Bobcats Sitting on $24 Million in Cap Space, Gunning for Miami

Bobcats Sitting on $24 Million in Cap Space, Gunning for Miami


Kidd-Gilchrist averaged 14.4ppg, 5.4rpg, 3.6apg, 1.5spg and 1.2bpg in only his second season.

Even with the retention of Kelenna Azubuike ($2.09M team option), the Charlotte Bobcats have north of $24 million to spend, potentially, this offseason.  Word on the street is that GM Sun Scorched already has a short list of targets this offseason, with a majority of the names belonging to low post players.

“We have maintained, since our conference finals loss to the Miami Heat, that we would be addressing our front court this offseason.  We were very competitive against both Cleveland and Indiana, but our former front court just couldn’t compete against the depth of Miami’s big man rotation.”

Although the Charlotte front line of Scola, Haywood and Sullinger was able to withstand DeAndre Jordan, Marcin Gortat, Roy Hibbert and Paul Milsap, those players were spread across two teams.  Miami fielded a rotation that read similarly, Tyson Chandler, Pau Gasol, Spencer Hawes and Tiago Splitter – but those four split time on one team, the eventual CSL championship squad.

“It has been my goal since my first day in charge of this franchise to make this a competitive organization.  It’s fair to say that normal logic would include allowing this roster to atrophy for another year or two while stockpiling draft picks and waiting out the reign of the Miami Heat.  We’re not scared of the Heat.  After this free agent class had picked a new home, I feel confident that Miami will finally have a legitimate challenge on their hands.”

Indeed, Miami has now been posturing for the length of this offseason.  With key free agents including Isaiah Thomas, Pau Gasol and Spencer Hawes, Miami needs to retain at least two of the three in order to ensure their continued dominance in the Eastern Conference.  

“Listen, Miami’s GM has done a fantastic job.  I know OP and I’m not afraid to compliment him when he pulls, what seems commonplace now, amazing trades that continue to benefit that squad.   But we have a tremendous amount of confidence in our young core and, specifically, in our young team captain, Michael (Kidd-Gilchrist).  I can’t think of anyone else I would rather have defending Kevin (Durant) in the playoffs next year.  Now it’s my job to make sure we have the players to carry the rest of this team when Michael does, as he has already, shut down the CSL’s leading scorer.”

So, who are the primary free agent targets of Charlotte?  If front court depth is the key focus, GM Sun Scorched has various options to pick from.

Available power forwards include:  Kenneth Faried (RFA), Ed Davis (RFA), Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol, Amare Stoudemire and David West.

Available centers include:  Anderson Varejao, Andrew Bogut, Marcin Gortat, Spencer Hawes and Emeka Okafor.

Additionally, rumor has it that the Bobcats are very interested in one of the talented young point guards available:  Isaiah Thomas, Kyle Lowry and Greivis Vasquez are all available.

“Yes.  I can tell you we will be active.  No, it wouldn’t surprise me to see us lock in a few talented guys into long-term contracts.  We know everyone is excited about the potential crop of next year’s free agents, but we’re interested in giving Miami heartburn this year.  Look for us to make a splash.”

As it stands, the Bobcats seem to be sitting on quite a bit of roster flexibility:

PG – Free Agent / Kendall Marshall
SG – Tyreke Evans / Kelenna Azubuike
SF – MKG / Free Agent
PF – Free Agent / Jared Sullinger
C – Free Agent / Omer Asik

You should be able to add some really nice pieces. Just NOT Faried.

Faried would be great for you guys. But boy, that would really blow for Riot knowing he left a team option on the table.

And it looks like after the draft I now have $25 mil in cap space, so I think I have the most out of anyone now. Yay.

Possibly if you want win miami, the best tactic is make offer your three free agents gasol, hawes and isiah thomas. Because miami don't have cap space for offer other players. even though parka is a great manager and three players have no renounce and can paid the salary, but personally i don't like this tactic. He isn't honest.

dapralbe (UTAH) wrote:Possibly if you want win miami, the best tactic is make offer your three free agents gasol, hawes and isiah thomas. Because miami don't have cap space for offer other players. even though  parka is a great manager and three players have no renounce and can paid the salary, but personally i don't like this tactic. He isn't honest.

  That's probably one of the funniest tactics I've ever heard, I hadn't even thought of it. But Sun Scorched could pull it off. Without any cap space for anyone else, the Cats could steal away all 3 players which would really, really hurt the Heat, if that's the goal.

Haha, yeah, actually had thought of that. Just not that interested in overpaying to cripple MIA for the sake of league parity. Yeah, I want to be more competitive with MIA, but not at the expense of getting the players I want for my system.

I had seriously considered Thomas - he's just so efficient offensively - but I think Jestor is enough to give OP a run for his money. Of Gasol and Hawes, I like Hawes more just due to age, but he's not the guy who gets you over the hump, ya know? And Gasol is still a decent player, but he's going to fall off a cliff next season, so unless it's a one year deal, not worth it IMHO.

Jake0890 (MIN) wrote:Faried would be great for you guys. But boy, that would really blow for Riot knowing he left a team option on the table.

And it looks like after the draft I now have $25 mil in cap space, so I think I have the most out of anyone now. Yay.

27.6 here

Good read. Man a lot of teams with cap space this season, even LAL now joins the group.

I think a lot of these teams with space will end up disappointed though.

Of those listed FAs, I can only really see Amare, West, and Varejao joining new teams, i.e. players without home teams.

Especially with PAs, it's impossible to just snatch a player with a big offer now.

Looking forward to the challenge!

Some teams with serious cap space. Would be fun to see you bring Amare back to Charlotte. I'm sure you'll spend appropriately though. Like many have said before: it's refreshing to see a team that had every excuse to tank for years go into win-now mode right away.

Good read Sun Scorched, those Cats/ Hornets are gonna be the real deal again this season with the right tactics cause you definitely didn't overachieve last season. Just a great all around job of gm'ing that's what that was.

Not sure why you feel PA's would make it more difficult to leave Miami, if I'm a PA I'm not only looking at the player personality but also the teams circumstances and Miami now has Zach Randolph as starting PF (perhaps) and just got Monta Ellis who can play both G positions so a FA PF or G should have some concerns about PT considering Shumpert Ellis depth chart while a PF should have some concern over Z Bo getting mins as well.

The C spot is gonna be key since the Heat however can sell a C on PT but with youngsters Hammonds and Gobert in waiting who knows how long that'll be a stable position for them if PT is very important to them.

Playing for winner/ champion is the biggest asset that the Heat has.

I'm with Willy. If anything, player agents make it easier for players to leave because agents can take things into account that the engine simply can't.

Yeah, but on the flipside, teams can't make huge offers and "steal" UFAs with big contracts.

So in a sense, UFA has become a little like RFA, since a lot of negotiating and two-way communication will be implemented.

Despite all the new factors, money is still the main and biggest factor no matter how you look at it, and with PAs it's simply easier for teams to match whatever offers are out there (with higher raises and a five-year deal I might add).

Also, no offense to MKG who I really like, but I'd say that saying MKG "shut down" KD is a bit of a stretch.

I mean, he averaged just 22mpg in the first three games in our series. In Game 4, where MKG played 34 mins and KD played 32 mins, he put up 24 on 9-15 FG, which is better than his Playoff averages adjusting for minutes.

While MKG is one of the most highly-rated defenders in the league, I don't really see him as the ideal defender for KD because he's relatively beefy.

orangeparka (MIA) wrote:Yeah, but on the flipside, teams can't make huge offers and "steal" UFAs with big contracts.

So in a sense, UFA has become a little like RFA, since a lot of negotiating and two-way communication will be implemented.

Despite all the new factors, money is still the main and biggest factor no matter how you look at it, and with PAs it's simply easier for teams to match whatever offers are out there (with higher raises and a five-year deal I might add).

Glad you brought this up cause this guy vehemently disagrees.



I don't have the game but if someone can PLEASE POST Dwight Howard's personality ratings etc for FA this could in fact be a very useful and telling picture of things (not that it's the norm).

Dwight Howard irl passed on the Lakers, the LOS ANGELES LAKERS offer of more $, play for winner, play for legendary franchise, etc to sign in Houston due to fit, coach, playing style etc (which also may play a factor on FA decisions but I'm not sure) but EVEN HERE IN THE CSL Dwight Howard signed for a less than max deal to stay in OKC with LeBron James.

My impression is money is not always the deciding factor no matter how many years etc cause it does seem the engine takes other variables into account like maybe possible new vs old teammate ratings as well.

Bottomline I don't think in this day and age it's all about "Oh a 5th yr extra money offer" always seals the deal.

Even the Big 3 irl in Miami took less money to form an alliance on a team that could afford all 3.

The engine weighs the player's characteristics (Greed/Play For Winner/Playing Time/Loyalty) against the offers received and the situation the team is in at the time.

There's no legendary franchise or market size bias in the engine, though.

WillyJakkz (HOU) wrote:
Bottomline I don't think in this day and age it's all about "Oh a 5th yr extra money offer" always seals the deal.
.

In fact, even in DDS 2's engine, offering more years can be a disadvantage, particularly for younger players, who want more free agency years to maximize their career earnings potential.

Dwight's characteristics:



Looking at Dwight's contract, he potentially signed a 5 year deal for less than max, WITH a team option that can cut it to 4. That makes no sense, dude is in his prime lol.

Jestor (PHX) wrote:The engine weighs the player's characteristics (Greed/Play For Winner/Playing Time/Loyalty) against the offers received and the situation the team is in at the time.

There's no legendary franchise or market size bias in the engine, though.

Well wow, by this it may be an actual hindrance to the Heat by only having Durant (like hat's a bad thing   he is probably the best player in the game this past season) but the Heat's tangible roster consisting of only Durant Randolph Shumpert Ellis as the main players may not look quite as appealing had Tyson Chandler still be there (?unless Z Bo is rated higher?) but the uncertainty of Gasol Thomas Hawes FA destinations may play a role considering they'll likely have different agencies repping them.

Either way gonna be very interesting this FA.

LakeshowAK7 (LAL) wrote:Dwight's characteristics:



Looking at Dwight's contract, he potentially signed a 5 year deal for less than max, WITH a team option that can cut it to 4.  That makes no sense, dude is in his prime lol.

Thanks Lakeshow.

Not sure what to make of it other than they went to the Finals and still had LeBron under contract which trumped money and everything else apparently, kinda like he said "I'll do anything to stay in OKC".

Obviously, PAs will be a nice addition. Personally, I know I'm going to miss out on a few guys but I'm comfortable knowing there will be a defined thought process to it.

Dwight is one isolated case though. First off, he's a star who gets tons of endorsement deals/salary likely isn't as important to him. Next, the fit/coach/playing style, as well as feeling disrespected by the organization and putting up with Kobe I might add, are non-existent factors here.

LakeshowAK7 (LAL) wrote:Dwight's characteristics:



Looking at Dwight's contract, he potentially signed a 5 year deal for less than max, WITH a team option that can cut it to 4.  That makes no sense, dude is in his prime lol.

Chris Kaman signed for the minimum over a MUCH more lucrative offer last year lol. Clearly, the engine has its flaws.

This is all speculation at this point though, as no one knows exactly how PAs will play out. It could really go either way for the home team or other teams.

WillyJakkz (HOU) wrote:

Jestor (PHX) wrote:The engine weighs the player's characteristics (Greed/Play For Winner/Playing Time/Loyalty) against the offers received and the situation the team is in at the time.

There's no legendary franchise or market size bias in the engine, though.

Well wow, by this it may be an actual hindrance to the Heat by only having Durant (like hat's a bad thing   he is probably the best player in the game this past season) but the Heat's tangible roster consisting of only Durant Randolph Shumpert Ellis as the main players may not look quite as appealing had Tyson Chandler still be there (?unless Z Bo is rated higher?) but the uncertainty of Gasol Thomas Hawes FA destinations may play a role considering they'll likely have different agencies repping them.

Either way gonna be very interesting this FA.

We won two straight chips, had the best record in the league last season with our best player missing 27 games, and swept the Conference Finals and Finals by a point differential of +24.6. I'd be very surprised if "situation/team" factor will go against Miami in any case.

orangeparka (MIA) wrote:Dwight is one isolated case though. First off, he's a star who gets tons of endorsement deals/salary likely isn't as important to him. Next, the fit/coach/playing style, as well as feeling disrespected by the organization and putting up with Kobe I might add, are non-existent factors here.

LakeshowAK7 (LAL) wrote:Dwight's characteristics:



Looking at Dwight's contract, he potentially signed a 5 year deal for less than max, WITH a team option that can cut it to 4.  That makes no sense, dude is in his prime lol.

Chris Kaman signed for the minimum over a MUCH more lucrative offer last year lol. Clearly, the engine has its flaws.

This is all speculation at this point though, as no one knows exactly how PAs will play out. It could really go either way for the home team or other teams.

Ya, I offered Kaman a LOT more than what he signed for in Indiana. If I remember right, I offered about 3 times the amount Indiana did and he didn't want to sign with us in Minnesota at the time.

I kind of think this was a bad time to bring in PA's ha with all this cap space floating around. I can just see some people getting peeved at some decisions made.

Teams need to realise that cap space doesn't mean you have a chance at talent. If PA's act like they are meant to, it's more about franchise plan, direction and winning that will sway them unless you stupidly want to overpay and give 12 mil to a guy worth 6. Losing and poor franchises should be rebuffed all the time when bidding for talent. The player actually has to want to play there.

The Suns might have the most cap space available but I don't see them able to entice any top talent because of what stage they are in as a franchise. Will the Wolves only winning 30 games last year be able to attract anyone? They do have KLove, Lin and Chandler and young talent. The Bobcats really only have MKG and Tyreke too. Wolves look the best of all those for mine without taking into account player characteristics.

I assume PA's will look at all these things so just because cap is available doesn't mean squat. If a key Miami guy isn't overly greedy and loves winning, wouldn't be surprised one bit to see someone take a small pay cut to play with them.

Although I lost out on Kaman in FA last yr as did Minny, I got it.

He wanted a winner and myself (1st Rd exit) and Minny (no Playoffs) vs a good proven Playoff team like Indiana.

Initially he signed with us in Houston but there was an issue about offers or something and he took Indy's deal instead.

bt (TOR) wrote:I kind of think this was a bad time to bring in PA's ha with all this cap space floating around. I can just see some people getting peeved at some decisions made.

Teams need to realise that cap space doesn't mean you have a chance at talent. If PA's act like they are meant to, it's more about franchise plan, direction and winning that will sway them unless you stupidly want to overpay and give 12 mil to a guy worth 6. Losing and poor franchises should be rebuffed all the time when bidding for talent. The player actually has to want to play there.

The Suns might have the most cap space available but I don't see them able to entice any top talent because of what stage they are in as a franchise. Will the Wolves only winning 30 games last year be able to attract anyone? They do have KLove, Lin and Chandler and young talent. The Bobcats really only have MKG and Tyreke too. Wolves look the best of all those for mine without taking into account player characteristics.

I assume PA's will look at all these things so just because cap is available doesn't mean squat. If a key Miami guy isn't overly greedy and loves winning, wouldn't be surprised one bit to see someone take a small pay cut to play with them.

I hear you but at the same time using your Minny quote as an example, Lin McLemore Parsons Love looks very good and better on paper than the 30 win team you mention vs the Heat with Durant ZBo Shumpert Ellis and coming off a championship vs the Lakers with Westbrook Beal Butler Horford who didn't make the Playoffs and affected by injuries all season but look like a very capable team competitively.

Which team looks the best for a FA C to join?

Miami still has uncertainty on their roster (PG spot) while the Wolves are set except at the C spot as are the Lakers.

Not causing controversy or stirring the pot but