(Of course, we all know it'll be Jabari Walker by the end of the season. Meant to put him in there...) [Edit - thank you, anonymous Moderator]
Here is Nas last season when he was a consistent rotation player vs Hart's career. It's gonna come down to one of these two imo, so the question is who is the best fit with the other 4? Harts career 3 point % is 35%. Nas was 33% last season, but could probably be better than that. Measurements Hart: 6'5.5" in shoes, 6'8.5" wingspan, 8'3" standing reach Nas: 6'6" in shoes, 7'1.25" wingspan, 8'8.5" standing reach My conclusion is that Nas is the better fit just because of his length since everything else is pretty comparable. I also think Harts a better creator, making him a better fit with the second unit where he can be more of a featured player along with Ant.
Nas vs. Winslow: Nas gives us better shooting Winslow has much better ball skills and BBIQ Both good defensively. Both brittle as glass.
Hart DESERVES it but it would make us super small. I can honestly see Ant being shopped for a forward at some point, if everyone stays healthy.
As I stated before, I love the defense the Hart/Winslow combo showed. I'm on an island where, to me, Nas is the 9th or 10th guy on this team, but until Jabari truly pops, Little, should be the starter.
I hope we end up with enough healthy talent at forward that Grant isn't any better than anyone else. Then we can trade him or let him go or offer a backup-level salary to give that playing time to younger players like Walker and Little.
I love how those two consistently push the ball on offense. It catches the other team off guard many times for easy scores.
I do wonder what position they have in mind for Walker. Because from what I've seen so far hes shown he can slide with smaller players. And he has shared the court with Brown and Watford where he was the three. It's not like Nas is some great ball handler either, so if Walker can stick with wings defensively, he might be an option at the three as well. His size/length is clearly superior to either Nas and Hart and hes probably gonna be a better shooter.
One of the few memories I have from last season is it seems Hart/Winslow were always trapping somebody, leading to the steal, and the pushing the ball you refer to. I call it "Chauncey-Ball". It's gonna be fun to watch.
What I am worried about with Grant is that he seems entitled already even though he hasn't proven anything as a Trail Blazer. Of course if he hustles like our hustle players he'll deserve any playing time he gets.
Nas because he’s lower usage than Hart and has better size. Why use Harts playmaking and ball handling in the first unit?
I voted Little but it could very well be Winslow...I see Hart running the second unit with Payton by his side.
Good point. I hope our coach is thinking about all these options for this season and moving forward. Walker seems like a lot more than just a good rebounder. He's very team-oriented and has a high basketball IQ for his age. He could be compared to Nicolas Batum as to how he affects the team, maybe with a more consistent motor.
Man, I keep forgetting they have Payton... Holy Shit! They may only win 40-45 games, but it is gonna be so much fun watching these guys take the fucking ball away and just run with it. I'm thinking that's gonna be their identity.
Winslow is the Nurk whisperer. He might be able to turn Nurk into an All Star level center if they play together. Winslow is also great at getting a pass from a guard and throwing it back to them for a more-open shot. And he knows how to hit cutters. Including Nurk. Nurk cutting to the hoop not having to take a dribble with his man trailing is a guaranteed bucket. Edit: this is where Nurk shines, more than in the pick and role where the defense knows what's coming.
Playing consistently hard on defense will win you a lot of regular season games. Add to that, Damian Lillard and Simons cutting hearts out down the stretch.
Before we got GP2 I wanted Hart to start at SG and Little to start at SF (if he was fully recovered by training camp) and bring Ant off the bench for a nice 3-guard rotation. (and no I do not give a shit about his new salary-Ant would have been fine doing that for at least this year) Now it seems like they have Hart slated for SF. Sizewise he is short for the position but not small at 215 lbs. he plays bigger than his size, and he would give us another ball handler on the floor. So to start the season I see a Dame, Ant, Hart, Grant, and Nurk starting rotation.