The Scola Trade Revisited

[Bruno]

There was no money consideration in the Williams or Washington decision. They were both on unguaranteed contracts for the same amount.

Washington is more expensive than Williams as long as Spurs are above the tax. Washington cost is $1.2M and Williams cost was $850K.

[Obstructed_View]

There was no money consideration in the Williams or Washington decision. They were both on unguaranteed contracts for the same amount.

Sorry, that's not what I meant. The money savings gave them some la ude to decide that they didn't have to try to get value for the Marcus pick by keeping him and trying to force him to devlop, which most of us agreed was a possibility.

That second round pick is a resource, with value, regardless of the salary of the player selected. In retrospect for instance, the Spurs could have packaged that pick with Beno for a trade exception or a future second rounder and still ended up with Washington, right? There's some serious value in not having wasted that resource. I'm not second guessing the decision, but it doesn't take too many of those coupled with crippling luxury taxes to put pressure on a guy's job.

Having to take a bath on a draft pick looks really bad when you are cash strapped; but much less so when you've managed to save yourself some money on a previous trade.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Washington is more expensive than Williams as long as Spurs are above the tax. Washington cost is $1.2M and Williams cost was $850K.

Well, they could have cut both...

[wildbill2u]

With today's events (Butler waived, Washington signed), that trade essentially ended up being Scola's rights for the money to sign Udoka and Washington.

Anyone want to still whine like a little girl about it?

Do the Spurs still have the rights to Spanoulis if he decides to come back to the NBA.?

[Kori Ellis]

Washington is more expensive than Williams as long as Spurs are above the tax. Washington cost is $1.2M and Williams cost was $850K.

Washington is considered a rookie - first year player - same as Williams ($427K). The cost is the same. If you are doubling it for luxury tax purposes, they each would cost the Spurs ~$850K.

[SequSpur]

Championships aren't won in the preseason. Get back to me next summer and we'll see what these yardbirds do.

[Bruno]

Washington is considered a rookie - first year player - same as Williams ($427K). The cost is the same. If you are doubling it for luxury tax purposes, they each would cost the Spurs ~$850K.

http://members.cox.net/lmcoon/salarycap.htm#16

When determining the amount of tax a team owes, the league uses its team salary (see question number 14) on the date of their last regular season game (i.e., if a player is traded before the end of the season, then none of his salary is taxed), with the following adjustments:
[...]
* For players who signed as free agents (i.e., not draft picks), and make less than the two-year minimum salary, the minimum salary for a two-year veteran is used in place of their actual salary.

Washington salary is $427K but he costs $771K (the two year veteran salary) against the Luxury Tax. It makes about $1.2M.
Spurs have chosen Washington even if he was more expensive than Williams.
Of course, all of this will be moot if Spurs dump Beno somewhere and go under the tax.

[spurscenter]

Hindsight

Spurs front office did not know that:

A) Beno would break a finger and,
B) That Jaque Vaughn would start the season on the injured list.
C) That Darius Washington, a last minute invitee, would impress everyone and make the team to fill a glaring need.
D) That Marcus Williams would fall short of NBA readiness.
E) Bonner's beard would make him a better player.
F) That Ime Udoka would gel with the team immediately.

The only things that they did factor, was that:

A) Spannoulis was going to return to Greece
B) Butler's discipline had a reason for being questioned.

Besides, the verdict is not completely out on this one... so don't act as if it is. i.e. we don't know where Scola's potential will take him.

All one can say is that the Spurs' FO played their cards with an element of risk... and that so far it seems as though the trade was not as unilateral as it was once thought to be.

well said

[WalterBenitez]

Hey people, the trade was made, we have to live with that; Spurs' oranizations had made many good calls in the past... the only questionable for me is Barbosa to Suns.

I'd love to see Luis in Spurs' roster but at the end he wasn't an option for this team, live with that and pray for the kid, plain and simple.

Strategy sometime isn't obvious, and pop ugly face is good in that.

[smeagol]

The Scola trade will be fully judged by tghe end of the 2008/9 season.

As timvp said, if people judged Oberto for what he did in his first season with the SPurs, his ass would be some place else by now. Nocioni's fist season was not that impressive either and now he has signed a juicy contract and is weel beloved by the Bulls fans.

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

Spurs still want Spanoulis.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Pfft.

[SpursDynasty]

I look at it this way: The Rockets at best are a #5 or #6 seed. If Scola is THAT good, the most he'll do is bring them up to a #4 seed, they'll be out in the first or second round...no big deal.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

I look at it this way: The Rockets at best are a #5 or #6 seed. If Scola is THAT good, the most he'll do is bring them up to a #4 seed, they'll be out in the first or second round...no big deal.

[ChumpDumper]

Hadn't seen this before. Consider the source, blah, blah:

Over the summer the Kings held critical trade negotiations with the Cavaliers involving Mike Bibby, who came within a fraction of joining LeBron James in a three-way with the Spurs, who would've provided Cleveland with Luis Scola, yet another valued member of Argentina's 2004 Olympic gold medal team. Drew Gooden, Damon Jones, Ira Newble would've gone to Sacramento and Jackie Butler.

At the last moment, Scola was traded to Houston, prompting Sacramento to back off Bibby. Despite his obvious superior skill level and heightened serrated edge, management moved the 26-year-old rookie macho forward ($2.91M/$3.1M/$3.28M) with Butler ($2.35M) to the division rival Rockets.

Was it simply business to save a million? Was it an exhibition of supreme confidence by Gregg Popovich and R.C. Buford that their returning players needed no help to defend the franchise's third le? Or was it a demonstration of ultimate arrogance?

More likely it was all of the above with a dose of shrewdness added for good measure.

"The reason Luis isn't here," maintains someone on the scene, "is because Pop was worried he has to play with the ball too much, that he isn't specialized enough to play alongside Tim (Duncan). Recent success proves complementary players make more sense. But we all know Luis is better than any forward we have on our roster."

http://www.nypost.com/seven/10282007...ove.htm?page=2

I don't remember if Cleveland's old exception was large enough to match Butler's deal, but it's pretty clear the Spurs were done with him. That would've been a coup for Ferry.

[StoneCutter]

I agree with those that said it's way to early to tell.

Having said that...speculation is part of the fun of the pre-season, so here's my two cents. Scola looks to be a good fit in Adelman's motion offense. He and Yao are both pretty good passers for big men. Personally I prefer 7 foot centers to play with their back to the basket, but that's just me. Defensively though, I would worry more about the Rockets if they had signed someone like a Charles Oakley. I am picturing Parker driving past Francis and then Scola for an easy score. One of Yao's bigger problems (other then injury) has been getting into foul trouble. Scola doesn't help with that.


It will be interesting to see what happens.

[LEONARD]

I look at it this way: The Rockets at best are a #5 or #6 seed. If Scola is THAT good, the most he'll do is bring them up to a #4 seed, they'll be out in the first or second round...no big deal.

You haven't had Houston higher than the 8th seed so far....

[diego]

Hadn't seen this before. Consider the source, blah, blah:



http://www.nypost.com/seven/10282007...ove.htm?page=2

I don't remember if Cleveland's old exception was large enough to match Butler's deal, but it's pretty clear the Spurs were done with him. That would've been a coup for Ferry.

i had heard of the 3 way deal between cavs kings and spurs, but i never heard what the spurs would have purportedly gotten back. it seems between getting nothing from 1 team vs getting nothing from 2 teams there isnt much difference.

[ChumpDumper]

I assume we would've just gotten the trade exception and maybe a scrub.

[hsxvvd]

So now it's Scola, Butler & Beno

for

Udoka & Washington,

Surely that's a win.