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Good news for the Spurs if they are targeting Azubuike, which I highly doubt.
If the Warriors get in a bidding war with Ellis and have to up their price to keep him, then Buike is available.
Once again, doubt the Spurs are interested in Kelenna.
Seem like Ellis is a target of the Grizz. If the Grizz get him that about wipes out any chance of getting Azubuike. On the other hand if The Warriors havve to pay up to keep Ellis Azubuike is a goner for them.
Article from The Examiner
It is no secret that the Grizzlies will have a boatload of cash this offseason, and they just happen to play in Memphis, all of three hours from Ellis’ hometown of Jackson, Miss. The Grizzlies are said to be targeting Ellis, who has turned into one of the most explosive backcourt scorers in the league.
If the Grizzlies sign Ellis to an offer sheet that starts in excess of $10 million per year, it is going to put the Warriors smack dab in the middle of no-man’s land.
Common sense dictates Mullin would almost have to match the offer. After all, Ellis is the most dynamic Warriors player since ... well, Arenas. Ellis has improved every year, and if he adds a 3-point shot, there’s no telling how good he can become offensively.
But if Mullin matches that contract, one that will increase in every subsequent season, it probably will have a lasting and negative effect on the Warriors. Then again, the alternative is allowing Ellis to leave for nothing ... which seems unheard of.
The problem, however, with matching a big-time offer for Ellis is that he hasn’t yet proven he is worth that kind of contract. As dynamic as Ellis is, he isn’t a point guard, he doesn’t make teammates better and he has yet to shine in the postseason.
Good news for the Spurs if they are targeting Azubuike, which I highly doubt.
If the Warriors get in a bidding war with Ellis and have to up their price to keep him, then Buike is available.
Once again, doubt the Spurs are interested in Kelenna.
J.R., then Azubuike.
Much ado about nothing though, we are kidding ourselves if we think we are going to land one of these guys. Sadly, I don't see the FO doing much.
From the description of Warriors fans who've followed Azubuike for some time he pretty much overlaps skill-wise with Udoka. The guy with the skill set the Spurs need is clearly JR Smith.
Why would you rather have this chump then J.R Smith?
I say no.
This doesn't make sense AHF. If he's worried about his knee problems then of course he ops out and signs a long term deal that nets him far more than 17 million and is guaranteed.
Apparently Memphis plans to chase Monte Ellis. They won't get him, but they might put Golden State in a position of having to match a large contract offer, killing GS's ability to retain Azubuike. Looks good for us, methinks.
It's confirmed, Azubuike has opted out and become an FA -
http://basketball.realgm.com/src_wir...with_warriors/
I disagree with his skill set being like Udoka.
I think hes more athletic, and can shoot the ball a little better.
Him going restricted is ok. Lets just hope the Spurs agree with us and go after him.
I don't see any teams lining up to give him the big contract, which is in part why I think he won't opt out...
I agree. Having watched him play, he's much more polished when putting the ball on the floor. Way better handles, better mid-range jumper, he can jump out of the gym (how many guys did Ime posterize this year? Kelenna had a couple...).
And he's not a feast or famine guy like Ime is, you are going to get consistency from him in his time on the floor every night.
What he said. Not Udoka, but their games both fit the Spurs system and would complement one another.
And what he said.
Do you guys think that Azubuike will command the full MLE? I can't see that. I'm hopeful we can get him for half the MLE and spend the other half on another player or simply save it for an in-season signing.
As I wrote a few posts above, Memphis is targetting Monte Ellis. Between him, Biedrins and Nellie's supposed commitment to Wright and Belinelli, I think Golden State might let Azubuike walk. Probably not, but there is a chance.
[GO GET HIM RC !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
For Once....please let Spurs have a good player from free agency. Can u guys recall last time we got star/potentially star player from free agency (not draft or trade)? Anyone ???
Handles is certainly something that the GS fans, a lot of them, are not giving him credit for, saying his handles are not good at all, and saying he can't create his own shot.
Azubuike opts out: Guard Kelenna Azubuike has joined Monta Ellis and Andris Biedrins in the restricted free-agent market after opting out of his contract. Azubuike, who would have made the league minimum of $797,581 next season, is in line to receive a modest salary bump after averaging 8.5 points and 4 rebounds.
"I think everybody would hope that it would get done early," said Mike Higgins, who represents Azubuike and Watson. "But I don't envy them, because they have a lot on their plate. Just like with any team, they only have a certain amount of dollars to spend, and a lot of guys to sign."
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...SPD0118DRA.DTLThat second excerpt is just a blog so take it for what it's worth. Azubuike really may be attainable for an inflated two-year contract. Two-year, $10M? That'd be a nice addition if RC can pull it off.At first glance this doesn't seem like a major deal. It's unlikely that one of the few teams with cap space is going to blow it on overpaying Azubuike or that some other team is going to use a big chunk of their midlevel exception on him. Even if they do, the Warriors won't be forced to match as Azubuike's a fairly replacable bench player. I predict that the Warriors work out a reasonable deal with Kelenna by the end of the summer. Something along the lines of a 2-3 year contract at about $1-2.5 million a season seems reasonable, but that's just a quick guesstimate.
http://www.goldenstateofmind.com/200...ubuike-ops-out
That's ed up. When I watched GS early in the season, they were hurting for offense and essentially put the ball in his hands and he had a huge game, like 33-35 points or something like that (it was when Sjax was still suspended).
Kid can play.
TIMVP, if that blogger is the way the Warriors think, the SPurs could take him away easily with even a 3 quarters of the MLE.
If thats all it could take, I'd get him, and then see what else you could get.
First off, there is no way the Grizzlies or anyone else will get Monta Ellis. I live in the Bay Area and trust me, it's not going to happen. Chris Mullin has gone on the record, multiple times, that the Warriors will match any and all offers for Ellis and he is not available. He was, by far, the most exciting player on the team and a fan favorite and there would be riots in Oakland if he left, much more so than Davis leaving.
Secondly, I'm not sure exactly how tall Azubuike is (but 6'3" and a half seems short) but he is an excellent rebounder for his size, especially offensively, and I'm 100% certain he would out-rebound Michael Finley. If I'm the Spurs I would offer Kelenna as much as I possibly had to, even the full MLE so the Warriors don't match, and install him as the new starting shooting guard, playing 25 mins a night. He's only going to get better and better.
Yes, I know there is no way Ellis leaves. But Ellis and Biedrins might such the well dry, and put Golden State in a position of giving up Azubuike.
That's too much money for Azubuike. He's in line for a "modest salary bump"--from under 1 to 2 or 2.5 million. If the Spurs offered 3.5 or 4 million, they'd be out of Golden State's range. I'm not sure about the rest of the league, though, or what other suitors he might have.
The question is could the Spurs sign anyone else for the remaining 2 million? I favor not giving Azubuike a dollar more than we have to and either signing a second wing with the rest or sitting on it until after deadline buyouts.
Good point. If this is the player we go after (assuming not JR), hopefully we won't out-think ourselves on this one and wait too long for an offer. Are there any other teams looking at Azubuike?
I'm not even sure the Spurs are looking at Azubuike. But I am certain that the Warriors are in a pinch, and they simply can't afford to offer Azubuike much.
Now he would be worth a "Bonner" type contract...3 years $9 mil...& still have +-$2.5 mil to sign another player....
Adonal Foyle would be a decent backup bigman to use the leftovers on...he basically rebounds & is a very good shotblocker...plus his personality fits the Spurs....all I'm saying is that we could do a lot worse than sign Foyle to a 1 or 2 year deal at $2-2.5 mil per...
Either way, it is going to be very interesting starting with the Draft & moving on in to July...I think there is going to be a lot of movement....IMO a few teams feel like they are "right" there, maybe just a tweak or two here....Hopefully the Spurs will be involved in some of these, where we get younger more athletic at the SG/SF position...
I think Portland is ready to get rid of Jack & we can use the TE from the Beno trade along with a pick..they might bite..I could also see Portland moving down or out of the first round...they have enough youth at all positions..they need vets & capspace..we can provide both(although I'm sure they would just be interested in our cap space), so that leaves the 13th pick possibly open for trades...
In a perfect world we get Jack as our backup PG along with the 13th pick...Jack for the TE & buy the pick for $2-3 mil. along with a 2nd rounder or two.
Foyle would be signed for the LLE, not part of the MLE.
Portland was trying to use Jack to get Devin Harris last season, they won't trade him for an exception. For the exception we might land Sergio, but even that might need a little sweetener.
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