Bensational wrote:
Alright, so this post comes down to a series of deflections from the main topic which is Vuc.
Series of Deflections? I admitted that Vucevic in prior posts had a rather underwhelming season, as the players who I mentioned because they were taking on roles which they weren't meant to carry and the poor spacing the came with the line-up that started the majority of the season. (Which I ended being right about). I've said in prior seasons Vucevic could develop into an all-star caliber big (Possibly a 2nd or 3rd option on winning team), but its now clear now that he's just a good player (3rd or 4th option at best on a winning team).
I like Vucevic but I'm not that reluctant of not letting him go or pushing him into a lesser role (if the team more offensively inclined and or had a better option at Center). Hell, since the last year and of the end of the 2015-2016 I've wanted better big-men to supplant him as the center. First it was Stephen Zimmerman (Who the Magic ironically have now). I wanted Justin Patton (Which I was disappointed when he taken off the board by 15). Now next draft I'm really all in on DeAndre Ayton, and if he's not there I want Wendall Carter.
Bensational wrote:
First off, the discussion about finding complimentary pieces for Vuc stems from people blaming his supporting cast for his short comings. The logic behind that implies that if we had a better supporting cast around Vuc, he would be better. The logic breaks down when you ask who these pieces need to be, and how that impacts Vuc after those moves are made. Are we looking for pieces that will make Vuc the best player he can be as a #1 option, or as a role player? Is he even a good role player? Is he able to impact a game if he's not taking mid-range/long jumpers?
Vucevic is a good all-around role player. A lot of people view him as such. I think the communication break-down is the confusion of "building around him" when they're actually saying there needs to be more offensively inclined players who are as good or better than him that will put him in a better position to succeed. The real issue is when we bring up the poor scoring/shooting cast (Which is obvious given this team is statistically the worst in the NBA) People point at Vucevic and say he's the problem which makes no sense given that he isn't the one shooting all the shots, and you have to look at the bigger picture. Leading to my next point...
The deflections seem more forthcoming from those who like Payton and Gordon (and Fournier). These guys were given much larger expectations from fans and front office (which Hennigan admitted himself). Now all of a sudden that doesn't matter because a numerous amount of "excuses" of them being too young (Which is somewhat legitimate), having to deal with multiple coaches (Which Vucevic has dealt with too) and or them being given the wrong roles (Though Payton has been given 3 years to start at the PG position, and Gordon has played both SF and PF positions the same amount of time to determine where he fits). I'm not saying they don't have a chance to become stars like every young player, but it becomes more and more evident that these guys ceilings are much lower as the seasons pass.
Bensational wrote:
But when was our team the most competitive? Back in December, when we were playing how I outlined prior to the season. Biyombo starting, AG at SF, Fournier taking on a larger scoring role and Vuc off the bench. People still want to gloss over the fact that the team had actually found a way to win games at one point last season.
2015-2016 Season this team actually had winning overall record by the end of December with Vucevic as the starter/primary option of the squad. Yet, people gloss over that... What's your point? They still ended up being 35-47...
Bensational wrote:
Third, we need to protect Isaac? I don't see how this is relevant, but I don't have a particularly strong opinion on it. What I do think is that eventually the shackles need to come off and players that you want to become primary scoring options need the freedom to try to become those guys. This is a development philosophy, though, and I don't see Vuc being beneficial in that sense if he's actually taking shot attempts away from players and forcing them to defer to him through a hierarchy which doesn't actually result in wins. AG, for example, is a guy who plays for his team and the wins. He'll look to pass it rather than forcing a shot. But every time he forces a shot, he gets closer to learning how to get good shots. Every time he passes the ball, he loses that opportunity. Fournier is the kind of guy who isn't afraid to shoot in any circumstance. He may have had an underwhelming season last year but at least we got to see how capable he can be when pushed.
Yeah its not relevant but not all young players are going to come out gunning like a LeBron or Carmelo and take time to develop. You need surrounding scorers/vets to take pressure off the young prospects before they're ready to take responsibility of an offense. I look at Issac and I assume its going to take 2 seasons before he's actually ready to have a larger role. So having him be the secondary option early on in his career is probably the best route to take for his development.
