Talent does win championships. The thing is that we have a lot of talent on this team. What we don't have is playoff experience. I just don't see how someone can tell me with a straight face that another 12th-13th pick in the draft is going to be the difference maker. Even in this draft. It would be just another person that needs to develop over the next few years before they can really contribute.
You say that it's just another year and we can start that championship run next year. It just doesn't work that way. There are too many moving parts in an NBA team. Salary issues. Injury issues. Performance issues. You can't put all this momentum on hold and say "Next year is the year".
I would like to challenge you to come up with an example where this has worked for a team to tank their way to a championship. You believe that we should sacrifice our current success (or chance of success) for a possibility of a good player that becomes the difference maker. I assume if you're willing to root for your own team to lose that you must have some solid evidence that this works.
My recollection of championship teams are ones that do their due diligence and improve year after year until they get a chance at a championship.
Almost every team that wins a title drafted their most important players. And certainly all small market teams that have won it all did.
I think we can agree that our current situation is different than the situation of most other past and current lottery teams. What I mean is that we already have a lot of young talent that we hope pans out, unlike your average lottery team. So when I envision our four youngsters developing, I see a very strong core, but I don't see them bringing home any rings--there are a few holes that need to be filled in order to get over that hump into contender status. So when I say that I believe we can get a "difference maker" at the end of the lottery, I'm not expecting us to get a superstar by any means, I just think we can get someone good enough to fill the holes, like say Austin Rivers, Kendall Marshall etc. Like do you think the Mavs would have won last year without Terry, Chandler, and so on? I'm not arguing that we're going to get the face of the franchise with that pick, just that we can get a "Terry" or "Chandler" that will get us over the hump. But unlike Dallas, history has taught me that free agency is much less likely to bring us a "Chandler" and the draft is our best rout. I wouldn't say that about most drafts, but I will about this one.
It all comes down to a few questions:
1. Do you believe that our young core is good enough to win a title in the future?
If you answered yes, then ok, we're obviously not on the same page. But if you answered no, then the next question is:
2. How do you expect to acquire the pieces in order to get over that hump?
My answer is that we have a better chance through the draft than through blockbuster trades, due to the seemingly timid front office when it comes to that sort of thing (note another year of 0 trades), and it's certainly a better method than hoping quality free agents come to a small market like Utah. So the next question is:
3. What is the best draft to acquire the pieces you supposedly need to get over that hump? (especially if you are expecting to be picking at the end of the lottery)
My answer? The 2012 draft.
