Update: Gortat to sign with Dallas; Rubio to stay in Spain

Brandon Bass scores (and that has value in a big). He has weak adjusted +/- but his individual defense is surprisingly good. I haven't seen him enough to judge or set a price. Under discussed. Especially compared to Milsap.

@Vega

You must be joking.

A sign n trade Milsap for Collison might appeal to OKC, SLC, Milsap and Collison. If the numbers on the Milsap contract work out. And Presti knows what he wants to do with Green.

As indicated earlier I don't think Gasol is available.

He will be quite sought after when he becomes a free agent in a few years. Wouldn't be surprised if he goes to LA to join (or replace) his brother.

Often you have to give up a big to get a better big.

I hadn't looked at Zaza recently. I was all for signing him back summer in 2005. He was at career bests on FG% and rebounding last season. Just 25. Not sure he'd change things but he'd be alright and an asset and allow Presti to consider trades.

I will be very surprised if we are able to land Millsap. Utah seems pretty set on resigning him no matter the cost.

@CoachJ
I think it would more likely be someone like White than Collison. As for salaries, Gasol doesn't make much, so Memphis wouldn't want to take back extra money if they could help it. In any case, I can't imagine the price being all that high for a disgruntled backup (now at least). I have a feeling Detroit is looking at him in a deal with Hamilton, but it would be sweet to get him here.

I think that is a very viable option with Marc Gasol. However, what price are the Thunder willing to give up for him. How much would it take to get him? If it involved any combinations of Watson, Weaver, any 2nd round picks then I'd be up for it, but I don't want to lose Collison. I believe veterans such as him and Desmond Mason are invaluable to a team--especially when the veterans work as hard as Collison and Mason do. It just sends the right message to all newcomers to the team when they see what the expectations are. Besides, they seem to fit Presti's profile of a Thunder player.

@CoachJ
Phoenix falling on its face would be beautiful.

Hopefully, Phoenix crashes hard this year so that next year's pick of theirs, which I believe belongs to the Thunder, could be used to draft a legitimate inside presence, or at least as trade bait to get what is needed. Perhaps, Cole Aldrich. I like his potential.

Question, what do you think about Marc Gasol. Now to be fair, I doubt he is being shopped. But, with the way he wants out (notoriously bad treatment of his big bro), and the way they just set themselves up to have new starters at both the 4 and 5, he probably doesn't figure prominently into Memphis' plans. He's a tough center, very young, athletic, a pretty good rebounder, and a post player. I would hope Presti is at least looking into his availability.

Why are we shopping for a tweener that has only shown 1/2 of a good season? I would have liked Gortat because he showed some strong promise backing up Howard. I wish they would pick up Camby from the Clippers for a year just to secure the inside until we can make a play at someone more significant next summer.

Or even Kwame Brown? (help us baby Jesus)... as a second option at the 5

Has anyone looked at Brandon Bass?... as an alternative to the higher priced Millsap.

According to the ESPN trade machine, Chucky Atkins and Nick Collison for Chris Kaman works financially. I think that would work well for both teams.

@J-W
Chris Kaman rumors were floating around a little while ago. I wouldn't mind having him, so long as it didn't require giving up anything but expiring contracts/Nick Collison.

Also, I think if he was taken by a different team that was in a better situation then Minnesota and its 15 point guards, Rubio would be playing in the NBA.

I don't think there is any question we will have a new center on the roster by summers end, now it just appears that will be through trade instead of free agency.

@John
But seriously though... can you imagine the sh__storm that would be raining down on kahn right now if he passed on Rubio twice?

@Joe
I'm just trying to think of another free agent big. I heavily doubt that Presti would sign Frye anyway. We already have a Euro version of him on the roster in Krstic.

Vega :
Channing Frye?

Nothing personal Vega, but Channing Frye sucks. Why do we need another jumpshooting big man who doesn't rebound very well (Green) and doesn't like to play in the paint offensively or defensively?

"My general manager is smarter than your general manager. This is why you do your homework fellas. Crisis averted."

Absolutely.

Being a KU guy, I hate to say it, but I think Nick Collison and Earl Watson are both likley to be shopped pretty hard in the coming months. There was that rumor about Collison being offered to Memphis. I just don't think both he and Watson will be on the team next year, probably just one of them.

All in all, I'm a big Millsap fan because he solidifies the second unit, or he allows Green to be one of the best sixth men in the league. Millsap is a hard worker that just knows how to get things done. In short, he's a winner, and we need guys like that.

@John
Precisely.

@ the folks saying that we didn't necessarily dodge a bullet by passing on Rubio . . . Agreed -- kinda. Things may well have gone fine had we drafted him.

But I think Royce's point is that Minnesota screwed up because they didn't do their homework, which is something having Presti as your GM gives you the luxury of not having to worry about.

@KingGondo
I'm afraid you are probably right- I just don't understand why Presti bothered to contact Gortat if he wasn't willing to offer more than the mid level exception. I could have told him that wouldn't work and saved him the long distance call.

@KingGondo
You saying that made me really happy. When's the last time Big D has done well with their signings/trades? Maybe we did dodge JJ.

@Steve H
You know, maybe we're overblowing this Gortat thing. He might be the next solid center in the league, but he also might be the next Jerome James.

That's a great theory, actually. But I think Dallas won on this one.

Crazy "why the hell Presti didn't try and out bid Dallas" theory/fantasy. Rather than try and out-bid Dallas and ultimately leave it up to Gortat to possibly be lured to the brighter lights of Big D, we let the mid-levelplayers bid it out. Then we ask Orlando to match, and send him to us for Atkins' magic expanding/contracting contract and our first round pick next year. Orlando ultimately buys out Atkins for 760K, avoids dipping into the luxury tax pool, and comes away with a first round pick- as opposed to coming away with nothing. We avoid a bidding war for Gortat, save the 760K it would have cost to buy out Atkins, and are not obligated to pay for an extra mid-level first-rounder next year when our roster is fairly well set (and we already have PHX's in our pocket). Please, pretty please let this be what's going on. I think Sammy is right about the Clippers having little incentive to part with Camby at this point.

I can't wait until the first locker room brawl. http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2009/05/08/alg_kobe-artest.jpg

@Royce
Sitting in a tree.

KingGondo :
Also of interest–Ron Artest has told CBS Sports that he plans on signing with the LAKERS.
Ouch. Rockets lost twice in one day.

Kobe and Ron Ron 4ever!

In spite of the drug issues, I would still love to see the Birdman in Thunder blue... He provides interior defense off the bench, and we know he doesn't mind a bench role.

Also of interest--Ron Artest has told CBS Sports that he plans on signing with the LAKERS.

Ouch. Rockets lost twice in one day.

@Royce
i'd give him 7. and seriously, no on millsap

@MartzMimic
Excellent stuff.

What this is really looking like with Gortat is that we weren't getting him unless we blew the doors off and offered him $7-10M. Which obviously we weren't doing.

I just don't see how Millsap improves us that much honestly.

just say NO to Milsap - please . . .

Check this out:

http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20090702/SPORTS/907020323/1002/SPORTS

With Turkoglu closer to leaving by the day, the Magic now seem intent on keeping the 6-foot-11, 240-pound Gortat in Orlando.
Magic general manager Otis Smith made that clear on Wednesday. The team's willingness to pay the luxury tax for the first time makes Smith confident that Orlando will pay the price to retain Gortat.
"The owner said we can go into tax so that changes things. Once you get clearance to (go beyond the luxury tax threshold), (Gortat) has to go get a deal and let us see what we're comfortable doing," Smith said. "At this point, we're matching everything that comes back to us on him.
"We'd all like to have Marcin back. That goes without saying."

If we can't get Gortat i'm not down for Millsap in the least unless we get rid of Collison. People want their cake and eat it too and if that happens with the Thunder signing Millsap and keeping all other PF's then we're as good as f'kd when it comes to playing time for JG even if he plays 29 mins because I don't see Millsap's ceiling being that much higher than Jeff.

If we're gonna put Jeff on the bench then we need a real upgrade at the 4 spot and that should be the only reason that Jeff goes to the bench, because other than that we're not really improving our team long term or short.

@KingGondo

I must have been typing while your post was clearing!!! Your's is much better! :)

Am I the only one thinking that a "verbal agreement" and a free trip to the big "D" to get wined and dined by Mark Cuban and Co. is all that is really being reported here?!? I wouldn't count us out of the Gortat running so fast. I am fairly certain that Sam Presti knows a few good places with cozy velvet boothes to take an agent/player to! $$$ talks boys and girls, and WE have some to spend! This isn't over.....

If I had photoshop skills, I'd replace Barak with Sam in this picture...

http://catfishandpaddles.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/obama-shark-oops-too-cool.jpg

@KingGondo
that would officially make sam presti my favorite person ever

Making any presumptions about Rubio at this point is going to be an exercise in futility.

No one has any idea what would have happened if the Thunder would have selected Rubio, both negatively or positively. And even though we can't give Presti credit for the Minnesota situation, we can all agree that if there is one thing an intelligent and competent GM hates, is uncertainty.

And after the Tyson Chandler thing, I won't believe any deal is done until I see the person holding up a uniform. Even though it does look a bit bleak for the Polish Hammer to wind up in OKC.

Presti needs to wait until Gortat arrives at DFW airport--then land the THUNDER-CHOPPER between him and the Mavs limo, get out with two huge briefcases of cash (wearing sunglasses, of course) and make him an offer he can't refuse.

Gortat comes to OKC, and everyone lives happily ever after. And Presti is still awesome.

@Keith
That's all certainly true, but I'm assuming Presti put his offer on the table and it didn't match what Dallas threw out. Maybe in the next week Presti ups the ante, but I'm not thinking that's likely.

Also, to be clear:

This doesn't mean Gortat has signed with Dallas. He's just promised to. So technically things could change. Obviously unlikely, but there is a chance.

I posted this on the previous article, but it is worth repeating here.

1) UFAs cannot sign offer sheets (not even actual contracts) until the start of free agency.
2) Dallas can offer no more than the MLE.
3) RFAs are almost always going to sign the largest offer sheet available.
4) It is not just a matter of "if Orlando matches," because Orlando can choose to match the offer then trade Gortat to whomever offers the most afterwards.
5) We can offer the most money to Gortat, meaning his is most likely to sign our offer sheet, meaning if anyone is going to pry Gortat away for nothing, it will be us.

Ah well. At least I can go back to hoping Presti finds a way to get Brook Lopez.

The Millsap deal makes more sense if you consider a three forward rotation with Collison subbing for Krstic. If you give Durant 38-40 a night, that leaves Millsap/Green with 56-58, which works out to 28-29 a piece. Obviously, DJ White gets the shaft in this deal. Not sure I think this is the best course going forward, but I see the reasoning. I don't think you can argue that Millsap improves the team in the front court. If Millsap can be had for 5/35, I'm down.