I am looking at a Cat 5 as a base reward.. Now it will be 5 nights at 100k pts

If one could get $1000 for 100k pts, that would mean the room would have to be more then $200/night to really see a benefit.

Of course one could always do Marriott Gift Cards (10% off) or priceline. With the first then you are looking at $220/night.

Getting cash now also earns interest/protects future decreases.

Guess an award is not as valuable as it used to be, but still has value. Cat 5 shows pts have depreciated by 21%.