About the Bobcats

[George O'Brien]

We have been focused on figuring out how to get the Bobcats to take one of the Suns contracts to clear cap space. I think it may be time to revisit the question of who the Bobcats will end up taking. They are REQUIRED to take 14 players and their options are not going to be that great.

Who will be available? Here is my list of likely players on the unprotected list. It is not terribly scientific. I just looked at the guys with the worst contracts. In theory the Bobcats could draft someone and then trade him, so I have focused on guys who are either horribly expensive or the team could afford to be without him and his cap hit. In some cases there are teams with fewer than eight players.

Atlanta - Alan Henderson - $8.3 million - one year contract

Boston - Rauf LeFrentz - $9.0 million - five more years

Chicago - Antonio Davis - $12 million - two years
- Eddie Robinson - $6.7 million - two years

Cleveland - Kevin Ollie - $2.7 million - five more years
- Ira Newbie - $2.7 million - five more years

Dallas - Antoine Jamison - $12.6 million - four more years
- Shawn Bradly - $4 million - four more years
- Antoine Walker - $14.6 million - one year

Denver - Nikoloz Tskitishvili - $2.9 million - one year until team option (likely to be taken)

Detroit - Elton Campbell - $4.4 million - one year

Golden State - Nick Van Exel - $11.8 million - one year until team option

Houston - Maurice Taylor - $8.5 million - four more years
- Kelvin Cato - $8 million - two more years

Indiana - Austin Croshere - $8.2 million - three more years
- Johnathan Bender - $6.4 million - three more years
- Scott Pollard - $5.8 million - two more years

Clippers - Melivin Ely - $1.7 million - one year until team option (likely to be taken)

Lakers - Rick Fox - $4.9 million - year (if they wanted to play dirty, they could put Shaq up because the Bobcats could not afford to take him since he would take their entire cap space)

Memphis - They have a dozen players under contract for next season. It is likely they will lose one of their younger players but no one has a guess which one.

Miami - Eddie Jones - $13.4 million - three more years

Milwaukee - Keith Van Horn - $14.4 million - two more years

Minnesota - Wally Szczerbiak - $9 million - five more years

New Jersey - Alonzo Mourning - $5.4 million - three more years
- Rodney Rogers - $3.4 million - one more year (likely to be picked - could cover with Scalabrine)

New Orleans - Jamal Mashburn - $9.3 million - three more years

New York - With so many bad contracts, it is hard figure who they will leave unprotected.
- Dikembe Mutombo - $4.5 million - one year
- Penny Hardaway - $14.5 million - two years
- Alan Houston - $17.5 million - three years
- Shandon Anderson - $7.3 million - three years
- Othella Harrington - $3.1 million - one year

Orlando - Grant Hill - $14.5 million - three more years
- Juwan Howard - $5.4 million - five more years

Philadelphia - Glen Robinson - $12 million - one year
- Todd MacCulloch - $ $5.9 million - three years
- Marc Jackson - $4.2 million - three years

Portland - Damon Stoudamire - $15.7 million - one year
- Shareef Abdur-Rahim - $14.6 million - one year
- Derek Anderson - $8.4 million - three years

Sacramento - Chris Weber - $17.5 million - four more years

San Antonio - Malik Rose - $5.5 million - four more years

Seattle - Calvin Booth - $5.9 million - three more years

Toronto - Jalen Rose - $14.5 million - three more years

Utah - Curtis Borchardt - $1.2 million - one year before team option

Washington - The Wizzards are similar to the Grizzlies in that they have a lot of players under contract - 11 not counting Etan Thomas who is an RFA.
Chances are one of their cheaper players will be left uncovered such as Lonny Baxter, Steve Blake, or Juan Dixon.

Any conclusions? If my projection is correct, it might not take that much to encourage the Bobcats to take White. With only one year on his contract, he is going to be more attractive than all but a handful of other guys.

 

[Errntknght]

I sorted the list of guys by first year contract cost. White looks like a pretty good option except for the Bobcats ability to pick a guy then dump him. The total salary for the cheapest 14 players is 45.4 million so they'd need to get 15.4 million via bribes and dumped players. Who is going to be stuck with the contracted salaries for the dumped players would make a big difference. If the league is going to pay that tab then it could get wild... heck the Knicks would probably pay 3 mil to get rid of Houston in that kind of scenario. Orlando would jump at the chance to lose Grant Hill. I suppose the team that put him on the expansion draft list would be responsible but I haven't heard that detail yet.

The list
1 Wiz 1 youngster $1, 1year
2 Griz 1 youngster $1, 1 year
3 Utah Borchardt 1.2, 1
4 LAC Ely 1.7, 1
5 Cavs Ollie/Newble 2.7, 5
6 Den 'Skita' 2.9, 1
7 NY Harrington 3.1, 1
8 NJ Rodney R. 3.4, 1
9 Dal Bradley 4.0, 4
10Phil Marc Jackson 4.2, 3
11Det Campbell 4.4, 1
12LAL Fox 4.9, 1
13Orl Howard 5.4, 5
14SA Rose 5.5, 4

15Ind Pollard 5.8, 2
16Sea Booth 5.9, 3
17Phx White 6.0, 1
18Chi E. Robinson 6.7, 2
19Hou Cato 8.0, 2
20Atl Henderson 8.3, 1

 

[Joe Mama]

I'm anxious for the rumors about the expansion draft to start heating up. Looking at a big list of the most overplayed players in the NBA is a little too simple. Teams will be trading, bribing, etc. to get the Charlotte bobcats to take or not take certain players of their rosters. It should be really interesting.



Joe Mama

 

[George O'Brien]

I'm anxious for the rumors about the expansion draft to start heating up. Looking at a big list of the most overplayed players in the NBA is a little too simple. Teams will be trading, bribing, etc. to get the Charlotte bobcats to take or not take certain players of their rosters. It should be really interesting.
Joe Mama

Simple. Hey, I worked hard on that.

Seriously, I was curious to determine how many teams would be able to protect their lower priced players. Since I used HoopsHype, there may be some vulnerable players they have not included since they wait for "official" announcements of contracts. Still, I think the Bobcats will pounce on relatively cheap underachievers like Ely and Tskitishvili over better players with much bigger contracts.

There may be some game playing. Some teams like the Bulls might be willing to put a less expensive player on the unprotected list in hopes that they can move SOMEBODY, rather than just putting their impossible contracts on the list. A buydown on Chandler at $4.8 million might get taken while Antonio at $12 million and two years has no chance.

This leads to the question is whether the Bobcats will get a better offer than Eisley and the Suns lottery pick. Ignoring lottery placement for the moment, the other top teams in the draft will be:

Orlando
Chicago
Washington
Atlanta
Clippers
Philadelphia
Toronto
Cleveland

Orlando - It seems very unlikely they could use their pick to move someone that would make it worth while to give up. Howard's contract is too long. Gooden is just over the $3 million and has some trade value.

Chicago - Unloading Pippen does not create enough cap space to justify the cost. Robinson and Williams have much worse contracts than Eisley.

Washington - Laettner has only one year left on his contract of $6.1 million. This is a similiar situation to the Suns with White, but it does not create enough cap space to go for an elite player. Possible, but not likely.

Atlanta - They have no need for more cap space.

Clippers - They have no one with a big contract worth using a lottery pick to unload.

Philadelphia - They currently have $61 million in contracts for next season, so even moving Robinson does not get them below cap.

Toronto - They currently have 48.7 million in contracts. Moving someone like Lamond Murray at $4.9 million for two years actually hurts the Raptors because it would preclude their using their MLE. Their other contracts are much much bigger and it is doubtful the Bobcats would want them.

Cleveland - The Cavs don't have anyone they are likely to unload. Ilgauskas has a huge contract, $14.6 million but the Cavs are likely to use him for trade bait and certainly won't pay a draft pick to move him.

So unless I'm missing something, the combination of Eisley, $3 million, and the Suns lottery pick could very well be the best draft pick offer the Bobcats will get. The question is whether they even want draft picks from this year.

 

[Errntknght]

I found in Larry Coon's CBA article, the answer about who picks up the salary for a player the Bobcats pick and then dump. It's the Bobcats and it's a normal waiver procedure except that the Bobcats don't count their contribution to the waived guy's salary against their cap. This should mean that Charlotte isn't going to be dumping guys they don't have to to get under their 30 million cap. It also should mean that they are going to be concerned about the total contracted cost for guys they pick. According the list I constructed White is the 10th cheapest in total contract cost. If that is truly the case the Bobcats might take him with no inducement. He'd be pretty tradeable since he actually has playing value and would be in the last year of his contract. Surely they'd take him for a 3 mi bribe.

 

[George O'Brien]

I found in Larry Coon's CBA article, the answer about who picks up the salary for a player the Bobcats pick and then dump. It's the Bobcats and it's a normal waiver procedure except that the Bobcats don't count their contribution to the waived guy's salary against their cap. This should mean that Charlotte isn't going to be dumping guys they don't have to to get under their 30 million cap. It also should mean that they are going to be concerned about the total contracted cost for guys they pick. According the list I constructed White is the 10th cheapest in total contract cost. If that is truly the case the Bobcats might take him with no inducement. He'd be pretty tradeable since he actually has playing value and would be in the last year of his contract. Surely they'd take him for a 3 mi bribe.

I agree. I have never understood why Chad Ford keeps insisting the Suns will need to use their lottery pick to move White. No one else is going to offer a lottery pick to take on so little salary hit.

My question is whether the Bobcats even want more draft picks this summer. The are certainly going to get offers of late playoff team picks to take ugly contracts, but I really doubt there is another top team that is in a position to even offer. If the Bobcats really want a lottery pick, then the Suns should insist they take Eisley. They won't get a better offer from another team.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

I agree. I have never understood why Chad Ford keeps insisting the Suns will need to use their lottery pick to move White. No one else is going to offer a lottery pick to take on so little salary hit.

My question is whether the Bobcats even want more draft picks this summer. The are certainly going to get offers of late playoff team picks to take ugly contracts, but I really doubt there is another top team that is in a position to even offer. If the Bobcats really want a lottery pick, then the Suns should insist they take Eisley. They won't get a better offer from another team.

I don't know how Ford is looking at it, but I think the suns will WANT to move the pick if it is in the 6-8 range. The player they would get would either have no playing time (someone like Gordon), or be years away. The 2 million or so cap hold would just make it harder to get all the players they want this summer.

I agree they should try for Eisley with the pick, but it may not work. The only other way to really get rid of the pick would be to trade it for a future first (which could be hard), or involve it in a deal for TMAC. Maybe that is why it is constantly brought up?

 

[George O'Brien]

I don't know how Ford is looking at it, but I think the suns will WANT to move the pick if it is in the 6-8 range. The player they would get would either have no playing time (someone like Gordon), or be years away. The 2 million or so cap hold would just make it harder to get all the players they want this summer.

I agree they should try for Eisley with the pick, but it may not work. The only other way to really get rid of the pick would be to trade it for a future first (which could be hard), or involve it in a deal for TMAC. Maybe that is why it is constantly brought up?

There are always teams looking to pick up lottery picks in exchange for future picks. I can't see this as any kind of problem.

As I have said before, the problem with this draft is that all the "NBA ready" players are not a good fit for the Suns. Deng, Gordon, Harris, Iguodala, Childress, etc. are all likely to be decent NBA players. It's just that they aren't what the Suns need. This pick is too valuable to just give away to avoid the salary hit.

 

[Joe Mama]

There are always teams looking to pick up lottery picks in exchange for future picks. I can't see this as any kind of problem.

As I have said before, the problem with this draft is that all the "NBA ready" players are not a good fit for the Suns. Deng, Gordon, Harris, Iguodala, Childress, etc. are all likely to be decent NBA players. It's just that they aren't what the Suns need. This pick is too valuable to just give away to avoid the salary hit.

Well, that really depends on what the Phoenix Suns plans are this summer. If they don't feel they can get or will be able to afford Vujanic, Gordon or Harris would probably contribute immediately. From what I've seen both of those guys would be a better starting point guard than Barbosa. Any one of those players who named could probably contribute off the bench for the Suns next season.

I agree that it should not take the #7 draft pick to unload Jahidi White, but remember what it took to unload Tom Gugliotta. And the Utah Jazz were saving money on that deal! Jahidi White might not be a bad pick up in the expansion draft, but he certainly isn't too good to pass up. Remember also that there will be other teams bribing the bobcats to take their own players. Detroit will be trying to get rid of Campbell.

Unless the Phoenix Suns are really turned off by the players in this draft I think it looks like a mistake to dump that draft pick just to get rid of White. There just isn't that much available in free agency this summer outside of Kobe Bryant. Again, if they feel they have played shot at him I'm all for moving salary. If not, they are probably better off using the pick and unloading White and/or Howard Eiseley around the trading deadline.

Joe Mama

 

[George O'Brien]

Well, that really depends on what the Phoenix Suns plans are this summer. If they don't feel they can get or will be able to afford Vujanic, Gordon or Harris would probably contribute immediately. From what I've seen both of those guys would be a better starting point guard than Barbosa. Any one of those players who named could probably contribute off the bench for the Suns next season.

I agree that it should not take the #7 draft pick to unload Jahidi White, but remember what it took to unload Tom Gugliotta. And the Utah Jazz were saving money on that deal! Jahidi White might not be a bad pick up in the expansion draft, but he certainly isn't too good to pass up. Remember also that there will be other teams bribing the bobcats to take their own players. Detroit will be trying to get rid of Campbell.

Unless the Phoenix Suns are really turned off by the players in this draft I think it looks like a mistake to dump that draft pick just to get rid of White. There just isn't that much available in free agency this summer outside of Kobe Bryant. Again, if they feel they have played shot at him I'm all for moving salary. If not, they are probably better off using the pick and unloading White and/or Howard Eiseley around the trading deadline.
Joe Mama

I mostly agree. I am convinced Vujanic will sign as long as the Suns can help on the buyout. He needs to get his NBA experience first if he hopes to get a major contract and he can't really afford to wait much longer. The only way he doesn't sign is if the Suns get Kobe and the Suns have no cap room left.

I think that the Bobcats will take White if the Suns offer the $3 million. At worst the Suns could offer the Cleveland pick. The only comparable deal is Eldon Campbell of the Pistons whose contract is a about a $1.4 million less. But even allowing for teams like the Pistons, Grizzlies, and Wizzards who will have more attractive offers, White plus $3 million looks like a slam dunk.

The lottery pick plus Eisley only works if the Bobcats REALLY want that pick. Since they could package it with one of their signee's for another player, it is not out of the question. But if they insist on the pick plus White, I'd turn it down and take the most tradable player available.