| The Opening Salvo: First Moves Of The Sam Presti Regime In Seattle Authored by Quinten Farmer - October 25, 2007 - 2:59 pm
June 7th, 2007 marked the beginning of a new era in Seattle Supersonics basketball. The previous end of the Rick Sund/Wally Walker regime was certainly not something mourned by many Sonics fans. With the sale of the team to an out-of-state ownership group, and talk of an impending move, there was a sense of urgency surrounding the team and its fans. While the transactions made by the previous front office had been fairly solid overall, coming off a 31-51 season something more was needed.
That something more was realized by the hiring of young, forward thinking general manager Sam Presti. At the tender age of 30 years old, and leaving a position as assistant general manager in the highly regarded Spurs organization, Presti was one of the most sought after general manager candidates this offseason. Presti joined a team that seemed ready for what he had to offer: a new outlook, and a willingness to start fresh and build a team the right way, from the ground up.
Presti wasted no time in putting his stamp on the team. With excitement on draft night already running high due to the Sonics owning the #2 pick, Presti made a gutsy move by trading away former franchise cornerstone Ray Allen to the Boston Celtics. The deal consisted of Ray Allen and the 35th pick in the draft going to the Celtics, in exchange for Wally Szczerbiak, Delonte West, and the 5th pick in the draft, Georgetown forward Jeff Green.
The trade was initially met with skepticism on the part of the Sonics faithful and booed by those in attendance at the Sonics draft party. However that mood began to change as fans took a closer look at exactly what had been acquired in exchange for the popular and productive Allen.
Of course, the most important piece in the deal was the 5th pick in what is supposedly one of the deepest drafts in recent years. That pick was used on the versatile Jeff Green, which initially appeared to be a questionable selection. It appeared as if Presti had just spent the 2nd and 5th picks in the draft on players who played the same position. Add to that the fact that Seattle’s other franchise player Rashard Lewis also played the same position of small forward, and the Sonics seemed headed the way of the Atlanta Hawks: lots of talented forwards and not enough minutes to go between them. Presti put some of those concerns to rest by emphasizing talk of Green’s abilities as a facilitator and passer in the ensuing press conferences. It remains to be seen if Green will be a starter this year, but his and Durant’s performance together in the summer league have put to rest any concerns that they would be unable to coexist on the floor.
Additionally, the Sonics received two more pieces in this deal, represented by Delonte West and Wally Szczerbiak. Delonte seems to be a perfect addition to the championship contender Presti is trying to build. He is a gritty, hustling, multi-dimensional role player, the kind of guy any team needs to have around. He can play minutes at both the 1 and the 2, and should be a perfect guard off the bench, or starter at either position. Additionally he is young and cheap, perfect for a rebuilding team.
Wally Szczerbiak is the piece in this deal with the most question marks attached. His age, price tag, injuries, and attitude have been questioned in recent weeks. While concerns regarding Szczerbiak are certainly valid, Presti may have made a shrewd move by picking up this player. In today’s NBA world where the salary cap and luxury tax reign supreme, expiring contracts can be valuable as a way to help general managers get their team payrolls down. It is often the case that a productive, useful player can be had for simply the cost of a non-productive player’s shorter contract. This can be seen recently in the New York/Orlando Steve Francis trade, or the New York/Toronto Jalen Rose trade. Of course, the value of expiring contracts is well known throughout the league, so GM’s are not prone to giving them up easily (with the exception, of course, of Isiah Thomas). Presti’s genius, then, was in acquiring a large deal with two years remaining. This was a beneficial move for several reasons. First of all, it is highly likely that in exchange for taking Wally’s slightly longer deal as opposed to Theo Ratliff’s expiring one, Presti was able to convince Danny Ainge to include Delonte West in the deal. As mentioned previously, West should be the perfect acquisition for this team. Secondly, Wally’s contract will now be highly valuable at a time when it will be most useful to Presti.
There are several scenarios that could potentially play out with the contract of Wally Szczerbiak. Wally’s deal’s expiration now coincides with the expiration of three Sonics players: Chris Wilcox’s contract for slightly more than the MLE, as well as Robert Swift’s and Delonte West’s rookie deals. Having about $20 million coming off the books at the same time the two rookie contracts are ending will be invaluable in allowing the team to retain its young talent, something prior Sonics teams had difficulty doing. The other possibility is that Presti will use the expiring deal to trade for a veteran presence to help put what by then will be a maturing team over the top. Either way, if the beginning of Presti’s tenure is any indication, He is sure to make an intelligent decision.
The most recent move by Sam Presti is even greater indication that he deserves his status as one of the rising stars in the NBA world. After the sign-and-trade of Rashard Lewis to Orlando, Presti was left with an extra second round pick, but most importantly, a large trade exception. The trade exception, which essentially allows a team to take on more salary than it has room under the cap, is useful to teams above or slightly below the cap looking to make trades for pricier talent.
In the Sonics case, pricey veteran talent was the last thing they needed. Presti, however, was able to make the best out of the situation by trading for the Phoenix Sun’s Kurt Thomas, as well as the Suns 2008 and 2010 first round draft picks, and giving up the trade exception and a conditional second round draft pick. Kurt Thomas, while not the player he once was, is valuable for two things. He represents a veteran presence in the locker room, but more importantly, his contract is in its last year and therefore valuable as an expiring deal. He could be coveted by a borderline contender looking for a contributor that will not hamstring their cap situation for years to come. I would not be at all surprised to see Presti turn Thomas into yet more valuable pieces for this team. The two first rounders are of course valuable, especially the latter one in 2010. By this time, Steve Nash will be on the downturn of his career and the Suns may potentially find themselves in the lottery. For a rebuilding team, nothing is better than having multiple lottery picks, and that could be the situation the Sonics find themselves in three years down the line.
Although it’s easy for fans to become excited about the flurry of activity coming from Seattle, the team is not yet out of the woods. The young duo of Durant and Green is promising, but NBA history is littered with talented players who never panned out. In a way, the Sonics have put all their eggs in one basket, leaving the team with extraordinary boom or bust potential. Additionally, while the moves by Presti all appear to be solid, it is entirely possible that they may prove to be mistakes in the future. If Thomas or Szczerbiak cannot stay healthy, or West doesn’t continue to improve, this could be a team looking at one of the worst records in the league next season. Of course the incumbent players from last season will be depended on heavily; much will ride on the continued development of Luke Ridnour, Nick Collison, and Chris Wilcox, not to mention the trio of young centers.
While much is still yet to be decided, and the Sonics more than likely have more moves to come this season, there is finally a feeling of optimism in the Emerald City. For once, an offseason has the Sonics faithful on the edge of their seats, waiting to see what moves the front office has up its sleeves. One thing is for certain, with a combination of a young talented team and a young talented GM, the future is bright for the Seattle Supersonics. |
