Which team is set up worst for the future?

[Roy H.]

Right now, which team has screwed itself the most, to the point of having no realistic shot of a championship in the near / medium future?

I'm going with the Phoenix Suns.  As far out as 2014, they have around $30 million committed to four players:  Gortat, Frye, Dudley, and Childress.  They have no elite young players (I don't consider Gortat, Dragic, or Lopez as elite, and outside of an aging Steve Nash, they don't really have any great trade chips.

It's going to be very, very tough for the Suns to get better in the next three years, or to set themselves up beyond that.  There are plenty of other contenders for the title, but in terms of "wrecked long-term cap space" + "lack of young players", I think the Suns may be the worst.For that, they get my title of "most hopeless franchise".

Other contenders:  Milwaukee (terrible cap situation, but some decent prospects), Golden State (ditto), Detroit, Toronto

[Edgar]

Cle?


no matter the money6 they have nobody will want to play there

[wdleehi]

Toronto.


No top talent or top talent prospect. 



Portland.  Top players are serious injure issues.  Keeps the team in NBA no mans land.  To good for the lotto, not good enough to be a contender. 

[Roy H.]

Cle?


no matter the money6 they have nobody will want to play there

Yeah, that's going to be their big issue.  I couldn't rate them at the bottom, though, because they're going to have a very good draft pick and a ton of salary flexibility. 

[Who]

I'm going with the Phoenix Suns.  As far out as 2014, they have around $30 million committed to four players:  Gortat, Frye, Dudley, and Childress. 

Channing Frye is the only player there that I don't think they can move easily. The others are all trade-able. Either neutral (Childress?) or positive trade assets (Dudley, Gortat).

I wouldn't be concerned about their cap situation. They can create cap space.

[indeedproceed]

Right now, which team has screwed itself the most, to the point of having no realistic shot of a championship in the near / medium future?

I'm going with the Phoenix Suns.  As far out as 2014, they have around $30 million committed to four players:  Gortat, Frye, Dudley, and Childress.  They have no elite young players (I don't consider Gortat, Dragic, or Lopez as elite, and outside of an aging Steve Nash, they don't really have any great trade chips.

It's going to be very, very tough for the Suns to get better in the next three years, or to set themselves up beyond that.  There are plenty of other contenders for the title, but in terms of "wrecked long-term cap space" + "lack of young players", I think the Suns may be the worst.For that, they get my title of "most hopeless franchise".

Other contenders:  Milwaukee (terrible cap situation, but some decent prospects), Golden State (ditto), Detroit, Toronto

Phoenix though is the one on that list, along with maybe the Warriors, that can lure and keep a top tier FA.

Its going to go be painful to watch but Phoenix will bounce back. Golden State, who knows, but Phoenix will bound back in the next 2-3 years.

[Who]

My choices would be - Cavs, Pistons and T'Wolves in some order.

Ooh, Toronto is a very good choice too.

[Roy H.]

Right now, which team has screwed itself the most, to the point of having no realistic shot of a championship in the near / medium future?

I'm going with the Phoenix Suns.  As far out as 2014, they have around $30 million committed to four players:  Gortat, Frye, Dudley, and Childress.  They have no elite young players (I don't consider Gortat, Dragic, or Lopez as elite, and outside of an aging Steve Nash, they don't really have any great trade chips.

It's going to be very, very tough for the Suns to get better in the next three years, or to set themselves up beyond that.  There are plenty of other contenders for the title, but in terms of "wrecked long-term cap space" + "lack of young players", I think the Suns may be the worst.For that, they get my title of "most hopeless franchise".

Other contenders:  Milwaukee (terrible cap situation, but some decent prospects), Golden State (ditto), Detroit, Toronto

Phoenix though is the one on that list, along with maybe the Warriors, that can lure and keep a top tier FA.

Its going to go be painful to watch but Phoenix will bounce back. Golden State, who knows, but Phoenix will bound back in the next 2-3 years.

Good luck signing a top-tier free agent with $30 million committed to mediocre players, though.  The Suns have no foundation to build upon, and won't have much cap flexibility.  Their owner also is a big proponent in staying below the luxury tax.

[PosImpos]

Charlotte.

No draft picks, and no real promising prospects.  Plus, they're a poor team with a disinterested fanbase.  Their GM isn't terribly smart, either.


I think Golden State has a chance to be pretty solid in a couple years if they can continue to develop their core (Curry, Ellis, Lee) while building depth.  Before David Lee got injured this season, their starting lineup was one of the most successful / productive lineups in the league.  As a team, however, they have very little depth.  That, combined with the fact that they are a very young team, has made it difficult for them to be successful record-wise. 

I see them as potentially a 40-50 win team in a couple years if their management plays their cards right.  Now that they've gotten rid of Don Nelson and changed ownership, I think there's a chance of that happening.

[greenpride32]

Any team is just a draft pick or two away from being relevant again (Wall - WAS, Griff/EGord - LAC, LBJ -CLE); but I agree that teams like MIN CLE DET CHA will have a tougher time attracting top tier free agents to really push their teams over the top.  I know WAS and LAC aren't exactly contenders yet, but LAC aren't many pieces away and could build up a team just like OKC did.

[indeedproceed]

Right now, which team has screwed itself the most, to the point of having no realistic shot of a championship in the near / medium future?

I'm going with the Phoenix Suns.  As far out as 2014, they have around $30 million committed to four players:  Gortat, Frye, Dudley, and Childress.  They have no elite young players (I don't consider Gortat, Dragic, or Lopez as elite, and outside of an aging Steve Nash, they don't really have any great trade chips.

It's going to be very, very tough for the Suns to get better in the next three years, or to set themselves up beyond that.  There are plenty of other contenders for the title, but in terms of "wrecked long-term cap space" + "lack of young players", I think the Suns may be the worst.For that, they get my title of "most hopeless franchise".

Other contenders:  Milwaukee (terrible cap situation, but some decent prospects), Golden State (ditto), Detroit, Toronto

Phoenix though is the one on that list, along with maybe the Warriors, that can lure and keep a top tier FA.

Its going to go be painful to watch but Phoenix will bounce back. Golden State, who knows, but Phoenix will bound back in the next 2-3 years.

Good luck signing a top-tier free agent with $30 million committed to mediocre players, though.  The Suns have no foundation to build upon, and won't have much cap flexibility.  Their owner also is a big proponent in staying below the luxury tax.

My point was that if Phoenix wanted to dump that salary they could. Dudley, Childress and Gortat all make "acceptable" money, and excepting Childress's play so far this season, they're all at worst a 6th or 7th man on a contending team.

[wdleehi]

Clippers.



Quick, name the last big time player they drafted and kept.

[PosImpos]

Any team is just a draft pick or two away from being relevant again (Wall - WAS, Griff/EGord - LAC, LBJ -CLE); but I agree that teams like MIN CLE DET CHA will have a tougher time attracting top tier free agents to really push their teams over the top.  I know WAS and LAC aren't exactly contenders yet, but LAC aren't many pieces away and could build up a team just like OKC did.

Charlotte has traded away a lot of their picks in recent years, which is why I chose them as set up worst for the future.  They're going to have a difficult time rebuilding through the draft.

Clippers.



Quick, name the last big time player they drafted and kept.

Name the last time the Clippers had a player like Blake Griffin.

That's right, hasn't happened before. 

[indeedproceed]

Clippers.



Quick, name the last big time player they drafted and kept.

Chris Kaman.

[Fafnir]

I think Cleveland and the Suns are pretty comparable. Both have good roleplaying bigs and a pile of crap other than that.

I think Detroit and Charlotte are probably worse off though. At least the Cavs/Suns are going to get lottery picks. The Bobcats or Pistons might end up in the playoffs!