Can't play him at SF because he'll get absolutely shredded on defense by the LeBrons, Durants, etc. of the world. SF is a strong position at the NBA. He's a stretch PF that you have to hide on defense, there's just no working around it. Thankfully we got Asik so it's a non-issue now, Anderson can come off the bench for 25-30 mins or so a night and rain 3s like nuts

So I actually went and looked at Hollinger's PER and I'm technically correct although not by much. The top C last year (Boogie Cousins!) had a PER of ~26 and the 10th best C (Chris Bosh, which isn't quite true as we've discussed) had a PER of ~19. Top PG (Chris Paul) and 10th best (Ty Lawson) had very similar but slightly lower PERs, like half a point or something small. However, once you get past the top 5 or 6 centers, there's a real dropoff in talent. Not so with PGs. Damian Lillard had a PER of 18.6, and Ricky Rubio had a ~15, so there's a much deeper talent pool for PGs than centers.

ehhh @ PER but I guess for this it's a useful enough metric.

I can tell you without looking that PG is stacked, PF is probably also stacked, SG and C have a real drop-off and SF is top-heavy. Having an elite center is a real difference-maker more than any other position in the modern NBA, imo. Teams are explicitly moving toward a 1-big space-and-shoot build over the more traditional 2-big system specifically because of the drop-off in talent at center. Contrast with the 90s, which was probably the greatest era for big men in NBA history, and unsurprisingly featured the more traditional setups across the league. It's just supply and demand. There's a dearth of talent at center and an abundance with perimeter players, so teams switch to a style that emphasizes the latter and needs less from the former.

OKC would be a force with Gasol, though. Gasol isn't overrated at this point iyam. Obviously he's not arguably the best PF/C combo player in the game like he was 5 years ago, but he's still a good paint protector who adds a lot of valuable depth to that roster. OKC has an amazing talent in Ibaka down low, but aside from him and Perkins (who's not an amazing talent, but is a serviceable center) they just have no interior presence at all. Gasol gives them a crucial third piece down low so that they still have two competent interior players even if they get a crucial injury. I think OKC with Gasol is neck-and-neck with the Spurs atop the West. Without, they're only able to hang with the Spurs if they can stay healthy.

OKC would be a force with *Marc* Gasol because he's a true center. Pau wouldn't make any more of an impact than Perkins if he had to play center instead of PF, where he could spread out a little more and play his game as opposed to center where he's essentially forced to stay inside with a team like OKC.

OKC has no cap space so they'd have to sign and trade.

My issue with the PG/C/PF discussion is that positions are largely irrelevant in the modern game. You've got a small number of players who play a defined position (Howard, Duncan, several top point guards, etc) but today's game is defined by players who can play and defend more than one position effectively. The point-forward and stretch 4 have made positions like SF and PF largely a matter of pigeonholing players into a traditional position when someone like LeBron can play 1-4 pretty effectively and big men like Dirk, Aldridge, and Love can step out and hit the three. There aren't many real SFs left in the league.

OKC with Pau would still be much improved, just because Gasol mightn't be a "true" 5 doesn't mean he can't play good or even just serviceable defense like one. The main thing that Gasol gives them is a third good interior guy to rotate with Ibaka and Perkins. I would expect Gasol to come off the bench or maybe start at the 5 in place of Perkins. It's about having good depth down low. We saw how they struggled against San Antonio without Ibaka, and while Gasol's no true replacement for Ibaka if he has to step in, he's an upgrade on the bench from their current roster.

And you're right 2WL re: positions. Players are probably better described by their skills than a set position

The Mavs series was considered a mismatch. Spurs did not play well defensively for most of that series and the Mavs won a couple of tight games. I don't think that series is an indication of the Mavs quality as a team, although Marion is an underrated defender and Monta Ellis can get to the rim.

"He's unlikely to end up in San Antonio, given the contract they just have Boris Diaw to fill the same role as backup PF, plus they still have Patty Mills as a free agent and they're over the cap as it is."

Mills signed a 3 year deal. Spurs are offering the mid-level exception and Gasol hasn't ruled it out. Gasol would fit in very well with the Spurs style of offense.

Blazers fan checking in here. No draft picks, so not much development there, but we have our starting 5 back, and with Lillard getting better, we should be set. We also just picked up Kaman so that will help our atrocious bench. Blake is back (has it been four years??) and I hated him when he was on the Blazers, so that kinda sucks.

I'm just trying to figure out who ends up as the odd man (or men I guess) out in the West. San Antonio and Oklahoma City will either be as good or better depending on who acquires Gasol, Houston will be at least as good as last year and might dramatically improve if they pick up Bosh, New Orleans is improving, I see Portland improving, and then everyone else in contention last year (Phoenix, Dallas, Memphis, Golden State, LA Clippers) isn't dropping off. Something's gotta give, but what?

And can we please just move to top 16 teams go to the playoffs instead of top 8 from each division? I guarantee any of those 10 teams would be at the absolute worst the 6th seed in the East (behind LeBron's team, Indiana, Chicago, Toronto, and Brooklyn). It's pathetic that Atlanta made the playoffs at 38-44 while Phoenix stayed home a whole 10 games better at 48-34.

I think the Rockets will strike out on free agency. Clippers will be fine. I don't think OKC will get Gasol and even if they do, not sure it'll help them much. They need perimeter guys. Suns will probably be better. Portland isn't going to make any big moves. Mavs aren't going to improve much. They'll get a small forward anyway, but they're not going to get anything big in free agency. Warriors haven't picked up any power forwards, don't know what the heck they're doing. They might drop off under a new triangle-ish system.

West probably won't change much. Biggest change I can picture is Suns moving up and Rockets moving down. With the Lakers, Grizzlies, and Mavs fighting for the 8 spot.

Whom do you figure the Suns might pick up, Putin? (For example).

Eric Gordon #TheDream

I think the Suns will make a big move, possibly get Kevin Love by trading Bledsoe.

They have so much flexibility it's hard to imagine them not getting a big name, even if the biggest names are out of reach.

Other possibilities might be Greg Monroe or Luol Deng. Monroe is a likelier bet. Might be questions as to whether he can run in the Suns fast paced offense.

I can't wait for one of the suckers who cleared a bajillion bucks in cap space to strike out and get desperate and take Eric Gordon

God please The Dream is real

Cavs and Rockets are going to look like total fools after this. Heat and Melo are just punking everybody to screw up their free agency plans.

The thing about free agency is you get a bunch of teams that end up looking stupid and made real regretabble decisions, and then you get a few that just about managed to pull it out of the bag. It's just praying that you are a fan of a team that managed a miracle.

PE, Eric Gordon would be a great player if he didn't have to play with four other guys that do the exact same thing he does. New Orleans just has too many guards. Wherever he goes, I bet he drops 20 and 4 a game - Clippers, maybe?

@Putin .. Greg Monroe can run in a break offense, don't worry about that. He's gonna get *big* money though from someone and if I were the Suns I wouldn't be ready to use the money on Greg Monroe when they've been hyping up the fans this whole time about getting a big name. Love would probably go there first.

I don't know what the Cavs are doing. I don't know what Kyrie Irving is doing - he signed an extension with the Cavs. Why would he want to stay there?

Didn't Luol Deng sign with the Heat?

@bo, kyrie signed the deal because he is smart. i love him, but money wise not only was the contract the best he can get, but it's possible he doesn't live up to it. between that and his belief that lebron is coming back it makes a lot of sense.

I think it's more Dan Gilbert upping the offer they originally intended to give in order to get it done now as a pitch to Lebron. I just don't think Lebron is dumb enough to go back to the team that went on a year-long vendetta against him after he left.

Gordon would be a top-10 shooting guard in the League if he gave a shit, quit getting injured and weren't horribly redundant on the roster. Two of those aren't directly his fault -- one isn't at all, shit happens and you get injured; but we don't go out and get Evans AND Holiday if Gordon gives a shit, sooo there's that... He's still got it and maybe he'll make a team happy. Maybe he'll soak up $15M a year to do nothing. Hard to say. If he cares and he's healthy I wouldn't bet against him being a consistent 20ppg player. I just want him gone because he transparently DGAF about New Orleans and he costs way too much money to justify keeping him around

Deng hasn't signed yet, no idea where he's going to land. He's the high-profile, questionable-fit, prohibitively-expensive free agent that the Heat are bound to go sign if the Big 3 doesn't break up (and according to most recent reports, they aren't, THANK YOU BASED GOD Houston doesn't deserve Bosh bless you).

I would love to see Kevin Love end up in Phoenix. Combine his rebounding ability and his ability to throw the long outlet pass with the high tempo Suns offense and it puts Phoenix into the upper echelon of the West.

Deng, on the other hand, is a second tier SF that will take advantage of the Hayward/Parsons overpaying and get way overpaid.

"According to the most recent reports" means that ESPN wants an excuse to speculate, PE. The negotiations between the Big 3 and whatever teams they're considering are probably far different than we're told, so there's no reason to listen to the "most recent reports" unless it's a reported signing, especially if it's talking about LBJ.

Deng will get overpaid based on his career with the Bulls. I wouldn't want him if I were in a front office. Hayward, on the other hand, is still growing into his shell and has one of the highest ceilings of anyone in the league right now. He was fabulous for the Jazz this past year and having seen him grow for years before he came to the NBA at Butler and at Brownsburg, I assure you that he gets a lot better really quickly and you probably won't see it coming. I hope he signs in Boston with his old coach.

Regarding Eric Gordon, having also come through Indiana I've been able to see him grow up for a long time (I used to play with him at the JCC, and by play with him I mean watch him go by to my left and put on a dunk show because he's faaaaaaaaaaast). He has a spectacular, natural jump shot and I see him fitting in with Doc Rivers and Jamal Crawford. I can also see him with the Warriors and the Suns, but like I said earlier, the Suns are going to take their shot at big names first and the Warriors are going to go for Kevin Love first. My guess is that you'll have him another year and he might end up getting you a draft pick or two next offseason, but he is a natural basketball player like no one else I've ever seen (living in Central Indiana, that's a huge compliment, because we have tons of talent all the time).

Jesus motherfucking god...

I'm praying that someone made that report up.

IT'S OFFICIAL! BRON TO TEH CAVS!

And SI gets the exclusive. Chris Broussard can eat a dick.

Now the question is whether it's a sign-and-trade or free agent signing.