Perfect time for Nic to return. Martell is playing his career best, but it's clear he needs a little break.
well i dont think nate has a choice. i mean, we need all the forwards we can get. we need a bayless update. never thought i woud type hose words this season lol. slowly though (assuming roy comes back soon) this team is getting healthy. however when outlaw returns... i dont know if tahts good or bad. i think kpee has to consolidate this roster.
I mentioned that in the previous thread and no one picked up on it... Why was Batum encouraged or even allowed to go through such heavy contact in his first full day back in the fold? The team keeps talking about being cautious and then turns right around with a sink or swim approach.
Nate has this bizarre fascination of playing guys out of position (like his 3-guard line-up earlier in the year that forced Roy to play SF, Miller to guard SGs and Blake to play SG on offense). Supposedly he's considering playing Nic at power forward and that's why he was banging with Pendergraph in the 2-on-2 game. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Nic is NOT a power forward. There is NOTHING about his game that says power forward. He had good size and great length for the small forward position, which is his ideal natural position. With an improved handle and outside shot, he could play spot minutes as a back-up 2 with Roy and Bayless out. He can even occasionally guard PGs. But power forward? That's just stupid. If Nate does insist on going ultra small, Martell, who is stronger and healthier than Nic makes more sense (but still not a lot) at the 4. BNM
If his shot is as good as MB and Rice say it is he will be such a nice addition to what we're already doing. If he can be James Jones with Shane Battier defense, we have our SF for the next 10+ years.
It's not as stupid as you think. Nic as a small ball 4 could be very effective ... depending on matchups. he'd be lousy against the bruisers in the NBA, but covering a Rashard Lewis, or Charlie V. type of guy wouldn't be beyond the realm of possibility. I'm actually anxious to see what he can do covering the 4 spot ... hell, Scottie Pippen in his heyday could cover 4 and sometimes 5 spots defensively and that's a fantastic asset to have on your team -- if Nic even scratches the surface of Pippen's ability I'll be thrilled.
Yeah, that's not bad. Both understand space and the team game on the defensive side of the court and both have good length to contest shots and do a decent job of keeping their man in front of them. I'm not sure what kind of lineups there will be when we'll see both guys on the court at the same time, but my guess would be end of game and end of quarter situations on strictly defensive possessions ... at least for now.
And having him bang against Jeff Pendergraph in a 2-on-2 game his first full practice at returning from shoulder surgery is the best way to assess this? Jeff Pendergraph's game is about as far from Rashard Lewis' as you can get. If Nate wants to see how Nic can guard stretch 4s he should match him up with LaMarcus Aldridge, NOT Jeff Pendergraph. BNM
Amen. Have Batum guard LMA if that's what they want to work on... Or at the very least, don't have him banging in the post in his first full contact practice after shoulder surgery. Wait till next week to see how he handles that sort of matchup ... once they've had time to determine he's sufficiently healed for it.
I think Batum is going to have to play out of his mind to get his starting spot back if Marty continues to play like he is.
Is there a differnece between TO and Batum playng the 4 spot. TO did it last year and our record was just fine. If TO can do it, Batum should do just fine depending on match-ups. Anyways, we don;t care where Batum plays, we just want to see him dunk on Gasol one more time!!!
Travis is undersized at the 4 but has height length and weight over Nic. NB's best skill is guarding wings and he's the best on the team at it... thats where I want him on D. STOMP
If Batum is played out of position, I'd want him covering the opposing point guard, not power forward.
