My post stated... My best guess is given health the starting lineup for the bulk of the season will be Dame Hart Nas Grant & Nurk with Ant as the 6th man and leading the team in MPG. Obviously I know that I am stepping out on a limb and bucking the incredible wisdom of those who know all and post here. If the thread question is only intended for the starting lineup of game 1, my apologies. If I turn out to be wrong, whatever, who cares? We're just speculating I gave my reasoning. You may not like it or agree, but my reasoning does exist. That defense matters in winning hoops is actually a commonly held belief among those who follow the game. STOMP
I think if we have some of the young guys that show (or continue to show) good skills, it may provide the Blazers with more trade flexibility. I think Joe/Chauncy will be more willing to make in-season trades than NO. I think they'll look closely as the season progresses with areas that are need help and where we may have abundance and look for opportunities to fill those needs.
Sure but until we see any of the others running with the starters it is doubtful he decides that someone else who hasn't practiced with the starters will start.
If you could give me a single example in the past 30 years of a player in his 20s coming off the bench while being the second-highest-paid player on his team, I might concede the validity of your reasoning. Until then, I will chalk it up to nothing more than wishful thinking.
You might concede the validity of my reasoning??? Any viable reason why anyone should give the slightest of fucks about your opinion? I'm sharing mine on the topic at hand not hoping to please you your highness. If you disagree, fine, whatever. We're just nobodies outside the loop speculating in the downtime, but good grief... As an actual retort to the kernel of your question, a big issue for this roster is that their two best players play the same position... which isn't wishful thinking or normal. Since physically neither Dame or Ant have the size to match up against a typical SG, how does one maximize their time together on this roster? Obviously there will be considerable overlap, but I'm thinking time will prove it's best to stagger their PT keeping at least one on the court at all times. STOMP
according to hoopshype, Ginobli was the 2nd highest paid Spur to Duncan in 2011-12 & the highest paid the year after. Manu started 7 games over those two seasons... but what does the Spurs organization know about winning and putting together a team that maximizes their collective talents? STOMP
So you know more than Billups, Cronin, and Dame who all think Ant is a star and said he'd be the starter? There is no opinion or "know it all" behavior here. Ant isn't coming off the bench.
You are correct that Simons, like CJ before him, is too highly paid to come off the bench. That has ZERO to do with whether that is actually in the best interest of the team as a whole. For years the team would have been better off with a (pre-injury) Wes Matthews type starting alongside Dame with CJ as the big gun on the bench. Neither coach nor GM had the insight and/or courage to do it. But hey, lets try it again and expect a different outcome.
When disagreeing, best to stick to whats been said not randomly assign viewpoints. I just stated that I think Ant is one of the 2 best players on the team, so it's not like I'm denigrating his talent or saying he isn't a star. I'm saying I don't think whats best for the team is for him to be starting next to Dame. I'd rather have him primarily guarding guys his size then guys he's giving up considerable length and weight to. Oldmangrouch's last post is spot on that this projected Dame+Ant lineup is a reboot of Dame+CJ who btw now looks like a star in a balanced Pels lineup. Remind me of the last time starting two 6'2 guards was anywhere close to truly successful... Maybe (probably) they begin the season with the starting lineup you foresee. If so, I expect teams will exploit their numerous size advantages and generate easy looks. Unable to get stops, the Blazers will likely struggle to win in shootouts nightly & then Billups will of course tinker as it's his job to win games. We shall see soon enough STOMP
I would be ok with Winslow starting at the 3 and allow him to board, pass, score in the block and man up on D. Let him go Calvin Natt for us.... Bring Hart, Little Payton off the bench, it's going to need scoring anyway.
This place is full of opinions. There was nothing i read wrong with his disagreement of yours. It wasn't personal or degrading but then you went full on defensive. Anyhow… I actually agree with your lineup being the likely better option, but also agree it isnt realistic in todays world. The players cited as having done this come from a different era of basketball where team meant so much more. As much as i agree with your hope of that lineup, I too think its not realistic.
Even if he starts, Ant will likely be on the floor any time Dame isn't (and vice versa), excepting blowouts. If that's the case, how would bringing Ant off the bench minimize the amount of time Dame and Ant spend on the floor together?
10 years ago is a completely different era? Whatever Regardless, my thoughts aren't so much of a hope but what I think will happen. My hope is that management realizes sooner then later that the current mix of players needs a severe tweek if they're going to get anywhere in the vacinity of contending. While they have some talent, unfortunately I don't see it fitting together very well. STOMP
Mmm good problem to have. Shows we are deeper in the 3position than we have for years i agree with needing a tweak towards trade deadline but not so sure its needing to be as severe as you state. To counter your thought on size, defending nba champion GP3 waves and says hello.
We are not on the same page here at all, which is fine! I supported the Payton addition. As a Bay Area resident, I saw plenty of Warriors action last season and agree with local media personality Tom Tolbert that he plays like the worlds smallest PF. With a huge wingspan, great athleticism & strength, he is an annomoly physically. We can count on the plus D, hopefully he continues to stroke the 3 ball like he did last year. STOMP
Some random data points to ponder. Over the course of the regular season, you need 246 games out of your front line. Last season, Nurk-Grant-Little played a combined 145 games. Over the past 3 seasons, Nurk has averaged 34 games. How many games did he play in Europe this summer? Also, in his career Grant has ONE season where he (barely) surpassed 5 RPG. When Nurk goes down, there is a very good chance we will be eviserated on the boards every night. The more I look at this team the less hopeful I am - and the more baffled I am that some fans actually believe Cronin is doing a good job.
