The Amnesty Rule

[StartOrien]

http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/33019/lakers-knicks-or-bobcats-for-baron

Looks like Baron would likely go to the Lakers. That's no good.

Eh. I don't know if Kobe & Baron would "hit it off"

[Kane3387]

http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/33019/lakers-knicks-or-bobcats-for-baron

Looks like Baron would likely go to the Lakers. That's no good.

Eh. I don't know if Kobe & Baron would "hit it off"

It be interesting but the upside is much higher then Kobe paired with Fisher or Blake. Another guy on the perimeter who can get his own shot might be good for Kobe at this point in his career.

Baron is a very good passer too. He would get a lot of good looks for Bynum and Gasol down low. Plus they aren't running the triangle anymore, so he could fit in well. Fisher/Blake aren't going to cut it next year as your starting pg in my opinion.

[Who]

http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/33019/lakers-knicks-or-bobcats-for-baron

Looks like Baron would likely go to the Lakers. That's no good.

Eh. I don't know if Kobe & Baron would "hit it off"

It be interesting but the upside is much higher then Kobe paired with Fisher or Blake. Another guy on the perimeter who can get his own shot might be good for Kobe at this point in his career.

Baron is a very good passer too. He would get a lot of good looks for Bynum and Gasol down low. Plus they aren't running the triangle anymore, so he could fit in well. Fisher/Blake aren't going to cut it next year as your starting pg in my opinion.

Agreed - Baron Davis would be a good fit in Mike Brown's offense and a big improvement over Derek Fisher. That would be a very nice acquisition for LA.

The Lakers are desperate for a perimeter player, aside from Kobe Bryant, who can provide dribble penetration. He'll get them out in transition for some easy hoops too. Baron Davis would really improve their balance offensively. Their offense had become far too one dimensional and predictable in terms of their isolation heavy + post ups. Just adding someone, who even as a role player, can provide something different and shake things up now and then ... is a nice boost for the Lakers.

Good to hear that Baron is far more interested in joining LA than Miami. Makes sense, given that he is from there.

[StartOrien]

I disagree. I think Baron's lack of jump shot kills them. Creates no inside out looks for them, and I think him and Kobe get frustrated with each others style of play.

Kobe's me-first shots kill Baron, and Baron's heat checks throw Kobe into fits. I'm also not convinced that Kobe's going to be able to play off the ball.

[nickagneta]

I disagree. I think Baron's lack of jump shot kills them. Creates no inside out looks for them, and I think him and Kobe get frustrated with each others style of play.

Kobe's me-first shots kill Baron, and Baron's heat checks throw Kobe into fits. I'm also not convinced that Kobe's going to be able to play off the ball.

I agree. Kobe is a very ball dominant 2 guard, much like Wade and Mike Brown has never been shy about letting ball dominant players handle the ball and generate the offense(LeBron) rather than starting it with a PG.

All three players(Kobe, Wade, LeBron) always play best with a PG that doesn't demand to have the ball in their hands to be the floor general and can stick that outside shot. That is not Baron Davis.

That's why I don't think Davis is a good fit for either Miami or LA and why I would have no problem with him showing up with either team.

I'm just glad a player like Ty Lawson isn't available to Miami or LA. He would be deadly as a PG for those two teams.

[Chris]

I disagree. I think Baron's lack of jump shot kills them. Creates no inside out looks for them, and I think him and Kobe get frustrated with each others style of play.

Kobe's me-first shots kill Baron, and Baron's heat checks throw Kobe into fits. I'm also not convinced that Kobe's going to be able to play off the ball.

I agree. Kobe is a very ball dominant 2 guard, much like Wade and Mike Brown has never been shy about letting ball dominant players handle the ball and generate the offense(LeBron) rather than starting it with a PG.

All three players(Kobe, Wade, LeBron) always play best with a PG that doesn't demand to have the ball in their hands to be the floor general and can stick that outside shot. That is not Baron Davis.

That's why I don't think Davis is a good fit for either Miami or LA and why I would have no problem with him showing up with either team.

I'm just glad a player like Ty Lawson isn't available to Miami or LA. He would be deadly as a PG for those two teams.

While I agree to a point, I think the fear of a guy like Davis joining the Lakers is that they will use him to maximize Kobe's ability by allowing him to cruise the first three quarters, allowing the offense to run more through the post, and with Baron creating on the break, then Kobe would be more fresh down the stretch.

Kobe is not getting any younger, and they have tried to do this over the last few years, but haven't had the PG to pull it off, but if Davis is healthy and motivated, he could absolutely do it.

Let's also remember that there was a time when Ray Allen and Paul Pierce were ball dominating wings.  But, they have made the transition over the last few years to guys who will play off the ball, and pick their spots, and I think it has extended both of their careers.

[StartOrien]

I actually like B-Diddy as a fit for the Knicks though.

[Roy H.]

I actually like B-Diddy as a fit for the Knicks though.

As a placeholder for CP3? What about Chauncey?

[Kane3387]

I actually like B-Diddy as a fit for the Knicks though.

As a placeholder for CP3? What about Chauncey?

It be interesting to see them play together. Billups played well off of Lawson in Denver. Not saying it would work but that would be a dynamic I would like to see.

[StartOrien]

I actually like B-Diddy as a fit for the Knicks though.

As a placeholder for CP3? What about Chauncey?

I think B-Diddy is a much better fit than Chauncey even if he's lesser the player. Davis at least wants to run, still runs a decent pick and roll, and I think is the lesser of two evils when it comes down to taking bad shots.

[nickagneta]

I actually like B-Diddy as a fit for the Knicks though.

As a placeholder for CP3? What about Chauncey?

It be interesting to see them play together. Billups played well off of Lawson in Denver. Not saying it would work but that would be a dynamic I would like to see.

Every team with fast PGs that can take it to the hole would be salivating at the NY Knick old guys in the backcourt(Chauncey and Davis) and no one playing defense in the frontcourt(Melo, Amare, Turiaf). Guys like Paul, Nash, Rondo, Wall, Rose, Irving, Lowry, etc would have a field day.

[Kane3387]

I actually like B-Diddy as a fit for the Knicks though.

As a placeholder for CP3? What about Chauncey?

It be interesting to see them play together. Billups played well off of Lawson in Denver. Not saying it would work but that would be a dynamic I would like to see.

Every team with fast PGs that can take it to the hole would be salivating at the NY Knick old guys in the backcourt(Chauncey and Davis) and no one playing defense in the frontcourt(Melo, Amare, Turiaf). Guys like Paul, Nash, Rondo, Wall, Rose, Irving, Lowry, etc would have a field day.

Yeah but those guys already do against NY anyways... Rondo's best games last year were against the Knicks. It's not like they care about defense, you know? Until they care about D they will never win anyways, but that 2 pg lineup would be fun to watch imo.

It certainly didn't work for Francis and Marbury but Billups and Davis are both smart and could figure out how to effectively play together...i think lol.

[Who]

I hate Chauncey Billups as a SG ... far less effective than at the point.

[Kane3387]

I hate Chauncey Billups as a SG ... far less effective than at the point.

Well they would be more like combo guards. Similar to Mo Williams and Delonte in Cleveland a few years back. I would think in a half court setting that Davis would be more suited to guard SGs but it's the Knicks, so not much defense is happening anyways.

[Who]

Link

Either way, the Wizards should be in very good financial position, no matter what the two sides decide with the next salary cap. If the players agree to a 50-50 split of revenues, the salary cap would likely be close to $51 million, with a luxury tax level set for about $62 million. So keeping Lewis for another year wouldn’t hurt the team financially and waiving him could actually create more problems: if the Wizards’ payroll drops below $30 million, the team would be forced to pay other players — possibly for more years — in order to meet a potential minimum salary.

Wizards owner Ted Leonsis is going to have to pay Lewis at least $32 million no matter what. So, would he rather pay Lewis to play for him or simply pay him to leave to join the contending team of his choice? Lewis was plagued by injuries last season and won’t ever return to his all-star form of three seasons ago. But he is healthy again, still has some game left, and could provide a veteran presence for a team that otherwise has Andray Blatche – or Young, if he comes back – as the oldest player on the roster.

And, if you haven’t noticed, this is not necessarily the best summer to have a lot of salary cap space, with a less-than stellar free agent class featuring unrestricted free agents Tyson Chandler, Nene, David West, Caron Butler, Tayshaun Prince and Jamal Crawford and restricted free agents Marc Gasol, Jeff Green, Thaddeus Young and Rodney Stuckey. No need for the Wizards to overpay for somebody who isn’t going to put them over the hump and possibly place the franchise in the same troubles that forced other owners to push for this current lockout

The writer makes a good point - the Wizards have almost nothing to gain by waiving Rashard Lewis this season. Well so long as the rule stays as expected and allows the owners to use the amnesty at any point during this CBA.

There is absolutely nothing there in free agency that is worth a major splash for them. They'll just ending up spending money on mediocre talent who'll give comparable or worse production than Rashard Lewis and raise the Wizards' short term (and possibly long term) payroll.

Nearly all the major free agent wings are older players (Prince, Caron, Battier, J-Rich). Jamal Crawford, Delonte West and JJ Barea are the best guards. They are not going to invest in a center until they wait out another year or two on JaVale McGee and find out what he has to offer. There isn't much more there at the four either. Kenyon Martin and Kirilenko are too old.

Carl Landry. Wilson Chandler. That is the Wizards best use of their new-found cap space if they waived Rashard Lewis and they would have to spend some serious money because they'd be well below the minimum cap threshold (about $35mil versus $43.5mil). And both of those guys would want long term deals.

It's a lousy free agent class and particularly poor for Washington. I think the writer is on the right track. Better to keep Rashard Lewis for one more season and use the amnesty on him then.