DeMar Derozan turns 31 in August.
A very good player, and not past his prime...
But
BUT
We have RJ Barrett.
We are presumably going to keep Reggie Bullock.
We MIGHT keep Damyean Dotson.
I mean, WHAT THE FUCK?
And I love Chris Paul, but I am already on record as saying, NO. He is still a great player, unquestionably,
Chris Paul is very tempting, not just for his epic, still formidable skill set, but for this YARD DOG Attitude, which would benefit any team, as it did the Thunder this past season.
But I would submit that the Thunder had a more advanced, mature roster, and an coherent system in place.
Also, his contract essentially takes away all of our cap flexibility, either for other free agents or for trades, and cap flex was basically our only real takeaway from the Porzingis trade, besides the two late first rounders we will glom from Dallas.
Assuming we picked up all options, the numbers work straight up for Julius Randle, Bobby Portis and Elfrid Payton.
Of course, then we have essentially gutted our front court to get a lead guard with whom exactly to pass to?
We could address PG in the draft or with Fred Van Vleet in Free Agency.
But concocting trades as I have seem promoted for the likes of Kevin Love, DeRozan, Paul make no sense given the youthful core of our roster.
We tried the veterans route this past season, and the youth must be served the season before.
A lot depends on whether Miller or Thibs is our coach going forward...if the latter, will Thibs make a gesture in the direction of the new analytics, will he play youth, will he create a rotation beyond his accustomed 8-man squad, with heavy 35-plus minutes going forward.
I recognize that given my rose colored and intemperate past, I have little cred, but I am of a mind moving forward to make a run at Van Vleet, and depending on draft position, take the best available talent, and not reach for a PG at all costs.
Anyway, happy isolation Knicks fans. Who knows if we will even have a Yankees, Giants, Knicks season.