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The Lloyd Sam Trade


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#1
McSoccer

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DC United before the trade: 21 points/17 games = 1.24pts/gm

DC United after the trade: 25 points/16 games = 1.56pts/gm

 

If you take out the first four games (getting acclimated), they have earned 1.75pts/gm since the Sam trade (.5pts/gm in July, 1.8pts/gm in August, 1.6pts/gm in September, 3pts/gm in October). Obviously their jump is not all a result of adding Sam, but he has been a big part.

 

Conversely, RB has gone from 1.28pts/gm before the Sam trade to 2.07pts/gm in the games since.  Sam departure has definitely not hurt us and it was probably smart to part with an over 30, obviously declining player while someone was willing to give us something in return.  That said, I think we could have still played at a 2pts/gm pace with Sam on the bench or splitting time with Grella (who has not been great since Sam left).

 

Not arguing against the trade or saying the trade hurt us, just that the trade helped DC a lot this season.  Ignoring all future elements of the trade, would you rather face DC with Sam on their wing or DC with Sam on our bench?



#2
ivo

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Looking at current season only with no financial implications, obviously we're better off stashing him on our bench than having him play for DC. But that's a luxury a team cannot really afford in a salary cap league. And then there are the future implications, i.e. allocation money.
 
With Muyl doing okay or better, Royer coming in and poised to be a big part, and Veron still an option that you want to give a chance to, it makes sense to offload Sam early when he has a decent trade value. If he's the third or fourth sub off the bench (Grella/Damari/Veron/Sam), his value plummets.
 
Love Sam and hate the trade on an emotional level, but it makes complete sense from the team's perspective. It really is a shame he wasn't traded to another team.

#3
McSoccer

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This was more a response to someone that said we're better THIS YEAR since the Sam trade.  And yea, that's true, but so is DC.  Right now, they look like our most dangerous obstacle in the playoffs.

 

Also, Sam has been more productive than Grella since the trade.  If you told me Royer was going to get the majority of minutes going forward, fine.  But if it's a choice between second half Grella or second half Sam, you gotta go Sam.



#4
ivo

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This was more a response to someone that said we're better THIS YEAR since the Sam trade.  And yea, that's true, but so is DC.  And right now, they look like our most dangerous obstacle in the playoffs.

Ah okay. Based on his current form, Sam would probably be starting for us right now as well. We have been playing better as a whole since around the time he left, but it's not DUE TO him leaving. People, most notably BWP and the defense, have just been better in the last couple of months.

 

As for DC, they're looking okay recently, but we were still much better in the last two games we played against them, the two lost two-goal leads notwithstanding (yeah, I do realize how that sounds...).



#5
RedBullScouse

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This was more a response to someone that said we're better THIS YEAR since the Sam trade.  And yea, that's true, but so is DC.  Right now, they look like our most dangerous obstacle in the playoffs.

 

Also, Sam has been more productive than Grella since the trade.  If you told me Royer was going to get the majority of minutes going forward, fine.  But if it's a choice between second half Grella or second half Sam, you gotta go Sam.

Except its been Muyl playing in Sam's spot, not Grella.   Not to say Muyl's productivity has been substantially better or worse than Grella.


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#6
Komba

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Muyl has been fantastic defensively... Causes so many turnovers.  Sam really doesn't offer much there.  

 

And that's probably the biggest reason Muyl took over the starting job from Sam.



#7
McSoccer

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Except its been Muyl playing in Sam's spot, not Grella.   Not to say Muyl's productivity has been substantially better or worse than Grella.

Can't Muyl play on the left? He definitely has at some point. And he's not in their to send crosses. I think he could serve his purpose on either wing.

#8
KDyer1012

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The ideal XI, I would think, would be Muyl on the right and Royer on the left. If Royer was fit for the postseason I think that is what we would see in the conference semifinals.



#9
iced1776

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Ben Baer put up an article on MLS covering a lot of this, opinion is pretty unanimous across the board that Sam and Mullins are the main drivers behind DC's resurgence. I didn't realize they'd been scoring just as much as they have.

 

How DC United's midseason pickups made them the most explosive team in MLS

 

We have the luxury of not needing wingers to be scoring goals every other game because Kljestan and BWP have been at their peak over the last few months. Even Grella during his cold streak has a knack for causing turnovers in good spots. Muyl has never even hit an attacking hot streak, but there's a clear argument to be made that his defensive work has supported Kljestan and BWP's rising stats. Right now its working very well, but what scares me a little is what happens if Kljestan and BWP cool off? 



#10
magicmoron

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I am still scared of DC/Sam in the playoffs.

#11
Eleazar

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Most DC highlights on ESPNFC include Sam/Mullins. As important as Sam has been, Mullins has been the godsend, picking up where Espindola left off when he got dumped to Liga MX. 


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#12
JerseyFan

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Always thought Mullins was underrated. He was unlucky to be at NE when they had Davies, Bunbury, Fagundez and Bengtson. Then stuck behind Villa at NYC. He always seemed to play well against us.


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#13
Grelladinho

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The Sam trade was very stupid when it was made and I still think it is a stupid trade. Muyl is a workhorse but doesn't really add anything offensively. Sam is a much better player.

They used the extra cap room with Sam leaving to sign Demari (injured/useless so far) and Royer (mostly injured).

Big fail. They should have kept Sam until the offseason and unload him then.

I think DC beats Montreal in the knockout game and we get stuck playing them with the 3 seed beating Philly.

#14
iced1776

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The Sam trade was very stupid when it was made and I still think it is a stupid trade. Muyl is a workhorse but doesn't really add anything offensively. Sam is a much better player.

They used the extra cap room with Sam leaving to sign Demari (injured/useless so far) and Royer (mostly injured).

Big fail. They should have kept Sam until the offseason and unload him then.

I think DC beats Montreal in the knockout game and we get stuck playing them with the 3 seed beating Philly.

 

At the time of the trade Sam wasn't adding anything offensively either. And if they had waited until the end of the season and he still wasn't producing, nobody would have given us a dime for him. 



#15
arisrules

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I'm fine with the trade, plus the trade that made them work is Mullins. We have a lot of depth on the wings, and Royer is a gem on the wing as well. Very frustrating he got injured.

 

The pickup that I find perplexing is Damari. Veron has been fantastic in CCL games in that striker role, and Damari looks like he leads the line instead of spelling Kleijstan. It would have been much better off to go after a CB and give us some additional depth there. 






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