Raptors waive Dwayne Jones

Errntknght

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Unless they have bigger things in mind why not. The coaches had a good look at him so they ought to be able to make the right call on Jonesie. I'm still hoping for Amundson, dang it all...
 

Mainstreet

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I'm not sure what Dwayne Jones can do in the NBA but I was hoping the Suns would get a center that is already proven. I was thinking about players like Josh Boone and Etan Thomas plus others. There is a reason Dwayne Jones is not playing in the NBA.
 

itlnsunsfan

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I'm not sure what Dwayne Jones can do in the NBA but I was hoping the Suns would get a center that is already proven. I was thinking about players like Josh Boone and Etan Thomas plus others. There is a reason Dwayne Jones is not playing in the NBA.

Good point. I think I'd prefer Boone also.
 

elindholm

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I was thinking about players like Josh Boone and Etan Thomas plus others. There is a reason Dwayne Jones is not playing in the NBA.

There's a reason that Boone and Thomas aren't playing in the NBA either. ;)
 

Irish

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I said all along Jones was not likely to stick with the Raptros. They have Dorsey under contract and Dorsy is a bigger name.

For whatever it is worth (ie not much), Jones played the most with the Cavs while Blanks was part of their front office. All we know about him is that at the D League level, Jones was a terric rebounder. In his NBA hed averaged 0.29 per minute includeing 56 games with the Avs. Coro said Jones showed more offense than was expected. http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Dwayne-Jones-438/

I'd like to find out if this carrys over to serious NBA minutes from the D-League.
One of the few players here with multiple seasons of NBA experience under his belt, Jones possesses a blend of size, strength, and energy that allow him to make an impact on both ends of the floor with his hustle. A legitimate center, Jones is arguably the best big available for teams in a pinch that need a quick-fix at the five spot.


 
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ASUCHRIS

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He'd be our best rebounder off the bench, why not?
 

AzStevenCal

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I hope we bring him in but I'd be pretty comfortable with whatever the Suns decide here. We really didn't get to see enough from the guy to know whether he can play in the NBA but the coaching staff must have.

Steve
 

carey

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I think we could pick him up off waivers, which is the minimum deal we signed him too, right?
 

Irish

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IMHO the Suns messed up when they failed to get KT for the vet minimum. My guess is that KT would not have come here without a promise of a rotation slot. So if the Suns hope to get Lawal into the rotation by season end, KT would block the slot.

If my theery is correct, they need a guy who can fill in, but not block an upgrade of Lawal. Of course, if Jones plays exceptioanllly well or Lawal doesn't develop as fast as excepted, they can hold tight.

My concern is that the team is expecting Lawal to be in the rotation from the start or worse that they will use Warrick in the rotation at the start.
 

Mainstreet

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IMHO the Suns messed up when they failed to get KT for the vet minimum. My guess is that KT would not have come here without a promise of a rotation slot. So if the Suns hope to get Lawal into the rotation by season end, KT would block the slot.

If my theery is correct, they need a guy who can fill in, but not block an upgrade of Lawal. Of course, if Jones plays exceptioanllly well or Lawal doesn't develop as fast as excepted, they can hold tight.

My concern is that the team is expecting Lawal to be in the rotation from the start or worse that they will use Warrick in the rotation at the start.

I don't think the Suns signed Warrick to a 4 year 18M dollar contract to not be a part of the rotation. It will be interesting to see how Gentry coaches an even deeper roster than last season especially if the Suns sign another center that can get minutes. I think Lawal will play based upon how he develops rather than their need for another strong player at PF. Resting a teams hopes on a rookie 2nd round pick is too much to ask. I hope the Suns sign a better player than Jarron Collins at center and let the chips fall where they may.

I do think the Suns have tried to accumulate enough pieces to make a trade at the trading deadline to improve team if the opportunity arises.
 
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Irish

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He's by no means a star, but I don't get why everyone hates Warrick so much.

I guess it because the Suns got killed on the boards during the playoffs and replaced Amare with two guys who aren't bangers. Hedo can at least shoot, but Warrick does not seem to be much of a shooter. Maybe he'll shock us.
 

carey

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I guess it because the Suns got killed on the boards during the playoffs and replaced Amare with two guys who aren't bangers. Hedo can at least shoot, but Warrick does not seem to be much of a shooter. Maybe he'll shock us.

It may shock you how much Warrick gets to the line.
 

JCSunsfan

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KT is not the answer to anything the Suns are doing right now. If they need to add backup help in the middle, they need to go out and find a young project. This team needs youth and prospects, not more players ready to retire.
 

Yuma

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KT is not the answer to anything the Suns are doing right now. If they need to add backup help in the middle, they need to go out and find a young project. This team needs youth and prospects, not more players ready to retire.

I agree JC, but I think people are looking for a one year player just to get us through this season, preferably cheap, not necessarily a long term solution.
 

Errntknght

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I agree JC, but I think people are looking for a one year player just to get us through this season, preferably cheap, not necessarily a long term solution.

I'm one of those. I think the Suns have a legit chance this year with what is shaping up to be a great second unit - and assuming Gentry will have both units really pushing the tempo all game long. Heck, it will almost happen automatically if he just lets it.

The worst thing is that the FO, which includes Gentry, does not seem to see the potential. There's a world of difference between SSOL that dies in the fourth quarter from exhaustion and one that romps and stomps till the final buzzer. Just at the point of the game the other team is most vulnerable a short handed SSOL fizzles out.

I'm not too surprised at the FO except for Gentry but I suppose he just can't see past the departure of Amare. (If he saw any hope of contending, there's no way he'd have let rest of them damage his second unit by letting Amundson escape.)

I'm surprised that even the optimists in here don't see, from the posts I've read, that despite Amare's departure all hope for the season isn't lost - especially those who don't give any credit to Lou. If one thinks that Warrick is an upgrade and then you replace Barbs with Childress how does one not conclude the second unit is going to a real killer? Capable, for instance, of contributing for 24 minutes per game, by the end of December?

Thats how good the second unit is going to have to be to put us in contention sans Amare. Our aged first unit will be able to go all out when they're on the floor if they know they don't have to keep it up for more than 24 minutes. Replacing Amare's scoring isn't a big deal - Hedo's capable of putting up quite a few points and with him handling the ball some of the time, Nash can be more of a scorer which a definite plus. Without Amare we can run more plays for Richardson - and for Hill. JR will love that and he can post up with greater frequency when the opportunities arise. Rebounding is a tougher issue - its going to take heroic efforts from Lopez, Hill, and Richardson in addition to Turkoglu. But its easier to maintain for 24 minutes than it is for 34.

Where does KT fit into the picture? He takes pressure off Lopez and if Robin deals handily with 24 minutes a game then Kurt could sub for the second unit, when more D is needed.

Warrick could almost replace Lou on the second unit provided he throws his heart and soul into his role, but he's more likely to lust after Hedo's spot in the first unit and not integrate himself into the second unit. IMO, Lawal will take over Lou's spot before too long. Earl Clark has the raw ability to do it, too, but he's shown no inclination to focus on teamwork - he's probably worse than Warrick in that regard.
 

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I think I agree, although I'm not sure I follow it all.

FIRST TEAM

The only change appears to be Hedo for Amare. Since Amare was a big part of the Suns, we don't know how how much opponents were forced to adjust just to him. In theory, he threat of "pick and pop" by a three point shooter is going to be a big threat going forward. Oddly enough, IMHO it will be the physical side of Amare's game that might get missed even though he historically was very inconsistent.

J-Rich is entering his contract year, so he is certainly going to be motivated. At $14.4 million this year, his main value to the Suns is his expiring contract It's not out the question that he might come back at a much lower salary, but with the Suns likely to be below the cap I think holding out for a free agent seems like their plan.

SECOND TEAM

Warrick if very different from Amundson. He can score pretty well, but does not have a history of being a great rebounder. In my mind, he is an "odd" PF to team up with Frye, although he may be better shot blocker than Amundson.

Childress would seem to be an upgrade over Barbosa, at least the one that struggled the past two years. In any case, Childress should be a vastly better defender and rebounder than Leandro and should fit in well with Dragic.

Lawal appears to be a real prospect with upside Jarret Collns never had. How soon he show it is one of the big questions of training camp.

Clark was being told he would be a rotation player this year. After a weak summer league performance, that seems far less likely but may surprise us if somebody gets traded.
 

JCSunsfan

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I think I agree, although I'm not sure I follow it all.

FIRST TEAM

The only change appears to be Hedo for Amare. Since Amare was a big part of the Suns, we don't know how how much opponents were forced to adjust just to him. In theory, he threat of "pick and pop" by a three point shooter is going to be a big threat going forward. Oddly enough, IMHO it will be the physical side of Amare's game that might get missed even though he historically was very inconsistent.

J-Rich is entering his contract year, so he is certainly going to be motivated. At $14.4 million this year, his main value to the Suns is his expiring contract It's not out the question that he might come back at a much lower salary, but with the Suns likely to be below the cap I think holding out for a free agent seems like their plan.

SECOND TEAM

Warrick if very different from Amundson. He can score pretty well, but does not have a history of being a great rebounder. In my mind, he is an "odd" PF to team up with Frye, although he may be better shot blocker than Amundson.

Childress would seem to be an upgrade over Barbosa, at least the one that struggled the past two years. In any case, Childress should be a vastly better defender and rebounder than Leandro and should fit in well with Dragic.

Lawal appears to be a real prospect with upside Jarret Collns never had. How soon he show it is one of the big questions of training camp.

Clark was being told he would be a rotation player this year. After a weak summer league performance, that seems far less likely but may surprise us if somebody gets traded.

You left out the biggest question mark. Where does Frye fit in? Does he slide into the starting pf slot or is he that backup 5? If he slides into the backup 4 role where does that leave Lawal and Warrick?

Also, there is this guy named Dudley that will demand time. This is going to be a year of drama for message boards with cries about why Frye, Warrick, Lawal, Clark, or even Dudley isn't getting more minutes.

The Suns have too many decent players and not enough great players. "Addition by subtraction" will happen this year.
 
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