Why Maynor!?! I know they are saving cash but Maynor??

http://www.dailythunder.com/2009/12/thunder-acquires-eric-maynor-from-jazz-waives-livingston-and-wilks/

I think this is a necessary move that needed to be made, and I applaud the front office for having the testicular fortitude to do it. C’mon, guys – are we really all that surprised? For months, even prior to the season starting, we knew our payroll was a ticking bomb waiting to explode. The misdirection was provided by all the Boozer hoopla, leading us to believe that any move to avoid luxury tax penalties would be by moving Boozer. WRONG. He made it quickly apparent that he was too much of a contributor to even risk removing from the starting lineup, much less trade away. Therefore, the only sensible alternative for shedding payroll was by trading Harpring’s contract along with a dispensable player. The options were:

Wesley Matthews (rookie contract)
C.J. Miles (young, with potential, 2nd year of his contract)
Kyle Korver (last year of his contract)
The Koof (rookie contract)
Eric Maynor (rookie contract)

Matthews proved to be too valuable, especially with all the injuries, and Miles was an unlikely option given how well he was playing in training camp and pre-season. Korver and the Koof had not been given a chance to “audition” in front of other NBA team this season enough to draw any substantial interest (plus Korver’s nagging injury must have been of concern).

So that leaves Maynor, who had been given a chance and demonstrated his value as a back-up PG when Deron and Price went down. What made him dispensable? I believe that the key reason is that during the off-season we re-upped Ronnie Price and basically invested in him already as the back-up PG for the coming seasons.

For these reasons, I think the FO made a smart and necessary move. Maynor was certainly a decent back-up and could become a journeyman in this league, maybe even a starter. But I don’t think this is going to be another Mo Williams that we are giving away. Even if Maynor turns out to be a star, the FO can look back and say that didn’t have much of a choice and made the right move. I know you all don’t agree with me, but I really think his ceiling is somebody like Kevin Ollie or Eric Snow – somebody that can run an offense, handle the ball, but is too physically disadvantaged and awful at shooting to be a dependable starting PG. He was a mildly pleasant surprise as a rookie point-guard, but I think he has already maxed out his potential and there’s no growth in his game left.

Just my 2 cents.