The Long, Slow Decline

[Brickowski]

Garnett's contract is rapidly becoming a killer contract.

[dlpin]

Garnett's contract is rapidly becoming a killer contract.

And yet in a year and a half it will be the biggest expiring contract of all and therefore have some value.

We aren't the knicks with Isiah at the realm and Starbury signed for another 5 years.
We aren't even the celtics of not too long ago with Vin Baker's contract.

Our biggest "killer contract" as you put it expires in 2 years.

[Brickowski]

In a year and a half we will be in the middle of a lockout, so the value of Garnett's expiring deal will be dubious at best.

[Greenbean]

In a year and a half we will be in the middle of a lockout, so the value of Garnett's expiring deal will be dubious at best.

At the very least it comes off the books. May not be a valuable trading chip but we are not handcuffed long term by it.

[Brickowski]

Well, eventually all contracts expire.  A contract that used to be horrible finally enters its last year.

Right now, Garnett's contract is a huge millstone.  He is a 20 million dollar player who is playing at the level of a 3-4 million dollar player.

[dlpin]

Well, eventually all contracts expire.  A contract that used to be horrible finally enters its last year.

Right now, Garnett's contract is a huge millstone.  He is a 20 million dollar player who is playing at the level of a 3-4 million dollar player.

Yes, but a contract that expires in 2 years is far from being a franchise killer, or something that relegates us to a long, slow decline and rebuilding process.

[Brickowski]

What relegates us to the long, slow decline isn't contracts.  It's the aging core group of players with no means of getting good younger players unless you can parlay the expiring deals into younger players. So let's see...

1 Ray Allen.  It looks like Ainge will get nothing for him.
2. Paul Pierce-- Won't be traded.  Too valuable as a marketing tool
3. Kevin Garnett-- who knows?  But by then they will be a 30 win team.

[dlpin]

What relegates us to the long, slow decline isn't contracts.  It's the aging core group of players with no means of getting good younger players unless you can parlay the expiring deals into younger players. So let's see...

1 Ray Allen.  It looks like Ainge will get nothing for him.
2. Paul Pierce-- Won't be traded.  Too valuable as a marketing tool
3. Kevin Garnett-- who knows?  But by then they will be a 30 win team.

And then we are under the cap and in the lottery.

[PosImpos]

What relegates us to the long, slow decline isn't contracts.  It's the aging core group of players with no means of getting good younger players unless you can parlay the expiring deals into younger players. So let's see...

1 Ray Allen.  It looks like Ainge will get nothing for him.
2. Paul Pierce-- Won't be traded.  Too valuable as a marketing tool
3. Kevin Garnett-- who knows?  But by then they will be a 30 win team.

It's still possible in the last year of his contract we could trade KG for a high pick to some team desperate enough to save money (think of the Wizards trading the #5 last summer).

I agree, though, we're going to have to go through at least one year of true suckage in order to get a high draft pick and begin rebuilding.  Unless we happen to win and get the #1, we'll be draft-diving for more than one year.