Knightro wrote:zaymon wrote:I dont want to rain on your parade but Bamba/Carter pairing is not doing very well. All high sample 2 man lineups with Carter are positive outside him next to Bamba, Ross and Harris.
Its Carter who makes Bamba look good (or not very bad at least). Actually i think its front office order to raise Bamba value.
Bamba doesnt look like starting C, not even close.
With Isaac there is potential at least, with Bamba there is close to none. He is so lethargic even during his contract year. I would be terrified to rely on him after he gets paid.
Bamba's impact numbers have gone into the toilet over the last handful of games.
He's a guy who's raw box score numbers are often going to look better than he actually played. Like last night he had 14 PTS, 17 REB, 3 AST, 3 BLK, but he was absolutely horrible for the most part.
NET Rating
Carter: -0.5
Bamba: -8.3
Bamba with Carter ON: -2.0
Bamba with Carter OFF: -19.2
Bamba with Suggs ON: +0.7
Bamba with Suggs OFF: -28.2
It's the second unit that is getting murdered though. That's where the damage has been done all year long and that's where it happened last night, including when Bamba was on the floor.
It's dismissive to say that it's the fault of Bamba. I think he benefits greatly from playing alongside WCJ, but I think WCJ also benefits from playing alongside Bamba. They have completely different strengths at the defensive end that complement one another. WCJ is a really solid defender against his man, while Bamba is a rim protector. Bamba just isn't good in man-to-man situations and WCJ doesn't really protect the rim. I see people constantly mentioning how much WCJ has benefited from playing at the four, but he hasn't been. He has pretty much always been matched up against the opposition's interior threat when both he and Bamba are out there.
I just don't think Bamba can be successful at this point in a conventional role alongside a standard four, and when WCJ is off the floor, we don't even have that. We really need Isaac back, or at the very least, we need another solid big in our rotation. I just wouldn't be so quick to dismiss Bamba because he really does alter a high number of shots. You see guys put an absurd amount of arc on their shots any time Bamba is in the vicinity. You just have to appreciate what his weaknesses are and don't put him in a position to fail. The zone seems to suit him well.
As for the shooting... I couldn't care less if he has bad shooting nights. If teams leave him open as Washington was doing last night, I want him taking those shots. I trust his shooting and it puts him in a much better situation to get back defensively.
The rest of his offensive game is a work in progress. I don't mind that they are feeding him in the post, even though he doesn't really know what he is doing at this point. He has come a long way as a passer this year, but it is still dreadful. Whenever he has tried to throw the backdoor cuts, he has telegraphed the passes so blatantly that they have turned into easy steals for the opponent. He was completely afraid to do anything but hand the ball off to teammates before this year though, so there are still signs. I think the logical next piece to unlock for Bamba is as a roll man. He had two finishes off of PnRs with Suggs last night where Bamba wasn't really open, but he simply towered over the defender after the switch. Suggs just put the ball up there for Bamba to snag and finish and he has a really soft touch around the rim.
Whether or not we keep him should come down to money. He has shown enough this year that he is worth a roster spot and worth investment, but if he wants a contract in excess of what WCJ is getting, then you have to let him go. His talent is potentially game-changing though.