Well I believe Joe received a fair deal. If darko were to come out of the draft today he would be a draft choice between 8 through 12. Shedding arroyo's salary would cost a few drops in the draft posiions. So presto this about fifteen ( in a deep draft). Darko was unhappy he had to leave so Joe did reasonably well. If a player produces on a rookie contract that is the ultimate for a GM
Remember, if he was an 8-12 draft pick this year, his salary would be very low compared to what it is going to be. You don't think every team would be chomping at the bit right now to get Darko Milicic signed up for the next 4 years at $4M per year? In that price range, he'd be a very hot commodity. Like #3 behind Oden and Durrant. The thing that screws this up is that you get the top rookies for below market prices. If you had to pay them a market price, then Oden would easily be getting $8M/year right out of the gate... and would therefor not be as desirable.
Everyone keeps forgetting about the cap space. Without moving Darko and Arroyo, we would not have the room to re-sign Hunter, sign Murray/Mohammed. We would have had to pay luxury tax which is almost 1.5~2 times the overage. At #8~12, Darko would be in line to receive between $1.94 and $1.54 million to start. But he wouldn't have the Dirk Nowitzki comparisons, and he wouldn't have any NBA tape to sell people on. He would be another Euro big man, without the benefits of NBA weight training or conditioning. And at that salary, and only 2 years of his rookie deal guaranteed, he would be on a short leash to limit the pouting if PT was not there for him. He would have no choice but to wait for his opportunity with a smile.
Well, I guess that would've made LB's job much easier. The coach wouldn't have the pressure to play the guy either.
I know one thing. After 4 years, he's now top 5 in a deep draft, not #2 in a deep draft. How is that for diminishing returns?
I think you should give some credit for that quote TaShawn...I believe it was Isiah Thomas who first made that statement.
Yeahbut... Oden is the best big man in a generation, right? The next Bill Russell. No shame in going after him. Durrant should be good, but if Darko could be picked up for the same price, I bet there are still some GMs out there who would grab him, cause they are so desperate for an inside presence.
darko would still be a top 3 pick in this draft. i can't believe that 8 - 12 thought process. darko after 4 drafts would still be a top 5 pick in every draft. i don't see how people call the guy a bad pick. if every draft since was redone he's still going top 5. after 4 years he's 1 of 2 in that draft to have a championship ring. i don't think it's diminishing returns. you get out what you put in. i think darko is doing great after 4 years of not 1 team trying to develop him like a lottery pick. i think he's doing great after 4 years of not being allowed to play towards his strengths. darko/arroyo > nazr/hunter/murray i'm not saying retirees aren't true bball fans. i'm just saying they come from a different generation. my grandma still thinks chuck daly coaches the pistons. retirees are loyal and they vote.
In My Day, Ballplayers Were For **** | The Onion - America's Finest News Source Speaking of retirees, I thought this was funny.
Lebron James Carmello Anthony Chris Bosh Josh Howard Kirk Hinrich David West Leandro Barbosa Carlos Delfino Maurice Williams Zaza Pachulia Steve Blake Luke Walton Jason Kapono Travis Outlaw Boris Diaw Mikael Pietrus Chris Kaman That's 2003. Tell me today you would take him in the top 5. And do it with your brain, not your heart.
yes. if i was the pistons without a doubt i'd take him # 2 again. he fit in so well with the unselfish play, the defensive intensity, the great passing, the length and quickness of our frontline. he solved the problem of having a defensive center but not having to play 4 on 5 on offense. in my opinion the problem was never the pick it was what was done after the pick. if i was any other team. i'd maybe take lebron, melo, wade, bosh before him as no brainers. championships are won with defense and centers. centers don't come along as often as wing players do. centers can't be addressed in free agency as easily as wing players that's why there is a premium on them.
I still would take him as the number 1 pick from that draft. He is the only 7-2 center listed above. Not only that, he can shoot the daylights out from the outside. Ask this question in two years, and I bet people laugh at you for even considering any of the rest of the players on this list.
I'm not considering lee. I want the fans opinions. I just posted the notable players who have caught on and played significant minutes from that draft.
If I were to go back and pick from that draft, my order would be as follows- 1. Lebron- This is a no brainer. If you don't agree with this then we can continue this conversation in Japanese. I don't understand that at all either. It would be just as productive. 2. Bosh- This was my second choice behind Darko at the time. He's a franchise big. It's tough to get franchise bigs. 3. Wade- At the time, I thought he would be a one of the great combo-guards of the era. He's even better than that. He'll go down as the second greatest shooting guard of his era. Kind of like Drexler. 4. Mello- Dude is somewhat selfish, but he can really play. At the very least he would be lighting guys up off the bench to the tune of 17-20 points a night. Kind of like Barbosa on steroids. 5. Darko- He's Orlando's best post scorer, not Howard. He can pass, block shots and make open jumpers. If he was on a team like Atlanta, where he would be the primary post option, he would be averaging 17-20 points a game.
I think that a good way to measure the draft class will be to compare their salaries after all the extensions are in place. No better way to value a stock than to look at where it is trading.
Sign Billups, trade him for Darko and GHill, sign Law and play one frightening line-up with Prince/Delfino/RIP/Sheed/Darko. Of course, this is only a dream and Darko will never go back. If AJ and JMax don't develop the way we want them to, this team's gonna have a huge problem on the long haul.
