Plan A - KG comes back. Then you can re-sign everybody including Ray, Green, Bass and even Wilcox since you have Bird rights on all but Wilcox. Wilcox splits the full $5M MLE with MP:
5 starters (RR, AB, PP, KG, and BB (with a BBD-like contract)
6 bench vets on bench(KD, RA, JG,, MP, CW, GS)
2 sophs
2 rooks
$10M for KG, $5M for RA, $6.5M for BB, $5M for JG, $5M MLE split between MP and CW, $3M for KD, $1M for GS, and $33.4M for PP, AB, RR, JJ, EM, and the two rooks for a total of $69M. The rooks are at 120% of rookie scale which is customary. That leaves another $5 million cushion to be spread around as necessary to keep all the guys returning while keeping the total salary under the $74M CBA "apron" that triggers the reduction of the full $5M MLE to the $3M mini-MLE. If Allen doesn't return, try to get a S+T done with CHI or LAC, otherwise, you're still over the cap and left with nothing to show for Ray's departure other than some more profit for Wyc.
Plan B1 - (This is BS since you end up in mediocrity and KG isn't returning for mediocrity). Cs renounce their free agents and their holds so they can add another decent size FA contract. KG returns for $10MM, BB opts out, Cs make a qualifying offer to GS for $1M and get him for that, and opt to keep EM. 1st round rookie salary cap holds for the 21st and 22nd pick are at scale for $2.1M. That leaves $13.6M for 3 FAs to get to a required roster of 12 under the salary cap rules, $5M for the MLE (which can be split) and minimum contracts for 1-2 filler scrubs. Say you can get Ilyasova for $11M, then you'd be wise to make sure KG is paid as much. So another $1M for KG leaves $1.6M to get 2 vet-mins (like MD SP, SW, or RH)and get your roster up to 12. You're now left with the full MLE and more min contracts for 3 more players. Maybe you get MP and Wilcox to split the $5M and keep another vet-min or the second rounder. Ray, Bass, Green, and Dooling were renounced free agents and are gone for the right to sign Ilyasova. You've saved money for Wyc and have honed your fantasy BB skills, but the resulting roster is late lottery/early exit bound which is NBA's version of a very hot place for franchises measured in championships. Cs have no bench scoring at all.
Plan B2 - KG returns and Bass doesn't opt out. Worse still since you have about $10M to spend under the salary cap and Ilyasova gets re-signed by Bucks at that number. Maybe make a pitch for Mayo since AB didn't exactly show any offense during the playoffs with the 2nd worst NBA efficiency for players with 20+ mpg. Very similar to Plan B1, we're toast.
Plan Tank - KG doesn't return. Blow it up and spend 80% of salary cap as required by the CBA which is a payroll of $46-47 Million. Tank and build via the draft. At this point we have one starter who can score in PP. We don't have to amnesty Pierce since we're holding our cap options open until some real talent other than our own hits the free agent market in future years.
Plan Fantasy Basketball (aka "the Joe Dumars' clusterfun") - KG and BB don't return. Danny thinks RR, AB, JJ, and EM are the future of the franchise and decides to go for another Championship in 2012-13 by spending $24M to replace KG, BB, and RA. Several years later DA cowers in his office waiting for the axe to fall while hoping he's kissed enough butt to avoid his just desserts. How was Danny to know that with a lot of available cap among NBA teams chasing a weak free agent class everyone had to overpay to get players that weren't good enough. Too bad Danny never learned about inflation, but while Ben Gordon and Charlie V aren't walking through that door next Fall, there's plenty of guys available that will get us to the same place the once-proud Pistons now occupy. Since even the Cs' beat writers have figured this plan is folly, I'd expect Danny is a couple of steps ahead of them (even if he did trade Perk).
Topic: My best attempt at a realistic roster next year (Read 3815 times)