{"id":827096,"date":"2015-06-07T10:35:14","date_gmt":"2015-06-07T17:35:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cowbellkingdom.com\/?p=39296"},"modified":"2015-06-07T10:35:14","modified_gmt":"2015-06-07T17:35:14","slug":"sunday-musings-what-to-do-with-carl-landry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesportsdaily.com\/news\/sunday-musings-what-to-do-with-carl-landry\/","title":{"rendered":"Sunday Musings: What to do with Carl Landry?"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
As the Golden State Warriors march through the NBA playoffs, perhaps on their way to their first championship in 40 years, the Sacramento Kings are forced to sit back and wonder, what if?<\/p>\n
What if Geoff Petrie had selected Stephen Curry over Tyreke Evans? \u00a0What if a year later he had selected Klay Thompson over Jimmer Fredette or Harrison Barnes over Thomas Robinson a year later.<\/p>\n
We aren\u2019t talking about things that were out of the Kings\u2019 control. \u00a0In fact, we are talking about players taken soon after each of their selections in the draft. \u00a0We are also looking at players that play similar positions or would have fit a need in the case of Barnes.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s brutal to think what might have been. \u00a0All of these assets could have been added to DeMarcus Cousins, not instead of the Kings cornerstone. \u00a0Even if one of these pieces were added, the ripple effect could have been substantial.<\/p>\n
A deeper look back at these decisions may cause someone to consider moving their fandom to the Bay Area.<\/p>\n
Compounding these mistakes is a glaring situation that the new organization in Sacramento created itself. \u00a0While the Warriors sat back and waited for draft day mistakes from the Kings, Vivek Ranadiv\u00e9 and Pete D\u2019Allesandro stole away one of the W\u2019s prized free agents and now they are paying the price.<\/p>\n
The addition of Carl Landry was the new regime’s first free agent acquisition, and they were so excited that they invited the media to the signing of his contract in a Las Vegas board room. \u00a0That excitement has been dulled substantially at this point.<\/p>\n
Landry underwent successful wrist surgery on Tuesday and is expected to miss four to five months of action. \u00a0His summer program is officially over, and he is out until October at the earliest and may miss regular season time.<\/p>\n
This isn\u2019t the first issue Sacramento has had with Landry since signing him to a four-year, $26 million deal. \u00a0The 31-year-old forward tore a hip flexor before playing a single regular season game in year one. \u00a0Once he returned from injury, he played in a total of 18 games before injuring a knee and missing the remainder of the season.<\/p>\n
Injuries happen. \u00a0Multiple injuries happen as well, especially when we are dealing with leg injuries.<\/p>\n
Landry played a total of 70 games in year two, missing five contests in January while dealing with the wrist ailment that has now shelved him for the foreseeable future. \u00a0But the return on investment has been modest to say the least. \u00a0Landry never really got his legs under him in his eighth NBA season. \u00a0Gone were the patient post moves and lateral quickness. \u00a0The veteran was a shell of his former self and may never play to his super-sixth-man level again.<\/p>\n
The former Purdue star did a solid job of reinventing himself as a floor spacing, perimeter set shooter. \u00a0He has yet to develop a corner 3-ball and has no chance to guard stretch fours, but he\u2019s working with what he has left.<\/p>\n
Landry started a total of 15 games in the 2014-15 season, totaling 7.2 points and 3.8 rebounds in 17 minutes a night. \u00a0But once George Karl took over the team at the All-Star break, those numbers took a steady nose dive. \u00a0Landry drew six DNP-CDs and missed another contest for leaving the bench during a skirmish.<\/p>\n
Finding a way to integrate star center DeMarcus Cousins into Karl\u2019s offense was tough. \u00a0Doing the same for a plodding Landry was off the table in the season\u2019s final 30 games.<\/p>\n
With his latest setback, a question is now developing. \u00a0Where do the Kings go from here with Carl Landy?<\/p>\n
In the harsh world of the NBA, Landry is unmovable. \u00a0The Kings can try to find a taker in a larger deal, but he\u2019s on the wrong side of 30, has a series of injuries and is owed another $13 million.<\/p>\n
While it isn\u2019t an ideal situation, the Kings may need to look long and hard at using the NBA\u2019 stretch provision and spreading Landry\u2019s contract over five years.<\/p>\n
In case you aren\u2019t familiar with the stretch provision, a team can waive a player and stretch his remaining salary over two times the length of the remaining years, plus one more year (2 years remaining x 2 + 1 = 5 years).<\/p>\n
Basically, Sacramento can spread Landry\u2019s $13 million cap hit into five seasons $2.6 million per. \u00a0It\u2019s a long term move, but one that may make a lot of sense with the NBA\u2019s salary cap explosion next season.<\/p>\n
Seasons<\/td>\n | Salary<\/td>\n | NBA Salary Cap<\/td>\n | Percentage of Cap<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
2015-16<\/td>\n | $6.5 million<\/td>\n | $67.1 million<\/td>\n | 9.7 percent<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
2016-17<\/td>\n | $6.5 million<\/td>\n | $89 million<\/td>\n | 7.3 percent<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\nLandry\u2019s salary structure under the stretch provision:<\/h3>\n
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