NBA Offseason Thread: Durant will remain in Brooklyn

[CWood21]

1 minute ago, NYRaider said:

What motivation do the Hornets have to take back Westbrook's deal if they're not receiving draft capital? Hayward is still very good and he only has 2 years left on his deal so he becomes a very valuable trade asset next offseason either way. 

It's been reported by multiple sources that the Hornets want to shed salary to extend Bridges.  Westbrook expires after this year.  Gordon Hayward does not.

[NYRaider]

2 minutes ago, CWood21 said:

Don't think Brooklyn is going to be fond on taking back Gordon Hayward's contract given his injury history, plus the Hornets walking away with undoing their Hayward signing and getting 2 picks in return seems just as unlikely.  Eric Pincus (a Lakers' writer and one of the better CBA guys I've seen) suggested a Lakers/Thunder/Nets trade, but it comes under the assumption that Brooklyn has the same realization that they did with James Harden, and they're better off getting something than risk losing everything.  Until July 1st, the Thunder still have ~$31.8M in cap space to use so they could deal ~$12.5M in salary to the Nets.  Obviously, Westbrook would get bought out and picks would exchange hands.

Lakers Get: PG Kyrie Irving
Nets Get: C Derrick Favors, Other Salary Filler
Thunder Get: PG Russell Westbrook

Lakers would probably be using all picks available to get that deal done.

The Hornets would be taking on one of the 5 worst contracts in the NBA while allowing the Lakers to add a real third star, they're going to want something in return for dong that. The Hornets don't necessarily have to trade Hayward, they could offer the Nets their choice of Rozier/Oubre, Rozier/Oubre/Washington, Rozier/Hayward, or Hayward/Washington. The Nets being better off getting something rather then nothing means that they'd accept Derrick Favors? I think they'd be better suited to just risk losing him in free agency then trade him for that. 

The Nets still want to be competitive next season and will be getting Joe Harris/Ben Simmons back. 

[Sllim Pickens]

2 minutes ago, NYRaider said:

What motivation do the Hornets have to take back Westbrook's deal if they're not receiving draft capital? Hayward is still very good and he only has 2 years left on his deal so he becomes a very valuable trade asset next offseason either way. 

A Herro/Lowry deal works as well financially but I don't think the Heat would include reigning 6th MOY and Lowry for Kyrie. Duncan's playing time diminished in the playoffs last year but he was a key piece on their finals team a couple of years ago and it's not like Curry, Herro, or Kyrie are exactly plus defenders. 

The key thing to remember here is that Kyrie has leverage over the Nets. If he opts in then demands a trade they're going to sell him for pennies on the dollar because there's always the chance that he just walks in free agency next summer.

The hornets are getting out of the extra year of Heyward and able to resign Bridges.  Thats a lot to gain if thats your goal.  They were talking of selling picks to do that on draft night.  Being able to keep Bridges is worth one year of Russ IMO.  Maybe the pick swap but an outright pick seems excessive given they are scrapping to get out of long term money too. 

[NYRaider]

9 minutes ago, Sllim Pickens said:

I thought Harden was dealt because he didnt get along with Kyrie. 

And Kyrie or Harden back there, neither play defense so why does that really matter?  

I read that Durant was pissed because he was out of shape. Harden is an elite rebounder for a guard and is a significantly better playmaker than Kyrie.

[CWood21]

1 minute ago, NYRaider said:

The Hornets would be taking on one of the 5 worst contracts in the NBA while allowing the Lakers to add a real third star, they're going to want something in return for dong that. The Hornets don't necessarily have to trade Hayward, they could offer the Nets their choice of Rozier/Oubre, Rozier/Oubre/Washington, Rozier/Hayward, or Hayward/Washington. The Nets being better off getting something rather then nothing means that they'd accept Derrick Favors? I think they'd be better suited to just risk losing him in free agency then trade him for that. 

The Nets still want to be competitive next season and will be getting Joe Harris/Ben Simmons back. 

Stop being dramatic.  It's not a top 5 worst contract.  Again, Nets do get something.  They get significant cap relief and a sizeable TPE which they can combine with the picks they received from the Sixers to reposition themselves.  Hornets do need to trade Hayward.  Michael Jordan as an owner is incredibly cheap, and it's been reported by MULTIPLE outlets that they need to shed money to extend Bridges.

They'll be competitive, but are they as competitive if Kyrie Irving opts out?

[Sllim Pickens]

2 minutes ago, NYRaider said:

I read that Durant was pissed because he was out of shape. Harden is an elite rebounder for a guard and is a significantly better playmaker than Kyrie.

Was better.  He looked nothing like the Houston Harden this year.  I would much rather have Kyrie over the next 3-5 years than Harden. 

[CWood21]

3 minutes ago, Sllim Pickens said:

The hornets are getting out of the extra year of Heyward and able to resign Bridges.  Thats a lot to gain if thats your goal.  They were talking of selling picks to do that on draft night.  Being able to keep Bridges is worth one year of Russ IMO.  Maybe the pick swap but an outright pick seems excessive given they are scrapping to get out of long term money too. 

Pretty much.  I could see the Lakers throwing a pick swap into the mix, but I'd rather have Westbrook sitting at home collecting millions if the Hornets' goal is to create more cap flexibility then give it Gordon Hayward.

[NYRaider]

Just now, Sllim Pickens said:

The hornets are getting out of the extra year of Heyward and able to resign Bridges.  Thats a lot to gain if thats your goal.  They were talking of selling picks to do that on draft night.  Being able to keep Bridges is worth one year of Russ IMO.  Maybe the pick swap but an outright pick seems excessive given they are scrapping to get out of long term money too. 

The Hornets are currently $48.7M under the luxury tax so even if they match Bridges offer sheet they'd be $16M under the luxury tax. They also have Oubre/Plumlee on expiring deals so they'd be $20M or so under the cap next year even with Bridges deal and LaMelo isn't due for an extension until 2024. Plus Hayward's deal becomes valuable next offseason as an expiring. 

The Hornets didn't sell off their picks to shed salary on draft night though, there were a ton of rumors, I'll put more weight into what teams actually did. 

[Kampfgeist]

Hornets can sign Bridges now or shouldn't be hard to move off of Oubre at 12.6 and gain some kind of asset or even cut him Jun 30th and save 7.6 if they wanted too.  They do not have to make any moves at this point to re-sign Bridges

They didn't ship out #13 for beans last night without the intention of retaining Bridges.   If they thought they were losing Bridges, Griffin or Eason would be a Hornet

Edited June 24, 2022 by Kampfgeist

[NYRaider]

3 minutes ago, CWood21 said:

Stop being dramatic.  It's not a top 5 worst contract.  Again, Nets do get something.  They get significant cap relief and a sizeable TPE which they can combine with the picks they received from the Sixers to reposition themselves.  Hornets do need to trade Hayward.  Michael Jordan as an owner is incredibly cheap, and it's been reported by MULTIPLE outlets that they need to shed money to extend Bridges.

They'll be competitive, but are they as competitive if Kyrie Irving opts out?

The Hornets are almost $48M under the luxury tax though so Bridges doesn't put them over the line. They were "reportedly" willing to give up 13/15 to move Hayward but nothing happened. Their cap situation isn't that bad because Ourbre/Plumlee ($25M) are expiring next summer and Hayward ($30M) is expiring the following summer. 

Are the Nets going to be able to sell Durant on the value of a trade exception in the final window of his career? The Nets knew what they were signing up for and with all of the draft capital they've traded away they have to capitalize on their current window. 

What incentive does Kyrie get from opting out? I don't think there's any team in the NBA that can offer him a max so is he really going to sacrifice $30M next season while also sacrificing his bird rights? The only logical path for him to get out of Brooklyn is to opt in then request a trade. 

[NYRaider]

8 minutes ago, CWood21 said:

Stop being dramatic.  It's not a top 5 worst contract.  

Westbrook eats up $47M in cap space while being a negative on the court. Unless you're a team looking to shed cap next summer and don't care about being competitive this season, he's a negative asset. 

[CWood21]

2 minutes ago, Kampfgeist said:

Hornets can sign Bridges now or shouldn't be hard to move off of Oubre at 12.6 and gain some kind of asset or even cut him Jun30th and save 7.6 if they wanted too.  They do not have to make any moves at this point to re-sign Bridges

Teams aren't just going to give the Hornets salary cap relief because they asked for it.  They'll need incentive to do so.  Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but the only teams with large enough TPEs to acquire Oubre is Boston (Evan Fournier).  Teams with projected cap space are Detroit, Orlando, Indiana, San Antonio, and Portland I believe.  None of those teams are going to take on Oubre for the sake of taking him on, so they'll need to attach draft picks to move him.  Or they can flip Gordon Hayward for Russell Westbrook and shave a year off Hayward's deal and not give up any picks.

[NYRaider]

9 minutes ago, Sllim Pickens said:

Was better.  He looked nothing like the Houston Harden this year.  I would much rather have Kyrie over the next 3-5 years than Harden. 

Harden still averaged 10.5 assists/8 rebounds last season, so he's still an elite rebounder for the position and a significantly better playmaker than Kyrie. Harden was also dealing with a hammy issue all season and looked out of shape, his production was still top tier in 2020. 

Kyrie has played in 133/236 games in his Brooklyn career, he comes with significant injury risk and character concerns.

[NYRaider]

3 minutes ago, CWood21 said:

Teams aren't just going to give the Hornets salary cap relief because they asked for it.  They'll need incentive to do so.  Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but the only teams with large enough TPEs to acquire Oubre is Boston (Evan Fournier).  Teams with projected cap space are Detroit, Orlando, Indiana, San Antonio, and Portland I believe.  None of those teams are going to take on Oubre for the sake of taking him on, so they'll need to attach draft picks to move him.  Or they can flip Gordon Hayward for Russell Westbrook and shave a year off Hayward's deal and not give up any picks.

Taking on Westbrook for Hayward while also matching Bridges would put them into the luxury tax though, lol.

[CWood21]

1 minute ago, NYRaider said:

The Hornets are almost $48M under the luxury tax though so Bridges doesn't put them over the line. They were "reportedly" willing to give up 13/15 to move Hayward but nothing happened. Their cap situation isn't that bad because Ourbre/Plumlee ($25M) are expiring next summer and Hayward ($30M) is expiring the following summer. 

The Hornets are at $108.9M with their active roster plus the dead cap for Nicolas Batum.  Add an additional $30.5M for a Bridges' extension and an additional $3.7M for their draft pick cap hold and they're up to $143.1M.  The luxury tax is projected at $149M.  That leaves virtually no flexibility there.