys yo uwant on the team-

honestly- Gilbert could not have played it better....could he have? I mean look at the freaking results he delivered!

I never said he wasn't a good business man outside the NBA, but that does not change the fact that he is James pet as far as trying to create success for himself in the NBA.

The fact that he wrote that letter about LeBron proves that you don't always have to be smart.

And, long term, he's actually not playing it smart.
The owners were striving for ways to create parity which would be the Cavs ONLY chance, ever, of winning when James is gone.
If there is a system of free spending and choice, nobody is picking that hell hole once he leaves.

 

[gordontrue]

Who wouldn't make money saving moves when it doesn't effect the quality of your roster?

Mike was signed in 2010. We needed a shooter.
When he was let go, we had added Allen, Battier, Lewis who were all better options and still had James Jones.

No argument from me there. I'm not saying that perspective would make sense.

I mean, we don't really know what LeBron thought of it then, or what he thinks of it now. I can just imagine a scenario where a player of his caliber is thinking "Wait a second... I'm all in. I've brought your team millions of dollars in revenue... I thought we were trying to get a championship... why are you making moves that look to me to be about saving money instead of about winning".

That sentiment might not be fair... but we all see things from our own perspective.

 

[Shanemansj13]

It's been reported Nick Young or Ryan Kelly/Robert Sacre could be headed to the Pacers in Roy Hibbert trade. twitter.com/dkapono/status…

 

[LAD]

I never said he wasn't a good business man outside the NBA, but that does not change the fact that he is James pet as far as trying to create success for himself in the NBA.

The fact that he wrote that letter about LeBron proves that you don't always have to be smart.

And, long term, he's actually not playing it smart.
The owners were striving for ways to create parity which would be the Cavs ONLY chance, ever, of winning when James is gone.
If there is a system of free spending and choice, nobody is picking that hell hole once he leaves.

Well for the record, year one was a fail. On to year two.

 

[DJ Fieri]

I can't decide if its funny or just sad that Josh Smith has played his way into that turd pile. Think of where he was a handful of years ago and realize he's still just 29.

Yep.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

I personally have no clue. All I go by is the reporting done by guys granted major access and getting paid major dollars to report on the NBA. Sorry if I take their word over a bitter Heat fan with a CLEAR agenda and hatred for LeBron and Gilbert.

There was only ONE reporter who was Mikes FRIEND.
Direct access.
Ethan Skolnick.

What did he report?

 

[WiggyRuss]

I never said he wasn't a good business man outside the NBA, but that does not change the fact that he is James pet as far as trying to create success for himself in the NBA.

The fact that he wrote that letter about LeBron proves that you don't always have to be smart.

And, long term, he's actually not playing it smart.
The owners were striving for ways to create parity which would be the Cavs ONLY chance, ever, of winning when James is gone.
If there is a system of free spending and choice, nobody is picking that hell hole once he leaves.

I mean are you that short sighted to not realize how the CAvs doing well has a spill over effect to his businesses and generates good will for him and additional advertising

how much more run do you think QUICKEN LOANS ARENA gets on National TV between having LeBron and not having LeBron?

he rode the goodwill to passing the amendment to the ohio constitution giving him the casino in Cleveland- one of 4 casinos in the whole state allowed by law

How about just getting his name in the NEWS constantly the past few weeks for his willingess to spend a ton of money to put together a championship caliber team?

OBVIOUSLY those penalties work on some owners who have no intention of spending big like Arison who leaves deals on the table by not using all the means to add to his team--- or guys like Paul Allen who simply decide not to pay the tax out of principle and not out of any need for money.

Gilbert played it perfectly. He got changes passed that crippled the HEats ability to add to the team because Arison is cheap- and then played up his willingness to pay big time for a deep roster to put around LeBron..

I mean the difference is having role players that are damn good and are not way passed their primes- like Shumpert, Thompson, Mozgov, Varejao etc....while having a Big 3.....think of the supporting players that Miami had--- they neve had anything CLOSE to a supporting cast like Shumpert, Thompson, Mozgov, Varejao and thats when the tax was a lot less.

Right now Gilbert has the best player in the league. Hundreds of millions in franchise value- increased advertising and opportunities in the business world etc. and has increased his net worth from about 1.5 billion 10 years ago to almost 4 billion now. He has had a HELLUVA YEAR- and as long as he keeps backing up his declared intentions to win with his check book , the Cavs fans will continue to support him in a big way.

 

[WiggyRuss]

No argument from me there. I'm not saying that perspective would make sense.

I mean, we don't really know what LeBron thought of it then, or what he thinks of it now. I can just imagine a scenario where a player of his caliber is thinking "Wait a second... I'm all in. I've brought your team millions of dollars in revenue... I thought we were trying to get a championship... why are you making moves that look to me to be about saving money instead of about winning".

That sentiment might not be fair... but we all see things from our own perspective.

thats exaclty what LeBron thought. I mean what would you think? They dont use the mid level to save money. They attach an asset- a 1st rounder- to get rid of Joel Anthony because they gave him a stupid expensive deal- and then they amnesty Miller....

I mean- like i said- either they were just incredibly arrogant or incredibly stupid to not think those things would matter to LeBron.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

I mean are you that short sighted to not realize how the CAvs doing well has a spill over effect to his businesses and generates good will for him and additional advertising

how much more run do you think QUICKEN LOANS ARENA gets on National TV between having LeBron and not having LeBron?

he rode the goodwill to passing the amendment to the ohio constitution giving him the casino in Cleveland- one of 4 casinos in the whole state allowed by law

How about just getting his name in the NEWS constantly the past few weeks for his willingess to spend a ton of money to put together a championship caliber team?

OBVIOUSLY those penalties work on some owners who have no intention of spending big like Arison who leaves deals on the table by not using all the means to add to his team--- or guys like Paul Allen who simply decide not to pay the tax out of principle and not out of any need for money.

Gilbert played it perfectly. He got changes passed that crippled the HEats ability to add to the team because Arison is cheap- and then played up his willingness to pay big time for a deep roster to put around LeBron..

I mean the difference is having role players that are damn good and are not way passed their primes- like Shumpert, Thompson, Mozgov, Varejao etc....while having a Big 3.....think of the supporting players that Miami had--- they neve had anything CLOSE to a supporting cast like Shumpert, Thompson, Mozgov, Varejao and thats when the tax was a lot less.

Right now Gilbert has the best player in the league. Hundreds of millions in franchise value- increased advertising and opportunities in the business world etc. and has increased his net worth from about 1.5 billion 10 years ago to almost 4 billion now. He has had a HELLUVA YEAR- and as long as he keeps backing up his declared intentions to win with his check book , the Cavs fans will continue to support him in a big way.

And how does any of that change the fact that he is James bitch?
He's the one generating the money, I GET THAT, but he's also the one who doesn't NEED the money.
His other businesses are FAR more profitable then the Cavs.

Call me crazy, but in life, you're only as good as your word, and you should always stand by your principals and beliefs.

If it were ME, I could never backtrack on what I first said after James left, because what he wrote was HIS truth and his feelings.
I'd bust my ass trying to win the way he said he would or forever fail trying vs give that douche all the power just because he could generate me some extra cash that amounted to nothing for me in the scheme of it all.

 

[gordontrue]

 

[WiggyRuss]

And how does any of that change the fact that he is James bitch?
He's the one generating the money, I GET THAT, but he's also the one who doesn't NEED the money.
His other businesses are FAR more profitable then the Cavs.

Call me crazy, but in life, you're only as good as your word, and you should always stand by your principals and beliefs.

If it were ME, I could never backtrack on what I first said after James left, because what he wrote was HIS truth and his feelings.
I'd bust my ass trying to win the way he said he would or forever fail trying vs give that douche all the power just because he could generate me some extra cash that amounted to nothing for me in the scheme of it all.

so your mad at Gilbert for bringing LeBron back in the first place because he wrote an emotional letter like 3 hours after the decision?

lol...

dude...you gotta relax...your gonna give yourself a stroke.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

thats exaclty what LeBron thought. I mean what would you think? They dont use the mid level to save money. They attach an asset- a 1st rounder- to get rid of Joel Anthony because they gave him a stupid expensive deal- and then they amnesty Miller....

I mean- like i said- either they were just incredibly arrogant or incredibly stupid to not think those things would matter to LeBron.

So the Heat lost to the Spurs because they didn't have Miller, Anthony or some future late round 1st round pick?

 

[LAD]

And how does any of that change the fact that he is James bitch?
He's the one generating the money, I GET THAT, but he's also the one who doesn't NEED the money.
His other businesses are FAR more profitable then the Cavs.

Call me crazy, but in life, you're only as good as your word, and you should always stand by your principals and beliefs.

If it were ME, I could never backtrack on what I first said after James left, because what he wrote was HIS truth and his feelings.
I'd bust my ass trying to win the way he said he would or forever fail trying vs give that douche all the power just because he could generate me some extra cash that amounted to nothing for me in the scheme of it all.

I would guess Gilbert & LBJ get along so well because they both choose paths with the least resistance.