How much better will Hayward theoretically make us?

[DERRENMATTS]

Most expect us to make a hard run at Gordon Hayward this summer (he's a free agent).

Considering he's a SF, that means Crowder will get pushed to PF, or to the bench, or off the team. how does that affect us.

Or do we play him at SG? That means Bradley doesn't get his big payday, he gets traded, or else he'll be one the the highest paid bench players in the NBA. How will that affect us?

Is Gordon that good of a player who warrants us tampering with our starting lineup that is so good defensively?

If we want him that badly, to me it means he is like Brad Stevens' perfect player to coach, and that's how badly Brad wants Hayward.

[eja117]

I think it mostly only makes us better if we can then trade Crowder, or Avery for significant front court help. Otherwise I think it adds to a log jam.

On the other hand....if worse came to worse.....and we lost Amir, Jerebko, Mickey, Demetrius J, Gerald G, Zeller, and Young....and maybe KO...and all we replaced them with is Hayward, Zizic, Yab, a top 3 pick, and other 2nd round picks...I think we'd still probably be a better team, if not a tad bizarrely constituted.

It would definitely send Crowder over to play a ton more power forward than I'd like and Horford to play a ton more center than I like. It would also result in young Zizic being force fed minutes at the five....a lot.

pg IT, Smart, (Ball), Rozier
sg Hayward, Avery
sf Crowder, Jaylen
pf Horford, Yab, 2nd rounder
C Zizic, 2nd rounder, 2nd rounder

That's only 14 guys. So now you sign 1 minimum free agent at a big spot.

Guys not really doing much these days.....Walter Tavares, Mitch McGary, Larry Sanders, Tyler Hansbrough (he's 32!), Chris Kaman, Robert Sacre, Greg Smith, JJ Hickson,

I suppose it may depend on whether Ainge wants to go the vet leadership route or if he wants some youth and upside.

We also have enough future picks we could maybe use something to get a player that has fallen out of a rotation somewhere else, or that won't get a chance. Maybe a Lucas Nogiera or a Diamond Stone or a James McAdoo.

I'm not familiar with the coming crop of cheap free agents.

[eja117]

And now we get to the point where Derren kinda called it. It means in a year or two Avery and IT are up for contract extensions....and by that point

you're looking at a guard rotation of...without them.....Smart, Ball/Fultz, Rozier, Hayward(or Jaylen).....that's pretty darn good.

Then that year you probably get another top 3 pick.

Then you take all that money you were gonna spend on IT/Avery and you add another top free agent big to a pretty incredible guard situation.

At that point your big thing is praying Al Horford is playing at a high level. And that the young guys developed.

The other thing that could happen is we don't get Ball or Fultz and we get Josh Jackson. Then we get rid of Crowder too and Josh and Jaylen are playing a ton of 3 and two.

So who's agent is mad in this scenario? ....the loser of the Smart vs Ball/Fultz situation. Realistically I'd think Smart maybe gets shipped off (mostly because his contract comes up first) you get something and Rozier is next guy up.

This also....brings us to.....the part where if we don't get a top 2 pick....maybe we trade down and try to get two top 10 guys. We get like DeArron Fox and Jayson Tatum or Lauri Markanen or Robert Williams.

Might be the best thing to do. I'm not sure Josh Jackson is worth more to the team than both those guys. On a scale of one to ten if he's a ten and they're both 9s....I'm going for the 9s. Maybe even pick up a future 2nd as well.

But then you do have contract issues later....choices choices

[jmost]

I don't know that I'd tie up so much money on Hayward when we already have Crowder and Brown for cheap money at the SF position. I think a lot of the speculation about Hayward is based more on the idea that his prior relationship with Stevens makes him more signable than many free agents, than that it makes us that much better.

I certainly don't want to do anything to block Jaylen's progress.

[eja117]

One thing I don't like about the Hayward scenario is that Hayward, Al, and IT is in no way a ring wining big 3. Certainly not while the Cavs and Warriors are out there.

But I think the plan here is more of a big 7ish

IT....(orrrr Big Free Agent X)
Horford
Big Free Agent X
Jaylen
Ball/Fultz
Smart
Jae Crowder

problem....IT's contract is up before the 2018 draft pick comes to us

To me if we don't sign a big free agent this summer then we may not get one in 2018 or we may be forced to go with IT....who will want us to go over the cap to get him.

Then the agents of Smart, Jaylen, 2017 guy, and 2018 guy will want the same thing. I'm not sure we have that much money....but if we did it would be great

By the 2018/19 season (when we will have gotten both those top draft picks and the rebuilding is theoretically done) we would only have about 55mill committed and we will have a cap of maybe 100mill. That's a problem, because if IT (or big free agent x) and Gordan Hayward (or big free agent y) both want 30 mill, then we are like 10 mill over the cap.

Which isn't that bad....if we are winning. But then Smart has to be signed. And then the next year Jaylen. And then the next year Ball/Fultz (although I think around then Horford and Crowder comes off).

But one thing looks pretty great. Maybe we can't get a SUPER BIG 3 or a Big 7. But maybe we can get a big 5 where two or 3 of those guys are pretty big. It seems to be the Pistons route.

The other thing I love about this....by the time this happens a certain Lebron is getting old and Kyrie could easily be getting creaky. Unfortunately that leaves Durant and Curry at about 30 years old.

We always knew this would be difficult

[jmost]

I think the true core of the next title team is likely to be Jaylen, '17 Nets pick, '18 Nets pick, quality big man we get in exchange for IT. Maybe Smart.

Rozier has a ton of potential. Avery, if he can stay healthy, is maybe the best Curry-stopper in the league. And I can see Crowder as part of a title team's rotation. I like a lot of the other guys, but don't see them as vital to the cause.

Zeller, Mickey, and Green are likely gone this summer. Young too. Amir and Jerebko could be back but only on short money. Olynyk shows flashes (the GS game) but is too inconsistent to reward with a big payday.

By the time the Net's picks and Brown are peaking, Horford's contract will be over. If he can be retained for a lot less money, fine, but otherwise, use the cap space for someone more impactful.