Why Lewis is Right, and Wrong, for Orlando
So Rashard Lewis has reportedly agreed to a five year deal worth $75 million. Good for him, $15 million a year to score 23 points a game in the Eastern Conference alongside Dwight Howard sounds fun.
Why Lewis is right for Orlando
Lewis is a 6-10 small forward with huge scoring potential, and hes only 28 years old. The deal gives the Magic a second superstar and a player to take the pressure off future HOFer Dwight Howard. In the Eastern Conference, that gives the Magic at least a fighting chance to be dangerous and possibly make a playoff run. Lewis has at least a few more years left in his prime which gives Howard more time to develop and the Magic a shot at building a championship caliber team around the two stars. Lewis is clearly the number one free agent on the market this year and Magic fans will certainly be happy to see the team making moves that say "we want to win." Howard is going to sign a huge extension soon, so this is likely the Magic's last chance to add that big free agent. And according to the Orlando Sentinel, Howard was pushing for Lewis' signing.
Why Lewis is wrong for Orlando
Well, the big contract Lewis is getting means that its very likely the team is going to have to let Darko Milicic become an unrestricted free agent. This could leave the Magic without much depth down low to go with Howard. Tony Battie is the only other reasonable option in the post. Howard is young enough that he can handle a lot of minutes, but it could cost him 12 years down the line. Also, Lewis will be taking the starting position over last years SF Hedo Turkoglu, a poor man's Lewis, making Turkoglu and his three year contract a non-factor. $75 million is also a lot for a player who makes the team a lot worse on defense. Winning The Turnover Battle points out, courtesy of John Hollinger:
"As bad as the Sonics were defensively, they were worse with Lewis on the floor. A LOT worse. Seattle gave up 6.6 points per 100 possessions more when Lewis played -- and keep in mind, his replacement most times was Vladimir Radmanovic, who won't be appearing on an All-Defense team any time soon. Additionally, Lewis' man was doing most of the damage -- he surrendered an 18.6 opponent PER from the small forward spot, and a staggering 23.5 at power forward."
Thats rough, and if Lewis' shot isn't on on any given night, his defense makes him just an expensive liability.
http://www.ericbyrnestrieshard.com/2007/07/why-lewis-is-right-and-wrong-for_03.html
So Rashard Lewis has reportedly agreed to a five year deal worth $75 million. Good for him, $15 million a year to score 23 points a game in the Eastern Conference alongside Dwight Howard sounds fun.
Why Lewis is right for Orlando
Lewis is a 6-10 small forward with huge scoring potential, and hes only 28 years old. The deal gives the Magic a second superstar and a player to take the pressure off future HOFer Dwight Howard. In the Eastern Conference, that gives the Magic at least a fighting chance to be dangerous and possibly make a playoff run. Lewis has at least a few more years left in his prime which gives Howard more time to develop and the Magic a shot at building a championship caliber team around the two stars. Lewis is clearly the number one free agent on the market this year and Magic fans will certainly be happy to see the team making moves that say "we want to win." Howard is going to sign a huge extension soon, so this is likely the Magic's last chance to add that big free agent. And according to the Orlando Sentinel, Howard was pushing for Lewis' signing.
Why Lewis is wrong for Orlando
Well, the big contract Lewis is getting means that its very likely the team is going to have to let Darko Milicic become an unrestricted free agent. This could leave the Magic without much depth down low to go with Howard. Tony Battie is the only other reasonable option in the post. Howard is young enough that he can handle a lot of minutes, but it could cost him 12 years down the line. Also, Lewis will be taking the starting position over last years SF Hedo Turkoglu, a poor man's Lewis, making Turkoglu and his three year contract a non-factor. $75 million is also a lot for a player who makes the team a lot worse on defense. Winning The Turnover Battle points out, courtesy of John Hollinger:
"As bad as the Sonics were defensively, they were worse with Lewis on the floor. A LOT worse. Seattle gave up 6.6 points per 100 possessions more when Lewis played -- and keep in mind, his replacement most times was Vladimir Radmanovic, who won't be appearing on an All-Defense team any time soon. Additionally, Lewis' man was doing most of the damage -- he surrendered an 18.6 opponent PER from the small forward spot, and a staggering 23.5 at power forward."
Thats rough, and if Lewis' shot isn't on on any given night, his defense makes him just an expensive liability.
http://www.ericbyrnestrieshard.com/2007/07/why-lewis-is-right-and-wrong-for_03.html
Dumb signing. He's not worth all that loot. Lewis is a nice player but not a star by any means, or a guy who will win you a championship. In my opinion, Lewis is not a winning-type of player. He avg 22 pts on a Sonics team that liked to play up and down offense and played no defense whatsoever, so those numbers are skewed by their style of play. Lewis cant defend a guy in a wheelchair, he's a pathetic, uninterested defender who's overall effort is there only when he feels like it (he has company in the NBA in this respect).
He'll make Orlando slightly better but when you're giving a cat max money, he needs to make you more than a little bit better.
Elton Brand in 2008, now that's a guy who will get max money and be worth every penny. Rumor has it Philadelphia is going to offer him a max deal after next season when A.I and Webber's money come off the books.
Orlando shouldve waited a year and tried to spend that $ on a guy like Brand. Brand and Dwight Howard together would've absolutely dominated in the East.
He'll make Orlando slightly better but when you're giving a cat max money, he needs to make you more than a little bit better.
Elton Brand in 2008, now that's a guy who will get max money and be worth every penny. Rumor has it Philadelphia is going to offer him a max deal after next season when A.I and Webber's money come off the books.
Orlando shouldve waited a year and tried to spend that $ on a guy like Brand. Brand and Dwight Howard together would've absolutely dominated in the East.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=yspsctnhdln>Agent: Grant Hill leaving Magic to join Suns
</TD></TR><TR><TD height=7><SPACER type="block" width="1" height="1"></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><STYLE type=text/css> td.yspwidearticlebody { font-size: 13.5px; }</STYLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=yspwidearticlebody>By TRAVIS REED, Associated Press Writer
July 6, 2007
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<SMALL>AP - Jul 5, 8:11 pm EDT</SMALL>
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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- Grant Hill made seven NBA All-Star teams and won two college championships. He also has never been past the first round of the NBA playoffs.
Hungry for a title, Hill is leaving the Orlando Magic after seven injury-plagued years to join a perennial contender in the Phoenix Suns, his agent said Thursday.
The 34-year-old forward agreed to a two-year deal worth about $1.8 million for the first year, with a second-year player option for about $2 million, agent Lon Babby said.
"There's no question he could've gotten considerably more money elsewhere, but that was not the principle," Babby said. "I think the most important factor for him was the opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to a team competing for the championship."
Hill was considering retirement or returning to Orlando for another season. His seven-year, $93 million contract finished this season, and the Magic have used it as a flashpoint for rebuilding.
That salary-cap room was earmarked for a free-agent scorer, and Orlando agreed to spend it on Seattle SuperSonics forward Rashard Lewis, his agent said this week. Teams cannot discuss or complete deals until the signing period begins Wednesday. Citing those restrictions, the Magic and Suns declined comment Thursday.
Hill has played about only a third of Orlando's 574 regular-season games, and made the All-Star team just once since leaving the Detroit Pistons.
This year was the first Hill finished healthy since arriving in Orlando in 2000 with an ankle injury that eventually required five operations. The Magic signed Tracy McGrady at the same time, but he left in a 2004 trade that brought in Steve Francis.
Babby said about 15 teams courted Hill, and the forward narrowed that list to five. He declined to name which other teams Hill was considering.
The Suns won 61 games this season, losing in the Western Conference semifinals to the eventual champion San Antonio Spurs. Hill will join a roster that includes two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash and All-Star Amare Stoudemire.
"I think all he was seeking was the opportunity to start," Babby said. "It was the same promise that was made to him when he went to Duke. Nobody guarantees you anything and he wasn't asking for guarantees."
The Magic knew Hill had an ankle injury when they traded Ben Wallace and Chucky Atkins for him in 2000, but never expected it would take so long to heal. Hill appeared in just four games his first year with the Magic, 14 the next year and 29 the year after that. He missed the entire 2003-04 season.
Hill finally regained his old form in 2004-05, averaging almost 20 points and looking like the all-purpose player Orlando thought it was getting. Even then he couldn't stay off the injury list, missing 15 games with wrist and shin problems.
In 2005-06, it was a sports hernia and lower abdominal injuries for another 61 missed games.
The 6-foot-8 forward was written off by some as a pricey bench fixture, but others found Hill hard to dislike. He led the league in All-Star balloting in 1995 and '96.
Hill proved again this season he could still play. The former Duke star averaged 15 points as Orlando was swept in the first-round by his former team, and just under that during the regular season. He was the Magic's best option driving to the basket, and at times seemed the only one playing with energy despite his age. But Hill again missed 17 regular-season games this season with a knee sprain and other minor injuries. For his career, Hill averages 20 points, seven rebounds and five assists. He played on the 1996 Olympic team that won the gold medal and on a Duke team that reached three NCAA championship games and won two consecutive titles.
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http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-magic-hill&prov=ap&type=lgns
