Brian C. has made some dumb moves but ...

[corrado]

signing Q to an offer sheet and being handcuffed for 2 weeks is by far his dumbest. I've been in the Valley since '79. I've seen the Suns in the playoffs and making the playoffs is not enough, at least for me. They need to win an NBA championship.

Don't get me wrong Q is a nice player but he is typically what the Suns go after in the mold of JJ, SM, etc. This team to contend for a championship needs some sort of defensive force in the middle. They can get into the playoffs with the small ball but will get buried in the playoffs without a defender with above average strenghts.

I realize that this WAS NOT a very strong free agent period for quality centers but what they had to pass on while waiting thru this period was BETTER than what they presently have.

You may say that if the Clippers match, the Suns will have a chance to get ED. Well, I'm not sold on ED. I like guys that play hard whether in the last year of their contract or the first year. There are some guys in the NBA like that although they are less than the majority.

I think the Clipps will match and the Suns will be left with a Pollard, JP, etc.
Wonderfull move Brian.

 

[scotsman13]

do you people ever get tired of bitching?

the suns felt that they had a good chance of getting a player that they felt was worth the risk of having the last of their cap money tied up. even right now it isnt a surething that the clippers will match. the suns management knows what it is doing a great deal better then you or me. so why dont you give them a brake and stop bitching.

 

[newfan101]

I realize that this WAS NOT a very strong free agent period for quality centers but what they had to pass on while waiting thru this period was BETTER than what they presently have.

I'm sorry, but handcuffing himself to avoid overpaying such stiffs as Ostertag and Foyle may be Brian's most brilliant move ever.

As for his worst move, have you already forgotten Googs and Hardaway?

 

[King A]

Googs was an Olympian even afterwards and a 20-8 guy, that is not too shabby.
Penny is another thing, at least he led us to 2nd round once.
But the worst move was clearly the Longley deal, especially if you consider
that draft pick did become ron artest.

 

[George O'Brien]

Making offers to RFA's is always a risky proposition.

The Washington papers say that the Wizzards are going to match the Buck's offer for Etan Thomas. It might not happen, but I've predicted that they would for match for months. So while he was a popular option, going for him would not have been any different than going for Q except the Clippers were much less likely to match.

My guess is that Hidayet Turkoglu going to the Magic will be the only RFA move this summer not part of a sign and trade. The fact that the Spurs could replace him for less money with the more skilled Brent Barry made this the exception rather than the rule.

So far, Swift and Miles have not even had offers because everyone is sure that their teams will match. This is the nature of RFA's, but the Clippers have a history of letting guys go if they want to get paid. It was a gamble, but one that had a chance of working. IMHO, the other RFA's other than Turkoglu didn't.

What should the Suns have done? Foyle and Okur were grossly overpaid. The Pistons gambled that McDyess will stay healthy, a bet the Suns weren't willing to make. Camby got a contract that pays a lot if he stays healthy and above MLE if he doens't. K-Mart got a ridiculous contract. Divac got a two year MLE, which is a lot of money for guy his age.

Ostertag might have been a good pickup, but by the end of last season he was backing up Jarron Collins who averaged only 3.9 rpg. I probably would have gone for Tag anyway, but Q is undoubtely a much better player.

Assuming Q is matched, there is still a chance of doing something. Dampier remains a long shot, but Pollard could probably be picked up cheap (I'd like to do a deal that sends them Eisley). I don't think the Suns will sit on the cap space.

 

[fordronken]

Haven't we already decided that sitting on the capspace for next season is essentially pointless because of extensions?

 

[Gaddabout]

BC didn't trade Dennis Johnson for a 40-year-old stiff. He hasn't done anything close to that. I think he has the advantage of wisdom and I doubt there are many that understand NBA politics and salary cap as well as he does. All things considered, the Suns are pretty fortunate to have a second-generation GM like BC.

 

[JS22]

do you people ever get tired of bitching?

the suns felt that they had a good chance of getting a player that they felt was worth the risk of dont think. even right now it isnt a surething that the clippers will match. the suns management knows what it is doing a great deal better then you or me. so why dont you give them and brake and stop bitching.

I agree 100%. Lets see some of you be the GM for a day so we can piss all over your moves.

 

[George O'Brien]

signing Q to an offer sheet and being handcuffed for 2 weeks is by far his dumbest. I've been in the Valley since '79.

Come on, this is not even close. Let me begin with signing Luc Longley. I could add giving a max contract to Hardaway inspite of him having a history of injuries. We could add the drafting of Bedford. Or how about trading draft picks for McDyess and then failing to immediately getting him signed to a long term contract.

Losing a couple of weeks in the free agency market is nothing compared to some the major screw up of the past.

 

[scoutmasterdave]

My guess is that Hidayet Turkoglu going to the Magic will be the only RFA move this summer not part of a sign and trade.

Carlos Boozer, Mehmet Okur, and Chris Andersen were all RFAs who switched teams, and Trenton Hassell could move as well, if Minnesota doesn't match.

 

[corrado]

OK , I'll retrack

instead of 'by far the dumbest move', I'll say 'one of his several dumb moves'.

 

[Griffin]

Trading for McDyess was smart. Not the Suns fault they couldn't keep him. To add to the list of bad trades, how about trading for Hot Rod Williams?

 

[George O'Brien]

Trading for McDyess was smart. Not the Suns fault they couldn't keep him. To add to the list of bad trades, how about trading for Hot Rod Williams?

Couldn't remember is that was BC deal or not.

My problem with the McDyess deal was their procrastination, not the trade itself. Also, there was tension between McDyess and Ainge that should have been addressed much earlier. Considering how much they gave up to get him, BC was relying far too much on the fact that the Suns could offer more money.

BC gets criticized for signing Marbury and Marion to big contracts before he had to, but after the McDyess fiasco I think it was understandable.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Trading for McDyess was smart. Not the Suns fault they couldn't keep him. To add to the list of bad trades, how about trading for Hot Rod Williams?

Trading for Hot Rod looks bad primarily in retrospect, it didn't seem to be such a bad deal at the time. Barkley was clamoring for a center. Majerle had an ice-cold playoffs and many Suns fans believed he had "peaked" and was even regressing.

Hot Rod was considered one of the best interior defenders in the league at the time. Both players had warts AND both had positives.

It was a small for a big. So that is a plus.

The problem was that Hot Rod had been in a car accident in the off-season and had told no one about it. The Suns didn't find out about it until that fall when Hot Rod started having problems with his foot. X-rays revealed he had a piece of metal imbedded in his foot from the car crash.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

Got to love when someone starts bashing the front office when they obviously know very little about it......

 

[elindholm]

What did the Suns lose while their hands were tied? Was there a better way to spend the $5.8 million that I've overlooked?

It seems like the big tragedy is that the Suns missed out on Greg Ostertag. Well, la de da. I can live with that. It's not like any good FAs went for good value while the Suns were waiting on Richardson -- they wouldn't have signed anyone anyway.

 

[newfan101]

instead of 'by far the dumbest move', I'll say 'one of his several dumb moves'.

One, BC hasn't made "several" dumb moves. And the bad moves he did make only look bad in hindsight.

Two, there is absolutely NOTHING dumb about signing Q to an offer sheet. Zilch. Considering his talent and age, he probably signed the most reasonable contact of the entire free agency period. And who did they pass on, Ostertag? Please. The next best player they could have signed, Dampier, is still available.

I can think of a half dozen scenarios involving the Suns remaining cap space that would have been preferable to signing one of the stiffs they missed out on waiting for Q.

 

[George O'Brien]

What did the Suns lose while their hands were tied? Was there a better way to spend the $5.8 million that I've overlooked?

It seems like the big tragedy is that the Suns missed out on Greg Ostertag. Well, la de da. I can live with that. It's not like any good FAs went for good value while the Suns were waiting on Richardson -- they wouldn't have signed anyone anyway.

You don't think Divac for $4.9 million isn't a great bargain?

Seriously, the only "bargain" I've noticed have been Brent Barry to San Antonio starting at $4.5 million (he is going to have a huge year)

A few guys game in at about what I expected. Mark Blount re-signing with Boston starting at $5.3 million. I figured Etan Thomas would get a full MLE offer and I was right, but it looks like the Wizzards will match anyway.

Almost everyone else when for more than I expected - in several cases much more. I am still blown away at how long the McDyess contract is for and amazed at how much K-Mart went for. The Foyle deal completely blew me away.

I feel Ginobili was overpaid with a deal starting at $6.6 million (he's not really better than Q). I was a little surprised Turkoglu got an above the MLE deal starting at $5.2, but this was about par for this year.

 

[SweetD]

I'm sorry, but handcuffing himself to avoid overpaying such stiffs as Ostertag and Foyle may be Brian's most brilliant move ever.

As for his worst move, have you already forgotten Googs and Hardaway?

I wouldn't say those were bad moves, at the time Googs and Hardaway were the top free agents/All-Stars in the game. The worst move would be Joe Barry Carol or John "Hot Rod" Willams, or what about Luc Longley

 

[Evil Ash]

One, BC hasn't made "several" dumb moves. And the bad moves he did make only look bad in hindsight.

Two, there is absolutely NOTHING dumb about signing Q to an offer sheet. Zilch. Considering his talent and age, he probably signed the most reasonable contact of the entire free agency period. And who did they pass on, Ostertag? Please. The next best player they could have signed, Dampier, is still available.

I can think of a half dozen scenarios involving the Suns remaining cap space that would have been preferable to signing one of the stiffs they missed out on waiting for Q.

Exactly!

Even though they were stuck for 2 weeks, they still have the strong possibility of getting the best FA Center on the market and at a discount price. THE HORROR!!!

Even if we don't get Dampier, I'd rather sit on the money than massively overpay for some stiffs whom haven't really done anything other than take up space.

 

[Gaddabout]

Trading for Hot Rod looks bad primarily in retrospect, it didn't seem to be such a bad deal at the time. Barkley was clamoring for a center. Majerle had an ice-cold playoffs and many Suns fans believed he had "peaked" and was even regressing.

Hot Rod was considered one of the best interior defenders in the league at the time. Both players had warts AND both had positives.

It was a small for a big. So that is a plus.

The problem was that Hot Rod had been in a car accident in the off-season and had told no one about it. The Suns didn't find out about it until that fall when Hot Rod started having problems with his foot. X-rays revealed he had a piece of metal imbedded in his foot from the car crash.

At the time of the trade, Majerle seemed like damaged goods with his back problems. He was still having numbness in one of his legs and couldn't jump like he used to (not that he had any hops to give). He was suddenly stationary and something of a liability on defense.

 

[George O'Brien]

At the time of the trade, Majerle seemed like damaged goods with his back problems. He was still having numbness in one of his legs and couldn't jump like he used to (not that he had any hops to give). He was suddenly stationary and something of a liability on defense.

So they traded him for a guy who was more often injured than him.

Guessing health is a recurring issue. Sometimes teams make apparently bad trades because they think a player is injury prone or just never will get healthy. Other times teams will take players with a terrible history of injuries without a blink such as McDyess with the Pistons.

 

[Gaddabout]

So they traded him for a guy who was more often injured than him.

Guessing health is a recurring issue. Sometimes teams make apparently bad trades because they think a player is injury prone or just never will get healthy. Other times teams will take players with a terrible history of injuries without a blink such as McDyess with the Pistons.

I liked Hot Rod when he was healthy, but I think it was clear much of his success in Cleveland should have been attributed to Nance's weakside defense. I still don't think it was such a horrible trade in terms of basketball reasoning. Hot Rod did was he was brought in to do, for the most part. What made it bad was Majerle's connection to the fans -- management was probably most guilty of underestimating how much he was loved here.

 

[elindholm]

At the time of the trade, Majerle seemed like damaged goods with his back problems. He was still having numbness in one of his legs and couldn't jump like he used to (not that he had any hops to give). He was suddenly stationary and something of a liability on defense.

Holy cow. I thought I was the only Suns fan in the world who understood the wisdom of the Majerle/Williams trade.

Gaddabout, where have you been all my life! :notworthy

 

[Errntknght]

As much as I disagree with others who think BC is a great GM, I could live with his player deals if he'd just hire decent coaches and put together teams that fit - with each other and the coach's style. He's in the midst of screwing that up again as we speak - no way is a running game going to take you anyplace if you don't have very strong defense and rebounding to fuel the breaks. (Even if you do it's a questionable strategy when it comes to playoff time, but that's another matter.) Actually, our players may be pretty fair defenders but with coach Mikey running the show you can't tell because he knows zip about team defense.