Mock Draft 3.0 (Full Draft)

[Saint Cy of JFC]

I didn't say it... so eyeroll all you want. Do we really think Danny offloaded all the salary to take on 50M in dead cap for picks? There is usually 1 salary dump trade involving a first each year... Its just weird to watch how hard we had to try to lose this year and think if we have a healthy Lauri and Kessler that we will be a bottom 10 team.

Yes, I think Ainge would do that. Like you've point out, Ainge is about opportunity, not a set plan.

Before I was along that line of thinking "oh, Ainge freed up space, he must be going after Kuz/FVV/Grant" but I dont think that's the case any longer. Could be wrong. I'm not cap expert, maybe one of these guys gets squeezed and you are able to get a good value deal out there.


But yes, the Jazz could be a bottom 10 team next year quite easily. Just play the rookies more. Dont have Mike Conley. Dont start the season with a 10-3 record. Have the West be healthier. There were a lot of factors that went into Utah's hot start than just Walker/Lauri.

But yeah, I think it is possible that that duo is so good next year, along with guys like Ochai/Dunn/Sexton/SImone, and maybe the rookies we draft are really advanced, that tanking is impossible. I just think that is very rose colored glasses as to where teh roster is going to be. We are a year behind the optimism.

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

Sexton/Abagji/Hendricks/Markkanen/Kessler is going to be an extremely good lineup. We aren’t talking next year.

I think Hendricks is going to be a pretty bad rookie tbh. I dont expect him to make any of the rookie teams.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Yes, this is essentially it.

You dont go out of your way to sign any of the "big name" free agents. You let the team go out there and do their thing and you try and find deals for Clarkson/KO/THT/Sexton/Dunn (not necessarily trading all of them, but more "discovery" of who we want long term and who we dont).

People seem to forget that the reason we won so many games this past season is because we had that super hot start. That probably won't happen again. Also the West was riddled with injuries which helped the Jazz win more. We also wont have Mike freaking Conley.

So figure out a way to piss away 50M in cap without getting good players back and simultaneously trade some of our good vets for players who suck?

Super hot start is offset by the super grimy tanking we did at the end of the year. I guess we can do that again but at what point does Lauri say "eff this ****"? He didn't even want to sit this year.

Yall are buying this cuz of Locke... Its a new regime... Locke ain't know ****.

 

[default]

I think Hendricks is going to be a pretty bad rookie tbh. I dont expect him to make any of the rookie teams.

I think he will do pretty well if he gets the opportunity.

 

[Bawse Dawg]

And that outcome would have got us a play in birth this year... until we went full tank. We have a lot of directions we can go this offseason. I don't see too many that lead to us winning less than 35 games... unless Lauri or Walker miss a lot of time.

I’m fine with that. But post trade deadline we were pretty ***. The tank was ruined by the veterans to start the year. Otherwise we were mostly in line with the ****** teams.

If Hardy keeps doing his thing. Kessler and Lauri are just too good, etc. lll take that outcome for sure. But it’s not hard to see what Locke and Cy are saying here. The talent in the league is crazy. It’s less about how ‘good’ the Jazz can be. Who are they passing in the standings?

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Yes, I think Ainge would do that. Like you've point out, Ainge is about opportunity, not a set plan.

Before I was along that line of thinking "oh, Ainge freed up space, he must be going after Kuz/FVV/Grant" but I dont think that's the case any longer. Could be wrong. I'm not cap expert, maybe one of these guys gets squeezed and you are able to get a good value deal out there.


But yes, the Jazz could be a bottom 10 team next year quite easily. Just play the rookies more. Dont have Mike Conley. Dont start the season with a 10-3 record. Have the West be healthier. There were a lot of factors that went into Utah's hot start than just Walker/Lauri.

But yeah, I think it is possible that that duo is so good next year, along with guys like Ochai/Dunn/Sexton/SImone, and maybe the rookies we draft are really advanced, that tanking is impossible. I just think that is very rose colored glasses as to where teh roster is going to be. We are a year behind the optimism.

Ainge is an opportunistic guy... If we let JC walk we have $45M in space. There will not be $45M in salary dumps that provide good pick value... in a rising cap situation those deals fade away. Say $25M is used on salary dump deals for picks... you still have $20M to use or let dry up. This ain't the DL keep the powder dry days. The money will go somewhere.

If we are bad next year it will be because we got hit with the injury bug and our rookies were trashy (Hardy has already showed his hand there btw... no free playing time)

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

Ainge is an opportunistic guy... If we let JC walk we have $45M in space. There will not be $45M in salary dumps that provide good pick value... in a rising cap situation those deals fade away. Say $25M is used on salary dump deals for picks... you still have $20M to use or let dry up. This ain't the DL keep the powder dry days. The money will go somewhere.

If we are bad next year it will be because we got hit with the injury bug and our rookies were trashy (Hardy has already showed his hand there btw... no free playing time)

Yeah, Hardy has shown he is perfectly willing to play Rudy Gay.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

I’m fine with that. But post trade deadline we were pretty ***. The tank was ruined by the veterans to start the year. Otherwise we were mostly in line with the ****** teams.

If Hardy keeps doing his thing. Kessler and Lauri are just too good, etc. lll take that outcome for sure. But it’s not hard to see what Locke and Cy are saying here. The talent in the league is crazy. It’s less about how ‘good’ the Jazz can be. Who are they passing in the standings?

I just think neither Locke or Cy understand cap management. Listen to Locke talk about trades and he shows his *** real quick.

We bring back Sexton/KO/Kessler/Ochai/Dunn... we add 3 rookies... assume JC and THT both leave... then you have $60M in cap space plus exceptions. It will be HARD not to add a couple contributors even in salary dump deals.

Its just too early to say and that is my point with anyone saying we should consider tanking. I think that maybe 10% of the potential outcomes could lead to that... I just have a very hard time thinking that Ainge's plan A is to find salary dump deals with that space in order to facilitate an environment where we end up playing the young guys and get a top 10 pick (also we owe the pick to OKC if it ends up being 13+).

We might get a top 4 pick as well... who the hell knows. I think if we end up "tanking" its because the offseason was a big failure and Ainge was on plan J or K... even then we might still be too good to properly tank.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Yeah, Hardy has shown he is perfectly willing to play Rudy Gay.

lol gawd you are dumb sometimes... he literally said he didn't want to gift rookies playing time and that they need to earn it but sure.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

I blame @Ferguson_Mellochill for this... make a pick before Cy goes full stupid please.

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

lol gawd you are dumb sometimes... he literally said he didn't want to gift rookies playing time and that they need to earn it but sure.

Yes, I'm the person who made that obvious when everyone was complaining about Ochai not playing and Walker getting lower minutes early.

You misunderstand what I'm implying. Rudy Gay being on the roster means we still have ways to lose games.

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

Jazz are the only team that will improve next year and everything we saw in the final 20 games from the guys we played was real so we are going to win 46 games next year despite having 2-3 rookies on the team who will be getting minutes.

Forgive me HH, I now see the light.