Alex Schiffer recruited several colleagues from The Athletic to get an idea of what the market is for Spencer Dinwiddie, unreserved free agent … and Nets waster.
What’s the bottom line? It is made difficult by a number of factors, such as the salary cap, the luxury tax and who each of the seven profiled teams already has in the roster at point guard. The authors cover the Nets, Celtics, Mavericks, Pistons, Clippers, Knicks, and Raptors. Surprisingly, the group didn’t include the Heat, who are rumored to be interested in the 28-year-old, and the Lakers, who are on his list of favorite destinations.
The authors reject the prospect of Dinwiddie getting anywhere near the $ 25 million a year he believed was his worth. There are always concerns about Dinwiddie’s kneeling. Still, they find that it is still at the beginning of the process and may depend on what other teams and players are doing over the next 10 days.
Schiffer comes to the conclusion that “If [Dinwiddie] Wanting a bigger role and probably more money, the Nets are unlikely to please Dinwiddie. If he wants to fight for a title, but may not want the full market value and be a favorite for the sixth man of the year, then it makes sense to meet again. “
However, Schiffer thinks it is unlikely that he will get the money he wants.
Dinwiddie said he would have a hard time turning down the Nets if they offered him a five year, $ 125 million deal, and it’s harder to see the Nets get anywhere near that number. Brooklyn is in for a title and could use Dinwiddie, but he would return from his second cruciate ligament tear (on different knees) to a smaller role rather than the contract he was looking for.
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Jared Weiss, who covers the Celtics for The Athletic, notes that the Celtics need a point guard and could have some attractive perks in Marcus Smart and Al Horford. The problem is, Weiss believes Smart is too high a price to pay for a player who has had two cruciate ligament tears in his knees.
[C]When you consider that Smart is a better off-ball shooter, is a far more effective defender, has one year left on his contract, and is committed to Boston, it’s hard to see how worthwhile it is to give him up for a player, who is one year older and descends a serious injury.
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Tim Cato, beatwriter for the Mavs, wonders how Luka Doncic, who plays the Dot in Dallas, and Dinwiddie would fit together. The Mavs may have some cap space that they saved to put on Bradley Beal or Giannis Antetokounmpo, but they’d have to take a few steps to be comfortable.
Arguing that Dinwiddie failed to meet the Mavs ‘self-set goal of finding another star, Cato notes that there may very well be better point guard options depending on other free agents’ upcoming decisions. He says Dinwiddie is likely less attractive than Kyle Lowry, Goran Dragic, and Mike Conley Jr.
Basically, the Mavericks want a proper second star alongside Doncic, which Dinwiddie probably wouldn’t be. Dinwiddie’s market could be the deciding factor: if he’s signed a friendly deal, the team is confident that he could act later, then the idea is less damaging.
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James Edwards III, covering the pistons, points out that Detroit already has a top pick, Killian Hayes, the # 7 pick in 2020, in their backcourt and almost certainly Cade Cunningham, who plays the point, will be convened on Thursday. Edwards says Detroit “appears to be committed to making this partnership work.”
Obviously Dinwiddie is better than these two youngsters right now, but Detroit is thinking about the long run. Just don’t see the addition of Dinwiddie solidify the pistons at this point.
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Law Murray is the beat of The Athletics Clippers. He reveals that DInwiddie was at the Staples Center to see the suns eliminate the clips. LA doesn’t have the cap space or the draft picks to make a big trade. And Kawhi Leonard, who has his own partial cruciate ligament rupture, has yet to reveal whether he will go for his player option. In other words, the situation at Clippers is a bit troubled.
Add to the uncertainty whether the Clippers will bring back Reggie Jackson, who has played well with vets for a minimum of a year. Pat Beverly and Rajon Rondo are still under contract for the coming season. Murray writes …
Would it take Dinwiddie significantly less to get to the Clippers after an injury, even to return home? If he gets back in shape as a driver and playmaker, Dinwiddie could go offensive to help the Clippers. But he wouldn’t help defensively, and there are likely too many moving parts for the two parties to tie in, especially with Dinwiddie having a losing season behind him.
And a sign-and-trade would severely restrict the Clippers, meaning the Lakers couldn’t take a step that would increase the team’s payroll. No exceptions, no minimum for veterinarians.
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Mike Workunov covered the Knicks for The Athletic until recently. As everyone knows, the Knicks have more cap space than any other NBA team, but how much would they care for Dinwiddie? And the Knicks hope to be able to enter the Damian Lillard sweepstakes when it becomes available.
So far, the Knicks have acted like a team that wants to maintain flexibility and keep its canopy light. Giving Dinwiddie would consume that, if not necessarily prohibitive. There are serious questions about his health, however, having ruptured his cruciate ligament twice at the age of 28. Perhaps a one-plus-one deal for both sides next season might be a better option. But Dinwiddie turned down $ 12.8 million the next season.
How about a sign-and-trade between the two New York teams? Workunov notes that the last time happened 38 years ago.
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Eric Koreen, a Raptors veteran who now reports for The Athletic, thinks that if Lowry moves to the free agency, this could open up for Dinwiddie. Lowry’s departure could free up $ 24 million in cap space and a back seat alongside Fred Van Vleet, but they’d have to take other steps like dropping Chris Boucher, not a likely scenario.
If they do decide to act as the Cap Room team – again, this largely depends on what happens to Lowry – I think they’ll put the money on a big security guard rather than a …
Realistically I would say signing Dinwiddie would be more Plan D or E than Plan B or C. It becomes more likely if Dinwiddie’s market isn’t developing and there is a short term deal that makes sense for both parties.
In other words, Toronto is also unlikely to do anything other than a short-term deal (which he essentially turned down when he opted out of his $ 12.3 million player option.
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The Athletic reporters covering the Heat and Lakers were not included, but there are similar issues with these two teams. The Heat could hit the cap if they forego Goran Dragic and Andre Iguodala, who have more than $ 34 million in team options. But the Heat would supposedly go for Lowry or Conley. They also hold the bird rights to Dennis Schroeder, who, like Dinwiddie, talked about a $ 100 million contract.
In summary, the Lakers can only sign and trade if they are willing to accept a hard cap. They also reportedly plan to attack Chris Paul. Your limited fortune on a mega-deal instead of paying big bucks for Dinwiddie.
All in all, we’ve learned over the years that NBA general managers and capologists find a way when they really want someone by taking advantage of multi-team deals and creative contracts. But based on what The Athletic Panel says, Dinwiddie’s market seems thin unless he wants to settle for far less than his original goal. Will that allow him and the Nets to do a face-saving deal with a lower number? Keep going.