What will it take to sign Sully this summer, is it worth it?

[BitterJim]

I agree that the long term value play is to trade him if possible. I don't think there will be an opportunity to do so of any interest. Sullinger's likely contract demand will already be a high price for his next team-- do they also need to pay in trade assets?

NOT trading Sullinger will be the best move for the 2015-16 Celtics morale and ultimate performance. I'm ok with that.

Of course extend him the qualifying offer. Best thing for us fans is for him to put off free agency one more year and reboot on the failed contract-year fitness campaign. If he finally gets in good shape, we can get psyched about giving him the max.

It might be the best thing for him, too, of course. He's playing well right now, but max bigs don't have .435 field goal percentages. A career year and good health would make him a max candidate. Right now, I don't think anyone will offer it to him.

We can extend the QO to him, but he's not gonna sign it.  Some one's gonna offer him a good deal, and we'll either have to match it or let him go.  He's not gonna turn down the security (and good money) that some one will offer him for a chance of getting slightly more next summer

[chambers]

It's a very good question indeed.

I don't think he's a max contract player. I don't think Danny will give him a max contract unless he sees something in the practice gym that we don't see on a daily basis.
We'll need to see continued weight loss and conditioning discipline.

If those two criteria are met I think he might be looking at something like 4 years x $14 million.

I don't believe you can do weight clauses in RFA contracts . Saltlover will know so hopefully he sees this topic.

Here's the question.
Can Sully be the 3rd or 4th best player on a championship team?
Because if you think he can be that player, $15 million is what he should probably get with the rising cap.
As mentioned by others, the primary option may be giving him a 2 year deal x 15 million and seeing if he flourishes, thus opening the door for a large deal with team options and weight clauses when he hits his prime.
The dilemma with Sully is gambling on his discipline and character with long term commitment.

Will be interesting to see what Ainge does here.

[Kuberski33]

I would trade him now to a team like Indy or someone else. Its a contract year and that means its 50/50 with him. He has the ability to be a very good player for his whole career but we can not judge him when its a contract year and he didn't really get into awesome shape like I thought he would before the season.
If we could get Myles Turner out of a Sullinger package I would be thrilled.

If you're a team trading for Sully, you're getting an RFA for the rest of the season.  Granted you have a right to match and re-sign him but what are you going to give up for that?  My guess is not much.

[KeepRondo]

Was at the Bulls game and was sitting only 4 rows up so I had a pretty good look at Sully. First observation was that he looks over weight again. He definitely looks like he's putting weight back on. Second observation was we needed his size. KO and even Amir get pushed around down low. Sully was really the only player holding guys off the glass.

Unless we are getting a guy like Horford, we will need Sully.

[PhoSita]

Was at the Bulls game and was sitting only 4 rows up so I had a pretty good look at Sully. First observation was that he looks over weight again. He definitely looks like he's putting weight back on. Second observation was we needed his size. KO and even Amir get pushed around down low. Sully was really the only player holding guys off the glass.

Unless we are getting a guy like Horford, we will need Sully.

For whatever reason, it seems like he's always had trouble with weight gain during the season.  I imagine the hectic NBA schedule causes him to fall back on bad eating and sleeping habits.

[Big333223]

His agent says max contract or bust, which made me wonder what a max deal for a player with 0 - 6 years experience would be next year.  According to Larry Coon's great CBA website, this year with a 70 mil cap the max is 16.4 mil.  Assuming a 90 mil cap next year, the max for a 0 - 6 player would be in the 21 mil range (if you read Larry's fine print, it really isn't 25% of the cap, more in the 23% range without getting to technical).

Given the crazy state of current NBA salaries (see T Thompson, E Kanter), if Sully stays healthy and keeps producing, I could maybe wrap my head around 16 mil, but 21 mil seems like so, so much.

What do you think?

If Tristan Thompson is a "max" player that Jared Sullinger definitely is.  That is all you need to know.

That's eactly what I'm saying, but Tristan Thompson didn't get his max deal. He got, basically, the same deal the Cavs initially offered him (plus and extra $2 mil). Sully is the same caliber of player but with conditioning and health questions Thompson didn't have. So I won't be surprised if Sully gets $15-16 mil but I really don't think he's a max guy.

[CelticPride2016]

It's a very good question indeed.

I don't think he's a max contract player. I don't think Danny will give him a max contract unless he sees something in the practice gym that we don't see on a daily basis.
We'll need to see continued weight loss and conditioning discipline.

If those two criteria are met I think he might be looking at something like 4 years x $14 million.

It's going to be a Rondo type second contract if Sully forces the issue with great starter minutes. That will take losing some more weight or at least not putting any back on, and proving it on the court. Rondo got $11-12 million, so inflation probably bumps that to $14 million. He is not worth any more than that, 20 rebounds or no 20 rebounds. Unless he keeps piling those up and plays well. Then maybe he is worth $16 million per year. But we are still waiting to see if it is true he is worth it.

Rondo was not a perfect pg, but he was right below the near perfect ones and he had a style the team wanted with the efficiency to merit a good contract.

Basically there is no way to tell. His good play is what's keeping this question alive. He started on the bench, yet now he's one of the best reasons why the team is succeeding.

I think he still needs to lose twenty to thirty more pounds rather quickly or Ainge might be like us and be skeptical he can maintain great play while overweight and then Danny trades him.

It's up in the air.

I'm always very happy to eat crow and I do hope Sully can play even better than he has. He should talk to Pierce who used to overeat too. Paul Pierce understands. Does Sully? He seems to still have some weight to lose. If he can't or is unwilling to because he thinks he needs to be fat to defend the paint, then I doubt he remains as a fixture.

Some games he looks like he is on his way. Others, he still looks too overweight. That could be bloating.

I'll assume he and the C's have a plan for his conditioning and the expectations. It did seem a bit odd he didn't lose more weight to start the season. Photos in the summer hid his weight with tight athletic clothes. I also found it suspicious that Sully never said I wanted to lose 40 but only lost half of it. I weigh such and such. Etc.. Why the big mystery? It shouldn't be that difficult for someone to lose weight and tone at age 23ish, especially when one is exercising all the time. I don't understand the delay for Sully to get in shape.

[Csfan1984]

I think it will take a personal RV equiped with a 24/7 buffet just for Sully. That should seal the deal.