One way the Spurs could still improve this season

[GSH]

The word is that Chris Paul is demanding a trade before the beginning of the season. As much as I like Parker, and I think he gets a lot of unfair criticism - CP3 would be a definite upgrade. For their part, the Hornets could (and probably will) do a lot worse.

Not only would Paul be an upgrade, but his contract would insure that the Spurs have a top-tier PG until Duncan retires. And after that, the re-building could begin with our without him. A lot of people say that the Spurs should be swinging for the fence, to give Duncan one more shot. Well whether you like him or not, signing Chris Paul would be a step in that direction.

I think the Hornets understand that Paul is as good as gone. I don't think they can afford to let all that fan excitement waste away. They stand a very good chance of getting back something much less in return for him, which would definitely kill the buzz in New Orleans. For them, taking a couple of medium-tier players, or a pretty good player and a project, would be a complete disaster.

I think the salaries are close enough to a match. The Spurs might have to give up something in the way of a future pick, or a young player - but maybe not. Paul says he would like to go to the Knicks, Lakers, or Magic. But the Lakers and Magic would only give up players that would make the Hornets a lot worse. And the Knicks don't have any players of that caliber left, so they would have to try to put together some kind of 3-way deal - and those are always difficult to get done. Most of the teams that could give the Hornets a fair return, Paul wouldn't want to play for. But the Spurs are still serious enough contenders that he might go for the deal.

Oh, and Parker speaks French. That's got to count for something in New Orleans.

[TJastal]

Paul needs athletes around him to be most effective. The staple of his game is the pick and pop/alley oop to the rolling big. If you added up the verticals of Duncan, McDyess, Bonner, Blair, Splitter you might have enough to actually throw one down, but its iffy.

I'm sure Jefferson would love him though. :lol

[GSH]

Paul needs athletes around him to be most effective. The staple of his game is the pick and pop/alley oop to the rolling big. If you added up the verticals of Duncan, McDyess, Bonner, Blair, Splitter you might have enough to actually throw one down, but its iffy.

I'm sure Jefferson would love him though. :lol



That hasn't worked out too well for him so far, other than winning a lot of regular season games. He might get somewhere playing with a real big man.

He's got one of the best in-between games in the league, which the Spurs could definitely use. You're right that Jefferson would benefit, but I think everyone else would, too.

[slick'81]

pauls allready given the no a list of teams he wants to go including ny/la orl etc unless demps wants to do us a real big favor

[GSH]

pauls allready given the no a list of teams he wants to go including ny/la orl etc unless demps wants to do us a real big favor

He wants to go to a contender. He may want to go to LA, Orlando, or NY - but for NO to swing a deal with those teams they would almost certainly have to accept a lot less than they would be giving up. (And a lot less than they would get with Tony Parker.) The Hornets might be doing us a favor, but they would be doing themselves a favor as well.

Take a look. Who would the Lakers be willing to give up to match salaries? Odem and Artest? What would that do for New Orleans?

Who would Orlando be willing to give up to match salaries? A package of Jameer Nelson, Pietrus, and Brandon Bass? Maybe Vince Carter? The Hornets get killed in any deal with the Magic.

Maybe the Knicks could swing something, but it would have to involve another team, because they don't have anyone the Hornets need. (Just like they didn't have anyone that the Spurs need.)

I don't think Paul could turn his nose up at a chance to play with Tim Duncan, or for the Spurs. He may want to be part of a mega-deal like Miami, but that's not going to happen. I think he would rather be here than New Olreans.

[murpjf88]

He won't sign an extension. Duncan is on the way out and he wants to play with another super star.

[GSH]

He won't sign an extension. Duncan is on the way out and he wants to play with another super star.

He doesn't have to sign an extension. He has two years left on his contract, with a player option for one more. If he doesn't like it here, he can move on at the same time Duncan retires. And Tim Duncan is a super star. Still.

That was my point about him giving the Spurs a guaranteed top-tier PG through the rest of Duncan's career. There's a very real possibility that Tony goes elsewhere after this season. Signing Paul would give some insurance that we can't get any other way.

[Drewlius]

Solid posting GSH.

[angelbelow]

wah

[analyzed]

I like this move. I've always believed that to win a ring you need at least one of the top 5 players in the game. We use to have that in Tim. By getting Paul we can make that arguement that at least could potentially be a top 5 player

[LongtimeSpursFan]

Not only would Paul be an upgrade, but his contract would insure that the Spurs have a top-tier PG until Duncan retires. And after that, the re-building could begin with our without him. A lot of people say that the Spurs should be swinging for the fence, to give Duncan one more shot. Well whether you like him or not, signing Chris Paul would be a step in that direction.

Isn't Parker already a top-tier PG? And I may be wrong but hasnt he already been a part of 3 championship teams?

[Kori Ellis]

Paul wants to hook-up with Amare and Melo in NYC and have a young core of superstars. No matter how good Tim is, he doesn't compete with that to someone like Paul because of his age.

[Leonard Curse]

Paul needs athletes around him to be most effective. The staple of his game is the pick and pop/alley oop to the rolling big. If you added up the verticals of Duncan, McDyess, Bonner, Blair, Splitter you might have enough to actually throw one down, but its iffy.

I'm sure Jefferson would love him though. :lol
blair can def get up did you not see that rookie/soph allstar dunk???? listen people think the spurs are unathletic as the 07 days, if paul has anderson/hill/blair/jefferson hopefully we get alonzo Gee/and hairston/temple those guys can jump.

[admiralsnackbar]

It's hard to argue against trading Tony for Paul based on talent and the fact that such a trade would guarantee at least two more seasons of great play at the PG position, but considering this is basically the last year we have to make a run for the ring, I'm leery of bringing in a new starting PG and expecting him to figure out the system before the POs start.

Luckily, it's extremely unlikely that NO would trade with us, so we won't have to worry about it much, methinks.

[Leonard Curse]

pauls allready given the no a list of teams he wants to go including ny/la orl etc unless demps wants to do us a real big favor


:wow shit i forgot about demps!!!, oh man that would be the best thank you to the spurs F.O

[tim_duncan_fan]

If the option is on the table, I'm sure we do it.


The Tim-Chris connection is there already...

WAKE FOREST!


Git ir dun, RC!!

[bresilhac]

I have doubts about this potential Parker for Paul move. Parker is still an elite pg in this league obviously. Then there is the team chemistry factor. Would the whiny Paul fit in with the rest of the team? Would he be receptive to Pop's style of coaching? Sure, on the surface Paul for Parker would not be a bad move but these other factors must be considered as well.

[Nathan89]

He wants to go to a contender. He may want to go to LA, Orlando, or NY - but for NO to swing a deal with those teams they would almost certainly have to accept a lot less than they would be giving up. (And a lot less than they would get with Tony Parker.) The Hornets might be doing us a favor, but they would be doing themselves a favor as well.

Take a look. Who would the Lakers be willing to give up to match salaries? Odem and Artest? What would that do for New Orleans?

Who would Orlando be willing to give up to match salaries? A package of Jameer Nelson, Pietrus, and Brandon Bass? Maybe Vince Carter? The Hornets get killed in any deal with the Magic.

Maybe the Knicks could swing something, but it would have to involve another team, because they don't have anyone the Hornets need. (Just like they didn't have anyone that the Spurs need.)

I don't think Paul could turn his nose up at a chance to play with Tim Duncan, or for the Spurs. He may want to be part of a mega-deal like Miami, but that's not going to happen. I think he would rather be here than New Olreans.

That would be a better deal for the hornets because those players wouldn't leave at the end of the year.

[Nathan89]

Parker for Paul is a no-brainer for the spurs front office. Paul can do anything parker can do but better. Paul can pass,shoot,defend and he is super quick. Basically he can do anything parker can do but better.

[rayray2k8]

:jack

[Spursfanfromafar]

Speaking in hypotheticals..

The Hornets would get nothing in terms of talent or picks if it traded Paul to the Knicks. Ditto with the Lakers.. With the magic it is a different ballgame though.

A Parker-Paul swap is a slight upgrade for the Spurs but the Hornets get Parker on an expiring contract and without the addition of any other talent.. The Hornets then could lose Parker for nothing to FA.

A trade with the magic makes most sense for the Hornets. Or some other better one elsewhere.

[jesterbobman]

It's a definite upgrade, Though most reports have basically been that to get Paul other teams need to take on Okafor OR Peja as well for a ton of Expiring Contracts and young talent. Also, the fact that our young talent (Hill, Anderson, Blair) play the positions of their young guys (Collison, Thornton(Hill and Anderson) and Their 2 picks this year(Pondexter and Brackins(Blair, though Pondexter will probably spend most of his time at 3 and they're both more mobile) probably doesn't help.

[kaji157]

If the Spurs give up Parker and i suppouse, Blair. Paul may be more than willing to do it, he knows the Spurs won´t be demanding an extension and he gets to finish his contract with a contender team that with him might get the championship.

On the other hand NO won trade Paul for a one year rental Tony Parker, it would need us to resign TP on a very favorable deal.

[will_spurs]

Parker for Paul is a no-brainer for the spurs front office. Paul can do anything parker can do but better. Paul can pass,shoot,defend and he is super quick. Basically he can do anything parker can do but better.

Except win rings with the Spurs :lol

Seriously, Paul would be a bad fit in the Spurs system. I don't think he can live with his stats going down so much. People don't seem to understand that a player's stats are directly affected by the style played by a team, and the surrounding cast (and in case of stats, for elite players, their stats are usually better with a bad surrounding cast).

I think Pop would bench a PG after the 3rd alley-oop, because there's no ball control, no ball movement, no running the clock...

Paul will go to NY, have crazy stats in d'Antoni's system, a good shot at MVP (like Nash), and no rings.

[gilmor]

Except win rings with the Spurs :lol

Seriously, Paul would be a bad fit in the Spurs system. I don't think he can live with his stats going down so much. People don't seem to understand that a player's stats are directly affected by the style played by a team, and the surrounding cast (and in case of stats, for elite players, their stats are usually better with a bad surrounding cast).

I think Pop would bench a PG after the 3rd alley-oop, because there's no ball control, no ball movement, no running the clock...

Paul will go to NY, have crazy stats in d'Antoni's system, a good shot at MVP (like Nash), and no rings.

Actually Parker to Paul will be a good move, to shut the Parker's haters down.

[Obstructed_View]

If Parker's not going to ink an extension with the Spurs, there's no fucking way he's gonna sign with New Orleans.

[Zelophehad]

The Hornets wouldn't want a point guard anyway since they think Collison is their present and future in the event of a Paul trade.

[admiralsnackbar]

The Hornets wouldn't want a point guard anyway since they think Collison is their present and future in the event of a Paul trade.

He might be traded to be used as an expiring trade chip... but that assumes the TP for CP3 trade happens in the first place. :lol

[Seventyniner]

New Orleans has absolutely no reason to do this.

Paul is much better than Parker, and they would be losing Parker for nothing next year most likely. Paul wants to play with young superstars, not Tim Duncan. Also, if the Hornets were willing to trade Paul, they would be able to dump Okafor's contract (and probably Posey's) due to the bidding war, which the Spurs could not compete in.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Pie-in-the-sky.

Nice to dream, though... :smokin

[TDMVPDPOY]

NOH might as well fold

[wildbill2u]

The Hornets wouldn't want a point guard anyway since they think Collison is their present and future in the event of a Paul trade.

I think this may be the best point I've seen about why the trade wouldn't happen. NO may have to move Paul but Collison is a perfectly acceptable starting PG. They have one too many excellent PGs.


Therefore a trade scenario for NO would probably focus on a big.

[lotr1trekkie]

Hypocrites! You will turn into Paul haters by mid-season. Paul is a coach killer like Kidd. Requires the coach to adapt to the player's style because the player wont change. More disturbing is the trend of star players demanding to play together. A death knell for the NBA. If Paul gets his wish I don't think we will have an NBA in 2011. Smaller markets would be retarded to continue a system that allowed stars to cluster togethet so that they can compett for championships. All sports competition is based on having a level playing field. Without it the games are nothing more then exibitions like WWC.

[Ice009]

I'm not saying that I want to trade TP for CP, but why would you do a straight trade. Everyone knows that would not work for NO, so it would have to be a three way trade where TP goes somewhere other than NO and that team gives NO the players they want.

[Muser]

Doesn't make the Spurs contenders. Unless Paul is somehow going to help with the Spurs defense.

[Chieflion]

No way any team will help facilitate a Chris Paul trade for Tony Parker when they can get Chris Paul for themselves.

[Nathan89]

Doesn't make the Spurs contenders. Unless Paul is somehow going to help with the Spurs defense.

Paul will definitely help on defense, so I guess we would be contenders. There is zero chance for this trade to happen though.

[Muser]

Paul will definitely help on defense, so I guess we would be contenders. There is zero chance for this trade to happen though.

Right, because Paul will be able to defende Kobe/LeBron/Wade etc?

[galvatron3000]

IMO, Paul should consider what the Spurs have. After Duncan, and Manu are gone they still have Splitter, Blair and Anderson ( not to mention 4 years of Jefferson) that should be a good core group of guys, and the Spurs are good at bringing over talent from overseas, having Paul would be a plus, of course this is if Parker goes. Do that compete with Amare' and Melo, who knows but if the Spurs can bring in another Big and a real Sf adding Paul could put them in a good place and perhaps Paul could recruit some star to come play with him in SA.

Also, I think IF (Big IF) the Hornets just wanted to get Parker's rights so they could sign and trade him 1 year earlier than Pauls' 2 year deal then they'd do it for that reason but of course they can get picks it just depends on what they are trying to do. We've seen some stupid things happen trade wise and free agent spending wise so I do try to come up with scenarios in line with the current thinking within the nba, NOT NECESSARILY WHAT I think should be done.

[baseline bum]

If fucking Jefferson didn't opt out the Spurs could almost certainly have gotten Paul+Okafor for Parker+Jefferson. Yeah, Okafor's deal sucks, but for Chris fucking Paul, you take that.

[Birn]

CP3 is not an upgrade over Parker. He's coming off a potentially serious injury and NO would not make that trade unless there was an assurance they could ink Parker to a long term extension, which won't happen. Parker has stated he wants to remain a Spur. people need to cool off and simply understand that our best option is keeping Parker long term.

End of conversation

[galvatron3000]

CP3 is not an upgrade over Parker. He's coming off a potentially serious injury and NO would not make that trade unless there was an assurance they could ink Parker to a long term extension, which won't happen. Parker has stated he wants to remain a Spur. people need to cool off and simply understand that our best option is keeping Parker long term.

End of conversation

Suppose NO just wanted to dump Paul's salary one year earlier than his contract? Neither Paul nor Parker is going to stay but for a salary dump you can get Parker for one year because you have Collins on your roster and get rid of the Parker contract with the potential to sign and trade Parker because he'll be going into a new deal which can net you picks or players too only a year earlier. Paul has 2 years on his contract, Parker has 1.

Of course they can go any route they choose but when new owners come in either the current can make a move or the new will make a move, it's hard to tell what these GM's and owners are going to do, heck the Grizzlies could have gotten far more for Gasol than the Lakers offered, hell the SPurs at that time could have given them a far better offer.

[Blackjack]

No way any team will help facilitate a Chris Paul trade for Tony Parker when they can get Chris Paul for themselves.

http://es.pn/d2HRF4

:downspin:

Edit: Now with the right link!

:downspin:

[K-State Spur]

If fucking Jefferson didn't opt out the Spurs could almost certainly have gotten Paul+Okafor for Parker+Jefferson. Yeah, Okafor's deal sucks, but for Chris fucking Paul, you take that.

There's no certainly with that - it's a pretty big assumption.

[Ginobili2Duncan]

No thanks. I would rather keep Parker.

[baseline bum]

There's no certainly with that - it's a pretty big assumption.

Isn't New Orleans pretty desperate to salary dump Okafor? His contract is enormous and I know they've unsuccessfully tried to move him for expirings before.

[Ginobili2Duncan]

Seriously though, this is getting ridiculous. Don't get me wrong: I love Chris Paul, LBJ, D.Wade and Bosh. But I don't like the direction the nba is going, and enough is enough. Just because you can't beat someone, that doesn't mean you look for another superstar and join them. What you do is work hard in the offseason, create chemistry between teammates and get better. This is what I and other die hard nba fans love to watch. Not a fan of all these big talents joining together, leaving their previous teams to rot.

Magic and Jordan said it a week ago. Sure, Jordan had Pippen and Magic had Kareem. But they didnt all join together, with Bird, to win multiple titles. They all individually, with their respective teams, worked hard to be the best, something James and company should learn.

[galvatron3000]

Seriously though, this is getting ridiculous. Don't get me wrong: I love Chris Paul, LBJ, D.Wade and Bosh. But I don't like the direction the nba is going, and enough is enough. Just because you can't beat someone, that doesn't mean you look for another superstar and join them. What you do is work hard in the offseason, create chemistry between teammates and get better. This is what I and other die hard nba fans love to watch. Not a fan of all these big talents joining together, leaving their previous teams to rot.

Magic and Jordan said it a week ago. Sure, Jordan had Pippen and Magic had Kareem. But they didnt all join together, with Bird, to win multiple titles. They all individually, with their respective teams, worked hard to be the best, something James and company should learn.

I get it , so they won titles with no help because the individuals worked hard and won on their own. :lmao

[hater]

Paul wants to hook-up with Amare and Melo in NYC and have a young core of superstars. No matter how good Tim is, he doesn't compete with that to someone like Paul because of his age.

Well we do have a Matt Bonner in his prime for another 5 years or so...

[hater]

CP3 is not an upgrade over Parker.

yes he is.

But I agree he would be less of a fit than parker in the current Spurs with old Timmy and Pop's coaching style.

no way this will happen.

[Ginobili2Duncan]

I get it , so they won titles with no help because the individuals worked hard and won on their own. :lmao


Did Magic and Bird team up? Did Jordan and Malone join each other?

[Duncan2177]

CP3 is not an upgrade over Parker. He's coming off a potentially serious injury and NO would not make that trade unless there was an assurance they could ink Parker to a long term extension, which won't happen. Parker has stated he wants to remain a Spur. people need to cool off and simply understand that our best option is keeping Parker long term.

End of conversation

CP3 is not an upgrade over Parker? Are you kidding? Paul is a better passer and leader than Parker. There's a reason why Paul is a top 5 fantasy pick :lol

[GSH]

Paul wants to hook-up with Amare and Melo in NYC and have a young core of superstars. No matter how good Tim is, he doesn't compete with that to someone like Paul because of his age.


No doubt that's what he wants. But I don't see any way for NY to make it work for the Hornets without a miracle multi-team trade. The Knicks' plan was to sign free agents. They dumped players to clear salary room, and they just don't have a lot to trade for a player of that caliber.

The Hornets are in salary cap hell. They will look for a way to trade Paul, but they will have to get value in return. I just don't see any way for one of those three teams (LA, NY, Orlando) to give them what they need. I guess if Paul wants out of NO badly enough he could do worse than the Spurs. The Spurs organization is the gold standard. If it's a choice between two years in NO and two years here, I think he would give it serious thought.

There's another article on Hoopshype today that says Portland and Dallas are also in the running for Paul if he does get traded. Both of those teams could make something happen, but Dallas is also in the Hornets' division. If that's a deal-breaker for the Spurs, it would be one for Dallas also. That leaves Portland. If I were Paul, I wouldn't give them more weight than San Antonio.

The people who say it's unlikely are right. Frankly, no trade is likely. Lots get discussed, not many get done. But, hey... who thought we could sign Splitter so cheap? Sometimes the unlikely happens.

[galvatron3000]

Did Magic and Bird team up? Did Jordan and Malone join each other?

my point is Jordan didn't beat Majic, the Bulls beat the Lakers etc If we are going to take that misleading Logic that even Jordan is promoting now yet in his Hall of Fame Speech he claimed it was a team then Magic beat Jordan so Pippen had to guard Magic because Jordan couldn't. All this guys joining each other because of free agency is crap, Jordan recruited Barkley for the 2nd 3 peat title run but Barkley wanted to beat Jordan's Bulls yet he teamed with the Rockets. This is all crap. Had LeBron joined the Lakers this might have a point but now he has a legitimate chance to beat them because Cleveland probably couldn't and make no mistake, the Lakers are stacked. Much more talent, especially in the paint than the Bulls ever dreamed.


This entire media spin sickens me because people are taking sides on this matter when it is made up for the most part. Thank Jordan for participating and adding to the fire so now it's legitimate, not

[Blackjack]

Tres' mentioned something like this to me recently, not exactly, but I can't use picks and whatnot on the trade machine.

Link (http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=29rrfbn)

[cheguevara]

WTF? no way this is happening. Wake up!

[Nathan89]

No way any team will help facilitate a Chris Paul trade for Tony Parker when they can get Chris Paul for themselves.

The only way we could get Chris Paul is if we get involved in a three team trade. One would think that the other team would just try to get Paul because he is better than Parker but they would be wrong. Lets say the three teams are Spurs,Hornets and Blazers. This trade could work if we could get Tony to agree to a long-term contract and he would go to the Blazers. The Blazers would take Parker for a guaranteed six years over Paul for two years. We of course get Paul in the trade. The Hornets get a bunch of young prospects from the Blazers and maybe something like temple from the Spurs. After two years with the Spurs Paul could then go to the Knicks to join his super team with Amare and Melo.

Blazers-Roy,Aldridge,Parker-Three very nice pieces to build around, plus they would not have to give away all of their young talent.

Spurs-Get Chris Paul for the remainder of the Duncan era.

Hornets-Get to rebuild with a bunch of nice young pieces from both the Spurs and Blazers.

[CaptainLate]

New Orleans has absolutely no reason to do this.


It's all been arranged w/Dell Demps...he's going to do us a "Pau Gasol" solid.

[MaNu4Tres]

Tres' mentioned something like this to me recently, not exactly, but I can't use picks and whatnot on the trade machine.

Link (http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=29rrfbn)

Where do I sign again?



:smokin

[gospursgojas]

He'll end up in NY

[galvatron3000]

It's all been arranged w/Dell Demps...he's going to do us a "Pau Gasol" solid.

:toast

[will_spurs]

Did Magic and Bird team up? Did Jordan and Malone join each other?

Bird teamed up wth Parish and McHale... you might want to look those names up. I'm sorry but as I said in another thread: are you comparing Bosh and Bird? Let's stop that joke.

[Obstructed_View]

Bird teamed up wth Parish and McHale.

Which two of those guys were free agents?

[will_spurs]

Which two of those guys were free agents?

None, but I don't think Bird said at the time "oh it's going to be too easy playing alongside 2 future HoFers, can you please trade me to a team with less talent?"

The Magic+Bird+Jordan is a big joke, these guys were already teamed with great talent, unlike any of the three players who moved to Miami.

And again, Magic Bird and Jordan were pretty much the best players of their era (they monopolized the MVP award between them for 9 straight years). I don't remember Bosh or Wade having even one MVP trophy. Apples and oranges.

Basically with Wade and Bosh, Lebron is finally getting the kind of supporting cast these guys had in the 80s.

[Obstructed_View]

None, but I don't think Bird said at the time "oh it's going to be too easy playing alongside 2 future HoFers, can you please trade me to a team with less talent?"

The Magic+Bird+Jordan is a big joke, these guys were already teamed with great talent, unlike any of the three players who moved to Miami.

And again, Magic Bird and Jordan were pretty much the best players of their era (they monopolized the MVP award between them for 9 straight years). I don't remember Bosh or Wade having even one MVP trophy. Apples and oranges.

Ah, gotcha. I misunderstood what you meant. Yeah, I said at some point that if the Bulls hadn't gotten Scottie Pippen that Jordan probably would have finished his career somewhere else.

[will_spurs]

Ah, gotcha. I misunderstood what you meant.

My use of "team up" was confusing, I see that now.

[TD 21]

I've already thought about this.

The Spurs could offer Parker, Anderson and two first round picks for Paul. Then the Hornets (despite Demps' supposed good relationship with Parker), because Parker would almost 100% leave in the off season, could turn around and trade Parker.

In this example, I'll use the Knicks. They could offer Curry's expiring contract, Chandler and Douglas.

So while the Hornets wouldn't rid themselves of Okafor's bloated contract in this scenario (that could be a prerequisite), they would walk away with Curry's expiring contract, Chandler, Douglas, Anderson and two first round picks for Paul. Not bad. Not a single great asset, but a cadre of quality ones and this is a team short on that.

I'm not in favor of trading Parker, but if they can get back one of the (at minimum) seven best players in the league, who happens to play the same position and is younger, then it's a no brainer.

We know the Spurs aren't on Paul's list, but too bad. He's signed for two more years and has very little leverage in this. The Spurs, if they're not already, would probably instantly become contenders again and if they either won a championship or made a deep run with Paul, that could help convince him to stay.

Buford and Pop could sell him on being the centerpiece of their re-build/reload, along with Hill, Splitter and Blair. Ginobili and Jefferson would still be under contract. Obviously, once Duncan retires, they'll need another big to add to that core.

If he's still not sold and isn't likely to re-sign, then trade him at the '12 trade deadline. Sure, teams won't know if he'll re-sign, so they won't get as much in return as they normally would for a player of his caliber, but they'll still be able to get quality assets in return. At worst, they could do a sign-and-trade in the off season. The only way this could end badly is if they lost him for nothing in the '12 off season and even if they did that, in the short term they'd improve their chances at winning one last in the Duncan era, which still makes it worthwhile.

Obviously, this is probably a long shot, but it's feasible.

[will_spurs]

in the short term they'd improve their chances at winning one last in the Duncan era, which still makes it worthwhile.

How?

People keep spinning that line, and all we ever see as a justification is a vague feeling that Paul is better than Parker.

Please explain in details why the Spurs aren't contenders with Parker, but would instantly become so with Paul. I'm all ears.

[galvatron3000]

Hey Duncan was about to join Hill and McGrady in Orlando, although T Mac hadn't emerged as a star yet. Of Course Jordan would have left if Pippen hadn't grown a spine after getting dumped on by the Pistons or at least he'd wanted him traded and the FO to bring in Magic and Worthy or somebody.

[TD 21]

How?

People keep spinning that line, and all we ever see as a justification is a vague feeling that Paul is better than Parker.

Please explain in details why the Spurs aren't contenders with Parker, but would instantly become so with Paul. I'm all ears.

Actually, I think they will be with Parker, but I think there's a better chance they would be with Paul and they would increase their chances of propping open their window longer.

Paul is one of the seven best players in the league. Parker, at his absolute peak, is a fringe top fifteen player. Paul is a much better play maker and a better three-point shooter.

I'm not a proponent of trading Parker in general and it's not that I'm not a fan of his, it's that this is Paul we're talking about.

[Interrohater]

This would be a stupid trade because point guard is not an issue of concern right now. Sure, we could upgrade a fraction, but that's not putting us over the top. There are other positions that could really use an upgrade that really would push us even higher, but point guard is not one of them. That's like replacing Pepsi with Coke. Sure, I prefer Coke, but it's the rum that's missing.