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SI: Signing Amir One Of The Worst Offseason Moves

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  • SI: Signing Amir One Of The Worst Offseason Moves

    Source - Sports Illustrated

    According to Britt Robson > INSIDE THE NBA

    • Raptors re-sign Amir Johnson to a five-year, $34 million deal

    Just 23, Johnson has intriguing potential. The 6-foot-9 power forward was one of the Raptors' few quality defenders last season -- according to 82games.com, Toronto's opponents scored eight fewer points per 100 possessions when he was on the court than when he sat. He also shot 63.8 percent from the field, albeit in short stints (he averaged only 17.7 minutes), and in part because of his limited range.

    And that's the rub: The Raptors are gambling a lot of money on a player with a limited sample size who doesn't seem like a great fit in terms of their needs. More specifically, Johnson has "played" five NBA seasons, but languished on the bench early in the tenure with Detroit and has just 3,291 career minutes -- the equivalent of slightly more than one season for a solid NBA starter. While he plays the same position as the departed Chris Bosh, he lacks Bosh's bulk (he's listed at just 210 pounds), not an ideal situation because the Raptors are committed at center to Andrea Bargnani, a sweet shooter but not a physical presence. Toronto also used its top draft pick on a thin power forward, 6-10 Ed Davis of North Carolina.

    Scant experience and the prospect of an undersized frontcourt with Johnson and Bargnani make giving Johnson a healthy raise and a long deal seem overly pricey. Didn't the Raptors learn their lesson overpaying Hedo Turkoglu?
    Last edited by James Ballswin (Realizar); Tue Jul 20, 2010, 11:01 PM.
    RR OG

  • #2
    Raptors seemed like they were bidding against themselves for Amir. I don't know the negotiating particulars but 5y/25m seems about right for Amir. It's not just that it seems like he over paid for Amir but then he drafts a PF and wants to move Bargnani back to his natural PF position- wtf is BC thinking?

    Amir may have a break out season as the potential PF starter but I think he's best suited as a energy 4 off the bench- hopefully he proves me wrong. Davis & Amir may turn out to be a lethal PF combination in the very near future (2 years) if they keep improving as Davis has some serious basketball skills.

    Gotta keep the YG'z together- extend Weems- 3y/10m!!!

    Comment


    • #3
      They went over the top on Kapono and got burned. They did it again with Hedo. Even though those two were inbound free agents, it's a similar concept which is going over the top to land the guy they want... Said it before and I'll say it again, here's to hoping Amir takes a big step forward because last season repeated isn't going to cut it. He needs to cut down on fouls while maintaining aggression if he wants to be deemed a successful signing.

      Comment


      • #4
        Amir said so himself that the range of other offers he got where from 27-30M or something like that. I don't see what's bad about adding 1M a year on that, rather than lose someone who has tons of potential, good work ethic, is just the type of player that TO loves, AND who loves TO back.

        In any case, it's Amir's fault for playing so effective and efficient last season that other teams would pay him THAT much just to land him. He should have just sucked and played like Hedo....right? Right? Yeah.....

        I just hope he does continue in his development from last season and live up to the contract. He may actually be a bargain in the long run, but the jury's still out on that one. We'll see.

        Comment


        • #5
          Apollo wrote: View Post
          He needs to cut down on fouls while maintaining aggression if he wants to be deemed a successful signing.
          How possible do you think this is, giving that he has to play more minutes, be more aggressive on the offence ? Will he have the energy to play similar defense as last year and show the same hustle plays ?

          Comment


          • #6
            Arguing guys are overpaid is overrated and here's why most GM don't care about salary so much. An overpaid player will always be movable- JO, Turk, Kapono, and soon to be Calderon and Evans. Some team will always need a player's services or want his expiring contract.

            Overpaying a player might be better than the option of losing him to someone else who is willing to overpay. Would you rather have overpayed Amare or end up with Turk. I rest my case.
            "Winning isn't every thing, it's the only thing."

            Comment


            • #7
              I'm sure part of the extra cash they gave him was chemistry insurance. Debate the merits of this if you will, but look at it like, "here's some extra money. now don't pout and play just as hard if we decide we like you best off the bench." this way they can keep their core happy, regardless of their role.

              Let's just say, for arguments sake, that he can't improve his foul rate. Last year he averaged 3 fouls per 17 minutes. In those 17 minutes he averaged 5 boards and 6 points shooting the best percentage in the league. Double those numbers, and he fouls out with 12 points, 10 rebounds, a block or two and a steal in 34 minutes. I can't imagine him playing any more than 34 minutes a game whether he fouls out or not, considering Ed Davis. Forgetting fouls, then, what salary does the above line merit?

              Consider too that he will be losing minutes with each year that Ed Davis progresses. This decrease in minutes will hopefully accompany an increase in ability for Johnson, so, for arguments sake, lets say his increase in production cancels out his decline in minutes, and for the next five years he's averaging 12/10/1.5/1 on 55% shooting.

              Is that line worth 8m a year for what will most likely be our 6th man down the road? I think it will when you factor in he will be the Raps glue guy, a big motivator to play hard, and will allow us to not skip a beat when/if Davis comes out of the game or goes down with injury.

              Comment


              • #8
                Raptor4Ever wrote: View Post
                Apollo wrote: View Post
                They went over the top on Kapono and got burned. They did it again with Hedo. Even though those two were inbound free agents, it's a similar concept which is going over the top to land the guy they want... Said it before and I'll say it again, here's to hoping Amir takes a big step forward because last season repeated isn't going to cut it. He needs to cut down on fouls while maintaining aggression if he wants to be deemed a successful signing.
                How possible do you think this is, giving that he has to play more minutes, be more aggressive on the offence ? Will he have the energy to play similar defense as last year and show the same hustle plays ?
                If he wants to earn his money then he better. He got paid due to energy, defense and potential. He can provide the first two in small doses, this is proven. He needs to provide them consistently for longer periods of time for him not to be a waste of money and this is where the potential factors in...

                Comment


                • #9
                  From what I understand, Amir salary looks like:

                  $5,000,000
                  $5,500,000
                  $6,000,000
                  $6,500,000
                  $7,000,000

                  Last season is $5 million guaranteed.

                  So is about $28 millions + $2Mil.
                  Why is this so bad? I think is a manageable contract, let's just hope he develop along with young gunz.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    insight_tor wrote: View Post
                    From what I understand, Amir salary looks like:

                    $5,000,000
                    $5,500,000
                    $6,000,000
                    $6,500,000
                    $7,000,000

                    Last season is $5 million guaranteed.

                    So is about $28 millions + $2Mil.
                    Why is this so bad? I think is a manageable contract, let's just hope he develop along with young gunz.
                    Do you have a source for that? I too heard that his contract was for only $30M (perhaps the other 4 are incentive based), but I was shot down.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      insight_tor wrote: View Post
                      From what I understand, Amir salary looks like:

                      $5,000,000
                      $5,500,000
                      $6,000,000
                      $6,500,000
                      $7,000,000

                      Last season is $5 million guaranteed.

                      So is about $28 millions + $2Mil.
                      Why is this so bad? I think is a manageable contract, let's just hope he develop along with young gunz.
                      Your numbers don't make sense to me. He signed 5 years for $34M. It could be worse though. He plays a similar game to Tyrus Thomas (5 years for $40M).
                      The Raptors, bracing themselves for the loss of star power forward Chris Bosh(notes), have kept one of Bosh’s potential replacements, moving quickly to reach an agreement to sign power forward Amir Johnson(notes) to a five-year contract worth $34 million on the first day of free agency.
                      Source: Yahoo Sports

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        What if they inflated his salary numbers so as to make it seem like that was the going rate for players of his calibre, hence getting other teams to overpay, when in fact they actually signed him to a fairly reasonable contract? That would be a pretty Pat Riley thing to do, so perhaps it's a bit beneath BC to stoop so low. I'd also heard something along the lines of his salary actually being around 30m, as opposed to the reported 34m.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Not so sure about that. I think they did as they did with Kapono, they wanted him and didn't want to risk waiting for another team to outbid them later when other venues dried up so they offered up a sweet deal and told him to sign ASAP or they'd have to look at other options.

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                          • #14
                            Marz wrote: View Post
                            Do you have a source for that? I too heard that his contract was for only $30M (perhaps the other 4 are incentive based), but I was shot down.
                            I took the info from realGM, and the salary is before incentives.
                            When I remember Kapono had this kind of money, I just realize Amir contract is not THAT bad. What concerns me is only his ability to reach his potential in the near future. I still consider him an immature player even if he played 4 or 5 years in NBA, so I hope for the best now that he is financially set for life.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Kapono signed 4 years for $24M. The immediate response by media and fans alike was "WTF?!"

                              The response to Amir seems to be, "Who?!"

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