Ty Lawson and the FO's relationship is deteriorating. Not news to anyone that's been paying any attention. But that does not mean we need to trade him. I propose what some others are, but not nearly enough in my mind, that we start Mudiay at point offensively, but have him guard the better guard on the other team in order to mask Ty's defensive deficiencies. That gives us so much offensive flexibility with our line ups and play styles. We have a near all star PG combined with an extremely talented young player that I have seen nothing but good news about. Not to mention we have Gary Harris waiting in the wings who I still have faith for. He was a good shooter in college and we already know he is a good defender, he could be a very good 3 and D type player in the future if he gets his stroke back. It is important to give him the majority of the minutes behind Lawson and Mudiay, as it is crucial in his development. I feel like this experiment could prove to be something we might want to keep around for our halfway rebuild. If it doesn't, we at least didn't give away Ty for nothing and have plenty of time to wait it out for the right deal to come around.

We also have two quality small forwards in a healthy Gallinari and Chandler, that are both very versatile and quality defenders. This is another reason I do not think trading Ty should be a priority. While having both of them is nice, it isn't quite necessary, and both are only on the books for one more year. In my opinion we should try and sign Gallinari to a long term contract extension. He is only 26 and showed quite a few glimpses to the player he was pre-ACL injury 2 years ago. Chandler we could probably flip for a first rounder at the deadline or package him with Ty if we find the right deal for promising young player or whatever else we can get. Although, with Ty on contract for two more seasons, as I have already stated, it is not vital in any way to trade him now. It must be the right deal. I feel very comfortable with out line up until this point.

Now moving on to big men. This is where it gets kinda tricky. Nurkic is obviously a centerpiece for our franchise as we move forward, but no one else has a solidified place. I assume with only one more year of Hickson's deal that everyone hates so much, the front office will just let him walk and limit his minutes extremely in order to let guys like Lauvergne and Jokic get some real NBA playing time and see what we have with them. At least that's what I hope we do, as there is no reason to play Hickson at this point. If we could get a second rounder for him that would be great but does not really change anything in the long run. I've heard good things about Jokic, and Lauvergne showed some promise last year. They are definitely both worth keeping around on their rookie deals, and if I was in the FO I would not want to include them in any trades of our veterans. Now we get to Faried, our beloved manimal. Having just signed a contract extension, correct me if I'm wrong, he is the only player on our team we have under contract for more than 2 years that isn't on his rookie deal. Which is worrying at first glance, but not when you realize we have so many players on rookie deals. If they can all develop this rebuild will be much shorter than most. I've been rambling so let me get back to Faried, I think he has great value in the NBA... as 3rd big man. Faried is not good enough defensively or offensively to be a full fledged starter in the NBA. He has no post game, no jump shot. His energy is perfect for coming off the bench, but his contract is too big for a bench player. I think Faried should be dealt, but again it is not urgent since he is under contract for several more years.

Now with all that said, there is no way we make the playoffs next year, but also almost no chance we actually use our own first round pick so this year is kind of pointless anyways. But the not using our own pick part is more important. It allows our team from top to bottom to be trying our best to win. I am strongly against any full on tank because of the way it instills a losing attitude into a franchise, and with all the young players on our team it is crucial we do not do that. I think if all of our guys develop how they are projected, then in 3 years with some smart front office moves we could be relevant again. All of this depends on the way we develop our young plays, and the way our front office handles our veterans. Don't give away our stars for pennies on the dollar (as it seems could happen with Lawson as no one that wants him as of right now has anything to give) and we will be fine. I have faith in Malone, and the front office to do the right things. I really hope I'm not wrong.

Also side note: I would love to bring back Darrell Arthur as he was far and away the best big man defender we have, and with that being Malone's speciality, maybe together they can help our young big men to develop their interior defense, and maybe, just maybe, show Faried how to do something on that end of the court.