Is the Golden State of Mind geared towards the here and now...or looking towards the future?

nhlogan — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:39:48 -0000

Hello all. So amidst all the trades, signings, and rumors going around the NBA, including our own rumors regarding Amar'e Stoudemire, I got to thinking about where the Warriors as a franchise want to be this season, next season, and a few seasons down the road. I feel that we have a very talented young core group of guys that can develop over these next few years and help us become a championship-caliber team. But I also think we are going to need some upgrades over that course of time to ultimately reach our goal. So I'm wondering how many of you think those upgrades need to come soon (as in now) and how many of you think its better to wait until next off-season's plethora of free agents to become available? In my opinion, the free agent market as of now is dismal to say the least and not to mention a lot of teams aren't willing to part with thier good players right now. The top tier 2009 free agents all seem to already have a home: Kobe and Odom are staying with the Lakers, Boozer's staying with the Jazz, Hedo is getting heavily woo'd by the Blazers and as is Kidd by the Mavs and Knicks. There are some other free agents that haven't found a home yet including Varejao, Ariza, Wallace, and Hill, but I just don't think any of them match up with what the Warriors are looking for or need right now. But do you guys think its safe to enter the season where we're at right now? And if so, but we still end up having a mediocre season, what are the most important changes to be made? I'm going to list all of the free agents that become available in 2010 and I would love to see all of your feedback on who you think would help put our team above and beyond the rest. Don't be afraid to think outside the box and think about drastic changes to the team (for example trading Monta). After all, this is just for fun!

(2010 free agent list obtained from www.hoopsworld.com)

So, let's break into a few categories. First up, let's start with the stars whose contracts expire following the 2009-2010 season and will then become honest-to-goodness free agents:

Joe Johnson
Ray Allen
Manu Ginobili
Marcus Camby
Tracey McGrady
Shaquille O'Neal
Brad Miller
Stephen Jackson
Jermaine O'Neal
Mike Miller
Rip Hamilton

Chris Bosh

Amar'e Stoudemire

The next grouping is those players that are signed thru 2011, but can opt out in 2010 if they so choose:

Yao Ming (owed 17.7 million in 10/11)
Amare Stoudamire (owed 17.7 million in 10/11)
LeBron James (owed 17.2 million in 10/11)
Dwayne Wade (owed 17.0 million in 10/11)
Chris Bosh (owed 17.1 million in 10/11)
Dirk Nowitzki (owed $21.5 million in 10/11)
Josh Howard (owed $11.8 million in 10/11)
Mike Redd (owed $18.3 million in 10/11)
Tyson Chandler (owed $12.8 million in 10/11)

This next list consists of contracts that are set to expire in 2010, but the player may choose to opt-out following the 2008-2009 season:
Steve Nash (owed $13.1 million in 09-10)
Carlos Boozer (owed $12.7 million in 09-10) SIGNED WITH JAZZ
Chris Paul (owed $6 million in 09-10 / almost certain to sign an extension before becoming unrestricted) SIGNED WITH HORNETS
Memo Okur (owed $9.0 million in 09-10)
Hedo Turkoglu (owed $7.4 million in 09-10)

In addition to the superstars listed above, these 'second-tier' players are set to hit the open market as well:
Ben Wallace
Larry Hughes
Zydrunas Ilgauskas (option to opt-out after 09/10 season)
Anderson Varejao (option to opt-out after 09/10 season)
Al Harrington
Darko Milicic - TRADED TO KNICKS
Udonis Haslem
Jamal Crawford (option to opt-out after 09/10 season) - TRADED TO HAWKS
Eddy Curry (option to opt-out after 09/10 season)
Amir Johnson
Derek Fisher
Raja Bell
T.J. Ford (player option - owed $8.5 million in 10/11)
Travis Outlaw
Bruce Bowen
Earl Watson
Luke Ridnour
Matt Harpring
Quentin Richardson - TRADED TO GRIZZLIES
Damien Wilkins

We also must include the list of players that will actually eventually have value due solely to the fact their contracts come off the books in the summer of 2010:
Jerome James (proof that Isiah Thomas knew what he was doing all along!)
Cuttino Mobley
Brendan Haywood
Tim Thomas
Brian Cardinal
Antonio Davis
Mark Blount
Bobby Simmons
Troy Hudson
Darius Miles
Kenny Thomas
Shareef Abdul-Rahim
Matt Bonner
Etan Thomas

Last, but not least, we have the 2006 Draft Class. These players will all be restricted free-agents in 2010, if they haven't already been inked to extensions:
Brandon Roy
Rudy Gay
LaMarcus Aldridge
Andrea Bargnani
Rajon Rondo
Tyrus Thomas
Kyle Lowry
Randy Foye
Marcus Williams
Josh Boone
Renaldo Balkman
Sergio Rodriguez
Ronnie Brewer

I am anxious to see what you all come up with and who you think best fits the WARRIORS

HAHA Hossa

nhlogan — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:39:49 -0000

Hahah wow. I would HATE to be this guy right now. His whole decline starts when he's a star player on a great Penguins team that unfortunately lost to the Red Wings in the Stanley Cup finals last season. Instead of realizing that his Penguins have no where to go but up because of all their young talent, he opts to join their rival the Red Wings, assuming he has a better chance to win the Stanley Cup with them. His disloyal plan works nicely throughout the season and playoffs until they reach the Stanley Cup finals versus, guess who, his old Penguins squad. I'm sure Hossa, being the douche he is, thought he still had the advantage to win Lord Stanley's Cup but in the end, his old Pittsburgh team won it in 7 games and he had to watch Crosby hoist the Cup instead of the other way around. If there were ever a more perfect time for The Simpsons character Nelson to say "HA-HA", it would have been then.

Now on to my point. Hossa, being the ulti-douche he is, I guess had had enough losing and decided to leave yet another championship-caliber team. This time he opted to join the [still playoff-worthy] Blackhawks in a whopping 12 YEAR deal. When I first read this I thought, "What an ass, but hey the Blackhawks were pretty good with Khabibulin and all maybe the addition of Hossa will help finally get them/him a championship". Boy was I wrong. That same day (today), Nikolai Khabibulin left his former Blackhawks and signed a 4 year deal with the Edmonton Oilers. HAH!!! God I would absolutely despise my life if I was Hossa! He signs a 12 year deal with a team that had a great core and an unbeleiveable goalie in Khabibulin, just to have him leave before he even gets there! I pretty much laughed out loud at work after I read all that news. Serves you right Hossa I hope you never get your championship. You should have stayed with the Penguins.

This is why they used to behead people for dishonesty and treason back in the middle ages. Because look where it gets you...NOWHERE!! And now you're stuck in one of THE most annoying sports cities in the world: Chicago. I shudder thinking about all those annoying Chicagoan fans with their annoying accents and the annoying way they think their teams are good even though none of them have won a championship in ages. JUSTICE. IS. SERVED.

Poll

How do you feel about Hossa?

HAH! Serves him right!

49 votes

He's a douche but I wish him well with the Blackhawks

37 votes

I feel kind of bad for the guy

26 votes