Reasons to Keep Matthews

[write4u]

IMHO, the Jazz need to match the offer for Matthews. The pluses far outweigh the minuses. Let's break them down.

Pluses:

1. Matthews fits the Jazz system
2. He plays both ends of the court and has great heart and determination
3. He's a good finisher with great open court speed
4. He's a hard worker who has years ahead of him and who will continue to improve
5. He's a clutch player not afraid to take a shot or make a play at crunch time
6. He's a humble guy with a great attitude
7. He's the two guard the Jazz have beening pining for, for more than a decade

Minuses:

1. Matthews is undersized
2. He needs to work on his passing
3. Second year players aren't worth the offer Matthews is getting
4. The Jazz can get adequate players, like Brewer, to replace him for half or less the money

If people want to add to these lists, feel free. I did not include the minus that he has reached his ceiling because I believe it is ludicrous to make such a statement about a young player who has played only one year in the NBA, especially one with the heart and determination of Matthews. In the final analysis I think the main argument against the Jazz matching is financial. However, signing won't put us in LT territory, and if my understanding of the current Jazz finances is correct, we still will have enough money to sign other players we need, like Fes.

 

[Hopper]

[*]Second year players aren't worth the offer Matthews is getting

I aint really read your whole thread yet, Write, but thought I would stop right here to point out one thing. NOBUDDY seriously argues that no second year player is "worth" what Matthews is gittin. It's simply that the CBA PROHIBITS the league from payin that, at least if the guy was drafted. This has nuthin to do with "worth." It has to do with the players conspiring with the owners to screw futures draftees so that both could make more money for themselves, that's all.

As far as CBA restrictions go, this has also been pointed out elsewhere: The offer to Matthews, which the Jazz have the right to match, is the absolute maximum which Portland is ALLOWED to offer--even if they thought he was "worth," and even if they would otherwise be willing to offer, twice as much for him.

 

[billyshelby]

8. He walks old ladies across the street.
9. He rescues kittens from trees.
10. He doesn't chew with his mouth open.
11. He's hilarious at cocktail parties.
12. He's an excellent dancer.
13. He might not be done growing.

 

[Shaggy]

#14 he's not white.

 

[tatermoog]

15. You can't find guards who give you 9.5/2/1.5 in 25MPG just anywhere.

 

[Gyp Rosetti]

15. You can't find guards who give you 9.5/2/1.5 in 25MPG just anywhere.

Not at 48%, 38%, 83%, you can't.

 

[Jeditiger]

I think the kid is going to be something special and I hope we end up keeping him.

 

[write4u]

And he always drinks Dos Equis ...

 

[Stifle Tower]

Not at 48%, 38%, 83%, you can't.

And that's the main reason for matching. If he can duplicate those %'s for 30+ mins, and he gets more opportunities to shoot because our PF won't be the focal point of the offense anymore, then it's not too unrealistic to expect Matthews to average 16-18 pts/per game. If I'm a coach with a guard shooting those kind of %'s, I want him to keep shooting.

Case in point: some of the top SG's in the NBA last season:
W. Matthews - 48.3%
R. Allen - 47.7%
D Wade - 47.6%
B. Roy - 47.4%
J. Johnson - 45.8%


And a lot of the other guys we value aorund here such as Ginobili, Iguodala, Gordon, Terry, Crawford (wasn't he the 6th man of the year?), are in the 44-45% range.

Now I'm not suggesting Matthews is going to be a superstar. And I'm not going to bother to look up Matthews' outside shooting vs. drives. I can't believe it's that much different than a Dwade or Roy, though. Those guys take it inside all the time. Unfortunately, Matthews was undrafted so he's not locked in to a rookie deal. But $7M/per is a long ways from DWade/Johnson money. Maybe Portland is on to something. Give Matthews 12-13 shots per game (vs. the 7 he averaged) and he could put up some great numbers. Is 18/pts per game on 45% shooting worth $6M+. Probably so in today's market, especially for a guy who's willing to also play defense.

Dunno...I may have changed my mind here and am in support of matching his contract.

Look, we're never going to defeat the Lakers inside. But Boston proved in their victories you can shoot over them. Allen, Pierce and Rondo were way too inconsisent. But having Matthews, Deron, CJ and now, Hayward. Those are four pretty good weapons. Gordon is still weak on his 3's, but he sure showed he can hit from 15-18 with consistency.

 

[Harcher]

"15. You can't find guards who give you 9.5/2/1.5 in 25MPG just anywhere. "

Not at 48%, 38%, 83%, you can't.

John Salmons has a new 5 year $39M contract. His percentages are almost the same over the last couple of years (8 year vet to get there) but averages 2x points (19ish) and plays 38mpg. I don't think that Wes goes to 19ppg in 38min (system doesn't really allow that and its only 13 more mins a game), but he'd proably be at 12-13ppg with 38mpg's and same %'s (effectiveness.) So is John Salmons overpaid at 8/year?

Maybe this is really Millsap all over: At first it was a bit higher than expected, but really, looks to be a fair (or better) $value. I like Wes. Last night I said no way to this contract. But it was late and i couldn't believe the numbers. I could be softening up.

I think BillyShelby can help us understand how he is rated 28th in everything for shooting guards when I see him compared to Salmons looking more worth it. 7.0/year is probably average NBA pay. Billy, If Wes gets 35mpg would he rate as an average NBA wing? He has the efficiency of Salmons yet only 23 years old (Salmons matured after 4 years)

The next measure is how good is his defense really? Bruce Bowen? Raja Bell? ... Ronnie Brewer? He can and will get better than he is today at defense for certain.

Another late night logical conundrum reading all 300 posts last night: Most of us believe he's BETTER than Korver today. Korver got 5/year. Korver's at his peak about after 7ish years in the league. So Wes should be on an upswing - Maybe 7/year isn't so bad??

 

[Harcher]

Also, what are the alternatives? Can someone get Chad Ford's list off ESPN. that would help us GM's out a little.

 

[Stifle Tower]

Also, what are the alternatives? Can someone get Chad Ford's list off ESPN. that would help us GM's out a little.

The alternatives are:
1. Keep AK at SF and have CJ start at SG. Sign a player to backup Millsap at PF.
A. Hayward becomes the primary back and gets 20+ mins.

2. AK splits time between SF and backup PF.
A. CJ starts at SG. AK starts at SF.
B. Sign a guy like Brewer to give rotation mins.
C. Hayward can be limited to 10 mins/per as a rookie.

3. Bold move:
A. Start Hayward at SG. Hey, Matthews was an untested, undrafted rookie. Hayward is a better ball-handler. He'll get beaten some initially, but his size will bother opposing 2's, especially on the other end.
B. CJ or AK starts at SF.
C. Sign a SG to backup Hayward.