Thinking about making some player /game / X's & O's breakdown videos this year. Here's my first crack at one with some film breakdown of Zach's last regular season game vs Utah plus a brief look at what to expect from him in his 2nd year. Editing and voice-over need some work, but let me know what you guys think.
I enjoyed it. I’d like to see them run Zach at the top of the key as a distributor. Also on the low post he has good footwork. Hoping he puts those tools he has together .
Other than the obligatory "what are your qualifications to have the opinions you do", good stuff. I disagree with he and Aminu together. He seems like a natural 4 and would work well with Nurk....IMO
He's played the 5 his entire basketball life minus last year and I think both his offensive and defensive skills are better leveraged at that position. I'm fine with him playing the 4 vs traditional, two big lineups though.
I don't think where he played in the past really matters if his skillset matches a different position in the NBA. There are 6'8" guys who have played center their whole life and are a small forward in the NBA. I think Zach's quickness and lateral movement suggests that he is more than capable of being a PF.
I guess I just have a different view of his skillset. If you think he can't hold up defensively and on boards at the 5 and think he's a guy that will derive most of his offensive value from playing with his back to the basket, I can see why people would view him as a PF. But if you think of him as more of a defensive first big who's excellent guarding the pnr and protecting the rim plus capable of switching vs guards and will primarily be a pnp/pnr finisher, floor spacer, face-up/b2b vs switch type offensive player...I'd have a hard time agreeing w/ the idea that those skills are better utilized playing that position.
Not a lot. Played with Tillie for over 75% of his minutes. And yes, Zach's capable of playing the 4, but I've yet to hear a good argument for why he'd be maximized at that position in the NBA.
It's funny - it used to be that College 5s shifted over to 4 in the NBA, but now it's sort of going the other way.
Some people will say it's small ball, but it's more about getting as much skill on the floor as possible while still being able to defend at a high level. It's what makes guys like Draymond Green and Al Horford so valuable, especially at the highest levels of play.
I'm really looking forward to seeing a Nurk/Collins front court. Sure Zach is still very raw offensively, but I'm looking forward to seeing what that combo can do defensively. We already saw what adding one big man who can both protect the rim and defend the pick and roll can do for our team defense. Imagine what two of them can do. And, for late game defensive possessions add Chief at the 3. That is a LOT of length. I know it was just summer league and summer league doesn't matter, but I really liked what I saw from Zach defensively. He was challenging every shot, not fouling, and blocked a LOT of shots (far more than the scorekeepers gave him credit for) while keeping the ball in play. On blocking shots, his instincts and timing are elite. I think this is going to be a huge year for Zach, in terms of his growth as an NBA player. He managed to work his way into the rotation, but was still very tentative at times and very foul prone. We will miss Ed at times, but opening up those minutes for Zach will only accelerate his development. As much as we loved Ed, Zach has a FAR higher ceiling. If only we had a proven big man coach to help him reach his full potential... BNM
This kid is RAW!!!!! Give him some time and don’t expect much. He didn’t even shine against G-League talent this summer. I think he is going to miss Ed as much as anybody.
Actually, he did - defensively. Yeah, the offense still needs a lot of work, but it will come around eventually as he gains experience and confidence. BNM
He was pretty much the best defensive player on the court whenever he was on the court in SL. A big part of the reason Portland won every game was that he contained everything that went in the paint. It wasn't shiny, but it was effective. I think Portland is going to run a lot of 3 guard, 2 center lineups this year. It will definitely force opponents to change up how they play us.
For this season, I'd like to see him backing up both the 4 and 5. A three man rotation with Nurk and Chief starting with Zach backing up both positions will let us see how he performs at both positions against NBA level competition. I think if Terry gets even mildly creative, I can see Zach and Nurk working well together. I've said several times, I want to see more of Nurk in the high post, like we did during Nurk Fever. Remember how many assists he got passing to a cutting Harkless back then? Imagine Zach being on the receiving end of those passes. It's ironic, but I think Terry stumbled on the most efficient way to use Nurk on offense, and then forgot about it. Running the offense through the center in the high post was initially designed for Plumlee, who didn't have a low post game (or any offensive game outside of put backs and lobs in transition). Plumlee was great in that role in the Clippers series and it carried over to the following season (Plums was second on the team in assists at 4.0 per game at the time of the trade). Since Nurk was acquired mid-season, Stotts left a lot of the same sets in place, with Nurk averaging 3.2 apg. Plus, Zach can also knock down the 3 and spread the floor for Nurk to post up when the opportunity presents itself. So, let's develop ALL of Zach's skills. Let's not pigeon hole him into being a 5 or a 4. Develop his low post game when playing the 5 next to Aminu and let him work on spreading the floor and cutting to the basket when playing next to Nurk. He doesn't really need to start this season. He can get plenty of minutes backing up both Chief and Nurk and I think, as a result, he will develop faster and become a more complete, well rounded player. BNM
We saw him work well last season on the pick and roll. I was impressed with that up and under Kevin McHale move. Hope he really works on the low post game.
