Re: dilettantish -Reply

[j.hironaka@unesco.org]

Ryan Falcone wrote:

> I second Josh and Gene wholeheartedly.  Pierce is clearly a "3," where
> his size / quickness / shooting mixture creates matchup problems for
> opponents.  If he were to play the "2" on a full time basis...well, again I'll
> reiterate my agreement with Josh and Gene.
>
> I just hope that they can find a way to sign Mercer.  I would much rather
> keep the nucleus intact than engage in wholesale roster overhauls every
> year.  If ever a year there was not to have a draft pick, this is it.
> Someone needs to let Pitino (aka Trader Rick) know that stability is what
> breeds consistency.

Hi Ryan:

Without necessarily challenging the overall gist of your post, I'd still say wait
a second on your "weak draft" conclusion, even if it looks a little dicey right
now from #1 through #3.

Consider the Toronto/Chicago scenario (Mercer for a #5 and #12 pick) that Thomas
Murphy raised as a plausible "best offer" for Ron Mercer. Each of the following
draft hauls could IMO help ease the pain of losing our starting shooting guard.

-scoring guard Richard Hamilton and point guard Will Avery, both of whom can shoot
the ball and play to win.
-point guard Jason Terry and shooting guard Ron Artest, each of whom statistically
bring a lot more to the table than just impact defense and scoring (assists,
rebounds etc.).
-point guard Baron Davis and rebounder/human hightlight film Jumaine Jones, two
"tailor made" Pitino athletes.
-forward Wally Szczerbiak (is this word legal in "Scrabble"?) and Evan Eschmeyer,
two "NBA ready" guys with basketball smarts.

Just mix and match if you don't particularly like the combinations above. Do you
guys really think Toronto/Chicago would casually trade these players for a guy
(Mercer) up for the maximum salary extension? If they do, I would favor the deal
in spite of the obvious downside to which you and others allude (team stability
etc.).

Other candidates with the first pick  at #5 (Andre Miller, Corey Maggette or Steve
Francis, Elton Brand could fall)

Other candidates with the additional pick at #12 (Jonathan Bender, Shawn Marion,
Alexsander Radojevic, Quincy Lewis....)