The Magic is not blinded by their trip to the NBA Finals. They are using the offseason to improve. Yes, they lost Hedo Turkoglu, but GM Otis Smith has done a very nice job re-tooling the roster. The most recent signing: forward Matt Barnes, a guy many thought the Cavs might target.
Despite losing Turkoglu, Smith has put together a roster that might keep Orlando as the East favorite (sorry Cavs fans). This offseason, the Magic have added Barnes, a 6-7 wing player, retained backup center Marcin Gortat by matching his offer sheet, traded for Vince Carter and Ryan Anderson, and signed Barnes and Brandon Bass. And they'll also get Jameer Nelson back.
This is called filling out a roster nicely.
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Ah, yes, yet another dude who was "linked" to the Cavaliers, but Ferry never hauled in. What is this, like the 3,000th fish "linked" to Ferry that has gotten away in the span of four years?
That guy reminds me of when I went fishing as a little kid with my dad in the Sea World trout pond. About a billion trout literally swimming one on top of another. You had to be either a little kid or the most incompetent moron in the world not to come home with about a trillion trout. They charged my dad about $3,000 for a ittle plastic bag of canned corn, I stuck the corn on the hook, and despite there being more trout in the pond than there are people in China, I still couldn't hook onto a damn thing. That's Danny Ferry, a little kid fishing with my dad in the Sea World trout pond.
If Orlando really wants to go for broke, they still have that gargantuan trade exception to use by the trade deadline. So if they have another major injury like Nelson, they'll have no problem replacing the broken part.
But hey, the Cavs still hauled in a former Israeli star who once banged heads with both Saul Einstein and Hal Lebowitz's cousin, Schlomo Lebowitz.
I meant Lebovitz, not Lebowitz. No disrespect, Hal, wherever you are.
So Alan, if you could play/live in Orlando or Cleveland, which city would you chose all things considered?
Depends, Tim. Who's offering me the most money in limited years? A guy like Barnes, he's the Damon Jones of our times, he's been with seven teams in seven years. I really don't think he gives a crap where he lives or plays, just so long as he's getting paid. Granted, Florida has no income tax, so he'd get close to 6% more by playing in Orlando, but still. Anybody really think Ferry didn't try to get him, and Barnes' agent, in turn, didn't tell him to stuff it? Barnes would have absolutely sucked while playing in the Cavaliers' plodding offensive system, but that's not the point.
What I meant is all things being equal, he'd get close to 6% more in Orlando. But Aaron Goodwin already made a fool of Ferry with Delonte West and the Russia threat, and was quoted in the paper that Ferry was lowballing him, so I think Ferry's prior dealings with Goodwin certainly entered into it.
You answered my question; Orlando!
Tim, based upon what both Parker and Moon are going to get, one would have to assume the money Ferry offered was considerably more than what Orlando offered. Given that Barnes is a relatively low-paid guy, that money means something to them. But Ferry has burned so many bridges, it's a wonder he can still function as a GM. I read a column quoting several unnamed agents, and before the secret South American trip he wasn't liked or respected by agents, and after that secret South American trip he was considered as honorable and respected by agents as the garbage littered on the shores of Lake Erie.
Has Jameer Nelson ever played a full season? Who is going to distribute the ball in Orlando if he goes down again? Turkoglu and Lewis caused matchup problems for the Cavs but I don't see the same problems with Carter and Lewis. And those two seem to get injured, too.
Supposedly C.J. Watson is going to sign an offer sheet with Orlando to platoon with Anthony Johnson at backup point as opposed to the lousy Tyronn Lue. Watson is better than Daniel Gibson. Which isn't saying much. But you will notice that when Watson does get his restricted free agent deal, it will not be for five years and $21 million, a subtle factual nuance which seems to escape the resident idiot in the Cavaliers' front office.