Rondo into Nash + a pick, then Dwight?

[byennie]

OK let me say that I'm actually a big Rondo fan, however... this wrist thing isn't looking good in a shortened season, we're playing great without him, and $37M in cap room is a different story from $25M.

So what if we trade Rondo + right to swap 1st rounders for Nash? Phoenix is a mess and bound for the lottery. Forget Gortat, he is their only building block at a premium position on a reasonable contract. They aren't moving him. But Nash, he needs a ring and IMO still has 2 or 3 years left in him, and he's healthy right now.

Next year, sing Howard and you would still have something like $17M-$20M to spend on bringing back Nash, Allen and Garnett for 1 more year, or replacing them. And we would have 5 young players from 2 drafts to start building around, with another load of cap room the following year.

Nash / Bradley
Allen / Phoenix lottery pick / Moore
Pierce / 1st rounder
Garnett / JJJ
Howard / veteran min

[guava_wrench]

Why would trading Rondo for Nash, who is nearing the end of his career, make Howard more interested?

[byennie]

Why would trading Rondo for Nash, who is nearing the end of his career, make Howard more interested?

Because we would have $37M in cap room and a lottery pick instead of $25M (just enough to sign him and have zip left over) and a late 1st rounder.

[southshorematt]

I would NEVER do this trade

[BigDanz2000]

This is bad, just plain, bad.  The average age of this team is old enough to have graduated with Abe Lincoln.

[byennie]

This is bad, just plain, bad.  The average age of this team is old enough to have graduated with Abe Lincoln.

They are old with or without Nash, who is healthy and leading the league in assists with nobody to pass to, and shooting around his usual 50/40/90.

Next year, an extra $12M in cap room could mean bringing back all of the players we want to, and still having the money for a run at Howard. With $25M, Pierce and Rondo, Howard knows we can't fill out the roster and won't have any instant impact from the draft. We'll have 2 starting positions unfilled and no way to pay for them.

With $37M and a lottery pick, we could be picking Kidd-Gilchrist and getting our choice of Allen, Garnett + Nash to return, and still have the money to put a full roster around Howard.

[dtrader]

I don't see why Phoenix would do this. Why would a team that isn't going to be a contender either way take on more salary, a worse draft position, and a player that might make them worse (pretty hard to imagine rondo or anyone else performing better than Nash has within that system).  It just makes no sense. They'd be giving up the face of their franchise (and grant hill, who only stayed cuz of Nash), to get a player in rondo that may or may not be a "face of the franchise" player outside of our system.

They're better off stacking high draft picks, riding it out with Nash, and then legitimately rebuilding on the cheap via draft.

[RJ87]

Yeah, let's get older! That'll get D12!!

Sorry, no way no how D12 signs on to play rec basketball at the retirement home.