Actually, I'm not really all that high on either, but I'd like to get some wing talent in exchange for our expiring deals. Although I think that Crowder would perform with Dame/CJ similarly to how he performed with IT, so I think that if he were to return to his Celtics form, he'd be a pretty good 3 for us. And he would be an upgrade over Aminu only in the sense that Stotts would probably actually play him at SF, which he refuses to do with Chief. As for Cedi--he's a rookie, so he'd basically be a lottery ticket, and I just threw him in to make the salaries work. Zizic would work in that deal too, but I figured I'd go for a wing instead of a big. No matter really--I'm just having fun with the trade machine. Although I think that that deal does actually make sense for all three teams.
Of course, if we did get Crowder, Stotts would just force him to play out of position at PF - just like he does Aminu. So, I don't see how this trade addresses our needs at SF. BNM
Aminu's only redeeming skill offensively is 3pt shooting which becomes more valuable at the 4 because A) It becomes a rarer skill and B) The space it provides the rest of the offense. His decision making on closeouts, complete lack of a pull up game, his long/slow release release and strictly stationary spot shooting don't cleanly translate to the sf position either. He's also an adequate rebounder and interior defender, and would argue that he's overrated as a perimeter defender. Playing with Dame and CJ and 2 traditional bigs also negates any sort of switchability on defense. If we had a dynamic and efficient option at the 4 (like he had with Dirk in Dallas) it might make more sense, but we don't so we are left with either being borderline top 10 offensively and below average defensively w/ him at the 4 or below average offensively and borderline top 10 defensively with him at the 3. Long story short, there is no configuration with the current roster that makes us borderline top 10 on both ends.
I take a simpler approach. We have other viable options at PF, but Aminu is clearly better than anyone we're playing at SF. For example starting Vonleh at the 4 and Aminu at the 3 actually improves our defense and our rebounding without really hurting our offense. Chief can still be the guy who spreads the floor (Turner doesn't provide any spacing and kills ball movement) and Vonleh and Nurk play well next to each other. We still need an upgrade at the 3, but I'd like to at least see us try a staring line up of: PG - Dame SG - C.J. SF - Aminu PF - Vonleh (or Collins) C - Nurk The perfect time to try it would have been against NOP with Turner out. Instead, Stotts went ultrasmall against the best frontcourt in the league. We saw the results. Yeah, Davis is a tough cover for anyone, but Chief didn't really stand a chance. Vonleh at the 4 with Chief at the 3 would have been a better match up. BNM
Can someone tell me whats the net Rating when Lillard, CJ and Napier are on the court together please?
This is where I disagree with everyone that thinks Aminu is playing out of positon on this roster. Aminu spreading at the 3 and being guarded by a wing alongside 2 bigs drastically changes how this offense functions.
Our offense was just fine last year with Harkless at the three and he didn't have any of these qualities either. There's no reason why Aminu can't play SF, especially if we have someone that can shoot at the four. Vonleh showed encouraging progress last year as a shooter, but never really got any vote of confidence. Collins has shown he can stretch the court. Both those guys should be playing over Aminu at PF imo. I think our best lineup is Dame, CJ, Aminu, Collins, Nurk. Offensively, that's four guys you can't leave alone on the perimeter. Defensively, three above average defenders with length, two with the ability to switch.
This would be true if Vonleh couldn't shoot. But he's shown he can. So why doesn't the coach trust him?
+25.6 124.4 O Rating 98.8 D Rating It's a group that only really works against the right matchup (or bad teams) though.
BB Reference has us 15th and it's hard to be much better when your 3rd and 4th most played players are destructive offensively.
Hey, I love the team. They're good dudes. We need to change our rotation, keep our draft pick, and replace Stotts. No trade will happen.
I was going by the NBA OFFRTG. We've moved up to 21st after last night's games. Well, moving Aminu to the 3 means less minutes for Turner, and that's a good thing. He's just not a good fit. He provides no spacing and kills ball movement. BNM
Napier and Vonleh are in almost every single one of those top 3-man lineups. They need kept if at all possible.
