It's not quite the end of the NBA season (I'm hoping it ends tonight so my prediction of Spurs in 6 can come true) but I'm jumping ahead to the NBA summer session which begins promptly after the champagne is drying on the carpet of the winning lockerroom.
I saw this online today and it blew my mind:
"The Cavs took the first step in their wholesale rebuilding by declining to pick up options on Robert 'Tractor' Traylor and Lucious Harris. They are expected to renounce all their free agents, including center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, in order to get at least $26 million -- and perhaps up to $30 million -- under the salary cap if the new agreement increases it. -- Chicago Tribune"
Why exactly would the Cavs renounce their rights to Big Z? Who is running the ship over there in Cleveland (that's a trick question -- they actually fired everyone in the building so, technically, the janitor is running the team). Why, why, why on earth would they get rid of a big man who can score inside and outside and who, finally, has been able to stay healthy enough to average 80 games over the last 3 seasons. His 3 year averages of 46.2 FG%, 77.7 FT%, 16.4 ppg, 8.04 rpg, 2.15 bpg make him no worse than the Eastern Conference's 3rd best center (after Shaq and Jermaine O'Neal) in a conference devoid of impact big men. He's a 2-time all-star, he led the NBA in offensive rebounds in 2005 and he just turned 30 last week. He's ABSOLUTELY a keeper in my mind. Unless LeBron specifically told management that he doesn't want Z around or unless Z was caught banging Dan Gilbert's wife in the corporate jet, there's no reason to jettison him for the pipe dream of signing Michael Redd of the Bucks.
If history in the NBA has shown us anything, it's that you need at least a token big man presence if you want to go deep into the playoffs. MJ wouldn't have won his rings if he didn't have Ho Grant, Dennis Rodman and the 6 headed monster (Wennington, Perdue, Cartwright, Longley, Williams/Dele and Buddha Edwards). Somehow, I don't see Drew Gooden and Big Z's replacement as championship pedigree.
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8 comments:
Mo raises a tough question for us Cleveland fans. When Z is on, he's probably the best offensive center in the East next to Shaq and O'neil. However Z has two key problems: 1) his defense is awful. He has no lateral movement, he can't figure out pick n' rolls, and his defensive rebounding is often suspect. The other problem is that he is a streaky player. I'm not entirely sure what happened but part of the reason the Cavs season went down the toilets was that Z just stopped scoring. Couldn't explain why, he just did. My preference is that the Cavs get a real PF instead of Gooden to handle the defensive middle however I would not be averse to a sign and trade with Z. Finally it depends on the asking price. The Cavs are NOT a player or two from winning a championship and Paxson has depleted any sort of potential use of the draft (no draft picks this year, and maybe next year as well).
For the record nobody is in charge o f the Cavs although apparently Danny Ferry will be named the new GM in the next few days. Until that happens any rumor on the fate of Z in my mind is mere speculation. Hart can maybe shed some light on the accouracy of Tribune reporting but I don't buy that any final decision has been made about Z.
Danny Ferry as GM? The first question I'd ask him at his press conference is if he'd have drafted himself #2 in 1989.
Also, Mike, I'm pretty sure that once you renounce someone's rights, you can't do a sign-and-trade. If the Trib article is to be believed, then the Cavs are making a monumental mistake in killing the leverage of Z's trade market. Whatever deficiencies Z may have on the defensive end, it's not worth it to just cut him loose.
If the Knicks are smart (they're not), they'll sign him and let him score opposite Marbury and Crawford on the outside.
PS -- I don't watch enough Cavs games to comment but I don't think the Cavs folded down the stretch because of Z. I think they had erratic guard play, a bench that didn't provide enough relief for the starters, a terrible and unnecessary coaching change and a star player that played less than 40 minutes only three times in the team's last 27 games (including 8 full games). LBJ may have averaged 31 ppg in the last 2 months of the season but he must have been too bloody exhausted to get the team into the playoffs.
The Cavs fold was multicausal. Horrific poing guard play, no bench, no outside shooting and no defense. The firing of Silas I think was over-rated by the national media as a cause. Z was part of the collapse though in that his numbers took a dip the last few months. The last month of the season when Lebron desperately needed somebody else Z's numbers plummeted down to 12 points and 3 defensive rebounds a game.
I agree that to take themselves out of the free agent sweepstakes now would at minimium make it easier and less costly for some other team to sign Z. There's nothing to be gained from renouncing any intention of going after Z at this moment. However would I sign Z for a huge contract? Probably not.
i can't believe i missed all this stuff on the cavs. the lesson: check the blog every 2 hours.
Anyways, just to weigh in real quick, as I said a few weeks ago, a sign-and-trade with "Z" MAY be the best option for the Cavs, as long as a capable defensive-center is returned (and a sweet PG/PF/SG). Z is certainly the 3rd best center in the East but the main question is whether he could actually last the 6 years of the next contract.
The Cavs collapse was due to all of the things mentioned in combination, but the biggest reason was the point guard play. Everyone has already forgotten this, but McInnis was putting up the best numbers of his CAREER in the 1st half. Granted, even something average in the second half would have allowed the Cavs to win a couple more games.
I agree that Silas' firing was overblown by the national media but I don't discout it as a reason for the team's collapse down the stretch. It was a distraction for the team to answer all those questions about it and the disruption, however minimal, still affected the team when they could least afford to think about anything other than winning games.
Also, for the record, Z's stats for the his last 23 games of the season: 46.8 FG%, 76.5 FT%. 14.4 ppg, 8.69 rpg (5.91 drpg), 2.21 bpg. Those numbers are pretty much in line with his season averages.
Mo, you forgot about Stacey King. The Bulls simply could not have won their first three titles without Stacey King. The Cavs should keep that in mind...
Hart, I forgot about King. You're right. That's another big man to throw into the mix.
It might seem laughable but the Bulls really did win because they had a steady stream of big galoots that they could throw out there at the Ewings, the Daughertys, the Rollins', the Gminskis and the Mournings.
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