I remember his trainer comparing him to Klay last year, and that’s a guy who’s worked with some of the best players in the nba (he’s KDs personal trainer) but yeah let’s trade him for the opportunity to pay for the backend of another dudes career. If you’re gonna trade anyone trade CJ.
The hype is getting crazy. What kinda numbers do you guys anticipate seeing from Ant this season? If we really are gonna move CJ, what do you need to see from Simons? I think the most interesting note from the article is potentially putting Simons at SF. He certainly has the length for it-- just needs to get stronger.
Double digits in scoring, 4 rebounds and 3 or 4 assists per game. Thats my expectation for him. And i think it's realistic
For me, if he can come in and be consistent in his contributions this year if its 8-15 pt's per game, with occasional break out games, and not be a defensive liability, then I think he's on his way. If so, then that gives us some trade angles to maybe better balance areas of weakness. Probably not till, next year?
He doesn't project to be a good rebounder or playmaker. If he's gonna get 20-24 mpg, 4 assists per game would make him a better/equal playmaker as Dame...
If he shoots >40% from three, he'll probably play in the three guard lineups that had Seth in with Dame and CJ. Those were usually played when Stotts felt the need to jumpstart the offense, or at end of quarter possessions where you need a bucket. The Dame/CJ/Seth/Aminu/Nurk 5 man unit was one of our best 5 man units last year in terms of win percentage. Situational lineup though for sure.
So I got curious about 3 man units in general. https://stats.nba.com/lineups/advan...1610612757&sort=NET_RATING&dir=1&CF=MIN*G*100 The Dame/CJ/Seth lineup had one of the best net ratings for 3 man lineups on the team, and was played in 47 games. However, only a 110 minute sample size and the shooting numbers were actually quite bad. So I don't know how much you can read into this if at all. Blazers also had 3 of the top 10 3-man lineups in the league, but they all featured either Aminu or Nurkic...
CJ played SF for nearly a third of his minutes last year. Caught me by surprise. Not sure how bball reference differentiates between positions.
personally, I think Olshey, 'off-the-record', is primary in fueling the hype train I really hope this doesn't put too much pressure on Simons
bbref is horrible at determining positional minutes. You just can't believe their numbers. They say Curry played 223 minutes at SF when he didn't play a minute there. They also say ET never played a minute at SF....it's all bullshit. You are what you defend and Dame was more likely to defend SF's than CJ was because Dame is better at defending near the paint (or anywhere else) and has a stronger base. 82games is much more accurate. They say CJ spent 0% of his minutes at SF: http://www.82games.com/1819/18POR3.HTM
Heres the easy way to not get caught up in the hype: Let him do the talking. Dont get brainwashed by the media. Once he does it consistently, then I'll get excited. Until then, its a waste of time.
There isn't much pressure on Simons despite the hype. He's going to get more slack than anyone else in the rotation because of his age and playing experience. The new starters, Whiteside, Collins, and Hood, will be much more scrutinized than Simons and get the flack if fans aren't happy with their performance. Bazemore with his huge salary will also be under more pressure than Simons. If fans are expecting a good shooter they could be very disappointed if he shoots like he did last season (Evan Turner level).