What's new
By:
Filters

Annual Beginning-of-Off-Season Reminder: Don’t Believe a Word Ainge says

F

Flc

Well-Known Member
There was at least one tell Ainge wasn’t being honest in his presser: he mentioned that Garnett fell into his lap when he didn’t get Durant. In a previous history of that championship team, Ainge himself outlined the four year plan that he had in place to get KG.

Before the trade deadline he said Collins wasn’t learning schemes and needed to be traded, now, he’s an example of work ethic that he’s so glad is around. Before the trade deadline, Lauri was “available.” Now, it’s evident that he’s been informed and understanding of the tank from the beginning and he and the org plan a long-term career in Utah. Ainge says he doesn’t have a plan in the first half of the press conference, in the second half he refers to the plan.

The guy knows what he’s doing but you should never, ever trust what he’s saying. Actions say: he keeps appearing in places to watch Cooper Flagg. Ainge says: We’re not tanking, we’re big game hunting if we feel we’re ready. (He does not feel we are ready.)

The one thing I trust: the plan, essentially, is to build a full roster that’s a superstar away, then trade for that superstar.
 
Yeah I tend to agree with this sentiment. There were some real solid nuggets in that presser, but the "big game hunting" is obvious bs.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Flc
davidbenoit said:
Yeah I tend to agree with this sentiment. There were some real solid nuggets in that presser, but the "big game hunting" is obvious bs.
Click to expand...

For the record, the “big game hunting” quote was presented without context and is very misleading imo.

Not saying it make looks Ainge better, but he did not say “we are ready to go big game hunting” as in they are ready to do that this summer. I think that is how most people interpret that when they see the tweet.

What he actually said is that had we gotten the guy we almost got, we would have been ready to go big game hunting.
 
KqWIN said:
For the record, the “big game hunting” quote was presented without context and is very misleading imo.

Not saying it make looks Ainge better, but he did not say “we are ready to go big game hunting” as in they are ready to do that this summer. I think that is how most people interpret that when they see the tweet.

What he actually said is that had we gotten the guy we almost got, we would have been ready to go big game hunting.
Click to expand...
Yeah, noticed this as well. The average JazzFanz poster is way more read-in than the average Jazz Twitter/Redditor.
 
KqWIN said:
For the record, the “big game hunting” quote was presented without context and is very misleading imo.

Not saying it make looks Ainge better, but he did not say “we are ready to go big game hunting” as in they are ready to do that this summer. I think that is how most people interpret that when they see the tweet.

What he actually said is that had we gotten the guy we almost got, we would have been ready to go big game hunting.
Click to expand...
I don’t even know if I believe they almost got a guy. That strikes me as sending a signal, to either other GMs or season ticket holders, whether or not it’s true.
 
I don't fully buy everything he says but what still blows my mind is ..... He had some part of raw-dogging us when Gordon was a free agent and apparently it was good enough to bring him here
 
Flc said:
Yeah, noticed this as well. The average JazzFanz poster is way more read-in than the average Jazz Twitter/Redditor.
Click to expand...

The other thing was that he was basically clowing on the idea of having a plan as a response to the question about having a plan. Then later on in the interview he mentions how he talks to Hardy regularly and that Hardy believes he has a plan. I think Ainge knows the game well, most people will just read through quotes and not actually listen to the whole thing. Beat writers are going to take the chunks out that get the most clicks, regardless of if it's in context or not. Anyways, I think Ainge going back and forth about a "plan" was just him being long winded about the concept of things being fluid in the NBA, which is obviously true. But at the same time, you've also have some direction or idea where you're headed, another thing that is obviously true. I don't expect FO members to be 100% transparent so I don't mind, but what we're actually seeing is the art of saying nothing.
Flc said:
I don’t even know if I believe they almost got a guy. That strikes me as sending a signal, to either other GMs or season ticket holders, whether or not it’s true.
Click to expand...

Like most things, I believe there is a hint of truth to it. How much? Idk. I definitely believe we kicked the tires on Porzingis, Holiday, and Herro who we were rumored on. How close were we actually? I wouldn't put it past him to lie. But I could also believe a scenario where we would have gotten Herro if Dame had gone to Miami, but he's way overselling Herro's quality as the "almost" guy. At the end of the day it doesn't much matter. He justified not tanking earlier in preparation of acquiring "almost guy" which does make sense to some degree, but who really cares if we didn't get "almost guy". Again, it's just a long winded/eloquent way to say we whiffed and that's why the situation we're in is not ideal.

It's just not sexy to say, "we had a plan to do something, we couldn't do that thing, that's why we had a major pivot and are in a situation that's less than ideal". But that's probably the reality of things, and this is also being generous in taking his word for it that there was a realistic chance we got "almost guy" and "almost guy" was actually a franchise changer.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Flc
KqWIN said:
The other thing was that he was basically clowing on the idea of having a plan as a response to the question about having a plan. Then later on in the interview he mentions how he talks to Hardy regularly and that Hardy believes he has a plan. I think Ainge knows the game well, most people will just read through quotes and not actually listen to the whole thing. Beat writers are going to take the chunks out that get the most clicks, regardless of if it's in context or not. Anyways, I think Ainge going back and forth about a "plan" was just him being long winded about the concept of things being fluid in the NBA, which is obviously true. But at the same time, you've also have some direction or idea where you're headed, another thing that is obviously true. I don't expect FO members to be 100% transparent so I don't mind, but what we're actually seeing is the art of saying nothing.


Like most things, I believe there is a hint of truth to it. How much? Idk. I definitely believe we kicked the tires on Porzingis, Holiday, and Herro who we were rumored on. How close were we actually? I wouldn't put it past him to lie. But I could also believe a scenario where we would have gotten Herro if Dame had gone to Miami, but he's way overselling Herro's quality as the "almost" guy. At the end of the day it doesn't much matter. He justified not tanking earlier in preparation of acquiring "almost guy" which does make sense to some degree, but who really cares if we didn't get "almost guy". Again, it's just a long winded/eloquent way to say we whiffed and that's why the situation we're in is not ideal.

It's just not sexy to say, "we had a plan to do something, we couldn't do that thing, that's why we had a major pivot and are in a situation that's less than ideal". But that's probably the reality of things, and this is also being generous in taking his word for it that there was a realistic chance we got "almost guy" and "almost guy" was actually a franchise changer.
Click to expand...
I did laugh at a few folks who clearly just read a few quotes and were like “ if you don’t clearly see what the plan is now then I can’t help you”. Like he just went through a detailed slide deck explaining the blue print. I enjoyed it but I still think exactly what I thought before… shrug.

He’s a value based opportunity driven guy. The opportunities will dictate where this goes rather than Ainge forcing something
 
  • Like
Reactions: Flc
Handlogten's Heros said:
I did laugh at a few folks who clearly just read a few quotes and were like “ if you don’t clearly see what the plan is now then I can’t help you”. Like he just went through a detailed slide deck explaining the blue print. I enjoyed it but I still think exactly what I thought before… shrug.

He’s a value based opportunity driven guy. The opportunities will dictate where this goes rather than Ainge forcing something
Click to expand...

While it would be fun if FO members were totally transparent, that's obviously not something that's going to happen. He has definitely mastered the art of saying nothing. I feel the same as you....I feel no different after hearing his press conference.
 
The Jazz aren't in a place where they are ready to trade for a star. They've just torn down and don't have enough of a team or identity in place to support a star. They've got mostly youth and some odd-fitting pieces. If a star became available, a lot of work would need to be done to fill out the roster, and it would take at least a full season or two to do it.
 
KqWIN said:
While it would be fun if FO members were totally transparent, that's obviously not something that's going to happen. He has definitely mastered the art of saying nothing. I feel the same as you....I feel no different after hearing his press conference.
Click to expand...
Say nothing but make you feel like he said so much.
 
Once we figure out who the star we almost got is, can we put their jersey up in the rafters next to the two almost championship banners we got in the late 90s?
 
I could see Ainge go hard for Flagg, then trade for superstar after drafting Flagg if he gets him. I'm just loving the idea of Sarr and Flagg on the same team with a superstar to be the icing on the cake. I'm assuming that if we go for a superstar, KG3 or Hendrix are getting traded with draft capital.

The question is who the superstar would be... Morant? Trae Young?
 
Flc said:
There was at least one tell Ainge wasn’t being honest in his presser: he mentioned that Garnett fell into his lap when he didn’t get Durant. In a previous history of that championship team, Ainge himself outlined the four year plan that he had in place to get KG.

Before the trade deadline he said Collins wasn’t learning schemes and needed to be traded, now, he’s an example of work ethic that he’s so glad is around. Before the trade deadline, Lauri was “available.” Now, it’s evident that he’s been informed and understanding of the tank from the beginning and he and the org plan a long-term career in Utah. Ainge says he doesn’t have a plan in the first half of the press conference, in the second half he refers to the plan.

The guy knows what he’s doing but you should never, ever trust what he’s saying. Actions say: he keeps appearing in places to watch Cooper Flagg. Ainge says: We’re not tanking, we’re big game hunting if we feel we’re ready. (He does not feel we are ready.)

The one thing I trust: the plan, essentially, is to build a full roster that’s a superstar away, then trade for that superstar.
Click to expand...
You really think he had some 4 year master plan to somehow force Minny to trade away KG? Come on now. He was big game hunting by doing EXACTLY what he is doing right now. Being ready with some good pieces in place managing the cap and assets. KG "fell on his lap" but it could have been any top player he liked for that matter.

He did chase Durant in between that wait by tanking to the 2nd worst record in the NBA, and that means there is a very good chance he might do that to chase Flagg/Bailey as well.

But there should be no doubt about the plan anymore. He has already executed it for 2 years and has actually told about it to the reporters multiple times. He knows how hard it is to get that top guy, and if such a guy becomes available he will fight for him. Meanwhile he will do smart business decissions with cap, assets and trades to retain/build the value we have. He wont maximize any of those three, but keep them at balance so that we have our options open.
 
Btw for those who still speculate on who "the almost guy" was... maybe there was a freudian slip by DA in his presser?

When he was asked about Clarkson for the first time, he referred to him as "Gordon". I thought that was funny, but also it tinkled my spidersenses a bit.
 
HermanG said:
Btw for those who still speculate on who "the almost guy" was... maybe there was a freudian slip by DA in his presser?

When he was asked about Clarkson for the first time, he referred to him as "Gordon". I thought that was funny, but also it tinkled my spidersenses a bit.
Click to expand...
I think it's just that Gordon and Jordan are close names.
 
Ferguson_Mellochill said:
The Jazz aren't in a place where they are ready to trade for a star. They've just torn down and don't have enough of a team or identity in place to support a star. They've got mostly youth and some odd-fitting pieces. If a star became available, a lot of work would need to be done to fill out the roster, and it would take at least a full season or two to do it.
Click to expand...
Not only do we have mostly youth but it is completely unproven youth. That is never the time to get overly aggressive.
 
Ferguson_Mellochill said:
The Jazz aren't in a place where they are ready to trade for a star. They've just torn down and don't have enough of a team or identity in place to support a star. They've got mostly youth and some odd-fitting pieces. If a star became available, a lot of work would need to be done to fill out the roster, and it would take at least a full season or two to do it.
Click to expand...
If a legit star is available and you dont have to give up Lauri/Sexton, you can make the deal. Lauri/Sexton + a top 10 guy is going to be a top 6 seed.
 
I was told who the "almost" guy was and almost everyone would have hated it, but it would have made the team a lot better for not much of a price.

I think you can probably infer who it is from that.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top