Let's blow up the team

[Rich4114]

Who's with me? Seriously, are we winning any playoff series with this group? I don't care who we're coached by, the poor GM decisions over time have boiled over and I can't imagine us going anywhere. My fear is we may run into hot spurts that cause us to be like 7th-10th worst in the league instead of bottom 3.

Why not start trading guys for picks, or maybe some other team is stupid enough to take a combo of guys for one good guy we could build around.

I'm not suggesting we tank, as a disclaimer, but I just can't imagine this team being very competitive and the future is dim.

[Walt Cronkite]

I don't think we should go all out yet, but I think we need to get the wheels turning. We should see if LB has interest in a front office position and let him start grooming a coach that he likes. I'd say this is the first step. Management as a whole has never been on the same page in Charlotte and that's the first thing that we need to address. We have acquired talented assets, they just don't fit together.

[spectre_]

Yeah...trading Crash & DJ for picks will surely start filling up the Cable Box.

We need to keep on trying to win so long as LB is the coach. After next season we have a lot of salary coming off the books, so if it's needed that will be the time.

Besides...what in our past history tells you that we could actually do something competent with those picks we'd trade for?

[Battery]

I'm all for dumping Felton ASAP and just handing the reigns to DJ just to see what we have. We already know Felton isn't leading us anywhere other than the toilet, so we might as well get going and start seeing who should and should not be here for the future.

[chabber]

It's definitely time to start making preparations to arm the nuke. We've given them plenty of time as hardcore fans to make a run at the playoffs while knowing in the end it wouldn't mean anything to this city.

The best thing would have been to get a new owner last summer but that has been put on hold. I'd much rather start rebuilding under new management. The only constant I know about the Bobcats current owner and management is that they if they touch something it will most likely fail.

Either way there are some things that just can't wait until next year. We have to decide on moving Bell before the deadline. If we are going to start blowing things up next year, he needs to go. It'd also be nice to have a decision made about what to do with Ray as well. Still the bigger question is the one Walt mentioned and that is LB. He has his faults and I'm sure he's had his hand in some of the bad trades we've pulled off in the last year but I can't help but think he's more competent than anyone else we have right now.

Lastly is next years pick. I will all depend on where we draft but if we are going to start rebuilding it might be a good idea to just go ahead and gift that pick to whoever has it now this season instead of letting them end up with a top 10 pick. I haven't looked up the protection and don't feel like it so if this is not something that is a viable suggestion then I apologize.

[fatlever]

i'm ready to give this current group until feb to make me a believer. if we are not in clear playoff contention at that point, i would be ok with getting the ball rolling on rebuilding this team.

i know it might sound crazy, but i think wallace really deserves a chance to compete on a playoff team while he is still in his prime. i would love for that to be with charlotte, but if we cant be that team, i would kinda like to see wallace moved to a team that will make the playoffs. he deserves the national recoginition that would come with playing on a winning team. i would really hate to see crash spend his entire prime on a losing team.

can we even trade felton this year?

there's not a lot of assets we can move at this point. wallace, diaw and bell are about it. nazr, diop and vlad maybe, if we were willing to take back a long term deal. i would not want to deal dj, ajinca, hendo or brown because those are exactly the types of players we should be stockpiling if we plan to rebuild, young, cheap, upside players.

[spectre_]

can we even trade felton this year?

After December 15th (or around there) and only with his permission...and if he gave it he'd be relinquishing all Bird Rights.

[chabber]

Yeah trading Felton is pretty much out of the question. Moving Nazr and Vlade isn't worth it until next fall.

Fats I totally get it. I love my team. I love certain players. However there comes a time when as a fan you have to step away look at it from a different perspective. Take the Panthers for example. Totally wasting away what could be an extraordinary career in Steve Smith by the front office/coaches own ineptitude.

[KeithMoonsLiver]

What is there to blow up? It's already a like a nuclear wasteland. The key is to get a bonafide star in the draft, like the countless ones we have passed up to bring in "talent" like adam morrison and sean may, and build around them. It's impossible to win big without at least one if not multiple stars. Our team is a team full of role players, and this is what we get for always sticking to "proven" college winners rather than talent and potential. I don't know what sort of trades we could possibly do to get a young star to build around. The only real chance we have at being anything more than mediocre to terrible is to get lucky in the draft. If the ping-pong balls had been a little different we could have had a Paul or Howard instead of Felton and Okafor, or if we had some balls could have had an Anthony Randolph or Brandon Roy instead of Morrison and Augustin.

[WaydownSouth]

I don't think we ever had a ping pong ball chance of drafting Howard. Didn't Stern automatically give the Cats selection 4, as the new expansion team, and then we used pick 4 and took that Clipper dude in the expansion draft to move up to the Clippers slot of 2. We got Okafor and the Clips tagged Livingston.

My regrets....... trying to play safe with draft picks as Keith mentioned. We should of taken Granger over May and Roy over Morrison. I think it's been proven now that excellent college players don't necessarily make good/average NBA players.

Yes, I know Roy stated he hasn't coming to Charlotte. Make the ****er come or he doesn't play in the NBA, or use him to get some more pieces (ala Kobe for Divac etc all those years ago). Since when should a franchise be held hostage by snot nose college players that haven't played 1 second in the NBA. I give the Bucks credit (and it was damn hard) for having the balls to take Yi. Okay, he's rubbish, but at least they used him to get rid of Bobby Simmons, and got Dicky Jefferson (he's got a small bit of talent, especially for dumping his ex's and perving on guys) in return.

Morrison's mum should of just agreed to swallow that night 20 odd years ago. May..... pffftttttt....... My keyboard just gained 10 pounds by typing his name.....

Let's blow this trash heap up......

[Sachmo]

After these first few games I've been thinking the same, blow this baby up.
Trade what we can for younger players and picks. Players like JJ Hickson, who has shown some signs of becoming a good player and could probably be had for one of our better assets. Bugger Stephen Jackson, seriously is he going to carry us through the finals????
Take risks on younger players and picks, suck for the year and draft the best possible player.

BUT....I think its too soon, like Fats, I want to give this team some time to see if they can get it together and take us to the playoffs.

I mean hey, we are a 500 team and 8th in the East at the moment.

[WaydownSouth]

Hey Sachmo, did you see that the Tigers have just picked up Julius Hodge.... They'll give your boys a rock once Anstey returns......

[Sachmo]

If Hodge can keep it together this time. Interesting to see how his ego will mix this time around.

[Walt Cronkite]

The Jules from Harlem on his way to stardom!

[Rich4114]

Well the way to look at this is to look at each of our players separately and assess their value to contenders in the league. Imagine what Wallace could do on a team where he's like the 3rd option? How about a Diaw coming off the bench for Utah or something? Raja would be welcome just about anywhere in the West to defend Kobe. DJ would obviously go for a big price but we have to keep him as our starting PG since Ray will be gone.

If we can land a combo of picks + one young prospect with upside for any of our players I would do it. Sure we'll suck this year, but who cares? We're gonna suck anyway, might as well sacrifice a few extra wins for a contending team in the future.

Maybe we end up with some cap space to land a Bosh or something too, who knows. Imagine what a good GM would do with this roster? LB has been trying to patch guy together to make it work using his Detroit model, but look at the guys they had. Rip and Billups at the time are >>>> than any backcourt we've ever had.