Man I'm gonna be upset if we give up anything of significance for Mirotic while taking away time from Collins. That's not the Nurkic trade all over again, rather it's the Afflalo trade (we filled a position that we had no need for-- had Wes/Barton/CJ/Crabbe at the time, and took away development time from CJ for a mediocre talent). We need a wing. That's the obvious play. Not a no-defense 6'10 chucker.
How would Mirotic take time away from Collins? With Mirotic' spacing, we can easily move Aminu back to his more natural position. Collins playing time wouldn't be affected. And Mirotic isn't a no defense player, I don't know where that narrative comes from. He's a smart team defender, and a good help defender (averages over a block a game per 36.)
Defensively, Mirotic has a reputation as an incapable defender, but that could not be further from the truth. According to Synergy, Mirotic ranks in the 95th percentile in half court defense, allowing only 0.769 points per possession. This matches my eye test. Mirotic has great awareness and knows how to position himself on defense to support the backside, help on drives and contest kick-outs. He is also a phenomenal pick-and-roll container, ranking in the 85th percentile. While he is made to look silly against the speediest point guards, he does the subtle things right. https://theathletic.com/59338/2017/05/12/bulls-season-in-review-nikola-mirotic/
Stotts does not consider Aminu a SF. This has been established. Even given our dire lack of spacing from the wing, Terry insists on playing the likes of Turner, Harkless, Pat, and Jake freaking Layman at SF instead. It's not gonna happen. This year he has played 94% of his time at PF, 5% at SF in a single lineup, and 1% at C. Last year, he played 95% of his time at PF, and 5 % at C. He didn't play a single minute at SF. It won't suddenly happen if we land Mirotic. We need to lose THIS narrative. And if Aminu stays at PF, Mirotic will be yet another backup. Even if Terry tries Aminu at SF for a limited period, Collins will be pushed further back in the rotation. And then what happens to Noah, or Caleb? We will let Noah walk this summer for nothing in return? What a waste of the Batum asset. And honestly, if Aminu stays at PF, I like him over Mirotic in that position. He actually has a positive DBPM and can somewhat hold his own in the post defensively and is more versatile on both ends of the floor. Good luck having Mirotic switch onto guards. He also doesn't jack fadeaway 28 footers out of the flow of the offense. I don't like Mirotic's game and it's obvious from even a slight glance at his stats that he's a flash in the pan this year given his higher usage. Hell if you look at his game log, he's clearly coming down to earth. He's no 17/7 sharp shooter like his raw numbers indicate. He will just add to the clutter that is our roster this year. Would be a disastrous move.
Aminu plays PF out of necessity, because Stotts doesn't trust anyone else, and has better cover at SF in Turner. I don't agree with it, but that's how I see it. With the theoretical addition of Mirotic, Aminu can slide back to SF, a position he's playing more of late when he's on the court with Collins and Davis. I don't know how you can say Stotts doesn't consider him a SF when he's literally getting minutes at the position. Aminu can guard any small forward in the league. Can you say that about the power forwards he has to go up against? He's playing PF strictly for offensive reasons. Reasons that Mirotic would help mitigate.
Not true at all. In fact if you go back and look at the game logs and splits from January and early February last year, you will see that Mo played his worst ball of the entire season from late January through early February, right before Nurk arrived. In fact, just like this season, Mo lost his starting role and was moved to the bench. That happened on 1/20 and he didn't return to the starting line up until two games before we got Nurk. After we got Nurk, Mo saw a significant uptick in both his scoring and his shooting percentages. Remember those games when Nurk was getting 5, 6 or 8 assists? A lot of those were Nurk finding Mo on cuts to the basket. Mo can pl;ay well next to Nurk. The question is, why isn't he? And that's the problem with Mo. He's not good enough to be a reliable third option, but loses focus and motivation when he's not. Because he can't beat his man off the dribble, he needs to be an opportunistic scorer (cutting to the hoop, scrambling for loose balls, offensive rebounds, etc.). All those things require effort and when Mo feels like he's not being "featured" the effort dwindles (what I call pouting). I have seen the lack of effort from Mo, which is why I have been down on him, but if you don't believe me, just look at his offensive rebounding. It's down from 1.6 ORB per game to 0.8. Sure, he's playing fewer minutes. So, look at his ORB%. Down from 6.2 to a career low 3.8. That's 8th on the team. Not good for a guy who relies on hustle for a big part of his game. And, before you try to blame that on Nurk's prescence, Mo saw a significant uptick in his offensive rebounding last year in February and March when playing next to Nurk (probably due to other teams focusing on keeping the beast off the offensive glass). Mo whined to the media back in November about Dame, C.J. and Nurk getting all the touches. Well Mo, you were playing like ass and Aminu was out. Exactly who else should have been getting more shots? You want more shots, put forth more effort. You had over two and a half years, before Nurk got here to establish yourself as a consistent and legitimate third option when this team desperate needed one, and you didn't take advantage of that opportunity. You have no one to blame but yourself. You were basically gifted the starting SF role, due to a lack of other options and you still have not been able to hold onto that role. Stop blaming others and start playing like you WANT it. Stop looking for it to be handed to you. It was and you pissed it away - twice. Man up and earn that paycheck, or at least increase your trade value enough we can get something of value in return. BNM
Stotts has stated unequivocally in several interviews that Aminu's best position is the 4, that he's much more effective at the 4, that the team plays better when he's at the 4, etc. He was even saying just yesterday that Moe gets more minutes when Dame is out because minutes open up for him at the 3 as CJ/Turner shift down positionally, but Vonleh doesn't receive that same benefit because he's behind Aminu and Collins at the 4.
No, Harkless did not play better with Nurkic. His most consistent play was in November. I'm sure you'll find a way to argue that fact though.
So you forgot about this then??? Maurice Harkless and his struggles: 'I feel like I'm just out there' “I’m just out there, and that’s frustrating,’’ Harkless said. “I’m just out there playing defense, which is cool … running back and forth. Out there running track.’’ “We gotta figure out ways … not only me, but ways to get other people going,’’ Harkless said. “Every game it’s the same thing … we play through three people.’’ “Everybody else is just …. It’s hard to get into a rhythm,’’ Harkless said. “It’s that simple.’’ "....We just have to figure something out,’’ Harkless said “It gets frustrating at times,’’ Harkless said after the Orlando game on Nov. 15. “I feel like I could bring more to the team. Especially on the offensive end. It just is what it is. The way we are playing right now, it’s just my role right now. “It’s not like, I’m Evan (Turner) - when he comes in the game, he has the ball in his hands and he can shoot whenever he wants to,’’ Harkless said. “I’m pretty much in a position where I’m just waiting around and you have to pass me the ball. A lot of times I’m open and guys may miss me or I make a cut and they miss me. I just have to keep playing, I can’t worry about that stuff.’’ “It’s frustrating playing and getting only two shots and the game and the game I did get 11 shots (Brooklyn), I made three. So it’s a little frustrating, but I just have to keep going and be ready for when the opportunity comes. It’s been hard with the inconsistency, but it’s part of the game, and it’s just the situation I’m in right now, and I just have to continue make the most of my situation.’’ The one that PISSES ME OFF is: "If you want a guy to go out and rebound and defend and play as active as we want Moe to, you have to give him an opportunity to touch the ball and be involved with it,’’ Lillard said
Here's my last post about Harkless, because I don't care enough to keep this going, at least not on my end. Harkless' most productive lineup combinations, in order, from last season; 1. Crabbe/Davis/McCollum/Turner 2. Crabbe/Lillard/McCollum/Plumlee 3. Aminu/McCollum/Lillard/Plumlee
Way to take a stance there. You were slobbering all over Moe not long ago. Whichever way the wind blows though, right? Done now. For real.
Actually, I agree with you. Mo got of to a hot start last season and November, was indeed his best month. However, his play trailed off dramatically in January and early February and was rejuvenated after Nurk arrived. He certainly played much better with Nurk last February and March than he has this season. Which is why I place most of the blame on Mo for his poor play for the first three months of this season. I just haven't seen the same level of effort, and Mo doesn't have the talent to just coast through a season without busting his ass. In short, Mo is a hustle player who hasn't been hustling (until the last few games). He needs that level of effort consistently. That effort gets him up to average starter level. Without the effort, he's not start material - which is exactly why he was benched. BNM
Good! Now we can get back on the topic of this thread - trades. What can we realistically get for Mo and who are the most likely trading partners? It's ironic that the shortage in quality SFs might drive up Mo's trade value, when his poor play is the reason we are looking for an upgrade at SF ourselves. Perhaps some GM will see that he's still relatively young and take a chance that a change of scenery and a new system will ignite him. This is one case where I'd be willing to trade young(ish) for old(ish). Dame and C.J. are entering their prime. We don't need everyone else on the roster to be 25 and younger. I'd be willing to trade Mo to a building/rebuilding team for a guy who is in his early 30s, but still productive and on a similar contract. BNM
Mirotic Considering positional need and relationship with the Gm, New York could be interested in Harkless as well. Not sure what the Knicks are trying to do. If they're not as worried about the playoffs I think we could find a way to get Lee. Would Milwaukee be interested in Harkless in a Jabari package? Aminu is more ideal, but Harkless is younger and under longer control.
I think the Knicks desperately want to make the playoffs. I think the new regime wants to reinstall a winning culture and make all Knicks games "events" again. I think they'd love a first round matchup with CLE (for the spectacle of LeBron at MSG) or BOS (the NY/BOS rivalry spans all sports). With that said, I do thinks they'd trade Lee. Sure, he is starting, but that forces them to play Hardaway Jr. at SF. If they trade Lee, they could start Mo at the 3 and move Hardaway Jr. back to his more natural SG position. I think this was their original plan when they signed Hardaway Jr. last summer and expressed interest in Mo. They also have Beasley who can play the 3 and McDermot as a sharpshooter off the bench. I think it would depend on what else we offered. They want to go young(er), but still make the playoffs. 25 year old Mo for 32-year old Lee helps with the former. It depends on what else we can give them to help with the latter. Yesterday, I proposed: Mo + Ed + Shabazz for Lee + O'Quinn. I actually think that trade helps both teams - especially if Mo returns to last year's form. It also JUST gets us under the tax threshold. So, win:win. Given Mo's inconsistent (mostly down) play, there may need to be some shuffling of picks involved, but I would not rule out some package involving Harkless for Lee. If we did that, Lee would get most of the 3rd guard minutes. He's big enough to play alongside with Dame or C.J. or as the third guard in small ball/3 guard situations. We could then call up Baldwin for spot minutes at PG. I love (this year's) Ed Davis, but O'Quinn is an upgrade who is underutilized in NY that is also a better fit next to Nurk. BNM
