Wendell Carter Jr. - Rim Protector?

[Knightro]

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[MasterGMer]

Dell is our future. I am not going to trade him for anybody. He is our starting C

[nicnac215]

Dell is perfect next to Chet or Paolo. Couldn’t imagine a better young center to pair with them on bargain contract. Top 2 pick or bust!

[RookieStar]

Well... in the court, he isnt really someone you would be wary of when you drive to the rim compared to say when you see mitch,rudy,mo or jjj.. you see him as someone who bangs body..

But glad to know he can and does protect the rim.

[fendilim]

Not really a fan of Wendell but I think he is a solid starter for years to come.

[pepe1991]

He isn't rim protector and don't let stats fool you.
He spent 63% of PT at PF and wasn't even pretending to be rim protector. We played multiple centers along side him, mainly Bamba who served purpose of swatting shots ( more so than holding defense as anchor but whatever , it's not like Magic were good defensive team at any point anyway).

I'm still not sure how execlly Wendell Carter will work on team that tries to win games. He will get stats ,but his role is bit strange. Feels like he is our Bobby Portis. Just without Brook or Giannis or Jrue or Middelton in sight.

Given that he is on solid contract i would not look to move him but in same time if Magic draft PF and don't trade Isaac than they need actual center more than undersized C who doesn't like play C anyway.

[drsd]

He spent 63% of PT at PF ...

Given that he is on solid contract i would not look to move him but in same time if Magic draft PF and don't trade Isaac than they need actual center more than undersized C who doesn't like play C anyway.

And-1

As he is reported to want to be an NBA PF, there is a narrative for a Isaac for Myles Turner trade (where Carter is then the PF for the next 5 years). That's how uncertain the question of Carter as a Center-rim protector is.

..

[fendilim]

He isn't rim protector and don't let stats fool you.
He spent 63% of PT at PF and wasn't even pretending to be rim protector. We played multiple centers along side him, mainly Bamba who served purpose of swatting shots ( more so than holding defense as anchor but whatever , it's not like Magic were good defensive team at any point anyway).

I'm still not sure how execlly Wendell Carter will work on team that tries to win games. He will get stats ,but his role is bit strange. Feels like he is our Bobby Portis. Just without Brook or Giannis or Jrue or Middelton in sight.

Given that he is on solid contract i would not look to move him but in same time if Magic draft PF and don't trade Isaac than they need actual center more than undersized C who doesn't like play C anyway.

He is PF by default (height) but defends all the inside big man. Bamba is the one defending the stretch bigs.

[cedric76]

He isn't rim protector and don't let stats fool you.
He spent 63% of PT at PF and wasn't even pretending to be rim protector. We played multiple centers along side him, mainly Bamba who served purpose of swatting shots ( more so than holding defense as anchor but whatever , it's not like Magic were good defensive team at any point anyway).

I'm still not sure how execlly Wendell Carter will work on team that tries to win games. He will get stats ,but his role is bit strange. Feels like he is our Bobby Portis. Just without Brook or Giannis or Jrue or Middelton in sight.

Given that he is on solid contract i would not look to move him but in same time if Magic draft PF and don't trade Isaac than they need actual center more than undersized C who doesn't like play C anyway.

He is PF by default (height) but defends all the inside big man. Bamba is the one defending the stretch bigs.

This is why he ll work perfectly with JI

JI and WCJ can switch 4/5 at will

[JTG_92940618]

Yeah, it's true. Wendell defended 5.3 attempts within 6 feet of the rim per game. That's good for 41st in the league, although when you whittle out guards/wings who defended a lot of shots at the rim (Heild, VanVleet, Giddey etc.) and guys who didn't play many games (Kaminsky, Hoard) he ends up 29th.

Bamba defended 5.6 such attempts per game, which is 28th (22nd when you whittle).

Out of the top 100 in defended attempts per game (you need to defend at least 4.4 attempts per game to qualify) here at the leaders in field goal percentage allowed:

1. Brook Lopez (46.7%) - limited games
2. Jarret Allen (48.6%)
3. Jaren Jackson Jr (49.6%)
4. Rudy Gobert (50.7%)
5. Isaiah Hartenstein (52.5%)
6. Evan Mobley (52.8%)
7. Giannis Antetokounmpo (52.9%)
8. Wendell Carter Jr (53.0%)
....
~39. Mo Bamba (57.8%)

[Skin]

Those are encouraging stats for WCj, but he is not a rim protector. His deficiencies are masked by playing PF on defense. He switched a lot with Bamba. Next year, he'll switch with Isaac and we should be a lot better for it.

Offense
PF Isaac / Bamba - Outside scorers
C WCj - Inside Scorer

Defense
PF WCj - Team Defender
C Isaac / Bamba - Rim Protectors

[Skybox]

[quote="pepe1991"
This is why he ll work perfectly with JI

JI and WCJ can switch 4/5 at will

Wow...just thinking - have they even played a minute together? It does look really good on paper...particularly if one or both can hit 3's at least at an average level.

[Knightro]

He isn't rim protector and don't let stats fool you.
He spent 63% of PT at PF and wasn't even pretending to be rim protector. We played multiple centers along side him, mainly Bamba who served purpose of swatting shots ( more so than holding defense as anchor but whatever , it's not like Magic were good defensive team at any point anyway).

Don't let the stats fool you either my friend.

That whole "Carter played 63% at PF" talking point is inaccurate because when Carter and Bamba shared the floor, it was actually Carter defending the opposing centers and Bamba halfheartedly defending the opposing power forwards when they shared the court.

They might have been listed different, but for the most part Carter defended all the centers. He was the guy in the action on opponents 1/5 pick and rolls. He was the guy who always defended the post if the other team had a post player.

Bamba's a more natural and better shotblocker, but a lot of Bamba's blocks this year, in particular when he shared the floor with Carter, came on help defense when he helped off the shooter planted in the corner.

[Xatticus]

He isn't rim protector and don't let stats fool you.
He spent 63% of PT at PF and wasn't even pretending to be rim protector. We played multiple centers along side him, mainly Bamba who served purpose of swatting shots ( more so than holding defense as anchor but whatever , it's not like Magic were good defensive team at any point anyway).

Don't let the stats fool you either my friend.

That whole "Carter played 63% at PF" talking point is inaccurate because when Carter and Bamba shared the floor, it was actually Carter defending the opposing centers and Bamba halfheartedly defending the opposing power forwards when they shared the court.

They might have been listed different, but for the most part Carter defended all the centers. He was the guy in the action on opponents 1/5 pick and rolls. He was the guy who always defended the post if the other team had a post player.

Bamba's a more natural and better shotblocker, but a lot of Bamba's blocks this year, in particular when he shared the floor with Carter, came on help defense when he helped off the shooter planted in the corner.

WCJ defended the guy that was the bigger threat with the ball in his hands. It's mostly the same thing, but there were many times where Bamba was covering the other team's biggest man on the floor. I honestly don't care what WCJ's positional identity is. He is a very good player.

What I will say about WCJ is that deterrence is a significant part of rim protection, but there is no debating whether or not he is a good defender. He is very well-schooled. The physical tools are just adequate, but he gets the most out of what he has.

I'm of the opinion that you can never have too much shot-blocking on the floor. Shot-blocking is not a necessity to have a good defense, but it certainly can help a lot.

[Knightro]

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[cedric76]

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No need to dream when the franz/JI/wcj will be far better

[VFX]

WCJr is a C and I'm a huge fan of him.
Don't really care what he wants to be.

[zaymon]

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No need to dream when the franz/JI/wcj will be far better

Exactly. Paolo lacks rim protection, while Holmgren lacks foot speed. In all 3 setups Wagner is the best ball handler and decision maker.

[Knightro]

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No need to dream when the franz/JI/wcj will be far better

The beauty of that is that Isaac, if he can ever actually play again, is already here.

So you're talking Franz and WCJ and one of Paolo/Chet *and* Isaac.

[tiderulz]

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No need to dream when the franz/JI/wcj will be far better

The beauty of that is that Isaac, if he can ever actually play again, is already here.

So you're talking Franz and WCJ and one of Paolo/Chet *and* Isaac.

JI is a worse shooting Chet. and injury prone. we'll be lucky to get 20 mpg from him all season