Lebron, Wade, Melo and Durant definitely made their teams automatic contenders.
You Retool around talent, and one of the best ways to acquire talent under the new CBA is to get potential superstars on rookie contracts.
My hope is that we can contend for a high lottery pick without moving too many of our core pieces. Our team has a great complimentary player in Jeff Green and a force of nature in Rondo, but in all likelihood those two guys aren't going to get us past the Heat.
Now, imagine a scenario where we're able to pair Rondo and Green with a player who has the potential to be a Tim Duncan-like presence in the organization. The Spurs have been able to retool so effectively because they were bad enough to snag Timmy Dunks in the draft, not in spite of that.
OKC drafted Westbrook to pair with Durant before they became contenders. Melo and Wade did not make their team contenders, only early playoff exits. In all of Melo's tenure in Denver, they were never contenders. Wade needed Shaq before Miami could be called contenders. Honestly, only Lebron was able to convert a team into a contender by himself.
But that's nitpicking. I agree with everything else you said. That would certainly be ideal. I just question our chances at a top 5 lottery pick if we keep Rondo around. To me, the 2014 draft sweepstakes is contingent on trading Rondo. That's not a loss I'm prepared to give up only for a shot at something.
Keep in mind that the Lakers are looking forward to 2014, but for its FA pool and not its draft. They're in a similar spot to us where they're bad, but not bad enough to have a realistic shot at a top 5 lottery pick without having to make moves. And really, any time you have to make significant moves to tank, that's a sign that you're not in a position to tank.