Which center should we sign?

[Bobshot]

They have a hole to fill here, with Bryant signing with the LAL. Go figure. Money?

Any of these guys would fit--Whiteside, Howard, etc. They all have their negatives.
It's a question of money.

I wouldn't worry about poisonalities. That's for the team to deal with.
These guys are pros.

[footey]

No one but me seems interested in signing LMA. What’s wrong with him (me)?

[Vermont Green]

I have no interest in Cousins or Howard.  They just seem too enigmatic for what they bring to the court.

Aldridge is 36 so really has declined but on the right deal could play a role.

The most intriguing remaining one for me is Whiteside.  He is 33.  Can play regular minutes if needed.  And still brings reasonable production.

For us, he is the 5th big and likely more of an insurance policy.  There is probably a bigger role for him out there but probably not any more money than the min deal we can offer.

[DefenseWinsChamps]

I think Cody Zeller would be the perfect fit as our 4-5th big man. He's always been miscast as the lead big man. He's not that. He's a tough role player than knows how to play the right way. He sets good screens, rolls well, and is a good team defender.

He's a guy that could be a reasonable facsimile to Al Horford for a few minutes here or there at center.

On top of that, I think he could be had for a minimum deal.

[Celtics2021]

No one but me seems interested in signing LMA. What’s wrong with him (me)?

My issue is he couldn’t get off the thin Brooklyn bench when we swept them, so he isn’t likely to offer much here.  If we got him, fine, but I’m not going to campaign for him.

I think we’re best off trying to trade for a young big on a minimum deal who’s buried on a different depth chart.  The Spurs just did this with Jock Landale.  My target is Xavier Tillman, but there’s a bunch of guys out there who could be at least as good of a third center/fifth big as the former stars in their mid-30s.  But my feeling is there’s a lot of these guys on rosters around the league, and a couple of them could kick free over the summer or in training camp, so I’m in no rush other than I’m addicted to the NBA off-season and can’t stop refreshing for updates.

[Who]

No one but me seems interested in signing LMA. What’s wrong with him (me)?

Can't move his legs. Too old. Can't play defense. He is an empty stats player.

Part of BKN's problem last year was relying on all these old big men who can't run anymore - LMA was the worst offender, then B.Griffin, then Paul Millsap.

Claxton was the only big man on their team who could move and he has zero skill. But he could move his legs.

LMA is finished. He is an empty shirt. You can't play bball if you can't move.

[footey]

No one but me seems interested in signing LMA. What’s wrong with him (me)?

My issue is he couldn’t get off the thin Brooklyn bench when we swept them, so he isn’t likely to offer much here.  If we got him, fine, but I’m not going to campaign for him.

I think we’re best off trying to trade for a young big on a minimum deal who’s buried on a different depth chart.  The Spurs just did this with Jock Landale.  My target is Xavier Tillman, but there’s a bunch of guys out there who could be at least as good of a third center/fifth big as the former stars in their mid-30s.  But my feeling is there’s a lot of these guys on rosters around the league, and a couple of them could kick free over the summer or in training camp, so I’m in no rush other than I’m addicted to the NBA off-season and can’t stop refreshing for updates.

Naz Reid? Buried on TWolves bench following Gobert trade. (Got this idea on Twitter)

[PAOBoston]

Dwight Howard has always been the best option.

Very scary thought

Why?  Excellent rebounder.  Blocks shots.  Not afraid to bang.  And has generally thrived in a bench role the last several seasons.

He’s a bad teammate and high maintenance. There is a reason he keeps bouncing from team to team.

[Who]

No one but me seems interested in signing LMA. What’s wrong with him (me)?

My issue is he couldn’t get off the thin Brooklyn bench when we swept them, so he isn’t likely to offer much here.  If we got him, fine, but I’m not going to campaign for him.

I think we’re best off trying to trade for a young big on a minimum deal who’s buried on a different depth chart.  The Spurs just did this with Jock Landale.  My target is Xavier Tillman, but there’s a bunch of guys out there who could be at least as good of a third center/fifth big as the former stars in their mid-30s.  But my feeling is there’s a lot of these guys on rosters around the league, and a couple of them could kick free over the summer or in training camp, so I’m in no rush other than I’m addicted to the NBA off-season and can’t stop refreshing for updates.

I was wondering if Naz Reid might be available in Minnesota now that they have Rudy Gobert along with Towns. Undersized athletic defensive big man and finisher.

He would probably cost a late first. I wonder if we could get him for a couple of 2nds. Or maybe a straight swap with Pritchard and replace Pritchard via FA. More useful perimeter players than defensive centers in FA. We already have 3 PGs in Smart, D White and Brogdon so we could sign anybody PG, SG, SF to replace Pritchard.


Edit: Footey beat me to it. Great minds!

Naz Reid? Buried on TWolves bench following Gobert trade. (Got this idea on Twitter)

[liam]

is Frank Kaminsky still around?

[slamtheking]

the suggestion of Zeller isn't bad.  definitely serviceable in a backup role if he'll take what we'd offer.  won't cost an asset unlike Reid but I like Reid as an option as well if the cost is low

[Celtics2021]

No one but me seems interested in signing LMA. What’s wrong with him (me)?

My issue is he couldn’t get off the thin Brooklyn bench when we swept them, so he isn’t likely to offer much here.  If we got him, fine, but I’m not going to campaign for him.

I think we’re best off trying to trade for a young big on a minimum deal who’s buried on a different depth chart.  The Spurs just did this with Jock Landale.  My target is Xavier Tillman, but there’s a bunch of guys out there who could be at least as good of a third center/fifth big as the former stars in their mid-30s.  But my feeling is there’s a lot of these guys on rosters around the league, and a couple of them could kick free over the summer or in training camp, so I’m in no rush other than I’m addicted to the NBA off-season and can’t stop refreshing for updates.

Naz Reid? Buried on TWolves bench following Gobert trade. (Got this idea on Twitter)

Naz Reid should definitely be on the list.  Philly is likely to enter camp with 1-2 guys to cut, and Paul Reed and Charles Bassey are both candidates.  A lot of teams are going to enter camp/end camp with some guys they’d be happy to take a protected 2nd or cash for.  With the number of small TPEs the C’s have, it’s okay to wait for one of them to become available.

[footey]

No one but me seems interested in signing LMA. What’s wrong with him (me)?

Can't move his legs. Too old. Can't play defense. He is an empty stats player.

Part of BKN's problem last year was relying on all these old big men who can't run anymore - LMA was the worst offender, then B.Griffin, then Paul Millsap.

Claxton was the only big man on their team who could move and he has zero skill. But he could move his legs.

LMA is finished. He is an empty shirt. You can't play bball if you can't move.

Looked pretty decent to me last January.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ml5iAHvFP9Y

[Moranis]

Dwight Howard has always been the best option.

Very scary thought

Why?  Excellent rebounder.  Blocks shots.  Not afraid to bang.  And has generally thrived in a bench role the last several seasons.

He’s a bad teammate and high maintenance. There is a reason he keeps bouncing from team to team.

He is a vet minimum guy, they get squeezed sometimes.  The Lakers wanted him to return after the title, but the Sixers put on a full court press and Embiid recruited him heavily.  He then went back to LA last year because they missed what he provided.  The Lakers need a lot of help and Howard shouldn't be starting anymore so they got Bryant to replace him (a guy that could actually start).  Dwight though has been well liked and generally praised as a quality teammate the last several years.  Now sure, when he was a #1 guy he was a bad teammate, but that certainly doesn't appear to be the case anymore. He has accepted his role these days and has thrived coming off the bench on teams "competing" for a championship.  And he has been a productive player on the court and no complaints from anyone about him as a teammate.

He also brings something Boston lacks. 

Cody Zeller would be an interesting guy if he could be had for the veteran minimum, as I think if he could get healthy he could actually be a real contributor. 

[nebist]

I agree Howard is the best remaining option. He’s 36 and been a minimum guy for several years now playing 19, 17, and 16 MPG respectively the last 3 seasons. We can continue that trajectory and probably get him 14-16 MPG on the season when factoring in a mix of DNPs along with bigger minute nights when Rob or Al sit for whatever reason.