Trevor Ariza Is This Year’s James Posey
When I read last night that Trevor Ariza might be leaving the World Champion Los Angeles Lakers, I didn’t know what to think. But then it hit me: Trevor Ariza is this year’s James Posey. And just like I told James last year: Don’t do it!
When Posey left the World Champion Boston Celtics last off-season to play for the Hornets (a potential contender), it was the right decision if you wanted to make a run for the money. But if he wanted to win another ‘chip, he would have stayed in Beantown. This summer, the same thing is happening for Ariza. While he could return to Hollywood and win back-to-back rings, it appears Ariza might be headed to Cleveland.
At only 24 years old, Ariza is a valuable piece to add to a roster. It’s no surprise then that at least five teams are pursuing him, including the Cavs, Rockets, Clippers, Raptors and Blazers. And it appears the reason he’s not headed back to the Lakers is that they are unwilling to pay him more than the $5.6 million mid-level exception.
I realize where you’re coming from Trevor, but learn from Kobe and extend your stay in Los Angeles. Even if it’s just for one year, you’ve got a good thing going there. The biggest difference between the two wings is that Posey was 31 years old last summer, but really the situation is the same. Looking back, it probably wasn’t a great move for Posey to head to New Orleans, while at the same time the Celtics should have invested the money. This year, it will be interesting to see how it all shakes out.
If you were Ariza, what would you do?
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July 2nd, 2009 at 6:45 am
H-Dawg says:
Stay in LA Trevor!!!!!!
July 2nd, 2009 at 6:47 am
nbabogdan says:
Ariza is from LA, so I guess it’s cool for him to hang out with the Lakers
July 2nd, 2009 at 6:49 am
flegman says:
at least, Travel can be way better than Posey ever was.
However both were “x-factors” for sure.
July 2nd, 2009 at 6:49 am
Cha says:
Cleveland? They can’t offer any more money than the Lakers can.. whoever doesn’t sign Hedo between Portland and Toronto is most likely going to sign Ariza, as they have the capspace to offer more than just the MLE. Theres no reason for Ariza to go to the Cavs when he can get paid the same amount in LA.
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:00 am
Sweet English says:
Go to Cleveland. Then you can tell your grandkids that you won a ring with Kobe one year, then a ring with Lebron And Shaq the next year. That’s some material right there.
oh yeah,
Aron are Dime ever going to announce the winners of the 4 rings t-shirts? It’s been a while now fellas. Can someone at least address the issue? i.e if you arent going to announce them yet, when are you?
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:00 am
shake&bake says:
At least if he goes to Cleveland he has a decent chance at a championship. The obvious issue with signing a one year deal with the Lakers is if he gets injured or just doesn’t perform, then he blows one of his best chances to cash in.
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:07 am
ToAn says:
it really is a tough decision…propably depends on how much the other team is willing to give him. if it’s CLE and they give him 7-9 Mio. then i would probably go. the chances are really good in CLE that you win it all and the money is just better. but if he is not going to a contender and they give him 7-9 Mio, well then i wouldn’t go. if he stays he really can establish himself and maybe win another ring and then he would cash in.
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:22 am
ToAn says:
@shake&bake….sorry man, just realized that i wrote practically the same as you..so, yeah, you’re right
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:40 am
smoove chips says:
stay please.i’m a laker fan
or at the very minimum don’t be a clipper.
houston is self-destructing
the cavs ain’t gon have shyt after the shaq,mo and bron
the raptors?cmon dawg.patience.they clippers in disguise
the blazers are interesting.after hedo,u aint getting much
look at the paper the throwing at Hedo.
i’d stay,finish the rest of the year at the kobe academy,develop a ruthless post game and learn to create on my own,win another ring.THEN
I’d look at mitch kupchak on some ben gordon shyt in my best pacino imitation and say
‘fluck u pay me !!!’
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:08 am
thomasmmm says:
stay with LAL. transfer = the money will disappear with the absence of a career. in LAL, fans don’t forget a winner. in CLE, who do you remember besides Mark Price, Brad, and Craig Ehlo? btw, can LAL afford Marion or Artest?
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:11 am
Billy Hoyle says:
go on , take the money and run
aouuuuuaahhh
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:19 am
K.I.R says:
so he goes to cleveland 2 be 6th man at best and backing up lebron who doesnt come out that often – uuuuhhhhh not for 1.5 mil extra
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:27 am
ERIC says:
Cavs can only offer Trevor the MLE…The Lakers can offer at least that much, if not more, if they chose. I’m not sure what the hold up is.. Trevor is from LA, went to UCLA, and is a Laker. He’s 24 but is the type of player who will only thrive in a certain system and nurtured by a superstar.. You saw that he was quickly discarded in NY and Orlando. If he went to Portland or Toronto, its purely for the money and he will fall off the radar as an up-and-coming player…
If he doesnt stay (which I think is a mistake by Ariza AND the Lakers), the Lakers can sign Artest or Marion.
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:51 am
Celts Fan says:
Trevor should get that $$$. It’s not like he’s Kobe or LeBron who’ll make hundreds of millions. Get that paper. I’m sure he’d end up being the starting 2 guard on the Cavs (by label anyway, LeBron’s basically half a point guard at the 3 and Mo’s basically a 2 at the 1, so labels don’t really matter on that team as long as you fill a role) so they’d actually have some height to defend the perimeter and bring Delonte off the bench. Also, don’t forget, this would be his biggest contract ever. Get paid, set yourself up for life, THEN worry about anything else. He’s already got a ring, now you get the money and make sure you and your family aren’t ever hurting for anything.
and btw, Posey definitely shoulda signed w/ NO (who offered $4M more than anyone else.) He picked a contender (we thought anyway, they’d just taken the Spurs to 7, no reason to think they weren’t still on the upswing,) and got the biggest deal of his career (I believe) at 31 to finally get some “probably set for life unless he develops a drug habit” money. No problems w/ that. If NO had just taken care of Pargo and not sold off the #27 pick, they may’ve done better this year…
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:53 am
Rafa23 says:
ERIC is right. you guys dont seem to realize that cleveland cant offer more than the lakers. so why would he go there?
if he want the money, he will probably go to toronto or portland, whoever loses out on hedo…
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:53 am
Rangerjohn says:
Ariza is pissed the lakers will not offermore so he is going to sign somewhere else for the same dollars. No loyalty on both sides of this one. He saw that extra money the lakers got from NY and he wants it.
No ariza, no odom will make me smile!
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:59 am
DiehardLAKERFAN says:
Trevor has to get paid. I’d hate to see him go but “Get your money TREV!”
LA needs to come up off that cash if they wanna make me proud next seaon with another title cause we need Trevor Ariza to get it done…
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:05 am
kevin k says:
how are you going to compare Posey to Ariza???
Posey was in his early 30s when he went to the Hornets from Boston. Ariza is only 24 and hasnt even reached his prime yet. yea they are “defensive specialist” and shoots 3s but Ariza is way more athletic and younger. Your grammar and journalism is good but your NBA common sense needs some work
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:18 am
Dagomar says:
Here’s why Ariza isn’t Posey (gonna echo some comments above): Ariza is NOT a defensive specialist and three point shooter. If you watched him play last year you’ll see that he can do a little of everything on the court, and he’s getting better by leaps and bounds at age 24. There were times when he was the best player on the court, and that’s playing for the Lakers. I firmly believe he can be a star in this league. For that reason him leaving the Lakers would be very different from Posey leaving the Celtics.
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:45 am
PALakerFan says:
The Lakers are only offering the MLE amount because that’s all anyone but TOR and POR can offer. POR is likely to get Hedo, leaving only TOR. Now if your options were TOR for say 7 mil per or LAL for 5.6 mil per which would you take? Once Bosh bolts for MIA next year, TOR will be a doormat team.
He ain’t going to CLE to be a backup. And if he’s willing to give up Championship runs for the next 5 years for 1.4 mil per, then I say go.
We can always bring in Artest for the MLE. Odom is the more important player for us to sign.
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:03 am
TrueHoopFan says:
If I was Trevor, my first priority is to secure the future of myself and my family, so finances play a big role in this thing. However, if the Lakers are offering the mid-level (5.6) and I’m not getting offers for SIGNIFICANTLY more in the open market, I’m going to stay with the Lakers where (1)I won a championship; (2)I played in a system to allow my skills to develop and my career to flourish, and (3)I grew up and went to high school (Westchester) and college (UCLA).
But I’m not Trevor, so Mr. Ariza, do what you feel is in your best interest. Good luck!
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:04 am
karizmatic says:
If I were him I would stay just because winning rings would mean more to me than getting the money, particularly when you’re talking millions already, but at the same time I can easily see why he would get the money, plus who says he can’t be the difference in Cleveland? Ariza, Shaq, LBJ, and Mo Williams, plus whoever else they try to get might be enough to put him at least in the Finals again. So what does he really have to lose? Also as a Laker fan, I’d love for him to stay.
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:41 am
karizmatic says:
Another thing I see what you’re saying with this one. Trevor is pretty much this year’s James Posey, but it is only assuming that he has hit the peak of his ability, which could be possible. There is no gaurantee that he can play much better than he played last year. Yes, he has potential, but as we know potential often goes unrealized.
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:53 am
spaynter5 says:
All you fools saying stay with the lakers…I’m a cavs fan but if I were ariza I wouldnt go there either…make that money while you can you never know when the gift of basketball can be taken away from you. screw rings you got a son. make him set for life.
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:53 am
Kermit The Washington says:
Nuh…NUH….NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
Anywhere but CLEVELAND!!
July 2nd, 2009 at 11:10 am
Kermit The Washington says:
All I gotta say….Trevor leaves, then LA needs to cop ARTEST. That’s the only thing that’ll turn this into a good thing.
And @spaynter5…you mean Ariza’s son isn’t ALREADY set for life?? If he ain’t, that’s just poor money-management, and even a new contract can’t fix THAT mess.
July 2nd, 2009 at 11:48 am
Kingsley says:
Dear DiehardLAKERFAN,
As a Lakers fan myself, considered the current economic climate, if Ariza were to demand anything more than the MLE, we should just let him go… Instead, we should just use the same MLE on either S.Marion or R.Artest, which are definitely an upgrade from T.Ariza
July 2nd, 2009 at 12:05 pm
MissChick says:
On paper, Ron Ron might seem like a good return for Ariza but Ariza has something that Ron or Shawn may not have with the Lakers….CHEMISTRY.
Ariza is going to stay in L.A. He’s from LA, went to UCLA, and he owns the Conga Room at LA Live.
July 2nd, 2009 at 12:27 pm
tp says:
@ kermit, this is going to be ariza’s first big contract so you can’t blame him for wanting every extra dollar.
if he leaves this will be sad on multiple levels. one, no one fills that role on the lakers better than ariza does. two, when he leaves he’s going to look nowhere near as good. his D will still be there, but with the lineup the lakers throw on the floor it’s no wonder they have to leave him wiiide open.
July 2nd, 2009 at 12:54 pm
D-Man says:
ARIZA??? STTAAYYY N L.A i mean cum on dawg you can wait jus win another ring wit KOBE….yo fame iz already build’n up in L.A…u damn sure aint gonna fit in CleveLand or toronto wit the clippers….
July 2nd, 2009 at 1:37 pm
Celts Fan says:
@Kermit – There’s NO WAY that Ariza’s son’s set for life already. Trevor’s probably made about $12M so far in his career. Half that down to $6M for taxes, take another 10% (off the 12M) for his agent, and it’s down to $4.8M. Add in a reasonable home for a pro athlete (say $800K,) and a solid car (say $100K Mercedes) and you’re under $4M left. Again, that’s awesome money, but that’s not even gonna leave 1 person set for life yet, much less his kid too. It’s this NEXT contract, after he has his toys, that gets you “Never have to work again” set.
July 2nd, 2009 at 1:55 pm
jmg says:
trevor saw that bum-ass Luke Walton got 5 yrs 30 mill and wants at least more than him and he deserves that! the Lakers also gave Sasha 5 mil last year and only offers Trevor 5.6mil? Please, i bleed purp and gold but Kupshit is tripping on this one!! offer Trevor 3 yrs 20 mil or 5yrs 33 mil and its a wrap!! he’s 24 and made plays that lead to a RING!!
July 2nd, 2009 at 2:09 pm
rell says:
If the Raps or Blazer offer more money the LA then Ariza need to leave. Even if the Raps offer 1.6M a year more than LA, then Ariza need to leave. This is his 1st big contract and to expect a player to leave 6 mil total on the table is asking too much. If LA want to keep him they should atleast offer Ariza a little bit more than the MLE (maybe 1M/year extra).
Now if other teams(Cavs) only offer the MLE offer then Ariza should just stay in LA.
July 2nd, 2009 at 2:24 pm
Lee says:
If I just had 1 million, I would do just fine.
Anyways, it will be great if Ariza stays but the thought of Artest and Kobe on the same team makes me giddy. Two bad mofos who don’t take sh*t from anybody. Those two might actually scare KG away. Kobe and Ron, plus Gasol and LO?
My, my , my.
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:02 pm
SaiaLRG says:
Lakers are Stupid not to pay him what he deserves.
I hope Trevor signs with Cavs.