Quote:
Originally Posted by DevinHarriswillstart
Well nobody will have trade value if we keep losing.
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But nobody will have value if you stick them on the bench either (thinking of Wes specifically)... "Starter in a prolonged slump" is an easier sell than "starter who regressed so far that we benched their ass." You want to build the perception that a change of scenery can fix what's wrong with the player rather than making moves that indicate their skills have fallen off a cliff. Nobody wants to trade for a guy whose coach has completely lost faith in them, especially when it's a coach as respected around the league as Rick Carlisle.
At least that's my belief until the trade deadline passes... After that, I see no reason to let an expiring player like Wes keep stinking it up in the starting lineup. DJ may have a little bit more leeway if we're looking to re-sign him, and of course we still need to keep trying to showcase Barnes and Powell since there's no guarantee that anyone opts-out this summer, but there's no reason to stay the course with a guy like Wes after the deadline.
The tricky guy right now is Dirk -- he's sooo bad at this point that every time he steps on the floor we fall behind... But how do you bench the face of the franchise? He's my favorite pro athlete ever, but I really hope he retires this summer so we can fully commit to the rebuild (free Maxi Kleber!)
Obviously winning is important for Luka's confidence/happiness, but it's not happening with this roster so we need to focus on maximizing the value of the assets at our disposal or else this is what we're gonna be stuck with.