I've been thinking about what the Suns will do this offseason, if they don't wind up with Kobe or Emeka Okafor.
This is what they've got to work with:
$8-10m in cap room
Rights to Vujanic
Mid-lotto pick
Mid-first round pick (NYK)
The thing is, they don't seem to have a lot of needs at the moment:
Starting center
Platoon PG
Backup SG?
Center is the biggie--as it has been for the entire history of the Suns franchise, seemingly. The team has had a lot of success in developing guards, so depth there can be acquired in the draft.
The problem is, there aren't any centers in the draft (besides Okafor) who could step on the court this year--or next year, or possibly the year after--and be good enough to qualify as an average NBA starting center. I'm also not impressed with what I've seen of next year's free agent class, aside from McGrady and his tricky back.
The Suns have Lampe, but he's 18 and his defense is probably nonexistent right now. Besides, the team likes Cabarkapa and Barbosa better than Lampe, and both of them could easily be coming off the bench for the next few years (after Vujanic arrives).
So, I'm starting to think that the Suns should collect their spare change, and offer Mehmet Okur a 6 yr/$80 million contract on the first day of free agency.
Okur can score inside and outside, and he's tough on the boards. He did a great job leading his team in the Euro championships last year. Also, he's still young and improving.
He's slow and not the best defender, but so what? The Suns (and their fans) know what it's like to play 4.5-on-5 on offense, and they know all about getting killed on defense and on the boards when they play without a legitimate center. Playing Okur at center would give the Suns most of the advantages of small ball without having to suffer most of the consequences.
Okur can play center and play basketball at the same time, and $80m is just about the going rate for those kinds of players. (It's worth it, too--ask Sacramento how they feel about blowing all their cash on Brad Miller last summer.) I think he'd be a great fit with Amare and the rest of the team.
If Detroit manages to clear enough cap room to match, then good for them. If not, the Suns can spend their high pick on Andre Iguodala and use their later pick on a long-term project like Peja Samardzski or Al Jefferson, or they could trade it away to move Howard Eisley.
Thoughts?
This is what they've got to work with:
$8-10m in cap room
Rights to Vujanic
Mid-lotto pick
Mid-first round pick (NYK)
The thing is, they don't seem to have a lot of needs at the moment:
Starting center
Platoon PG
Backup SG?
Center is the biggie--as it has been for the entire history of the Suns franchise, seemingly. The team has had a lot of success in developing guards, so depth there can be acquired in the draft.
The problem is, there aren't any centers in the draft (besides Okafor) who could step on the court this year--or next year, or possibly the year after--and be good enough to qualify as an average NBA starting center. I'm also not impressed with what I've seen of next year's free agent class, aside from McGrady and his tricky back.
The Suns have Lampe, but he's 18 and his defense is probably nonexistent right now. Besides, the team likes Cabarkapa and Barbosa better than Lampe, and both of them could easily be coming off the bench for the next few years (after Vujanic arrives).
So, I'm starting to think that the Suns should collect their spare change, and offer Mehmet Okur a 6 yr/$80 million contract on the first day of free agency.
Okur can score inside and outside, and he's tough on the boards. He did a great job leading his team in the Euro championships last year. Also, he's still young and improving.
He's slow and not the best defender, but so what? The Suns (and their fans) know what it's like to play 4.5-on-5 on offense, and they know all about getting killed on defense and on the boards when they play without a legitimate center. Playing Okur at center would give the Suns most of the advantages of small ball without having to suffer most of the consequences.
Okur can play center and play basketball at the same time, and $80m is just about the going rate for those kinds of players. (It's worth it, too--ask Sacramento how they feel about blowing all their cash on Brad Miller last summer.) I think he'd be a great fit with Amare and the rest of the team.
If Detroit manages to clear enough cap room to match, then good for them. If not, the Suns can spend their high pick on Andre Iguodala and use their later pick on a long-term project like Peja Samardzski or Al Jefferson, or they could trade it away to move Howard Eisley.
Thoughts?