Post deadline: What’s the rotation now?

[sco]

Sato, Zach and Vuc are lock for starters. On Saturday, Pwill probably starts. It means we start off with Markkanen for spacing and bring him out as one of the firsts for Thadd. If it seems pwill ain't a fit with starters we might even start with Temple in some point. In that case, his 3pt threat is decent and we wouldn't need Lauri to start, but I suppose he still might.

One thing I know - I am real surprised if Lauri can improve his D so much we could END games with him more than against weaker match-ups.

Good points!

IMO, they'll start Lauri without question. Since they're stuck with him now, might as well see if he surprises alongside Vuc as our 3rd option. I know folks are bashing his defense, but he's improved to the point where it doesn't bother me as much. Also, I think for Thad to stay in the facilitator role, he needs to go to the bench. Theis will be an upgrade from any of our bench C's for Thad as a cutter. Also, I like the idea of Coby paired with Thad, which turns him into more of SG in the half-court. I really wish they give up on Coby as a PG, but unless they sign a guy like Teague, that probably won't happen. Keeping him at PG, at least gives us SG minutes to see Green (although, I think Temple will get them).

A bench of White, Temple, Brown, Young, Theis could be a lot of fun.

I think our closing group might be:

Sato, Zach, Brown (although maybe Temple), Thad, Vuc...which will limit the boneheaded mistakes.

[Wingy]

All the permutations have been discussed, so I won’t go there. I’ll just say it’s incredible that we basically gave two protected first round picks to go from having Thad as our debatably 2nd best player, and a near G-League quality bench to a having Vuc as our clear #2, and literally every spot in the rotation outside Zach/Vuc’s in clear battles for minutes with at least NBA competence just about everywhere.

If Pat doesn’t step up with all the space Zach/Vuc, and to a lesser extent Lauri/Sato are going to give him...he’s going to get benched now for someone who will aggressively try to make the other team pay.

[Evil_Headband]

I think I want Lauri to start because I want Thad to create offensive with the second unit. With Vuc and LaVine, the first team offense will be fine.

[kodo]

The reality is that Thad is essentially a center for us, forget his height. He shoots 26% from 3 and 28% on long 2s, and is an amazing P&R & low post player. If he starts with Vucevic, when we run the Lavine-Vuc P&R, Thad will just be sitting in the corner shooting 3s at 26%.

The alternative is to run the P&R with Thad and have Vuc in the corner, but using him as nothing but a spot up shooter like last year's Markkanen would be criminal.

Thad may be our best PF, but I think he helps the team the most off the bench when Vuc sits.

[FriedRise]

So I don't trust TBJ's NBA stats mainly because I don't trust the Wizards and their player development department, so I started watching some scouting videos on TBJ.

Strengths:
- Playmaking (good at initiating offense, finding cutters and open shooters)
- Finishing at the rim (very good body control, quick first step, finishes through contact thanks to his strength)
- Defense (can guard 1-4 with his active hands, height, and wingspan)

Weakness:
- Shooting
- Athleticism

Watch on YouTube

Watch on YouTube

His lack of 3pt shooting will be a limiting factor, but I feel like he already offers so much that we should be playing him at PG like we do Sato. Coby is a disaster at PG, and our other options are guys like Arch and Denzel, who really shouldn't be seeing much playing time unless somebody is in foul trouble.

I'm thinking a bench lineup of:
Brown / Coby / Temple / Thad / Theis

All 5 guys are in that 6'5 - 6'8 range, so 1-4 should be able to switch defensively.

If we move either/both PW and Lauri (for Temple and/or Thad), it could be more potent:
Brown / Coby / PW / Lauri / Theis

And in our starting lineup, we surround Zach with veterans:
Sato / Zach / Temple / Thad / Vuc

[Grodoboldo]

So I don't trust TBJ's NBA stats mainly because I don't trust the Wizards and their player development department, so I started watching some scouting videos on TBJ.

Strengths:
- Playmaking (good at initiating offense, finding cutters and open shooters)
- Finishing at the rim (very good body control, quick first step, finishes through contact thanks to his strength)
- Defense (can guard 1-4 with his active hands, height, and wingspan)

Weakness:
- Shooting
- Athleticism

Watch on YouTube

Watch on YouTube

His lack of 3pt shooting will be a limiting factor, but I feel like he already offers so much that we should be playing him at PG like we do Sato. Coby is a disaster at PG, and our other options are guys like Arch and Denzel, who really shouldn't be seeing much playing time unless somebody is in foul trouble.

I'm thinking a bench lineup of:
Brown / Coby / Temple / Thad / Theis

All 5 guys are in that 6'5 - 6'8 range, so 1-4 should be able to switch defensively.

If we move either/both PW and Lauri (for Temple and/or Thad), it could be more potent:
Brown / Coby / PW / Lauri / Theis

And in our starting lineup, we surround Zach with veterans:
Sato / Zach / Temple / Thad / Vuc

You're exactly right, that was the idea with him coming out of college (I know because I really liked him back then). The Wizards played him as a wing and even as a PF, but rarely as a ballhandler. His only handling duties came in transition, and he did quite well.
I'm really excited about having him in our roster, and I do believe he's a keeper long term.

[FriedRise]

So I don't trust TBJ's NBA stats mainly because I don't trust the Wizards and their player development department, so I started watching some scouting videos on TBJ.

Strengths:
- Playmaking (good at initiating offense, finding cutters and open shooters)
- Finishing at the rim (very good body control, quick first step, finishes through contact thanks to his strength)
- Defense (can guard 1-4 with his active hands, height, and wingspan)

Weakness:
- Shooting
- Athleticism

His lack of 3pt shooting will be a limiting factor, but I feel like he already offers so much that we should be playing him at PG like we do Sato. Coby is a disaster at PG, and our other options are guys like Arch and Denzel, who really shouldn't be seeing much playing time unless somebody is in foul trouble.

I'm thinking a bench lineup of:
Brown / Coby / Temple / Thad / Theis

All 5 guys are in that 6'5 - 6'8 range, so 1-4 should be able to switch defensively.

If we move either/both PW and Lauri (for Temple and/or Thad), it could be more potent:
Brown / Coby / PW / Lauri / Theis

And in our starting lineup, we surround Zach with veterans:
Sato / Zach / Temple / Thad / Vuc

You're exactly right, that was the idea with him coming out of college (I know because I really liked him back then). The Wizards played him as a wing and even as a PF, but rarely as a ballhandler. His only handling duties came in transition, and he did quite well.
I'm really excited about having him in our roster, and I do believe he's a keeper long term.

Yeah and that's what he thought he was gonna do too for the Wiz, so maybe it'll just happen here

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[sco]

I think we need to get either/both of Theis/Brown in the starting line-up. Personally, I like the idea of bumping Thad back to the bench, but bumping Thad/Sato to bench may make the most sense because their chemistry seems maximized that way.

Try Brown at PG: Brown, Zach, PWill, Theis, Vuc lacks some 3pt shooting, but let's face it, it's not like Lauri was lighting it up of late from 3. Brown and PWill are very good passers. Let's funnel the shot through Zach and Vuc, and PWill might feel more free to shoot.

A bench of Sato, Coby, Temple, Lauri, Thad might actually work against opponent benches.

[FranchisePlayer]

I think we need to get either/both of Theis/Brown in the starting line-up. Personally, I like the idea of bumping Thad back to the bench, but bumping Thad/Sato to bench may make the most sense because their chemistry seems maximized that way.

Try Brown at PG: Brown, Zach, PWill, Theis, Vuc lacks some 3pt shooting, but let's face it, it's not like Lauri was lighting it up of late from 3. Brown and PWill are very good passers. Let's funnel the shot through Zach and Vuc, and PWill might feel more free to shoot.

A bench of Sato, Coby, Temple, Lauri, Thad might actually work against opponent benches.

Actually he was; 3/4 went in against GSW. If Lavine is out and you want to showcase some threat behind the arc, it's not like we have anyone outside of The Finnisher.

[coldfish]

Does anyone even know who is on the team?

Random guess: Coby is out of the rotation or has his minutes cut back a good bit.

The frontcourt went from awful to a real strength.

Sato / Temple
Zach
PaW / Brown
Theis / Lauri
Vuc / Thad

There is your 9 man rotation, IMO. Coby is going to be fighting with Arci for minutes.

I'll quote myself from page 1. I think that it makes the most sense to pair Theis with Vucevic and Lauri with Thad in the frontcourt. Brown should get all the back up SF minutes.

The only thing I would change is that Coby is going to be higher up than I thought. The team needs a bench perimeter scorer. Arci ain't it.
Sato / Temple
Zach / Coby
PaW / Brown
Theis / Lauri
Vuc / Thad

[Ice Man]

Sato / Temple
Zach / Coby
PaW / Brown
Theis / Lauri
Vuc / Thad

That's my rotation as well. Theis is the logical partner for Vuce. With the bench, Coby, Lauri, and Thad should keep the offense decent, and that unit can defend a bit, too.

[gobullschi]

I wish Billy Donovan would experiment with Troy Brown Jr. at point guard if Coby White is going to miss anymore time. The Bulls need help on the defensive end with Vooch and LaVine being primarily offensive oriented players.

I understood putting Satoransky in the starting line up before the trade was made, but LaVine, Williams, Young, & Vooch are all good enough facilitators that it’s not needed anymore.

Troy Brown Jr. / Tomas Satoransky
Zach Lavine / Coby White
Patrick Williams / Al-Farouq Aminu
Thaddeus Young / Lauri Markkanen
Nikola Vucevic / Daniel Theis