Pelicans have him by the balls since he will be an RFA first. he's not going anywhere
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Pelicans have him by the balls since he will be an RFA first. he's not going anywhere
Yes, but only if we sign the player before we match the offer sheet. Kawhis cap hold is $7m, so when calculating the money we have for free agency that is the number we use. Once we match the cap hit becomes whatever his salary is, for a max deal it'd be around $15m.
No. If he signs a contract with another team, we match that contract exactly as far as I know. If he signs a 2 year deal with another team, we'll match it and get him on a two year deal. Very unlikely he would do that when he'll almost certainly get 4 year max contract offers. I think only the Spurs can offer him 5 years, and he'd only be able to get it by signing directly with us rather than letting us match somebody elses contract.
I don't think the tax will be an issue with the way the cap is forecast to increase. If anything, slightly overpaid players signed next summer could become good value contracts by their final year.
It all hinges on whether Duncan comes back. If he retires then we could extend Kawhi on a max deal and still have $12m to spend, if he comes back then that figure would drop to MLE level money if we extend Kawhi first.
I agree a player like Deng, Millsap etc... is a much more likely option than a max level guy. As it stands, I expect the only max level free agent on the market will be Marc Gasol. Love will re-sign with the team he is traded to and Aldridge has said he plans to re-sign next summer with the Blazers. It won't be popular, but I think Stoudemire could be an interesting option. Wouldn't give him anything longer than two years (preferably partially unguaranteed or with a team option) but he played 65 games last year, might be worth a roll of the dice. Otherwise, Millsap and Afflalo will likely be the big names in free agency.
Wow, where the hell are all the fans in that video??
Edit
Is that a fact? Like Parker's extension early in july, nobody saw it coming but...
No benefit? Keep Leonard under contract 5 years/2020 instead of 3 years it's a clear benefit.Quote:
but there is no benefit from the Spurs perspective to extending him before then
Match an offer and spend your money on max contract and have only 3 years that player because the last contract's year could be player option when Tim/Pop/Manu are gone, and then the young and elite two-way player -who recalls the Spurs didn't give him the extension when he asked- could sign with any contender team he wants??
That doesn't sound like a very good deal.
Also, I'm not sure about he wouldn't sign 2 years. Higher projected salary cap for next seasons, Lakers and other teams rebuilding, could be strong incentives to do it.
Who can be sure after the good relationship between the player and the team was broken...
If they don't want to extend him, you can be SURE that they will sit down and put the information in front of him about next year's cap room. He's not an idiot. He understands that putting better players around him makes his job easier. I'm quite sure that if they don't want to extend him, it's so they can use the cap room, and then turn around and MAX Kawhi for 5 years using his Bird rights.
Kawhi is NOT an emo bitch like Isaiah Thomas or Chandler Parsons. He's not going to pout, mainly because the Spurs will make him a part of the process.
Obviously, he isn't a big-ego guy but he -and his agent- can have a lot a questions like Why I should test free agency? You really think I'm the next face of the franchise or not? I didn't earn the extension in the playoffs? If Tony never tested the market, why me? Why I should wait for star FA's, if they aren't willing to play in San Antonio?, etc...
At some point the Spurs are probably going to need some hired guns if they don't want to bottom out. Or they can go the Pacers route (though that can take longer, selecting in the 10-15 range of the draft as opposed top 1-5)
The Spurs should have the basis for future rotation post big 3. Not sure if that can contend for a title but at the very least we should continue to be a playoff team, baring something unforeseen, through Parker's extension.
PG-Parker, Mills
SG-Green, Belinelli, Bertans
SF-Leonard, Anderson
PF-Diaw, Jean-Charles
C-Splitter
(assuming we resign Green, Beli and maybe even Joseph)
(Selected list of free agents)
Paul Milsap
Marc Gasol
Rudy Gay
Anderson Varejao
Monta Ellis
Al Jefferson
David West
Roy Hibbert
(according to Real GM) can be come FA's next season
The Spurs would have $44.3 million committed to 8 player. I included Leonard's $7.2 cap hold and presumed that Jean Charles and Bertans (I listed him for the Bi Annual exception of $2.1 million) comes over next season. The cap has been projected by some to jump as much as $4 million after next season (to $67.3 million)
That doesn't include Duncan, Ginobili, (I'd imagine both would retire after next season) Beli and Green.
While your scenario is possible, I don't think it's likely. Your argument is that Kawhi wants a 5 year deal from the Spurs, but then goes and signs a 3+1 year deal with someone else? If he wants a 5 year max now (the only contract we can give him), why won't he want one in the summer?
I just don't see how Kawhi would turn down a 5 year max herein favour of a 3+1 or 2 year deal. The guaranteed money is too important, just look at what happened to Paul George and Derrick Rose. A players career can take a nosedive any time through injury, get the money while you can. The only exception to this in the league at the moment are Lebron, Davis and Durant. Those guys could suffer Rose/George injuries and still get max contract offers, I'm not sure anyone else could which makes the risks huge.
Because he wants a extension this summer, he said that he's confident extension will happen.
But if he won't get a contract extension, maybe sign a less-years offer could allow him to play next years (after 2017) on more competitive teams (than the Spurs without Tim/Pop/Manu) who don't care about luxury tax.
About the risk of injuries, you're right but also it would be another big reason to want a extension and not wait one season more.
I see what you're saying, but if Kawhi is willing to sign for 5 years this summer than I expect he'll be willing to sign for 5 years next summer.
Honestly, Kawhi isn't a Lebron level one-in-a-generation talent, it wouldn't be a franchise crippling move if we 'only' got him by matching a 3+1 deal. He's never even snifffed an All-Star or All-NBA team, before the finals there were questions over whether a max deal would be overpaying him. If he takes offence to not getting an extension this summer (something I think is very unlikely considering his personality, the franchise and the free agency situation) and he decides to take less years through restricted free agency then so be it.
For me, the risk/reward of waiting until the summer is worth it.
I disagree but understand and respect your opinion.
For me, Leonard changed everything for the Spurs and gave us the chance to win again.
I don't want to see him as part of the Next Big 3 with Paul and Griffin, or see how he makes decisive/crucial plays like his steal/block on Westbrook or his game 4 NBA Finals for other team.
That's why in a cost-benefit analysis I want the Spurs keep him happy/under contract 5 years and then sign another extension contract and...to be a Spurs for life.
I like Davis' chance to become MVP in a couple of years but he won't be leaving NOLA at least before 2021.
Uh, your scenario of pre-signing him makes it seem as if they would be MORE concerned about the tax, and my scenario of courting/signing another FA makes it seem like they would be LESS concerned about the tax. Why would you bring that up as a supporting point of extending him as opposed to a new contract? If he wants to see them SPEND, then he should wait.
You mean the Spurs would be less concerned about tax? I know but I was talking about other teams who don't care spend their money and can sign two -even three- of biggest names on the market.
Kawhi divides his time between two cities, San Antonio during season and San Diego the rest of the year, he was born and raised in California, if the Spurs don't want to extend Leonard, he could want to play for those teams signing less-years offer to become unrestricted free agent in 2017 (he would return his home to play?)
Maybe it isn't likely but I think it's not impossible.
I see what you're saying about teams who spend, but at the same time I question if players really care too much about that. The Nets showed they were willing to spend big and hit the tax, didn't do them any good. If I'm a player I'd have reservations about those teams, an albatross contract is far more damaging to a franchise than not spending money. Paying huge tax didn't help the Lakers last year either.
The flip side is of course the Thunder, who gave away maybe the leagues best shooting guard in Harden because they were too cheap to amnesty Perkins. That was simply a terrible decision both financially and in basketball terms, which will be further compounded if Durant leaves.
I think it'll be interesting to see how many teams will continue to be happy to pay the repeater tax. It will get very expensive, even for big market teams.