Gasol

[CHAPTER 7]

Sorry if this was talked about it already. Can we or do we want Gasol for Matrix or any possible combination with Diaw and picks?

 

[Mainstreet]

IMO yes, although many on this board disagree. Although Gasol is considered somewhat soft he adds height and tremendous athletic ability. I think he would be an absolute perfect fit in Phoenix. However, I'm not sure what the contract and LT implications would be.

 

[Gaddabout]

Is Ante Tomic still in the draft? He's supposed to be a lot like Gasol.

 

[Mainstreet]

I couldn't find Tomic on nbadraft.net.

I'm not familiar with him.

 

[Gaddabout]

I couldn't find Tomic on nbadraft.net.

I'm not familiar with him.

Hmmm. I recall him being 7-2 Croatian with a multi-faceted offensive game: face-up, low-post, stellar passer, range out to about 18 feet. He's also very young and weighs like 225 lbs. Needs add about 30 lbs. I think he wants to get drafted this year by a good team and stay in Europe for a season, rather than going next year and getting drafted by a lottery team.

 

[kps0001]

Please Mr. Sarver and Mr. D'antoni no Gasol please!!!!!!!

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Hmmm. I recall him being 7-2 Croatian with a multi-faceted offensive game: face-up, low-post, stellar passer, range out to about 18 feet. He's also very young and weighs like 225 lbs. Needs add about 30 lbs. I think he wants to get drafted this year by a good team and stay in Europe for a season, rather than going next year and getting drafted by a lottery team.

That guy sounds like a perfect Suns pick. They won't have to pay him this year if he stays over in Europe.

 

[Gaddabout]

That guy sounds like a perfect Suns pick. They won't have to pay him this year if he stays over in Europe.

Not only that, but elindholm has already started picking out punny names for Ante Tomic. It's a good fit all the way around.

 

[NastyOne]

I dont understand why anyone would want Gasol.

Do any of you really see him doing anything against the Spurs in the playoffs?

Hell i'd rather have Marion against the Spurs than Gasol.

And you better bet your azz that if we want a title in the next few years we'll always have to go through San Antonio.

We need to focus on getting a banger in here like Jermaine O'Neal.

O'Neal is a great rebounder, great shot blocker, can score in many ways and hes athletic so he can run with us.

Hes basically Amare lite on offense and everything we want Amare to be on defense.

It wont hurt to have Amare and JO man our front court for the next few years.

The problem is does anyone have faith in D'Antoni making a good deal with the Pacers to bring JO in here?

Watch Isiah Thomas (The worst GM in sports history) find a way to get JO for below market value as D'Antoni sits on his hands and does nothing.

 

[slinslin]

O'Neal has 3yrs/65M$ left on his contract. That's a lot worse financially then what Garnett has. We won't trade for him...

Garnett has 2 years/44M$ but probably will opt out after next season and nobody will resign him for more than 12-14 per anno.

 

[Gaddabout]

(Jermaine) O'Neal is ... athletic so he can run with us.

O'Neal is freakishly athletic within the lane, but I've never seen him trail a fast break. Also, for a guy with great post-up skills, he has to be one of the worst passing big men who gets 15 or more touches a game.

That said, I don't know why so many here are down on this guy. I think he'd be an improvement over Marion just because he changes the dynamic of this change to something more playoff ready. He has carried teams with half the talent to the playoffs and played very hard, if not capable of carrying a team very far by himself. On the Suns, if playing alongside Amare and with Nash, I think he could be a very good fit. A big key to that is he has dramatically improved his jump shot. He would not be a liability on offense.

A center rotation of O'Neal and KT would be worthy of our attention, I think. It might mean less run-and-gun, but it also might more even more quality possessions and better efficiency on both ends of the floor. Those are the principles of D'Antoni's offensive philosophy, right? And with more defense and more defensive rebounds, it might work against the more physical teams.

That's my theory, anyway. I would not at all be opposed to a Marion trade involving O'Neal. The question remains if O'Neal even wants to come to Phoenix. He seems dead set on wanting to go to New York -- for reasons that baffle me.

 

[Louis]

Tomic is projected to be in next year's draft.

 

[NastyOne]

O'Neal is freakishly athletic within the lane, but I've never seen him trail a fast break. Also, for a guy with great post-up skills, he has to be one of the worst passing big men who gets 15 or more touches a game.

That said, I don't know why so many here are down on this guy. I think he'd be an improvement over Marion just because he changes the dynamic of this change to something more playoff ready. He has carried teams with half the talent to the playoffs and played very hard, if not capable of carrying a team very far by himself. On the Suns, if playing alongside Amare and with Nash, I think he could be a very good fit. A big key to that is he has dramatically improved his jump shot. He would not be a liability on offense.

A center rotation of O'Neal and KT would be worthy of our attention, I think. It might mean less run-and-gun, but it also might more even more quality possessions and better efficiency on both ends of the floor. Those are the principles of D'Antoni's offensive philosophy, right? And with more defense and more defensive rebounds, it might work against the more physical teams.

That's my theory, anyway. I would not at all be opposed to a Marion trade involving O'Neal. The question remains if O'Neal even wants to come to Phoenix. He seems dead set on wanting to go to New York -- for reasons that baffle me.

Indiana isnt a uptempo team, so just like Kurt Thomas when he first came here, JO would just have to train for it during camp.

Hes a great athlete so i highly doubt that he would have any problem adjusting to our jail break style of basketball.

And if JO has a chance to play for a legit title contender that also plays a fun brand of basketball, or the New York Knicks. I doubt he puts up a fight to go to the Knicks.

I don't even think its his decision unless he has a no trade clause.

We just need to make a better offer and i doubt the Knicks can offer anything better than Shawn Marion and 1st round draft picks.

 

[Gaddabout]

Tomic is projected to be in next year's draft.

Last I heard he was still in the 2007 draft. I think some people had him projected in both because he was determined not to come over this year.

 

[Gaddabout]

We just need to make a better offer and i doubt the Knicks can offer anything better than Shawn Marion and 1st round draft picks.

No you see why that Atlanta pick was so important. Let's assume for a moment Indiana finds Marion + two late first-round picks enticing. Trading both of those picks now means the Suns will (again) have to rely on free agency to provide depth for the rotation, which is a bigger problem than bolstering the front line. Trading Marion + picks for O'Neal still doesn't address the forward problem (and the likelihood James Jones would be starting at small forward again). Not only are the Suns paying cap tax, they are severely limited to what they can do in free agency because of it.

The only real way to improve the overall quality of this team right now is to hit at least one home run with the late picks. It doesn't have to be a moon shot. It can be a Mickey-Hatcher-just-cleared-the-left-field-wall-at-310-feet variety. Shoot, if they could find a tweener forward that could provide 25 efficient minutes at either small or power forward, the Suns could call this off-season a success.

 

[OldDirtMcGirt]

Eh, not unless we get a perimeter defender and a rebounder in addition.

 

[NastyOne]

The only real way to improve the overall quality of this team right now is to hit at least one home run with the late picks. It doesn't have to be a moon shot. It can be a Mickey-Hatcher-just-cleared-the-left-field-wall-at-310-feet variety. Shoot, if they could find a tweener forward that could provide 25 efficient minutes at either small or power forward, the Suns could call this off-season a success.

There is no one that can be had late in the draft that will improve us more than the upgrade of Jermaine O'Neal for Shawn Marion.

Another deal to sure up our forward position would be to trade Diaw, ATL pick in 2008 and Marcus Banks for Corey Maggette and Tim Thomas after July 1st.

And its basically Diaw and a possible lottery pick for Maggette.(Could happen )

And our trash for their trash in Banks for Tim Thomas. LAC need a PG with Livingston done for the year and Tim Thomas has probably already worn out his welcome.


O'Neal
Amare
Maggette
Bell/Barbosa
Nash

Tim & Kurt Thomas, James Jones, Barbosa/Bell & Vet Min FA

 

[Louis]

Last I heard he was still in the 2007 draft. I think some people had him projected in both because he was determined not to come over this year.

Looks like you're right...

Balkan Early Entrant Draft Prospects
May 22, 2007
Ante Tomic put his name in and will likely remain in the draft, or at least that’s what him and his agent have told DraftExpress lately. Ante also said recently in an interview for a Croatian newspaper that he will not be heading for the NBA next season even if he gets picked 1st or last in the draft, because he doesn’t feel he is ready for the NBA competition.

With that being said, there is a legitimate question why he decided to apply for the draft this year, especially with the very strong class for big men and opportunity to improve his stock in the upcoming season. One possible reason could be the possibility of securing himself a spot in a friendly situation (like New Jersey or Utah for example) for when he does decide to come over, while there are also a couple of teams with multiple picks in the first round who could afford to wait on him.

Speaking of the current season, Tomic has been solid, but unspectacular, delivering some magnificent games, but generally not showing much progress in the two biggest areas of concern - body strength and defensive rebounding. His offensive game is coming along pretty nicely since he became a focal point of Zagreb’s offense this season, already showing impressive versatility and an intriguing skill-set.

http://www.draftexpress.com/viewprofile.php?p=257

PS

Roy Hibbert is supposed to pull out of this draft.

 

[OldDirtMcGirt]

There is no one that can be had late in the draft that will improve us more than the upgrade of Jermaine O'Neal for Shawn Marion.

Another deal to sure up our forward position would be to trade Diaw, ATL pick in 2008 and Marcus Banks for Corey Maggette and Tim Thomas after July 1st.

And its basically Diaw and a possible lottery pick for Maggette.(Could happen )

And our trash for their trash in Banks for Tim Thomas. LAC need a PG with Livingston done for the year and Tim Thomas has probably already worn out his welcome.


O'Neal
Amare
Maggette
Bell/Barbosa
Nash

Tim & Kurt Thomas, James Jones, Barbosa/Bell & Vet Min FA

O'Neal is a complete East Coast center. I'm not really sure how he's going to be improving the team, because he wants the offense run through him. Plus, if we do trade Marion for O'Neal, we get the distinct pleasure of watching Parker destroy Nash next year. Not very appealing.

 

[Divide Et Impera]

As opposed to Parker destroying Marion? Did you see Parker at the rim all series long? Did you see him slicing through our "defense" and dropping the ball in at the bucket with ease over as many as 3 guys? Did you see Parker drilling outside shots over Marion?

Marion's D is a myth, IMO. How many times do we need to see tweeners who average 12ppg put up 33 against Marion before we realize he ain't all he's cracked up to be?

Is he a great hustle player? Absolutely! Is he a great loose ball rebounder? Definitely! Can he occasionally block shots of bigger players due to his quick leaping ability? Undoubtedly! Is he good at leaking into the passing lanes and snagging an ill-advised pass? No question!

I'm not sold on his man "defense" whatsoever, though. Too many people have lit him up over the years and while he collectively will get some highlight plays throughout a game, if you look at the aggregate result, it ain't pretty....

 

[slinslin]

Umm IF we got O'Neal (which we won't because he is too expensive) the offense would certainly not run through him but I would hardly worry about Parker that much anymore because O'Neal is a great shotblocker , with him and Amare inside we wouldn't have to worry about penetration that much.
Besides like others already said Parker destroyed Marion anyway.

Lets not forget our main goals this offseason will be

1. Trade Thomas or Diaw to a team that is under the cap to reduce the luxury tax hit.
2. Fill out our roster with good cheap players, possibly trading Shawn Marion for 2-3 good role players and a pick.

 

[NastyOne]

O'Neal is a complete East Coast center. I'm not really sure how he's going to be improving the team, because he wants the offense run through him. Plus, if we do trade Marion for O'Neal, we get the distinct pleasure of watching Parker destroy Nash next year. Not very appealing.

What exactly is a "East Coast Center"

Hes played in one system basically his entire career, so you cant say for sure he wont beable to adjust.

Hell he wants to go to New York and they have one of the biggest ballhogs in the NBA in Marbury.

And i'd rather have JO sending Parkers shot back into the stands, than Marion chasing Parker around just to give him a layup, wide open shot or easy score for someone else.

Having Amare and JO defend the paint will mean we can hide Nash's weaknesses on defense with two legit shotblockers, even more so in O'Neals case since hes one of the best in the NBA at blocking shots.

 

[Divide Et Impera]

Bingo!

 

[OldDirtMcGirt]

As opposed to Parker destroying Marion? Did you see Parker at the rim all series long? Did you see him slicing through our "defense" and dropping the ball in at the bucket with ease over as many as 3 guys? Did you see Parker drilling outside shots over Marion?

Marion's D is a myth, IMO. How many times do we need to see tweeners who average 12ppg put up 33 against Marion before we realize he ain't all he's cracked up to be?

Is he a great hustle player? Absolutely! Is he a great loose ball rebounder? Definitely! Can he occasionally block shots of bigger players due to his quick leaping ability? Undoubtedly! Is he good at leaking into the passing lanes and snagging an ill-advised pass? No question!

I'm not sold on his man "defense" whatsoever, though. Too many people have lit him up over the years and while he collectively will get some highlight plays throughout a game, if you look at the aggregate result, it ain't pretty....

For a couple games in that series, Marion locked down Parker. While I agree Marion is overrated in regards to man on man defense, he's still a whole lot better than Nash.

And O'Neal is incredibly injury prone, and I'm not sure how'd he fit being the third option on a team. He'd probably much rather go to LA where he doesn't have to live in the shadow of Stoudemire, and where the system fits him better.

 

[Divide Et Impera]

Look. One of the biggest reasons we lost the SA series is because we couldn't run our motion offense because of the size SA had in the interior. On the other hand, SA could drive on us at will and completely run their offense due to our LACK of size on the interior. What does that ultimately tell you? Does it say that we just need to be patient and wait till next year to hope that Marion can chase Parker around a little better? Or does it say that we need to be able to pack the paint a bit in the playoffs?