Let me ask what should be a stupid question but may not be with current contracts…..

[Kblaze8855]

Say your team is bad and has the 4th pick….


Do you even want your team to land a run of the mill all star?

Not a superstar or legendary type. Not a Luka/Giannis/Lebron/whoever all timer. A regular all star. Think Antawn Jamison, Rudy Gobert, Kyle Lowry, Sabonis(the younger), or whoever comes to mind when you think of an all star who isn’t elite. One of these classic players to get that dumb “Can’t be the best player on a title team” label people use to make it seem like just having such a player is a problem.

Considering that pretty much all top 25-30 types eventually get some form of super max? Rookie or veteran there are 29 players who have or will soon get such deals. The ones that pay even non all stars 180 million and guys who make an all nba third team up to 250-260 and will one day pay Devin Booker 92 million for a season.

I know you wish the world allowed you to have a young all star and keep him on a small deal to make it easier to add players better than him. Basically….


https://thumbs.gfycat.com/HelpfulInsignificantAnchovy-size_restricted.gif





So here we are.


Michael Porter Junior costs 177 million dollars having proven nothing. You pay it or someone else will and you lose a potential somebody when they walk or get an Ayton situation where you bring them back hoping to trade them later.

There is another path though. The process.


The 76ers drafted a rookie of the year. 22/12 and 9 steals in what I think was his first career game. Carter-Williams put up like 17-6-5 as a rookie. Someone you could force feed the ball and minutes and make be a name to be known at least. A potential one day…something. But they bailed on a rookie of the year in hilarious and brutal fashion and his career went nowhere.

Maybe they didn’t wanna go down a sunk costs path of putting too much into a guy who was never gonna be one of those “Best player on a title team” guys.

So they just threw his ass out of the boat much like they did Okafor who would have been force fed the ball 10 years earlier.

Instead of continuing to develop a potential asset/albatross good but not enough young player who demands a deal they just threw them to the wolves.

So I ask you….


You draft a young guy and know he will likely be good but not special….not an all timer.

Are you even pleased? The way some of you talk there are downright legends you would pass on for various reasons. Usually a “Can’t win that way” or “Can’t be the best on a title team” reason.

Are you sinking 3-4 years into developing a pretty good lost cause who is gonna want 170 million to give you 19ppg that would win you 26 games without a much better player to lead him?

Do you ever pay such a player just because the market forces you to give them 120-170 because that’s what it costs?


Would you try to 76ers it and just throw “Never gonna be the guy” young players away till you get a generational one?

Are you even hiring specific shooting coaches, trainers, and a dedicated development coach with a plan to squeeze all the juice out of Cuttino Mobley at the eventual cost of a massive deal you only sign in hopes of trading it with more assets for a real star?

You draft a guy you know will be nothing more than like…Rip Hamilton. At very best.

You putting years into that and paying him the 220 rookie Supermax he will probably be eligible for in 2026?

[FultzNationRISE]

It depends how he plays.

If he’s ball dominant - Melo, Westbrook, Arenas, Irving types - then absolutely not, because what’s the point of having a ball dominant player who cant ‘be the best on a championship team.??’ If you do manage to add someone better than him you either have your best player’s touches compromised, or ask a guy to do other things who isnt good at doing other things.

To me a ball dominant second rate star is pointless. If your star isnt elite, just play team ball. Id rather have a guy who’s barely even a borderline all star - think AD, Bosh, Love types - over a “prime Rudy Gay” or whatever volume guy.

Respectfully.

[Overdrive]

It honestly depends on the draftpick situation and how the team performs in his rookie season. Landing another top3? Might be worth it. Might fail. Fail is basically the Lakers' situation before Lebron joined. They had high picks, but couldn't get a franchise player in return. In this situation I'd probably deal him after year 2.

If a core of two top3 or 4 picks doesn't show promise in improving I need to get better players/picks.

[NBAGOAT]

if this is like the 2nd pick I'm not happy but an all star is pretty good for the 4th pick. If you cant build a strong team you can always do what the spurs and jazz did this summer. an all star will still fetch a really good trade package

[iamgine]

Sure, if you can't get the all timers, the next best thing is these guys. In the future you hope to lure better players with them as bait. Or you trade em. They are good assets when they are Booker or Gobert level. Not Wiggins level though.

MPJ though, he's injured way too much to gamble on. Teams should stay away from paying these injury prone types the max.

[Xiao Yao You]

Donovan Mitchell would certainly look a lot better at 20 million instead of max. Are the Knicks even a play in team with Mitchell and Barrett on max deals?