Hardwood Knocks, Episode 113 — NBA’s Could-Be Sellers, Featuring: Heat, Hornets, Clippers, Knicks, Jazz, Mavs
iTunes | BlogTalkRadio | Stitcher
@HardwoodKnocks | @AndrewDBailey | @DanFavale
This one’s for the Luka Doncic fans. And the Michael Porter Jr. enthusiasts. And the DeAndre Ayton lovers. And the Marvin Bagley III apologists.
“Tanking” is an uncomfortable word for NBA teams—unless, of course, they’re already tanking their brains out. (Sup, Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns and Chicago Bulls?) Ditto for the phrase “seller’s mode.” Squads don’t want to admit they’re throwing in the towel on this season, especially so early in the schedule. But someone needs to be a grown-up and have this difficult discussion, even now, with the 2017-18 campaign fewer than 20 games old.
Fortunately for you, Andy and Dan are up to the task.
Rudy Gobert is the inspiration for this “Sell, sell, sell” slant. He’s slated to miss four to six weeks after suffering a bone bruise in his right knee (goddammit, Dion Waiters). And knowing how the Utah Jazz handle injuries, he might end up missing closer to eight weeks…or more. And if he’s going to be sidelined for that long, should the Jazz even bother trying to compete this year? Or should they enter seller’s mode and seek to shed salary or absorb lengthier deals for first-round compensation?
And which other teams need to be asking themselves something along these lines? We know the Suns, Bulls, Kings and, yes, Atlanta Hawks are already there. But what about the Dallas Mavericks? How about the Miami Heat? Or the Los Angeles Clippers? What about—gasp—the—double gasp—Charlotte Hornets? Should the New York Knicks ditch fake competency for authentic tanking?