Per Woj: Danny is active on the phones.....

[AngryAndIrritable]

Pretty interesting roundtable pretending to be Golden State's front office and assessing the team's need for a trade. At one point their lack of guard scoring behind Curry/Thompson is discussed. Thornton's name is brought up.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12036343/secret-golden-state-warriors-success-nba-front-office:

Elhassan: What flaw is there that can be cured by a personnel move? Let's look at it that way.

Thorpe: Right now, Speights is shooting lights out. He's an amazing shooter and always has been. But to depend on him at the big -- we know Lee can score -- that becomes a scary combination of Lee and Speights at the 4 or 5. No defense there . . . But I also think we could get much better production from a backcourt player off the bench. Livingston has a role, but he's never going to be a scorer.

They don't have a combo guard for the playoffs like, for example, Ben Gordon, Gary Neal, or Marcus Thornton. All three of those guys this year are doing a good job off the bench in their own capacity, and they're all available based on where their current teams are at. Those guys can really shoot the 3 and can really score; they bring energy in their own way. I get that, but I still think guard play -- think about the role guys like Patty Mills plays for the Spurs.

Elhassan: I would argue Leandro Barbosa does that.

Thorpe: I would argue he doesn't. I would say he's not a guy I would depend on compared to these other guys I've talked about.

Elhassan: But the Thornton kid? I would depend on Barbosa before Thornton.

Thorpe: As a shooter and a scorer?

Elhassan: Absolutely. Because he doesn't need the ball as long as Thornton.

I just had a long discussion with a GSW fan friend of mine regarding this same issue, the upshot being 'If Curry or Klay gets injured we're done'.

If Leandro Barbosa is your guard Plan B in this situation then wow, do you have problems.

[blink]

With Denver's GM Tim Connelly reportedly perceived as being in over his head and Kenneth Faried seen as a guy who might be available despite his recent big contract, I wouldn't be shocked if Ainge was working the phones to either be a third team that facilitates a way around the poison pill provision or even tries to acquire Faried himself.

So if you think Faried might be on DA's radar, what happens to Sully / KO?  Tradebait for a real center?

I like Faried, but he isn't the 1st piece I would look for.

[Beat LA]

I would say yes to Rondo being a top 30 player (though barely).

If you go through a list of names you might feel differently.

Lowry
DeRozan
Wall
Beal
Horford
Millsap
Rose
Noah
Butler
James
Love
Irving
Bosh
Curry
Thompson
M Gasol
Conley
Harden
Howard
Aldridge
Lillard
Griffin
Paul
Leonard
Parker
Duncan
Dirk
Davis
Durant
Westbrook
Ibaka


That's over 30 names and those are only from the 16 current playoff teams, plus OKC.

Stop, lol .  Rondo isn't better than Ibaka?   Wow.  Millsap and Horford aren't top 30 players, either, imo.  Is this just your opinion, or did you get it from somewhere?  I mean, Jimmy Butler - really?  Yeah, he's having a breakout year, but he's not in the top 30.  I guess that we'll just have to agree to disagree on this, which is fine.  Where is Paul George, btw?

Read the bolded section. Also, if you think that Rondo today, not from 2012, is better than Millsap, Horford, Butler, and Ibaka I'm not sure what to say.

It's actually the other way around, but whatever.  You guys really have no concept of what we have in Rondo, do you?  I feel sorry for you, quite honestly.

[LooseCannon]

With Denver's GM Tim Connelly reportedly perceived as being in over his head and Kenneth Faried seen as a guy who might be available despite his recent big contract, I wouldn't be shocked if Ainge was working the phones to either be a third team that facilitates a way around the poison pill provision or even tries to acquire Faried himself.

You'd really want Faried?  What position would he play?  He isn't nearly the player that he should be, imo, from the potential he showed early on in his career.

If he could be had for less than he is worth, I'd certainly consider acquiring him and maybe moving Sullinger in the same or a future deal.

[Beat LA]

Pretty interesting roundtable pretending to be Golden State's front office and assessing the team's need for a trade. At one point their lack of guard scoring behind Curry/Thompson is discussed. Thornton's name is brought up.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12036343/secret-golden-state-warriors-success-nba-front-office:

Elhassan: What flaw is there that can be cured by a personnel move? Let's look at it that way.

Thorpe: Right now, Speights is shooting lights out. He's an amazing shooter and always has been. But to depend on him at the big -- we know Lee can score -- that becomes a scary combination of Lee and Speights at the 4 or 5. No defense there . . . But I also think we could get much better production from a backcourt player off the bench. Livingston has a role, but he's never going to be a scorer.

They don't have a combo guard for the playoffs like, for example, Ben Gordon, Gary Neal, or Marcus Thornton. All three of those guys this year are doing a good job off the bench in their own capacity, and they're all available based on where their current teams are at. Those guys can really shoot the 3 and can really score; they bring energy in their own way. I get that, but I still think guard play -- think about the role guys like Patty Mills plays for the Spurs.

Elhassan: I would argue Leandro Barbosa does that.

Thorpe: I would argue he doesn't. I would say he's not a guy I would depend on compared to these other guys I've talked about.

Elhassan: But the Thornton kid? I would depend on Barbosa before Thornton.

Thorpe: As a shooter and a scorer?

Elhassan: Absolutely. Because he doesn't need the ball as long as Thornton.

I just had a long discussion with a GSW fan friend of mine regarding this same issue, the upshot being 'If Curry or Klay gets injured we're done'.

If Leandro Barbosa is your guard Plan B in this situation then wow, do you have problems.

While I understand their concern, shouldn't they be extremely bothered with Curry's severe lack of defensive ability?  You guys think that Rondo is a sieve, lol .

[AngryAndIrritable]

With Denver's GM Tim Connelly reportedly perceived as being in over his head and Kenneth Faried seen as a guy who might be available despite his recent big contract, I wouldn't be shocked if Ainge was working the phones to either be a third team that facilitates a way around the poison pill provision or even tries to acquire Faried himself.

You'd really want Faried?  What position would he play?  He isn't nearly the player that he should be, imo, from the potential he showed early on in his career.

If he could be had for less than he is worth, I'd certainly consider acquiring him and maybe moving Sullinger in the same or a future deal.

If Sullinger gets traded in the near future in a deal similar to this he has nobody to blame but himself.

Faried seems like a man hell bent on making the most of limited talents. Sully seems intent on throwing his away.

[Beat LA]

With Denver's GM Tim Connelly reportedly perceived as being in over his head and Kenneth Faried seen as a guy who might be available despite his recent big contract, I wouldn't be shocked if Ainge was working the phones to either be a third team that facilitates a way around the poison pill provision or even tries to acquire Faried himself.

You'd really want Faried?  What position would he play?  He isn't nearly the player that he should be, imo, from the potential he showed early on in his career.

If he could be had for less than he is worth, I'd certainly consider acquiring him and maybe moving Sullinger in the same or a future deal.

Or, we could keep Sullinger and get Roscoe Smith from the d-league.  Faried's rebounding numbers have been quite sub par this year (6.6 - really?).  Plus, I'd like to think that we could get a better return for Sully, but I'm likely dillusional, haha .  I also don't think that Faried is a building block.  He would have been great with the Fantastic Four, but not now, imo.

[AngryAndIrritable]

Pretty interesting roundtable pretending to be Golden State's front office and assessing the team's need for a trade. At one point their lack of guard scoring behind Curry/Thompson is discussed. Thornton's name is brought up.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12036343/secret-golden-state-warriors-success-nba-front-office:

Elhassan: What flaw is there that can be cured by a personnel move? Let's look at it that way.

Thorpe: Right now, Speights is shooting lights out. He's an amazing shooter and always has been. But to depend on him at the big -- we know Lee can score -- that becomes a scary combination of Lee and Speights at the 4 or 5. No defense there . . . But I also think we could get much better production from a backcourt player off the bench. Livingston has a role, but he's never going to be a scorer.

They don't have a combo guard for the playoffs like, for example, Ben Gordon, Gary Neal, or Marcus Thornton. All three of those guys this year are doing a good job off the bench in their own capacity, and they're all available based on where their current teams are at. Those guys can really shoot the 3 and can really score; they bring energy in their own way. I get that, but I still think guard play -- think about the role guys like Patty Mills plays for the Spurs.

Elhassan: I would argue Leandro Barbosa does that.

Thorpe: I would argue he doesn't. I would say he's not a guy I would depend on compared to these other guys I've talked about.

Elhassan: But the Thornton kid? I would depend on Barbosa before Thornton.

Thorpe: As a shooter and a scorer?

Elhassan: Absolutely. Because he doesn't need the ball as long as Thornton.

I just had a long discussion with a GSW fan friend of mine regarding this same issue, the upshot being 'If Curry or Klay gets injured we're done'.

If Leandro Barbosa is your guard Plan B in this situation then wow, do you have problems.

While I understand their concern, shouldn't they be extremely bothered with Curry's severe lack of defensive ability?  You guys think that Rondo is a sieve, lol .

I don't think anybody is expecting Curry to be any more than a warm body to blow past on D... but that's really not why he's there. They expect their bigs to pick up the defensive slack.

[Eddie20]

I would say yes to Rondo being a top 30 player (though barely).

If you go through a list of names you might feel differently.

Lowry
DeRozan
Wall
Beal
Horford
Millsap
Rose
Noah
Butler
James
Love
Irving
Bosh
Curry
Thompson
M Gasol
Conley
Harden
Howard
Aldridge
Lillard
Griffin
Paul
Leonard
Parker
Duncan
Dirk
Davis
Durant
Westbrook
Ibaka


That's over 30 names and those are only from the 16 current playoff teams, plus OKC.

Stop, lol .  Rondo isn't better than Ibaka?   Wow.  Millsap and Horford aren't top 30 players, either, imo.  Is this just your opinion, or did you get it from somewhere?  I mean, Jimmy Butler - really?  Yeah, he's having a breakout year, but he's not in the top 30.  I guess that we'll just have to agree to disagree on this, which is fine.  Where is Paul George, btw?

Read the bolded section. Also, if you think that Rondo today, not from 2012, is better than Millsap, Horford, Butler, and Ibaka I'm not sure what to say.

It's actually the other way around, but whatever.  You guys really have no concept of what we have in Rondo, do you?  I feel sorry for you, quite honestly.

I guess I don't then. I see a great passer, a good rebounder for his position, with little to no offensive game, a complete liability at the FT line to a laughable degree, a player that struggles late in games, who brings inconsistent efforts on a game to game basis, who fails to move his feet defensively (there's the effort thing again), and who's poor at fighting through/getting around picks (high pick and roll being a staple of every offense). What do you see? What is the concept that we're blinded to yet you're one of the lucky ones that sees it?

[LooseCannon]

Really, though, my point isn't that Ainge will try to trade for Faried or that the Celtics should go after Faried, it's that Ainge will go after talent that he can get for cheap even if it doesn't fit positional need.  If he makes a trade, he will probably bring back someone who isn't being discussed in this thread.

I actually don't think Ainge will go after Faried because he is signed beyond this season, but if the price is sufficiently cheap, he might change his mind.

[Rondo9]

I would say yes to Rondo being a top 30 player (though barely).

If you go through a list of names you might feel differently.

Lowry
DeRozan
Wall
Beal
Horford
Millsap
Rose
Noah
Butler
James
Love
Irving
Bosh
Curry
Thompson
M Gasol
Conley
Harden
Howard
Aldridge
Lillard
Griffin
Paul
Leonard
Parker
Duncan
Dirk
Davis
Durant
Westbrook
Ibaka


That's over 30 names and those are only from the 16 current playoff teams, plus OKC.

Stop, lol .  Rondo isn't better than Ibaka?   Wow.  Millsap and Horford aren't top 30 players, either, imo.  Is this just your opinion, or did you get it from somewhere?  I mean, Jimmy Butler - really?  Yeah, he's having a breakout year, but he's not in the top 30.  I guess that we'll just have to agree to disagree on this, which is fine.  Where is Paul George, btw?

Read the bolded section. Also, if you think that Rondo today, not from 2012, is better than Millsap, Horford, Butler, and Ibaka I'm not sure what to say.

It's actually the other way around, but whatever.  You guys really have no concept of what we have in Rondo, do you?  I feel sorry for you, quite honestly.

I guess I don't then. I see a great passer, a good rebounder for his position, with little to no offensive game, a complete liability at the FT line to a laughable degree, a player that struggles late in games, who brings inconsistent efforts on a game to game basis, who fails to move his feet defensively (there's the effort thing again), and who's poor at fighting through/getting around picks (high pick and roll being a staple of every offense). What do you see? What is the concept that we're blinded to yet you're one of the lucky ones that sees it?

Eh we see different things in each players and are often blinded by our biases.

[blink]

Really, though, my point isn't that Ainge will try to trade for Faried or that the Celtics should go after Faried, it's that Ainge will go after talent that he can get for cheap even if it doesn't fit positional need.  If he makes a trade, he will probably bring back someone who isn't being discussed in this thread.

I actually don't think Ainge will go after Faried because he is signed beyond this season, but if the price is sufficiently cheap, he might change his mind.

gotcha.  i agree, there may be a trade of value out there for the C's that no one is talking about.

[Eddie20]

I would say yes to Rondo being a top 30 player (though barely).

If you go through a list of names you might feel differently.

Lowry
DeRozan
Wall
Beal
Horford
Millsap
Rose
Noah
Butler
James
Love
Irving
Bosh
Curry
Thompson
M Gasol
Conley
Harden
Howard
Aldridge
Lillard
Griffin
Paul
Leonard
Parker
Duncan
Dirk
Davis
Durant
Westbrook
Ibaka


That's over 30 names and those are only from the 16 current playoff teams, plus OKC.

Stop, lol .  Rondo isn't better than Ibaka?   Wow.  Millsap and Horford aren't top 30 players, either, imo.  Is this just your opinion, or did you get it from somewhere?  I mean, Jimmy Butler - really?  Yeah, he's having a breakout year, but he's not in the top 30.  I guess that we'll just have to agree to disagree on this, which is fine.  Where is Paul George, btw?

Read the bolded section. Also, if you think that Rondo today, not from 2012, is better than Millsap, Horford, Butler, and Ibaka I'm not sure what to say.

It's actually the other way around, but whatever.  You guys really have no concept of what we have in Rondo, do you?  I feel sorry for you, quite honestly.

I guess I don't then. I see a great passer, a good rebounder for his position, with little to no offensive game, a complete liability at the FT line to a laughable degree, a player that struggles late in games, who brings inconsistent efforts on a game to game basis, who fails to move his feet defensively (there's the effort thing again), and who's poor at fighting through/getting around picks (high pick and roll being a staple of every offense). What do you see? What is the concept that we're blinded to yet you're one of the lucky ones that sees it?

Eh we see different things in each players and are often blinded by our biases.

That's a vague answer. What part of my description do you disagree with?

Rondo isn't a top 30 player and falls even further when you factor in player value based on positional scarcity/team need. Factoring that in, I would rather have bigs such as Valanciunas, Favors, Hibbert, Jordan, Monroe, etc. than I would Rondo.

[Beat LA]

I would say yes to Rondo being a top 30 player (though barely).

If you go through a list of names you might feel differently.

Lowry
DeRozan
Wall
Beal
Horford
Millsap
Rose
Noah
Butler
James
Love
Irving
Bosh
Curry
Thompson
M Gasol
Conley
Harden
Howard
Aldridge
Lillard
Griffin
Paul
Leonard
Parker
Duncan
Dirk
Davis
Durant
Westbrook
Ibaka


That's over 30 names and those are only from the 16 current playoff teams, plus OKC.

Stop, lol .  Rondo isn't better than Ibaka?   Wow.  Millsap and Horford aren't top 30 players, either, imo.  Is this just your opinion, or did you get it from somewhere?  I mean, Jimmy Butler - really?  Yeah, he's having a breakout year, but he's not in the top 30.  I guess that we'll just have to agree to disagree on this, which is fine.  Where is Paul George, btw?

Read the bolded section. Also, if you think that Rondo today, not from 2012, is better than Millsap, Horford, Butler, and Ibaka I'm not sure what to say.

It's actually the other way around, but whatever.  You guys really have no concept of what we have in Rondo, do you?  I feel sorry for you, quite honestly.

I guess I don't then. I see a great passer, a good rebounder for his position, with little to no offensive game, a complete liability at the FT line to a laughable degree, a player that struggles late in games, who brings inconsistent efforts on a game to game basis, who fails to move his feet defensively (there's the effort thing again), and who's poor at fighting through/getting around picks (high pick and roll being a staple of every offense). What do you see? What is the concept that we're blinded to yet you're one of the lucky ones that sees it?

Eh we see different things in each players and are often blinded by our biases.

While I agree with you on that point, I just don't understand the hatred around here for easily the most unique player in the game, in addition to probably being the most intelligent one, as well.  He can dominate a game without ever scoring a point or taking a shot, on both ends, and he makes guys better.  Do you know how rare that is?  I guess all I'm trying to say is that you should enjoy him while you still can.

[TheFlex]

Pretty interesting roundtable pretending to be Golden State's front office and assessing the team's need for a trade. At one point their lack of guard scoring behind Curry/Thompson is discussed. Thornton's name is brought up.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12036343/secret-golden-state-warriors-success-nba-front-office:

Elhassan: What flaw is there that can be cured by a personnel move? Let's look at it that way.

Thorpe: Right now, Speights is shooting lights out. He's an amazing shooter and always has been. But to depend on him at the big -- we know Lee can score -- that becomes a scary combination of Lee and Speights at the 4 or 5. No defense there . . . But I also think we could get much better production from a backcourt player off the bench. Livingston has a role, but he's never going to be a scorer.

They don't have a combo guard for the playoffs like, for example, Ben Gordon, Gary Neal, or Marcus Thornton. All three of those guys this year are doing a good job off the bench in their own capacity, and they're all available based on where their current teams are at. Those guys can really shoot the 3 and can really score; they bring energy in their own way. I get that, but I still think guard play -- think about the role guys like Patty Mills plays for the Spurs.

Elhassan: I would argue Leandro Barbosa does that.

Thorpe: I would argue he doesn't. I would say he's not a guy I would depend on compared to these other guys I've talked about.

Elhassan: But the Thornton kid? I would depend on Barbosa before Thornton.

Thorpe: As a shooter and a scorer?

Elhassan: Absolutely. Because he doesn't need the ball as long as Thornton.

I just had a long discussion with a GSW fan friend of mine regarding this same issue, the upshot being 'If Curry or Klay gets injured we're done'.

If Leandro Barbosa is your guard Plan B in this situation then wow, do you have problems.

While I understand their concern, shouldn't they be extremely bothered with Curry's severe lack of defensive ability?  You guys think that Rondo is a sieve, lol .

Curry is actually posting positive defensive stats this season, though that isn't hard when you play in front of Bogut and next to Thompson plus the revolving door that is Barnes/Green/Iggy.

Rondo struggled early on this year with D but has picked it up lately. Offensively he has been dreadful in comparison to what we expected.