A FA guard nobody has mentioned

[Fez Hammersticks]

What about Ben Gordon?

If I remember correctly, Ben is an unrestricted FA this summer.

He's a guard who can score in bunches and is definitely more of a SG than a PG, but he seems like a player that would play really well off of Brandon Roy.

 

[alex42083]

He's too one-dimensional for my liking. He can certainly score, but nothing else. He can't set anyone up and he can't defend. I think he's best-suited in a Travis Outlaw role for whatever team he plays for -- just come off the bench and gun.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

Depending on his contract demands, He's a player that you would love to have off the bench. A Rudy/Gordon backcourt would be deadly.

 

[TP3]

Too small to guard SG's. He doesn't seem to fit in with they types of players that KP chooses to acquire.

 

[Nikolokolus]

Frankly I'd rather trade for Hinrich ... way better defender, an actual point guard, and isn't going to demand a ton of shots like Ben would; this team has plenty of offense it just needs somebody capable of setting the table, but also a competent defender and able to hit the open shot ... basically everything Steve Blake does offensively but with a little more strength, quickness and defensive chops.

 

[J_Ray]

Isn't the reason he's a FA was b/c he wanted 11+ M?

 

[Nikolokolus]

Isn't the reason he's a FA was b/c he wanted 11+ M?

Exactly. He won't get that kind of scratch in this economy and was stupid as a box of rocks to turn down the two deals Chicago offered him (around fifty million for five years IIRC?).

The guy is a gunner (and a damn good one) but his aspirations are to be the primary offensive weapon on a team, not a super sub, not wingman for a dominant guard (like Brandon), but the man.

People are already complaining about how few touches Oden gets on the offensive end this season, now imagine how much worse that gets with Gordon in the starting lineup.

 

[Minstrel]

Do we need a third shooting guard? Some people already worry about Bayless fitting in at point guard alongside Roy or Rudy. Gordon is already in the definitely-can't category, in that respect. He's a pure shooting guard, offensively, and doesn't have the size to defend shooting guards well.

 

[LameR]

Do we need a third shooting guard? Some people already worry about Bayless fitting in at point guard alongside Roy or Rudy. Gordon is already in the definitely-can't category, in that respect. He's a pure shooting guard, offensively, and doesn't have the size to defend shooting guards well.

The only way I see this working is if we just went to a 3-guard rotation of Roy-Rudy-Gordon. That would mean pretty much giving up on Bayless, Blake, and Sergio, because whoever remained would not get much in terms of minutes.

 

[Natebishop3]

No. For one reason:

If we signed Ben Gordon, we'd have to deal with Денг Гордон on a nightly basis.

 

[Draco]

Gordon is a bad fit for us and we are a bad fit for him.

But I do like the idea of getting Hinrich.

 

[Minstrel]

The only way I see this working is if we just went to a 3-guard rotation of Roy-Rudy-Gordon.

Yeah, but that will only work if Roy is on the floor all the time. Neither Rudy nor Gordon can run the point or defend point guards. The hope is that Bayless can, in a year or two. Then Portland can run Roy/Bayless/Rudy as a three-guard rotation and at least one distributor will be on the floor at all times.

Plus, I like Bayless' talent more than Gordon's. Gordon is a great scorer, but Bayless has the potential to be an elite scorer, as well as a decent passer and strong defender.

 

[Da_O]

Gordon's lack of defense and the big contract he will demand keep him from coming here. We already are pretty stacked at shooting guard and have two scoring threats off the bench. I'm in the group that believes you can never have enough shooters, however, Gordon's weaknesses outweigh his outside shooting prowess.

Hinrich is the better viable option and we should look to get him via trade.

Bayless just doesn't look like the type of player we need. Our championship window(IMO) starts next year and we can't afford to have projects like Bayless.

I've also liked the way Blake has played and it would be nice to retain him. If we get Hinrich, he would solidify an already deep bench and we'd have one of the better PG tandem's in the league.

 

[Sheldon Shape]

People who think we should acquire Hinrich make me gag. For the money he's getting paid he would be a very dissapointing acquisition with the cap space we have available. He's just not a very good player.

 

[Da_O]

People who think we should acquire Hinrich make me gag. For the money he's getting paid he would be a very dissapointing acquisition with the cap space we have available. He's just not a very good player.

I disagree, he brings a lot of intangibles and puts up decent scoring numbers along with hard-nosed defense. He's
also fairly young and is an upgrade from Blake. A PG rotation of Hinrich/Blake would be very nice.

His contract isn't actually that bad as it goes down every year.

Realistically, who could we get that is significantly better than Hinrich? Maybe Miller but he's older and doesn't bring any outside shooting.

 

[andalusian]

Do we need a third shooting guard?

Maybe KP traded Nate for Don Nelson as our coach. If this happens - we are still one Vince Carter from running a Roy/Gordon/Bayless/Rudy/Vince every night.

 

[maxiep]

Meh, Ben Gordon doesn't really fit what this team is trying to do.

 

[hasoos]

There is only one role I would see a guy like this in: Volume scoring off the bench. We already have Rudy for that. In another year, I think Ben would just be causing playing time issues.

 

[Sheldon Shape]

Realistically, who could we get that is significantly better than Hinrich? Maybe Miller but he's older and doesn't bring any outside shooting.

Kirk Hinrich's shooting percentages have been downright horrid throughout his career. I don't think we should knock anyone for their shooting if it meant defending Kirk's. He's a good defensive player, a horrid shooter, and a sub-par play maker. Blake fits this team better than Kirk would. Kirk isn't worth the money he's being paid, there's a reason why nobody was willing to take him and his contract. The Bulls tried desperately to trade him but couldn't find a taker.

 

[Uther TheGardener]

you can find ben gordens late in the 1st round of the draft.

 

[Da_O]

Kirk Hinrich's shooting percentages have been downright horrid throughout his career. I don't think we should knock anyone for their shooting if it meant defending Kirk's. He's a good defensive player, a horrid shooter, and a sub-par play maker. Blake fits this team better than Kirk would. Kirk isn't worth the money he's being paid, there's a reason why nobody was willing to take him and his contract. The Bulls tried desperately to trade him but couldn't find a taker.

He's shooting better from the field than Blake, has his whole career.
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hinriki01.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html

He's also back up to .413 from 3 and is a career .380 shooter from there. That's pretty consistent. Nobody bit on him because he was just coming off of injury. People weren't sure if he would come back and be the 06-07 Kirk or regress to the 07-08 one.

The Bulls tried desperately to trade him but couldn't find a taker.

Please don't make up stuff. They wanted to trade him, but it wasn't the hyperbole you make it out to be.

Let's look at the facts. Hinrich plays good perimeter defense, he's a good outside shooter(career .380 is good), he's still fairly young(28), and despite what you think has a decent contract.

I'm always looking to upgrade the team and this is realistically the best option we might have. With a Hinrich/Blake PG tandem that gives Roy a PG that can take the pressure off and spaces the floor at all times. I think we could push 60 wins if we made this trade.

 

[Nikolokolus]

He's shooting better from the field than Blake, has his whole career.
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hinriki01.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html

He's also back up to .413 from 3 and is a career .380 shooter from there. That's pretty consistent. Nobody bit on him because he was just coming off of injury. People weren't sure if he would come back and be the 06-07 Kirk or regress to the 07-08 one.



Please don't make up stuff. They wanted to trade him, but it wasn't the hyperbole you make it out to be.

Let's look at the facts. Hinrich plays good perimeter defense, he's a good outside shooter(career .380 is good), he's still fairly young(28), and despite what you think has a decent contract.

I'm always looking to upgrade the team and this is realistically the best option we might have. With a Hinrich/Blake PG tandem that gives Roy a PG that can take the pressure off and spaces the floor at all times. I think we could push 60 wins if we made this trade.

Exactly. Sometimes I just don't get where people come up with their analyses of other team's players (both good and bad).

 

[Da_O]

Exactly. Sometimes I just don't get where people come up with their analyses of other team's players (both good and bad).

I better stop, I've hijacked this thread and turned it into my own "get Hinrich" vendetta.

I'd like to make it clear, do I think getting Hinrich is necessary? No, just throwing some ideas out there.

 

[Minstrel]

Well, I'd rather have Hinrich than Gordon. Gordon is a bit better due to his one super talent (shooting), but Hinrich would help Portland more due to not having redundant skills. His defense at point guard would be extremely valuable and he's a slightly better distributor than Blake without giving much up to Blake in terms of shooting the ball. So, you lose none of Blake's virtues, get a little bit better passing and a lot better defense.

I'd rather have Andre Miller (and Ramon Sessions would be very exciting), but I'd be quite content if Pritchard turned the cap space into Kirk Hinrich via trade (so long as he didn't have to give up much value in terms of talent).

 

[Natebishop3]

Well, I'd rather have Hinrich than Gordon. Gordon is a bit better due to his one super talent (shooting), but Hinrich would help Portland more due to not having redundant skills. His defense at point guard would be extremely valuable and he's a slightly better distributor than Blake without giving much up to Blake in terms of shooting the ball. So, you lose none of Blake's virtues, get a little bit better passing and a lot better defense.

I'd rather have Andre Miller (and Ramon Sessions would be very exciting), but I'd be quite content if Pritchard turned the cap space into Kirk Hinrich via trade (so long as he didn't have to give up much value in terms of talent).

 

[Da_O]

Well, I'd rather have Hinrich than Gordon. Gordon is a bit better due to his one super talent (shooting), but Hinrich would help Portland more due to not having redundant skills. His defense at point guard would be extremely valuable and he's a slightly better distributor than Blake without giving much up to Blake in terms of shooting the ball. So, you lose none of Blake's virtues, get a little bit better passing and a lot better defense.

I'd rather have Andre Miller (and Ramon Sessions would be very exciting), but I'd be quite content if Pritchard turned the cap space into Kirk Hinrich via trade (so long as he didn't have to give up much value in terms of talent).

In my opinion, Miller is just on the wrong side of 30. He's also a terrible outside shooter, and he needs the ball in his hands to be effective. This ultimately takes touches away from Aldridge and Roy. Plus on top of that, I don't know how Miller would be in a slowed down offense. He's always been in really fast paced teams. Most of these same things can be said about Sessions but he's a lot younger and still has time to develop a jumpshot. But I don't think Milwaukee is seriously considering letting him go.

Hinrich on the other hand, is like Blake, a consummate team player. He can work off the ball, can hit the spot up shot, knows his role, and plays defense.

so long as he didn't have to give up much value in terms of talent

What would be too much talent? I think Webster is the odd man out here with Batum's defensive skills and upside and Outlaw being a consistent 6th man night in and night out. So Webster would probably be the first to go. Bayless might be good trade bait and so could Sergio.

Like I said, I just don't know if Bayless is the type of PG we're going to want/need.

 

[Natebishop3]

Gordon would have been nice if we didn't have Rudy. He's the same kind of instant offense player, who can shoot from deep. The presence of Rudy makes Gordon redundant, so there's really no point in even talking about him. We need a point guard, not a combo guard.

 

[Minstrel]

In my opinion, Miller is just on the wrong side of 30. He's also a terrible outside shooter, and he needs the ball in his hands to be effective.

He is a weak outsider shooter, but he's a tremendous play-maker for others which would be a big benefit to Oden and Aldridge and a benefit to Roy (not requiring him to carry as much of the distributing burden). Miller is also a strong defender. He's on the wrong side of 30, but I'm not looking for him to be a long-term solution, just a bridge for a couple of years to allow Bayless to develop.

What would be too much talent? I think Webster is the odd man out here with Batum's defensive skills and upside and Outlaw being a consistent 6th man night in and night out. So Webster would probably be the first to go. Bayless might be good trade bait and so could Sergio.

Webster would be fine to trade, as would be Sergio.

I would not deal Bayless to get Hinrich. Hinrich is an upgrade on Blake, but not a huge one. Not enough to give up a talent like Bayless. Bayless will never be a classic point guard (of course, Miller is and you don't like him because he's not a great shooter and needs the ball in his hands like all "classic" point guards)...but I don't think the team requires a classic point guard alongside Roy. Bayless showed great shooting ability at Arizona, is great at slashing and drawing fouls, has the potential to be a very good defender and has some decent passing ability. I wouldn't trade that for a modest upgrade on Blake.

 

[Da_O]

I would not deal Bayless to get Hinrich. Hinrich is an upgrade on Blake, but not a huge one. Not enough to give up a talent like Bayless. Bayless will never be a classic point guard (of course, Miller is and you don't like him because he's not a great shooter and needs the ball in his hands like all "classic" point guards)...but I don't think the team requires a classic point guard alongside Roy. Bayless showed great shooting ability at Arizona, is great at slashing and drawing fouls, has the potential to be a very good defender and has some decent passing ability. I wouldn't trade that for a modest upgrade on Blake.

As our championship window opens up(which I think it starts next year) I don't think we can afford to wait and see if Bayless pans out. By all accounts he's a project. He's moving from his natural position, SG, to PG. He was a great outside shooter at Arizona but has yet to find his touch in the NBA. Till he can do that, I'm not sold.

His ability to draw fouls and get to the rim are really what I covet. You can't teach aggressiveness. Some players have it or they don't. But with Roy, I don't know how much that is needed.

It's also not that we get a modest upgrade at the starting position but that Blake is retained and moved to the bench where he makes a second unit even stronger. And at all times gives Roy a PG that can handle, and distribute the ball, but can also space the floor.

 

[Minstrel]

He's moving from his natural position, SG, to PG.

His natural position is actually PG. He was recruited to Arizona as a point guard and was slated to be their point guard until an injury to their shooting guard caused them to move him over to fill that hole.

As for a championship window opening up, that's why I want Andre Miller. I don't think he needs to have lots of years left. I want him to be a steady hand at the wheel for those years where we can't have a developing player as the top option.

His ability to draw fouls and get to the rim are really what I covet. You can't teach aggressiveness. Some players have it or they don't. But with Roy, I don't know how much that is needed.

I think it's badly needed. Roy can't be the only one capable of doing it. Getting fouls on the opponent and getting points in the paint from perimeter players is gold.

It's also not that we get a modest upgrade at the starting position but that Blake is retained and moved to the bench where he makes a second unit even stronger.

Yeah, but I'd prefer a Miller/Blake/Bayless depth chart at point guard. I agree that Blake would be a great back-up point guard. And I'd be fine with Hinrich instead of Miller, but not at the cost of Bayless.