Indy wrote:Yeah my point was that you don't have to worry if their contracts don't match up.
But Booker is not under contract for 8 years. He could play out his contract and leave.
Well, he'll be a RFA after four, so assuming he signs another four-year contract after his rookie contract and we're willing to match any offer, we can hold him for eight years.
Yes IF he decides to let us. He doesn't have to.
Yes he does. That's what RFA means. If he signs an offer sheet with another team, we can match it.
He does have the option of taking the QO and becoming a UFA after year five, but that's very rare.
“Are you crazy?! You think I’m going to go for seven years and try to get there? You enjoy the 2030 draft picks that we have holding? I want to try to see the game today.” — Ish 3/13/25
Indy wrote:Yeah my point was that you don't have to worry if their contracts don't match up.
But Booker is not under contract for 8 years. He could play out his contract and leave.
Well, he'll be a RFA after four, so assuming he signs another four-year contract after his rookie contract and we're willing to match any offer, we can hold him for eight years.
Yes IF he decides to let us. He doesn't have to.
Yes he does. That's what RFA means. If he signs an offer sheet with another team, we can match it.
He does have the option of taking the QO and becoming a UFA after year five, but that's very rare.
Right. If he really wants to be somewhere else, he can after 4 more years here.
I guess my point is, saying you wouldn't swap for Leonard just because he can leave after 3, isn't all that different.
Have you seen the way he's been playing lately? Over the last 10 games or so the Bucks have benched MCW and Monroe and are giving Giannis PG functions. The returns have been fantastic. 4 triple doubles, only one game under 6 assists plus his regular amazing stuff on both ends. He is delivering already on all accounts but 3pt shooting. Born dec '94. The potential is proving to be limitless. Booker is outstanding, but the Freak is orders of magnitude a better prospect.
Without hesitation? Davis, Kawhi, Giannis, KAT, Porzingis. In terms of vets and disregarding contract status, Curry, LeBron, Durant. Westbrook, Blake (because really, come on). Nobody else is an automatic yes, including Harden, George, Cousins. No thanks to Wall, Drummond and Butler.
Honestly, I hadn't. Been working a lot the last month and outside the Suns and teams that will directly have an impact on them (Wiz, Lakers-76-Nets-Twolves), really haven't paid any attention to the league. WOW. Stats have been nice, tonight again. OK, maybe I misjudged
I love Booker's performance and potential, and the fact that he's 19. Earlier in the season when I watched the games on a more regular basis I also loved his effort on defense, but let's be honest, he's not a great defender right now. Maybe with the proper seasoning he will improve on that end, but so far he has been a net negative. Both us fans and the national media have been looking for a positive Suns story for too long and have been glossing over the defensive side of the game. There's been a lot of analysis on the other stars in the game and since I'm a couple of days late to this game, I won't really get into it. But the Klay/Booker comparison is interesting. Klay Thompson is a very solid and probably net plus defender, but from what I've seen lacks the ability to make plays for others the way Booker has. So the two of them are a bit of a wash.
I do think that John Wall's game has peaked, as he's clearly not developed any confidence in his outside shot or managed to keep his turnovers down this year, but Lillard and George both still have room to grow, IMHO. Not to say that I would necessarily trade Booker for either (personally I favor defenders), but I do think both players have much more to offer in coming years.
I wouldn't touch Carmelo/Harden with anything right now. Cousins, I'm not sure.
Interesting year 1 comparison between Klay and Booker.
Also should add that Klay was a -9 net rating [Offensive Rating 102] - [Defensive Rating 111] his first year, which is an estimate of the number of points scored per 100 possessions versus points given up per 100 defensive possessions.
Booker is a -8 [Ortg 106] - [Drtg 114]. So similar, although Booker has a higher Offensive rating but lower defensive rating.
That's very interesting that Klay has gone from a net negative on defense into a reliable and net positive defender. I'd love to see that out of Booker. Slightly concerning that Booker has already had 5 games of 6 fouls though. What happened there? Gambling on defense? Getting lazy and getting beat and making it up with silly fouls?
pickle wrote:That's very interesting that Klay has gone from a net negative on defense into a reliable and net positive defender. I'd love to see that out of Booker. Slightly concerning that Booker has already had 5 games of 6 fouls though. What happened there? Gambling on defense? Getting lazy and getting beat and making it up with silly fouls?
Not at all. He fouls you when he needs too. He doesn't give up easy baskets. I love it. Of course once he is The Man, he will have to be more selective in which layups to allow.
Gotcha. But I've also noticed in my limited game-watching experience that refs tend to give calls to the stars, which I suppose is only human nature. But when Booker becomes The Man hopefully a few bullshit calls can start going our way too.
There's something to be said for developing a reputation as a defender. You really do get away with far more crap based on reputation, which is probably also why I've always favored guys that stake their games on defense. You can always try to develop offense, and there's very little subjectivity to that. You put the ball through the basket, you get points. On defense, what might be called as a flagrant foul by a guy like Brandon Knight would have been a smart defensive play by Bruce Bowen.
Read this article on Tony Allen a while back where he said he tries to go extra aggressive at the outset of games just to see where the refs set the limit at, and more often than not that allows him to get away with more physicality than people who don't know to probe. I think that's absolutely brilliant.
pickle wrote:Read this article on Tony Allen a while back where he said he tries to go extra aggressive at the outset of games just to see where the refs set the limit at, and more often than not that allows him to get away with more physicality than people who don't know to probe. I think that's absolutely brilliant.
If most Suns players tried that, they'd foul out in 5 minutes.
One thing I will always remember about that 04-05 series is how much more the Spurs got away with on defense. Bowen was all over Nash every possession. On the other end, the slightest touch meant a whistle.
Perhaps my biggest complaint with the NBA is the inconsistency of the referees. The difference between the Knicks game and the Wolves game was absurd. It's as if they're playing different sports.
