The Spurs’ Jakob Poeltl and the Kings’ Harry Giles are two of the centers the Pistons could target in free agency, James Edwards III of The Athletic opines. Poeltl began his NBA career under Pistons coach Dwane Casey in Toronto and his agent, Michael Tellem, is the son of Pistons vice chairman Arn Tellem, Edwards notes. Giles, like Poeltl, has the ability to develop into a much greater force than he’s shown with his current club, Edwards adds.
We have more from the Central Division:
- The 2019/20 season was a wash for Pistons star forward Blake Griffin due to knee and hamstring injuries. However, the oft-injured Griffin believes he has plenty left in the tank, as he told the Detroit Free Press’ Omari Sankofa II (Twitter link) and other media members. Griffin said he doesn’t see his current contract, which lasts through the 2021/22 season, as his last. He also doesn’t view himself as being in decline. Griffin said last month he’s fully recovered from knee surgery in early January.
- It’s doubtful Otto Porter will remain on the Bulls beyond his current contract, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago speculates. Porter’s expiring contract — provided he opts in for $28.5MM next season — is his main value to the organization. Given Porter’s injury history, Johnson anticipates there are other long-term plans for the wing spot beyond Porter.
- While many NBA experts believe free agent Tristan Thompson has played his last game with the Cavaliers, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer has heard otherwise (hat tip to Hoops Hype’s Alex Kennedy). On the Wine and Gold Talk podcast, Fedor said Thompson is intrigued by the idea of finishing his career in Cleveland. “There’s also a sense that the Cavs recognize the value that Tristan Thompson brings,” Fedor said. “And Tristan being one of the greatest Cavaliers of all-time and eventually having his jersey hung and continuing to climb the ranks of the all-time Cavs is something that’s meaningful to him.”
Mavs are interested in Otto Porter, 3 and D
What do Bulls want from Mavs?
How do the mavs take on that contract? You gotta send back THJ plus powell/multiple players to make it work financially and I doubt Chicago wants either and the mavs don’t have picks to trade because the KP trade…so???
THJ and Lee
Lee 6 million one year deal
Celtics can use T MLE to sign TT
Rockets can use Vet Min to sign TT because of tax
That all depends on whether or not Austin Rivers decides to opt in and play for $2.4M next season since they will likely need to use the MLE on Rivers if he opts out.
If he does opt out, they would be about $10M below the luxury tax. But if they use the mini-MLE on Rivers (or anyone else) then that number drops to around $4M. But that still leaves them with just 10 players, so it seems unlikely that Fertitta will be able to avoid paying luxury taxes next year given how little maneuvering space they will have in 2021.
The Cavaliers’ bar must be pretty low.
I still have “Bingo” Smith well ahead of Thompson.
“Tristan being one of the greatest Cavaliers of all-time”
Gosh thanks for that info Fedor. But set down that water because it’s Altman’s team now, good or bad.
Otto Porter obviously is not staying in Chicago once his deal expires they couldn’t care less about him.
I think the Bulls will keep him and hold onto his deal next season just so it can hit FA and spend big afterwards. Otto will hit FA in a loaded class but still be a solid 3 and D wing that’ll go for cheap.
I think he will eventually end up signing for a contender in the west like Dallas or Portland for 2 years 16mil
Porter is so overpaid it’s insane. The days of overpaying in NBA are over. Specially after this pandemic economy. I don’t get Bulls. They have talent. Just no chemistry or leadership it seems.
Griffin should be moved. Pistons should move onto full rebuild. Move Rose, move Wood to Knicks. They have Bird rights on Wood. Might as well get a pick from Knicks. OKC should be open to taking Griffin. He’s from there and can finish career there. OKC has plenty of picks too.
Cavs don’t need Thomson. They are fine with Love and Nance. With this draft Cavs are in good place. They should get a nice player. They can build with Drummond and Love. Or move them both and go full rebuild. I like Drummond. But you have to commit to his strengths. Can’t half step it. And he’s not a max player. So you have weigh all that out. Love can get Cavs young talent. He has a solid yr, which he should with Drummond there. And he can be moved at trade deadline. I see Cavs, Knicks, Hawks all with young talent. As long as they don’t mess up trades. They can be contending in 3-4 yrs.
“The days of overpaying in NBA are over.”
No they aren’t. They might be on hold for a year or two, but the NBA will still overpay free agents. Christian Wood seems like a possible example.
Yepper, overpaid players are certainly not going anywhere as long as teams will pay them.
The Super Max being a prime example of over indulgence.
Unfortunately there will always be a Bantum, Porter or CP3 to paid out for.
Love to see Porter in a Heat uniform at $20M less.
CP3 does not belong in that group. He has led the Thunder into the playoffs when everyone else just assumed they were done after trading Russ/George. Batum and Porter are bench guys for lottery teams.
Just because he has played above expectations this season doesn’t mean that CP3 is no longer overpaid at $40M/year. If anyone would give up assets for him then OKC would have already traded him long ago. But no one is willing to give up much of anything for a guy who has almost certainly played the last good season of his illustrious career.
He turned 35 a month ago, and Paul’s weak hamstrings are still a huge concern at his age. Let’s not forget he missed 20 or more games in each of the 3 seasons before going to OKC.