When and will nicholson take over the PF spot?

[MAGICian619]

Anyone but Big Baby please.

[freespirit9]

bump because AN is the real deal

[InFlames]

Nicholson is the future.

[BaunceyChillups]

Not sure why defense matters when Andrew is a rookie and the team is tanking

[thelead]

Not sure why defense matters when Andrew is a rookie and the team is tanking

I agree. I would rather give more time to the young guns have them develop all while increasing our chances on landing a young star next draft (if there's one available this year).

[doct3r dr3]

I seriously doubt Nicholson starts this year. I don't think he will be a starting caliber player in the NBA, but more of a role player for instant offense. I hate to say Drew Gooden type of player as Nicholson has more potential, but he reminds me of that type of role player.

But Harkless, this kid could be very good. Once he develops the basketball I.Q. to learn the plays and structure of the coaches system, he could be a starter at some point this year. The thing holding these two kids back is that they are often out of rotation which hurts the system. This is probably why they may not be starters anytime soon.

*bookmarked*

[MagicStarwipe]

Andrew has the potential to be an elite big man scorer in this league. The key for him will be his work ethic and not resting on his laurels. He does have to get stronger and continue to develop a better understanding of how the NBA game is played. That will come with time, but it's the work ethic that really needs to be there.

[MitchellUK]

Not sure why defense matters when Andrew is a rookie and the team is tanking

Of course it matters. We want our rookies to learn to play the game the right way. That means being patient and working with them through defensive issues, but it doesn't mean not caring about it. It's a two way sport, we shouldn't just be playing to their strengths, we should have them working to improve on their weaknesses.

[Last Guardian]

Next season. This season he can scout the game and improve the little things before he is our full time starter.

His potential offensively is obvious. He can score facing up, back to the basket, mid-range jumper and he draws fouls + hits free throws. He will be a scoring machine.

[BaunceyChillups]

Not sure why defense matters when Andrew is a rookie and the team is tanking

Of course it matters. We want our rookies to learn to play the game the right way. That means being patient and working with them through defensive issues, but it doesn't mean not caring about it. It's a two way sport, we shouldn't just be playing to their strengths, we should have them working to improve on their weaknesses.

What I meant was why does it matter now when the team is not even trying to win games. Andrew is a rookie, most rookies are terrible on defense and don't know the first thing about what constitutes winning basketball. In the future I could understand harping on his defensive issues but him getting acclimated to the NBA game is more important now.

[jfinley88]

I think Nicholson should primarily come off the bench for us in the future. Still getting him 26-30 minutes a game, but he has a long way to go defensively and has to bulk up; and he doesn't seem like the kind of guy who's going to live in the gym during the offseason.

[MagicFan32]

He just needs some experience and to get stronger and he will be a 20/10 player, he can flatout score his per 40 numbers are off the charts he's already at 20/8

[Malik Starks]

He is a starter-eventually-he's far too gifted offensively to be relegated to a reserve role (I see a future all-star). He has excellent touch around the basket, a wide array of post moves, (more than I've seen for any rookie in a long time) solid jump shot.

While I've said he shouldn't start, I do think he should get close starter's minutes, this team has struggled too much offensively in stretches for him to sit the bench as much as he does. In order for that to happen I'd want to see BBD slide over to center at times and see them both play together more (BBD should NOT be traded). I'm not as high on Vucevic as others are here.

[damo[23]]

Is he really the route we want to go with PF?

Personally I'd rather us use the 3 we have (Baby, Al and Nich) to get in a more suitable starting PF. Who that is, don't ask me, but really I don't feel like Nicholson is the guy we should go with, and I am not particularly excited at the prospect of him taking of Baby.

[strudel forever]

Give him this season and an offseason to adjust to NBA game speed and improve his strength and conditioning. He needs to learn the nuances of NBA PnR defense before he can be a big minute player.

[doct3r dr3]

someone alluded to this in another thread, but the advanced stats are loving nicholson right now. he leads the team in per, ts%, eFG%, o-rating, and winshares/48 min, and he's second only to j.j. in offensive winshares (o'quinn and turkoglu haven't played enough minutes to qualify).





beyond that, he leads all rookies in ts%:



and he's behind only drummond and davis in per:









...also, he's second only to o'quinn in plus/minus:

[BadMofoPimp]

So, basically those charts say that Ish Smith, O'Quinn and Turkoglu should start and Vucevic and Afflalo should be benched?

[BaunceyChillups]

So, basically those charts say that Ish Smith, O'Quinn and Turkoglu should start and Vucevic and Afflalo should be benched?

sample size

[Catledge]

Thanks for the charts, dr3. They're encouraging.

In a perfect world, we would trade Davis right around when Harrington comes back from injury, allowing us to continue to slowly grow Nicholson's minutes as he develops. I'm starting to get optimistic about him.

[FFBlitzace]

So, basically those charts say that Ish Smith, O'Quinn and Turkoglu should start and Vucevic and Afflalo should be benched?

The +/- is about the only stat Ish comes out looking good in. If you'll notice, he's barely keeping himself above a negative PER. He's been back and forth all season on that.

Meanwhile, Drew has more than a few numbers going for him. Enough that he can be considered, without a doubt, an offensive weapon.