Re: Mercer/Battie

[Alex Wang <awang@mit.edu>]

I am still not certain what you are suggesting. You say that Walker is
not worth the max and neither is Mercer. Now, if you don't pay Walker
the max, he leaves. I assume that you would have preferred to trade him
rather than "overpay" him. But if Mercer, who you agree is not worth
the max, demands the max, you would want to keep him? It doesn't make
sense to me. Or are you saying that you would rather wait a year on
Mercer and let him test free agency? The problem with this is, you either
end up overpaying him to outbid some other team, or having him walk away
for nothing. 

The difference between Walker and Mercer in my opinion is that Walker is
definitely worth the max whereas Mercer is clearly not. Signing Walker
to his extension is a no-brainer, because it is not "based on this past
year." It's based on his future performance which you can predict based
on his current skills and past performance, not only over the last year
but over his career. Based on that, it's easy. Most fans seem to have a
memory that is only as long as the last season (which is why coaches get
crucified as soon as a team slips). 

As you have said, Mercer is not worth the max nor has he had the time
to prove anything. So why do you necessarily want to keep him? The smart
move is to sign him for a contract that reflects his inexperience and
skills. If he won't take that contract, you trade him. Another year is
not going to tell Pitino something new about Mercer that'll convince him 
to pay him or not. But it risks losing a top asset for nothing, especially
since he'll probably be pissed at not getting an extension.

Alex
 
> I beleive McCarty was a mistake.  He really does not bring alot to the game.
> As for Walker, you can really say that based on this past year he is worth th
 *e 
> max?  I don't think he is.  for a player with so many skills we never seem to
 * 
> see them that much.  
> 
> >I think that Mercer is clearly not worth the max to the Celtics (because 
> >as many people have noted, he may not even fit into the starting lineup). 
> >So if he demands the max and threatens to walk away after the season 
> >if he doesn't get it (the favorite blackmail move by agents), the right 
> >move is to trade him. 
> >
> 
> I do not beleive Mercer is worth the max either.  But then again I think you 
> should have to win or at least prove your game over a few years to get the bi
 *g 
> money.
> 
> >As for Antoine, I wouldn't change a thing. If we had waited 
> >to extend him until this offseason and then not offered him the max, 
> >Chicago would gladly take him off our hands leaving us with nothing.
> >
> >Alex
> 
> So we overpaid because they would have.  The C's could have seen what their 
> offer would have been then beaten it.  Wasn't this also a form of blackmail?
> 
> Rcih
>