Rumor on Philaphans that I'm posting here for Discussion purposes

[Skates]

A certain poster on the other board is attributing this rumor to sf1976, for what it's worth.

sf1976 stated that it is a back-burner idea that the team might have tossed around but is not pursuing right now, so it may have some minimal basis in reality.  Again he mainly seems to have general scuttlebutt from a low level source so it is probably something that the FO has discussed.  Stefanski is a get it done kind of guy, so if this is a backburner kind of idea my guess would be that it is based on an offer made by the Rockets, not something initiated by us. 

As a fall-back plan if Iggy wants a max contract for a fourth year player it would be something to consider, but truthfully I would prefer to trade Iggy for someone who solves some of our shooting deficiencies and has a lot more tread left on their tires.

What is the consensus on Iggy or Williams in a S&T and BYC issues?  If Iggy would be a BYC player for S&T purposes you would have to throw in Miller's salary to match McGrady's $19+ million per year.

If we needed/wanted to make a big splash I would rather use Miller in a deal of some sort for Iverson.

[Derek Bodner]

Wow.  McGrady was only 28 last year?  Really?

Seems like he's been in the league forever.  That's younger than I thought.

His PER differential was also a very good +9.3.  Very good Roland Rating as well.  And he did lead the team to that very long winning streak, a good chunk of it was without Yao.  Of course, in Tracy McGrady fashion, they did get bounced in the first round

The back scares me far too much though.  I wouldn't do it.

[Sub]

That's the problem with McGrady. He's a flash in the pan. There's no sustained success, just big teases.

[Derek Bodner]

That's the problem with McGrady. He's a flash in the pan. There's no sustained success, just big teases.

Couldn't the same criticism be leveled against the franchise PF we just committed $80 million to?

Or, for that matter, Iguodala?  Overachieving the last 1.5 years is nice, but Iguodala's never been the lead guy on a winning team (percentage wise).

(not that I think that criticism's necessarily fair, but if we're going to apply it to McGrady, Brand and Iguodala aren't exactly pristine examples of guys with sustained success).

[jemagee]

I think that 'years in' has to be looked at more than age especially when dealing with all these guys who made the jump from high school, yeah he's 'only' 28, but he's got like a decade in the league...that's gonna wear you down...when i refer to kobe as 'old' - it's because he's been in the league so damn long, there's only so many years you can play in the nba before your body starts breaking down and you start to lose a step or two...

[Sub]

Couldn't the same criticism be leveled against the franchise PF we just committed $80 million to?

Not quite. Brand's a stud PF, but he's never been viewed as on the same individual "superstar" level as McGrady. Add to that the fact a Brand-led team has actually won a playoff series, plus McGrady's more varied injury history, and it's a little different.

Or, for that matter, Iguodala?  Overachieving the last 1.5 years is nice, but Iguodala's never been the lead guy on a winning team (percentage wise).

McGrady's been viewed as a franchise player for about seven seasons now. Iguodala's single season as "the man" isn't a large enough sample size to make such a comparison IMO. I think everyone agrees he's a support player to a larger cornerstone.

[Derek Bodner]

But if you're directly trading Iguodala for McGrady, I think they can be directly compared, whether or not Iguodala is a legitimate cornerstone player (in fact, that's part of the argument).

And Brand's teams really have had a very small amount of success, regular season or playoffs, in his 9 seasons in the league.  I don't think it's ultimately fair to level McGrady a flash in the pan without applying the same criticism to Brand.    Whether or not someone's viewed as a "superstar" or not really doesn't matter, since Brand is going to be the best player on the team as currently constructed.

[Skates]

I think that 'years in' has to be looked at more than age especially when dealing with all these guys who made the jump from high school, yeah he's 'only' 28, but he's got like a decade in the league...that's gonna wear you down...when i refer to kobe as 'old' - it's because he's been in the league so damn long, there's only so many years you can play in the nba before your body starts breaking down and you start to lose a step or two...

KG is the one HS guy that does not seem to be having those problems.  The mileage is a real issue and it has been starting to show on Kobe as you noted.  O'Neal and McGrady are very old and brittle for their age.  The NBA definitely takes a harder toll on your body than college with all of the travel, practice, etc even if you don't play a ton your first year.  LeBron is so powerful and a super-freak of nature like Garnett that I don't think early onset aging will hit him as hard, but I also would not bet against it.

That's the problem with McGrady. He's a flash in the pan. There's no sustained success, just big teases.

Couldn't the same criticism be leveled against the franchise PF we just committed $80 million to?

Or, for that matter, Iguodala?  Overachieving the last 1.5 years is nice, but Iguodala's never been the lead guy on a winning team (percentage wise).

(not that I think that criticism's necessarily fair, but if we're going to apply it to McGrady, Brand and Iguodala aren't exactly pristine examples of guys with sustained success).

That is a big part of it.  If neither Iggy and McGrady can hoist a team on its back and carry it to continued success, than I want the younger guy making $10-12 million over the older, always brittle older guy who makes $19 million a year.  Agreed that Brand is not a franchise guy the way Kobe and LBJ are, but big guys make his kind of money, and his contract numbers are well below McGrady's for the next two years.  I'd rather take a run at a guy like 'Melo who has some years left to get his talent moving in the right direction.

[Derek Bodner]

(btw, I generally agree with everything everyone else is saying.  I'm just playing devils advocate.  If the move doesn't move you to title contender, give me the 24 year old without injury concerns making $10 million over the 29 year old with injury concerns making much more.  Also, I don't have a problem with Brand's contract.  As I said, just playing Devil's Advocate on some of the criticisms of McGrady.)

[rickortreat]

I just can't get excited about McGrady.  Igoudala has more upside, and has never been paired with quality players the way McGrady has.  That isn't to say Igoudala is better than McGrady, but he's a much better fit in Phila. and his salary demands aren't nearly as great, which is also a huge plus.

The money and McGrady's health make this a bad move. Tracy would kill our salary cap and make it impossible to add another player.  I'd rather keep Iggy and add a vet who can shoot from the outside.