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We're a LOOOOOOONG ways from the regular season, let alone the 2020 postseason. Many moves will happen from now until then. At least we can say, almost every impact 2019 FA is now signed, and most rosters are at (or over) the 15-man limit of guaranteed contracts.

From my vantage point, we seem to be an intelligently crafted team. If KD is able to make it back (as some have rumored), it'll be after the ASB. Let's err on the side of pessimism and assume for the purpose of discussion that he doesn't return at all next season.

Humor me with this idea of a starting 5, not yet settled but one that I feel is likely: Irving-Harris-LeVert-Prince-Jordan.

My idea of a 2nd unit is Dinwiddie, Temple, Musa, Kurucs and Allen. We know that Spencer will be an early favorite for 6th man of the year, and our young bigs Jarrett and Rodions would start for a number of teams. Dzanan and Garrett will be under fire for their spots; the competition they'll see from deep bench and even two-way guys will be good for them and us IMO.

I've been tracking rosters of all 30 teams, and I think we are in an excellent position. Our main competition in the East will be Milwaukee and Philadelphia. Their starting units are IMO superior to ours (w/o KD), BUT both of their benches are weak.

Philly's ueber-athletic bench could be a problem, but Zhaire Smith and Matias Thybulle are young, inexperienced and unproven shooters. Raul Neto, Mike Scott and Kyle O'Quinn are solid vets, but I'm not quaking in my boots over any of them.

Milwaukee hung their hat on depth last season; this time around, Hill and Ilyasova will be thrust from 9th- and 11th-men into 6th- and 7th-men roles. Robin Lopez is a good get, but he's on a sharp decline, as if his and Brook's careers are inversely linked somehow. Guys like Sterling Brown and Wes Matthews pale in comparison to Tony Snell and Nikola Mirotic.

Now, we do not have THE best 2nd unit in the league, IMO. San Antonio, Sacramento and the Lakers are all well-constructed. But in the East, we seem poised to best handle the long season with quality depth, and keep our stars fresh. IF we luck out and get 20 or so regular-season games from #7, I think it pushes Joe to the bench and Musa to Long Island. If he bounces back well, both our starting lineup and our bench could become tops in the league.

What else can I say, I'm VERY encouraged about our prospects for the immediate future!

You don't think Chandler belongs in the second unit?

It's hard to call right now. Wait til camp.

Aussienet3 wrote:You don't think Chandler belongs in the second unit?

Fair point.

Wilson certainly has proven more than Musa over the course of their careers. I think it'll be a tight race for the role, with Dzanan's time in the system being the tie-breaker in the early part of the season. I could see it either way.

ecuhus1981 wrote:

Aussienet3 wrote:You don't think Chandler belongs in the second unit?

Fair point.

Wilson certainly has proven more than Musa over the course of their careers. I think it'll be a tight race for the role, with Dzanan's time in the system being the tie-breaker in the early part of the season. I could see it either way.

Chandler is a corpse. he is a player coach at this point.

I have bigger issue with deandre starting. i like Rodi starting if he can have the same chemisty with kyrie he did with Dlo. id still start levert although i can see surrounding a kyrie/from pick and roll with shooters also.

i dont think musa will play unless there are injuries

either way.

dinwiddie | Temple | Prince | Claxton | Jordan is still an excellent bench

ecuhus1981 wrote:

Aussienet3 wrote:You don't think Chandler belongs in the second unit?

Fair point.

Wilson certainly has proven more than Musa over the course of their careers. I think it'll be a tight race for the role, with Dzanan's time in the system being the tie-breaker in the early part of the season. I could see it either way.

i dont think either will play. temple will get those minutes

All I PRAY for is for everybody to be healthy/ no significant injures and good chemistry... with that we should be alright .
Kyrie/Levert/Harris/Prince/Allen
Din/Temple/Chandler/Kurucs/Jordan

I think it will be Prince/Allen or Rodi/Jordan.

One young guy, one vet up front.

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SpeedyG wrote:I think it will be Prince/Allen or Rodi/Jordan.

One young guy, one vet up front.

Sent from my SM-G925T using RealGM mobile app

I thought Rodi/Allen was a good combo because of how quick they were together/ They could PNR with Iriving and Levert to death, then you let Harris space.

I think Kyrie, Levert, Harris and Allen are locks to start. The PF spot will be taken by either Rodi or Prince. Gut say Prince will beat out Rodi because he is the better spot up shooter and fits better with the backcourt of Kyrie/Levert.

The second unit is crazy deep with the addition of Nwaba (he's an elite wing defender)

The bench is better then some starting 5's.

These 6 will play some combination of the bench roles.
Din, Nwaba, Temple, Rodi, Chandler, Jordan

I think Prince is going to push Rodi in training camp for that 2nd wing position (remember, ballhandlers, wings, bigs is how we operate). Joe Harris starting is pretty much a no brainer since he's the engine that makes the offense go. Whoever is the better player should start, period.

My early guess:

1st unit: Irving/LeVert/Harris/Prince/Allen

2nd unit: Dinwiddie/Nwaba/Temple/Kurucs/Jordan

I don't think Musa or Chandler will play much unless someone gets hurt for a bit. Expect Irving to get at least 15 games of mandatory maintenance from the training staff as well.

I expect Nwaba and Temple to play a lot. Kenny wants guys that will get their hands dirty out there.

MrDollarBills wrote:I think Prince is going to push Rodi in training camp for that 2nd wing position (remember, ballhandlers, wings, bigs is how we operate). Joe Harris starting is pretty much a no brainer since he's the engine that makes the offense go. Whoever is the better player should start, period.

My early guess:

1st unit: Irving/LeVert/Harris/Prince/Allen

2nd unit: Dinwiddie/Nwaba/Temple/Kurucs/Jordan

I don't think Musa or Chandler will play much unless someone gets hurt for a bit. Expect Irving to get at least 15 games of mandatory maintenance from the training staff as well.

I expect Nwaba and Temple to play a lot. Kenny wants guys that will get their hands dirty out there.

I think this is pretty much it -- Dinwiddie / Nwaba / Temple / Rodi / Jordan

You've got it all there: some youth and some veteran leadership, explosiveness, shooting and spacing, strong defense. I like it.

Then we'll probably see:
- Pinson as the primary backup ball handler
- Chandler as the backup wing/floor spacer
- Claxton or Ellenson as the backup bigman

Not sure about Musa fitting in this year. Maybe he stays long term with the LI Nets another year. And then probably Ellenson or Claxton too.

Barring injuries, Kyrie/Caris/Joe Harris are a lock as starters.

The questions are who starts between Fro/DJ and Kurucs/Prince.

I'm thinking the lineups go like this:

Kyrie
LeVert
Harris
Rodi
Allen

I think Rodi's been underrated because of his late season shooting slump. Our record with him in the starting lineup especially as a PF speaks for itself. He's a difference maker. His defense and scrappiness + finishing should fit well with the starting 5.

Dinwiddie
Musa
Temple
Prince
DJ

I think Musa gets the first shot as a guy coming off the bench. He's a better shooter than Nwaba. Throwing Nwaba and Temple out there really cramps the floor up. Plus, we got to see what the kid has. With Dinwiddie/Kyrie/LeVert - there's not much extra time left in the backcourt anyway. Let's see how he handles NBA level play.

I think Nwaba will end up having a role. But it'll be more like Graham. Where he steps in because of injury and you can count on him to compete. Same with Chandler. Hopefully we don't face many injuries but last year we legit had 13 guys at 17+ mpg, 40+ games played. Guys will get their chance.

MGrand15 wrote:I'm thinking the lineups go like this:

Kyrie
LeVert
Harris
Rodi
Allen

I think Rodi's been underrated because of his late season shooting slump. Our record with him in the starting lineup especially as a PF speaks for itself. He's a difference maker. His defense and scrappiness + finishing should fit well with the starting 5.

Dinwiddie
Musa
Temple
Prince
DJ

I think Musa gets the first shot as a guy coming off the bench. He's a better shooter than Nwaba. Throwing Nwaba and Temple out there really cramps the floor up. Plus, we got to see what the kid has. With Dinwiddie/Kyrie/LeVert - there's not much extra time left in the backcourt anyway. Let's see how he handles NBA level play.

I think Nwaba will end up having a role. But it'll be more like Graham. Where he steps in because of injury and you can count on him to compete. Same with Chandler. Hopefully we don't face many injuries but last year we legit had 13 guys at 17+ mpg, 40+ games played. Guys will get their chance.

Nwaba is going to push for time. He's Kenny's kind of guy.