Speights Declines Player Option To Become Free Agent

[hrdboild]

http://basketball.realgm.com/wireta...-Player-Option-With-Cavs-To-Become-Free-Agent

He's not a marquee name, but he would fill a need for us as a rebounding and shot-blocking big to pair with Cousins or come off the bench as a third big. He'll probably get a contract similar to the one Jason Thompson got which means we'd likely want to trade Thompson to make room for him. Some people are going to see that as a step backwards, but I think he's a better fit for us and he's been reasonably productive in limited minutes thus far in his career. Crunch the numbers yourself and see what you think:

Marreese Speights vs. Jason Thompson [hint: the names are links]

If nothing else, he gives us another option if we choose to package Thompson in a trade for a SF.

 

[cuad]

I'd rather play Cole Aldrich. Doesn't Speights have a reputation for being a bad defender?

 

[Darth Divac]

*Sniggers* UM, no. Speights is just a homeless guy's Cousins.

 

[sdballer]

Pass. Not a good defender. Black hole on offense. Been on 3 teams in 4 years.

 

[VF21]

And so it goes...as with every TDOS in memory, any guy that ends up as a free agent automatically becomes, in someone's mind, the answer to at least part of our needs. We do NOT get better, faster, or smarter if we add Speights to our line-up.

 

[Shabazz916]

We need no bigman

 

[sdballer]

We need no bigman

I'd take the right kind of big (defender) if it meant unloading one of our excess pieces but in terms of free agents, Brandan Wright and Dally would be the only two I would look at and only at the right price.

 

[Hallama]

I'd take the right kind of big (defender) if it meant unloading one of our excess pieces but in terms of free agents, Brandan Wright and Dally would be the only two I would look at and only at the right price.

Agree on Wright. Could be a good fit, and could be stolen with Mav's bigger plans.

 

[sdballer]

Agree on Wright. Could be a good fit, and could be stolen with Mav's bigger plans.

Yeah I really like Taj Gibson and think he could be a great fit but if that didn't work out, Wright could be a much cheaper alternative and keeps MT as a trade chip for something else or to just trim salary. He's had issues with injuries and has never managed to play big minutes but he doesn't foul and stays out of the way on offense.

A quick look at their per 36 numbers (not a great tool but just to illustrate their similarities)

Gibson: 12.8 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.5 apg, .7 spg, 2.2 bpg (48% fg)
Wright: 17 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.2 apg, .8 spg, 2.4 bpg (59%fg)

 

[hrdboild]

This is why I hate this place in the summer. We spend all season complaining about everything the team is doing wrong and then the off-season comes and everyone has a smart aleck remark for why our players are too valuable to lose and everyone else's players are hot garbage. Whatever, be like that. I've liked Speights since he was at Florida and I've been tracking him ever since. That's why I think he's a good fit for us, not because I read a headline and jumped to conclusions. It is possible to disagree without being disrespectful.

 

[jalfa]

This is why I hate this place in the summer. We spend all season complaining about everything the team is doing wrong and then the off-season comes and everyone has a smart aleck remark for why our players are too valuable to lose and everyone else's players are hot garbage. Whatever, be like that. I've liked Speights since he was at Florida and I've been tracking him ever since. That's why I think he's a good fit for us, not because I read a headline and jumped to conclusions. It is possible to disagree without being disrespectful.

I don't mind Speights as a player, he's solid enough. what I'm sceptical about is if he's so much better than what we have to start making moves to acquire him. I've seen him play in Cleveland quite a bit and concerns about his defense are warranted and he's also not a finisher type roleplayer. when he plays, he demands possessions run through him. the fact that he's now on his third team also gives me pause. we currently have two guys in Thompson and Patterson that we know can just show up, keep their mouths shut and play their role. Thompson is on a fairly solid deal, too, and the Kings have solid leverage in contract negotiations with PPat. with Speights, you'd most likely have to spring for a more expensive contract and then see to it that you deal either Thompson or PPat for little salary in return, whilst still having Hayes hang around. Speights just strikes me as neither enough of an upgrade over JT/PPat, nor the type of player (athletic helpside defender and finisher) that the Kings desperately need, to make the kind of investment necessary to get him. I'd rather see them spend that money elsewhere.

 

[Bricklayer]

Pass. Not a good defender. Black hole on offense. Been on 3 teams in 4 years.

Yeah, not sure where this shotblocker rebounder stuff comes from. Soft defenseless blackhole of a midrange jumpshooter more like. I'd probably prefer either of our two current PFs, mediocre as they might be.