Idea: Big Al Jefferson

[Jeff]

I know, I know, why not bring in Gerald Green and Sebastian Telfair while we're at it?

Still, I can't help but wonder if we can get Big Al back.  I know he's a sieve on defense, but perhaps KG could teach him a few things before he rides off into the sunset.

The Jazz have a overload of bigs and might be willing to give him up for pick(s), cap space (we can take on more salary because of our cap room), and maybe a player not named Rondo or Avery.

thoughts?

[Chief]

I'd do it. Not sure the Jazz plans though. They keep drafting bigs. Favor and Kanter seem strange draft picks when you still got two fairly young all-star talented bigs in Millsap and AL. Heck, I'd give the picks away for Millsap.

[Celtics18]

I know, I know, why not bring in Gerald Green and Sebastian Telfair while we're at it?

Still, I can't help but wonder if we can get Big Al back.  I know he's a sieve on defense, but perhaps KG could teach him a few things before he rides off into the sunset.

The Jazz have a overload of bigs and might be willing to give him up for pick(s), cap space (we can take on more salary because of our cap room), and maybe a player not named Rondo or Avery.

thoughts?

Only if we can find a way to round out the bench with Ryan Gomes and Delonte West.

[esel1000]

I'd rather find a way to get Paul Millsap tbh...

[the_Bird]

Given that Big Al only has one year left on his contract, I would absolutely explore this.  We shouldn't be spending the cap space this offseason, anyway - not on the free agents who are available this summer.

And, Big Al would address two of our biggest needs (no pun intended) - rebounding, and having a low-post presence to diversify our offensive attack.  If we want to be a grind-it-out team, having someone like Big Al who can score down low against anybody seems a lot better than relying on jump shots.  

I tend to think that KG's impact on other big men is overstated, but just playing alongside him should help.  Bass is a pretty bad defender, but he looked OK at times just having KG behind him.  

Of course, it all depends on the cost besides absorbing Big Al's salary.  Not a prayer if the cost is Rondo; if it's Avery, I'm thinking long and hard.  If it's draft picks, I'm doing that trade in a heartbeat.

[snively]

The problem with Big Al is he makes $15 mil.  Assuming KG takes $10 mil to resign, that takes out all of our cap space, leaving us only with vet mins or the $2.5 exception to fill out the rest of the roster.

That would likely mean no Ray Allen (though that might be the case anyway) or Jeff Green and something like a Dooling/Daniels/Pietrus/JJJ/Stiemsma bench (in other words, a very weak bench).

I like Big Al, but I don't he's worth the price.  Not enough of a difference maker.

[TheFlex]

I'd rather get Josh Smith. We have a much greater need for Smith than Jefferson especially if KG comes back (which I think he will). Also, like Smith, Jefferson is a free agent in 2013 and I think it'd be smarter to milk this center-phase of KG as long as possible by going after Smith first and then Jefferson rather than vice versa.

[snively]

If you want a Utah big, I'd go with Millsap.  He's a rich man's Bass, half the price of Al, a better defensive player in our scheme and a better complimentary player to Rondo.  I'd imagine he's available for a similar price too.

[the_Bird]

The problem with Big Al is he makes $15 mil.  Assuming KG takes $10 mil to resign, that takes out all of our cap space, leaving us only with vet mins or the $2.5 exception to fill out the rest of the roster.

That would likely mean no Ray Allen (though that might be the case anyway) or Jeff Green and something like a Dooling/Daniels/Pietrus/JJJ/Stiemsma bench (in other words, a very weak bench).

I like Big Al, but I don't he's worth the price.  Not enough of a difference maker.

Ray Allen's irrelevant to this discussion; he's gone, it's just a question of where to.  

Big Al would help us MUCH more than Jeff Green would.  Not sure how he wouldn't be a difference-maker; he adds an element to the team that was sorely lacking, and that Jeff Green doesn't.  Jeff Green's just another body to help keep Pierce fresh; a healthy Pietrus can do that just fine, and even Sasha and Quis have looked OK in that role, at times.  You can get a decent backup wing with the $2.5M exemption; you can't get a 20/10 power forward.

If trading for Big Al means Jeff Green walks...  so be it.

EDIT: I should say, too, that if Jeff Green re-signs, it's probably going to be to be our starting PF.  I'm kind of expecting to see a Rondo/Avery/Pierce/Green/KG full-time-smallball lineup next year.  Not sure who else as a free agent PF would be any better - but we know Green's limitations at the 4.  I'd feel much better subbing in Big Al to that lineup, even with his warts.  

[CoachBo]

No interest whatsoever in a "sieve" like that, especially not a grossly overpaid sieve.

[snively]

The problem with Big Al is he makes $15 mil.  Assuming KG takes $10 mil to resign, that takes out all of our cap space, leaving us only with vet mins or the $2.5 exception to fill out the rest of the roster.

That would likely mean no Ray Allen (though that might be the case anyway) or Jeff Green and something like a Dooling/Daniels/Pietrus/JJJ/Stiemsma bench (in other words, a very weak bench).

I like Big Al, but I don't he's worth the price.  Not enough of a difference maker.

Ray Allen's irrelevant to this discussion; he's gone, it's just a question of where to. 

Big Al would help us MUCH more than Jeff Green would.  Not sure how he wouldn't be a difference-maker; he adds an element to the team that was sorely lacking, and that Jeff Green doesn't.  Jeff Green's just another body to help keep Pierce fresh; a healthy Pietrus can do that just fine, and even Sasha and Quis have looked OK in that role, at times.  You can get a decent backup wing with the $2.5M exemption; you can't get a 20/10 power forward.

If trading for Big Al means Jeff Green walks...  so be it.

EDIT: I should say, too, that if Jeff Green re-signs, it's probably going to be to be our starting PF.  I'm kind of expecting to see a Rondo/Avery/Pierce/Green/KG full-time-smallball lineup next year.  Not sure who else as a free agent PF would be any better - but we know Green's limitations at the 4.  I'd feel much better subbing in Big Al to that lineup, even with his warts. 

If not Ray Allen, whoever else we could sign with that money.  The point is, if you cash all your chips on Big Al, there's nothing left to address our terrible bench.

There are several PF/C options on the free agent market  who figure to be cheaper than Al (not just in cap space; they won't require picks to obtain).

Andrei Kirilenko, Carl Landry, Marcus Camby, potentially Sam Dalembert, potential amnesty candidates like Tyrus Thomas, Brendan Haywood and Al Harrington, Kwame Brown...

You could potentially get 3 of those guys and keep your draft pick for the price of Big Al - or two of those guys and a third perimeter player (Barbosa, Danny Green, Jamal Crawford, Jeff Green, JR Smith, etc.).

That said, I wouldn't be too bummed rolling out a line-up of Rondo/Bradley/Pierce/Big Al/KG.  Al wouldn't give us much in the way of defense or team speed, but he'd provide a welcome offensive outlet.  While his TS% is pretty underwhelming (doesn't get to the free throw line, doesn't hit mid-range Js at an elite rate even though he takes a lot of them), he practically never turns the ball over (2nd lowest TO% in the league), so he ends up pretty efficient.  Combine that with his increased offensive versatility (a solid J, a million moves) and he'd make a very nice complement to the new Big 3 (Rondo/Pierce/KG).

[Jeff]

So here's my proposal.  A first round pick, Jeff Green signed and traded for $9M for Al Jefferson.

Saves them $6M off their cap (less the draft pick salary), they get a pick and a versatile backup for the 3/4 positions.

Thoughts?

[the_Bird]

Andrei Kirilenko, Carl Landry, Marcus Camby, potentially Sam Dalembert, potential amnesty candidates like Tyrus Thomas, Brendan Haywood and Al Harrington, Kwame Brown...

You could potentially get 3 of those guys and keep your draft pick for the price of Big Al - or two of those guys and a third perimeter player (Barbosa, Danny Green, Jamal Crawford, Jeff Green, JR Smith, etc.).

Most of those are "meh," and those that aren't (like Landry) are going to require multi-year contracts.  Even some of the middling guys (like Dalembert), I think you're underestimating how much they will ultimately get paid. 

To me, the appeal of Big Al is that I think he'd be a difference-maker in 2012-2013, *and* we would essentially be able to save our cap space for the following summer (which should have a lot more attractive free agents).  

Let's say we sign Carl Landry (one of the better free agent PFs) and Jamal Crawford.  That strikes me as being essentially the same as the Pistons blowing their cap space on Ben Gordon and Charlie Vilanueva.  Re-signing Jeff Green for too many years scares me as well.  I know Big Al's probably overpaid, but I'd rather overpay and only have one year of commitment.  

[the_Bird]

So here's my proposal.  A first round pick, Jeff Green signed and traded for $9M for Al Jefferson.

Saves them $6M off their cap (less the draft pick salary), they get a pick and a versatile backup for the 3/4 positions.

Thoughts?

Cocaine heartbeat.  A middling draft pick and a guy doesn't fit this team's needs, for a player who does?  Absolutely.

And if it doesn't work out...  we're starting over again in twelve months anyway. 

[Who]

So here's my proposal.  A first round pick, Jeff Green signed and traded for $9M for Al Jefferson.

Saves them $6M off their cap (less the draft pick salary), they get a pick and a versatile backup for the 3/4 positions.

Thoughts?

I can't even imagine Jeff Green has that type of trade value coming off of heart surgery. He needs to prove he can still play pro basketball and, if so, what level can he play at.

Far too much uncertainty about him regaining his previous place in the league + retaining his potential to net a low level star like Al Jefferson.