David Lee's trade options this offseason
Coming off a championship victory with the Golden State Warriors, two-time all-star David Lee may change teams this offseason. He is the highest paid player on the Warriors’ roster with a salary of more than $15 million per season. Lee played only 49 of the 82 games this season and started only 4 among them. Even though the Warriors’ championship run was a team effort, Lee clearly wasn’t among the top 3 or 4 contributors. Trading him this offseason would be beneficial for the Warriors.
David Lee’s Trade Request
No one likes to sit on the bench for long periods. Even if he still gets a ring, he knows that he has the ability to play great games. The Warriors have ‘better’ options right now for bigs such as Draymond Green and Andrew Bogut. David Lee knows that the they are not in a position to offer him big minutes and he will not be able to shine here. He requested to be traded shortly after the 2014-15 season ended. He may get to play big minutes and assume more important roles elsewhere.
Win-Win from Warriors’ perspective
The Golden State Warriors have a lot of money invested in Lee and trading him will open up their options for the bench. They acquired Kevon Looney in the draft pick. He is a 6’9” Power Forward who averaged 12 points and 9 rebounds per game at UCLA. Sounds like a great replacement for Lee.
This way, they have the potential to get more help by clearing out some cap space and David Lee gets to play for another team where he’ll get more opportunities to shine. Win-Win.
Potential destinations for Lee
With losing Enes Kanter to OKC, Utah Jazz is looking for some help on the frontcourt and Lee could be a good match. He can mentor the young stars there and prosper while getting his veteran presence on the court. Additionally, Utah has plenty of cap room and can easily accommodate Lee in their roster.
After getting swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Wizards this offseason, the Toronto Raptors are also looking to restructure their team. With Amir Johnson and Louis Williams likely to leave this summer, they have the money to get David Lee. Their existing PF, Patrick Patterson isn’t exactly reliable and having Lee on their side to get those rebounds and second chance points will be beneficial.
The Lakers are way under the cap this season and they may free up another $9 million by not exercising their option on Jordan Hill. They want to keep their books clear for next season when the cap is projected to inflate at $89 million and when Kevin Durant will enter free agency. Lee won’t change those plans with a one year contract in LA. It will help him increase his market value in this team for his free agency in 2016.
Like the Lakers, the Knicks too want their books clean to target Kevin Durant next season. If Lee gets to go back to NY, it will be a high moral boost for him as a player after being underrated at Golden State. The Knicks fans love him and he’s sure to get all the support he needs there. They may also be in a position to resign him next season at a more reasonable price to play with a contending team.
We can almost be certain that Lee will jump out of his Dubs jersey this offseason and it will be exciting to see where he goes to get his game back. This year playoffs have shown that David Lee is still capable of being a role player in key games. It’s going to be fun to see which puzzle, this piece fits in.