Tuesday Bolts – 7.29.14
Mitch McGary: “This is the fit for me and I’m happy overall with where I ended up. Hopefully we have a bunch of veteran big guys that I learn from, Nick Collison, Kendrick Perkins, Serge [Ibaka] and even [second-year center] Steven [Adams]. He taught me how to play defense against [Brooklyn’s] Mason Plumlee [in the summer league.] It helped out.”
Amin Elhassan of ESPN Insider on the 2015 free agent class: “Gasol’s impending unrestricted free-agent status also sets him apart from Love and Aldridge. Memphis still has the inside track to retain Gasol, given an ability to offer a 7.5 percent raise and a fifth year. But Gasol, who will find plenty of teams interested once he hits free agency next summer, might find it difficult not to test the market. The New York Knicks will try to lure Gasol with the promise of the triangle offense, the scheme that helped Pau transform from a Memphis outcast into a champion. Heading to New York would also allow Gasol to play alongside an elite scorer in Carmelo Anthony as well as Spanish national teammate Jose Calderon.”
More Tibor Pleiss drama with the German national team coach saying he’s near an NBA deal.
Berry Tramel: “The Thunder ranked second in NBA offense (points per possession) in both 2011-12 and 2012-13 but slipped to seventh last season. Points per possession is the best way to gauge an offense (or defense), and the Thunder slipped to 1.081 points per possession last season, after averaging 1.102 the year before. A team with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook wouldn’t seem to have to worry too much about offense. But few NBA teams win a championship without being elite at both offense and defense. The Thunder offense needs to be at its 2013 level, not its 2014 level.”
Kevin Pelton takes a look at the 2015 free agent market.
Here’s Bill Simmons trashing on the Thunder for like 15 minutes.
Rob Mahoney of SI.com evaluating superstar trades: “What’s most important in the Harden case, though, isn’t some reflection of what might have been. It’s a reminder of the greater influence of the unknown. Teams in a position to deal a star can carefully engineer the perfect trade package, fit with prospects and picks and able veterans. So much of the final judgment, though, comes down to factors far beyond their control. Other teams will zig and zag in a way that influences draft pick value. The lottery balls will bounce to create or diminish opportunity. There’s only so much that can be done to hedge against risk, as trading a sure-thing superstar necessarily veers into uncertainty.”
