What If We Ignored the Luxury Tax?

[azirish]

The hardest part about figuring out what the Suns should do is trying to improve the team while dealing with the luxury tax. Ths simple truth is that you can reduce the luxury tax to be paid or improve the team; but it is awfully hard to do both.

As it currently stands, the Suns are scheduled to be well over the LT line. This makes all additions over the minimum pretty expensive. But it is hard to improve the team with minimum guys and most trades are likely to be a wash.

If the Suns had been able to take the #4 pick, they would have been committed to pay $2.8 million this next season, that would have been added to the LT. So if they were budgeted to pay $2.8 million, might they use the same money on a free agent on a one year deal?

Most players want more money and longer deals, but it is certainly easier to find someone if you are prepared to pay more than the minimum.http://www1.realgm.com/src_freeagents/2007/

Free Agents
Player Team Type
Esteban Batista Atlanta Restricted F.A.
Royal Ivey Atlanta Restricted F.A.
Slava Medvedenko Atlanta Unrestricted F.A.
Michael Olowokandi Boston Unrestricted F.A.
Alan Anderson Charlotte Restricted F.A.
Derek Anderson Charlotte Unrestricted F.A.
Matt Carroll Charlotte Unrestricted F.A.
Jeff McInnis Charlotte Unrestricted F.A.
Malik Allen Chicago Unrestricted F.A.
Martynas Andriuskevicius Chicago Restricted F.A.
Andre Barrett Chicago Restricted F.A.
P.J. Brown Chicago Unrestricted F.A.
Andres Nocioni Chicago Restricted F.A.
Mike Sweetney Chicago Restricted F.A.
Dwayne Jones Cleveland Restricted F.A.
Aleksandar Pavlovic Cleveland Restricted F.A.
Scot Pollard Cleveland Unrestricted F.A.
Anderson Varejao Cleveland Restricted F.A.
Austin Croshere Dallas Unrestricted F.A.
Jerry Stackhouse Dallas Unrestricted F.A.
Kevin Willis Dallas Unrestricted F.A.
Steve Blake Denver Unrestricted F.A.
DerMarr Johnson Denver Unrestricted F.A.
Jamal Sampson Denver Unrestricted F.A.
Dale Davis Detroit Unrestricted F.A.
Amir Johnson Detroit Restricted F.A.
Chris Webber Detroit Unrestricted F.A.
Kelenna Azubuike Golden State Restricted F.A.
Matt Barnes Golden State Unrestricted F.A.
Zarko Cabarkapa Golden State Restricted F.A.
Mickael Pietrus Golden State Restricted F.A.
Josh Powell Golden State Restricted F.A.
Chuck Hayes Houston Restricted F.A.
Dikembe Mutombo Houston Unrestricted F.A.
Jake Tsakalidis Houston Unrestricted F.A.
Rawle Marshall Indiana Restricted F.A.
Keith McLeod Indiana Unrestricted F.A.
Jason Hart L.A. Clippers Unrestricted F.A.
Yaroslav Korolev L.A. Clippers Unrestricted F.A.
Aaron McKie L.A. Lakers Unrestricted F.A.
Chris Mihm L.A. Lakers Unrestricted F.A.
Smush Parker L.A. Lakers Unrestricted F.A.
Luke Walton L.A. Lakers Unrestricted F.A.
Shammond Williams L.A. Lakers Unrestricted F.A.
Chucky Atkins Memphis Unrestricted F.A.
Junior Harrington Memphis Unrestricted F.A.
Dahntay Jones Memphis Restricted F.A.
Lawrence Roberts Memphis Restricted F.A.
Earl Barron Miami Restricted F.A.
Eddie Jones Miami Unrestricted F.A.
Jason Kapono Miami Unrestricted F.A.
Gary Payton Miami Unrestricted F.A.
James Posey Miami Unrestricted F.A.
Charlie Bell Milwaukee Restricted F.A.
Ersan Ilyasova Milwaukee Restricted F.A.
Ruben Patterson Milwaukee Unrestricted F.A.
Jared Reiner Milwaukee Restricted F.A.
Maurice Williams Milwaukee Unrestricted F.A.
Bracey Wright Minnesota Restricted F.A.
Eddie House New Jersey Unrestricted F.A.
Mikki Moore New Jersey Unrestricted F.A.
Brandon Bass New Orleans Restricted F.A.
Devin Brown New Orleans Unrestricted F.A.
Marc Jackson New Orleans Unrestricted F.A.
Linton Johnson New Orleans Unrestricted F.A.
Desmond Mason New Orleans Unrestricted F.A.
Kelvin Cato New York Unrestricted F.A.
Travis Diener Orlando Restricted F.A.
Grant Hill Orlando Unrestricted F.A.
Darko Milicic Orlando Restricted F.A.
Bo Outlaw Orlando Unrestricted F.A.
Alan Henderson Philadelphia Unrestricted F.A.
Joe Smith Philadelphia Unrestricted F.A.
Pat Burke Phoenix Restricted F.A.
Jumaine Jones Phoenix Unrestricted F.A.
Sean Marks Phoenix Unrestricted F.A.
Jalen Rose Phoenix Unrestricted F.A.
Jamaal Magloire Portland Unrestricted F.A.
Travis Outlaw Portland Restricted F.A.
Luke Schenscher Portland Restricted F.A.
Ime Udoka Portland Unrestricted F.A.
Vitaly Potapenko Sacramento Unrestricted F.A.
Ronnie Price Sacramento Restricted F.A.
Justin Williams Sacramento Restricted F.A.
Corliss Williamson Sacramento Unrestricted F.A.
Matt Bonner San Antonio Restricted F.A.
Melvin Ely San Antonio Unrestricted F.A.
Jacque Vaughn San Antonio Unrestricted F.A.
Andre Brown Seattle Restricted F.A.
Danny Fortson Seattle Unrestricted F.A.
Rashard Lewis Seattle Unrestricted F.A.
Randy Livingston Seattle Unrestricted F.A.
Mike Wilks Seattle Unrestricted F.A.
Darrick Martin Toronto Unrestricted F.A.
Morris Peterson Toronto Unrestricted F.A.
Uros Slokar Toronto Restricted F.A.
Pape Sow Toronto Restricted F.A.
Rafael Araujo Utah Unrestricted F.A.
Dee Brown Utah Restricted F.A.
CJ Miles Utah Restricted F.A.
Andray Blatche Washington Restricted F.A.
Calvin Booth Washington Unrestricted F.A.
Mike Hall Washington Restricted F.A.
Jarvis Hayes Washington Restricted F.A.
Roger Mason Washington Unrestricted F.A.
Michael Ruffin Washington Unrestricted F.A.
Donell Taylor Washington Restricted F.A.

I'm thinking someone like Joe Smith of the Sixers might be worth picking up if the cost is not out of line.

 

[tobiazz]

Posey, Eddie Jones, and Mutombo would be great in certain situations. Pretty sure Jones and Mutombo will stick with their teams. What's the story on Yaroslav Korolev? The Clipps took him pretty high (around 11 or so).

 

[elindholm]

Hoopshype today has an item about Ely regretting his decision to pass up the Suns last summer. I really don't think he'd help much, but for a small salary, he's probably a better prospect than most on that list.

Joe Smith would be great, but probably someone will give him the MLE. He's still only 31 and has shown a great ability to make a solid contribution wherever he goes. If the Suns really had no financial worries, I'd throw the full MLE at him at the first available opportunity.

 

[Mainstreet]

A few players caught my eye among others: Devin Brown, Jerry Stackhouse, PJ Brown and Steve Blake.

 

[Cheesebeef]

A few players caught my eye among others: Devin Brown, Jerry Stackhouse, PJ Brown and Steve Blake.

I don't think Stack would ever come here, although he'd be perfect IMO. And PJ Brown ain't gonna take a million dollars to only play 11 games throughout the entire season (4 reg and 7 post-season against SA). I'm thinking he's got more self-worth than that.

not a fan of Blake or Brown.

 

[Black Jesus]

then three years from now we would be the Atlanta Hawks or Boston Celtics.

 

[Black Jesus]

Andre Blatche interests me, but he just needs to put on weight.

 

[Divide Et Impera]

A few players caught my eye among others: Devin Brown, Jerry Stackhouse, PJ Brown and Steve Blake.

I think we ought to go all out for Blake somehow or another. It sure would be nice to keep Nash around 30-32 minutes next year and have Blake around for about 20-22 (run Nash and Blake together in spots with Nash at the 2). I don't see how anything can happen, though.

I'd love to see a reasonable s&t with DEN for Blake, but there are so many barriers to that even being a remote reality. First of all, we are a direct obstacle to DEN and all we have are horrible contracts to offer in trade (Diaw or Banks? Yeah right.).

 

[Divide Et Impera]

My picks:

Definitely Blake, but why not also look at Jason Hart who had a stellar year a couple years back?

SG/SF - Carroll, Jarvis Hayes

SF - Barnes!!!!, Rashard Lewis

PF/C - Blatche, Williamson

C - PJ Brown, Ely, Malik Allen, Mihm

If we were able to sign Blake, Hayes, Williamson and Mihm, I'd be happy as hell going into next season, but I know there is no possible way we could do that, but the whole premise of this thread is to ignore the LT....

Nash-Blake-Banks
Bell-Barbosa
Marion-Hayes-Jones
Stoudemire-Diaw-Williamson
Splitter(#24/#29 for #15)-Thomas-Mihm

 

[azirish]

It is so hard to judge guys playing in other systems it's ridiculous. Sometimes a player stuck in a bad system like Stephen Jackson goes from a disaster to star almost instantly, but the number of guys who have moved and had much worse stats is very high (Banks and Jumaine are two excellant examples).

For example, Magloire went from an all star to a backup on a bad team in just a few years. I can't see him being able to run with the Suns, but you'd have to think he could be a hot commodity in the MLE market this summer.

 

[NastyOne]

Ignoring the Lux tax this is what i would do.

Do a sign and trade with Denver for Steve Blake where we give up Marcus Banks and PHX 08 1st Rounder.

Trade James Jones and #29 in 07 to Seattle for Johan Petro and #35 in 07 Draft

Sign Matt Barnes using the MLE.

Draft Marco Belinelli at #24

Draft Sean Williams at #35 (2nd Round contract so no risk)

Lineup

PG: Steve Nash, Steve Blake
SG: Raja Bell, Leandro Barbosa, Marco Belinelli
SF: Matt Barnes, Boris Diaw
PF: Shawn Marion, Sean Williams
C: Amare Stoudemire, Johan Petro, Kurt Thomas

Thats a deep team with a little bit of everything that has a hellva chance of finally grabbing a title.

*The only small deal that i would make to mess with the core would be Diaw for Artest, where Artest would start at SF and move Barnes to the bench.But i didnt want to seem to greedy and we already have one knuckle-head in Sean Williams so i left it out. *

Hopefully Sarver says screw the tax and goes all out this summer.

 

[azirish]

Ignoring the Lux tax this is what i would do.

Do a sign and trade with Denver for Steve Blake where we give up Marcus Banks and PHX 08 1st Rounder.

Trade James Jones and #29 in 07 to Seattle for Johan Petro and #35 in 07 Draft

I like Petro, but really doubt they'd bite even if they get Oden.

Sign Matt Barnes using the MLE.

I liked what I saw of Barnes, but then again I liked Banks when he was a Timberwolf. The number of guys who got big contracts based on a strong tournament but didn't do as well later is pretty large.

Draft Marco Belinelli at #24

"Weaknesses: Defensively he may struggle to defend more athletic shooting guards as his lateral quickness is average at best … " per nbadraft.net

Draft Sean Williams at #35 (2nd Round contract so no risk)

http://nbadraft.net/admincp/profiles/seanwilliams.html
"Weakness: Off the court behavior got him repeatedly suspended and ultimately kicked off the BC team halfway through his junior season ... His work ethic and commitment to basketball are very much in question, and his dismissal surely cost his draft stock consideerably ... Doesn’t always play the game with intensity often it’s not uncommon for him to get out worked by players with lesser talent … Despite having all the physical tools, Williams is not a good out of position rebounder due to his unwillingness to hustle … Suffers from a lack of focus, at times it doesn’t seem like he is interested in playing … Could stand to bulk up and add more upper body strength to his physique … Tends to get pushed away from the basket when posting up because of this … Doesn’t always take care of the ball when executing his moves on offense as he is prone to strips … Still learning the game so his basketball IQ isn’t the best … Has a tendency to pick-up fouls with regularity … Can be a little too aggressive for his on good on defense … Would benefit from continuing to expand his offensive game facing the basket"

 

[dodie53]

sean williams = eddie griffin?

 

[Forrestham]

I say dont sign anyone unless you will play them. Otehrwise you may as well just get a couple of CBA scrubs on the end of the bench. There is no reason to have more than 12 players on the roster

 

[azirish]

I say dont sign anyone unless you will play them. Otehrwise you may as well just get a couple of CBA scrubs on the end of the bench. There is no reason to have more than 12 players on the roster

Actually the collective bargaining agreement requires 13.

In a practical sense, young players are easier to trade than old veterans - if they have some talent. They generally have relatively small contracts and hope springs eternal that someone will get discovered who was hiding behind a veteran.

 

[Ollie]

sean williams = eddie griffin?

Does he have a SUV?

 

[azirish]

Back to the topic, I was wondering if there is any interest in Chucky Atkins?

 

[dodie53]

chucky?

he is a shoot first PG right?

 

[azirish]

chucky?

he is a shoot first PG right?

Probably. I only saw him a couple of times this season and it seemed like he was a pretty good on the ball defender and shot very well against the Suns.

Realistically, there aren't many pass first PG's in the NBA who can shoot at all - and none are likely to be available. That's why I was looking for someone who could contrbute rather than worrying about the fact the Chris Pauls isn't going to get traded.

 

[dodie53]

atkins > banks
imo..

a like PG that can shoot the 3..
but i dislike a PG that has a mentality that he needs 20 shots per gameto be effective..