The newer elephant in the room: Wendell Carter Jr

[Last Guardian]

I don't dislike Wendell, he's a solid player. An OK shooter and good team defender. But I don't think anyone can deny at this point that Goga is simply a better C. But it doesn't really end there. Moe is also a much better offensive player and we need that off the bench. On top of all that, JI is bigger than ever and more capable than ever to play C. So where does this leave Wendell?

I personally have the bad feeling the Magic are going to cater to feelings again and make the mistake of starting him again. What do you think?

[JoshuaPotter]

I don't dislike Wendell, he's a solid player. An OK shooter and good team defender. But I don't think anyone can deny at this point that Goga is simply a better C. But it doesn't really end there. Moe is also a much better offensive player and we need that off the bench. On top of all that, JI is bigger than ever and more capable than ever to play C. So where does this leave Wendell?

I personally have the bad feeling the Magic are going to cater to feelings again and make the mistake of starting him again. What do you think?

This forum has a memory of elephants in the room.

[eyriq]

I agree with you that Goga clears, the evidence is mounting. I also think JI is a better impact defender and Moe is a better impact scorer.

It'll be interesting to see how Mosley handles it. You can trust WCJ to play a significant role, and that is valuable. Benching Goga this time would be inexcusable.

My prediction is that Moe gets squeezed out.

[JoshuaPotter]

I agree with you that Goga clears, the evidence is mounting[/b]. I also think JI is a better impact defender and Moe is a better impact scorer.

It'll be interesting to see how Mosley handles it. You can trust WCJ to play a significant role, and that is valuable. Benching Goga this time would be inexcusable.

My prediction is that Moe gets squeezed out.

We said this last year. Got another "not enough sample size" answer. Even though it was clear he passes the smell / eye test.

I do not think Moe gets squeezed out. In fact, I think it's TDS that gets squeezed back into deep bench. WCJ comes off the bench as he plays under minutes restriction similar to Isaac. It's like we watch different teams sometimes.

Part of the reason for all the "wonky depth" is if Isaac never had a injury problem he would be a starter right now. Similarly - if / when WCJ comes back, he will likely come back in similar fashion to last year.

The only clear guys who go immediately back into the starting lineup from injury are Paolo / Franz / Suggs.

[RichCollab]

WCJ is versatile and only makes us better in my opinion overall. Need him to be healthy. I bet he has another season and a half left with us before I see us trading him.

I do think we will see him starting again.

[Tarheel]

I've been a proponent of Goga over Wendell for a while. I think he fits the rest of the starting 5 better.

My hope was that we trade WCJr/Harris/Cole and picks in a consolidation trade of some form, but from memory WCJr's new contract stops him from being traded this season. Unfortunately, I do think that that means WCJr will start again when he is healthy and Goga will go back to riding the pine.

[Knightro]

I am starting to value Goga's offensive rebounding and shot blocking more than I do Carter's three point shooting.

[Last Guardian]

I don't dislike Wendell, he's a solid player. An OK shooter and good team defender. But I don't think anyone can deny at this point that Goga is simply a better C. But it doesn't really end there. Moe is also a much better offensive player and we need that off the bench. On top of all that, JI is bigger than ever and more capable than ever to play C. So where does this leave Wendell?

I personally have the bad feeling the Magic are going to cater to feelings again and make the mistake of starting him again. What do you think?

This forum has a memory of elephants in the room.

I didn't notice the Suggs post when I posted this haha. I know it is a joke but that is pretty funny how many elephants the Magic are collecting

[JoshuaPotter]

I don't dislike Wendell, he's a solid player. An OK shooter and good team defender. But I don't think anyone can deny at this point that Goga is simply a better C. But it doesn't really end there. Moe is also a much better offensive player and we need that off the bench. On top of all that, JI is bigger than ever and more capable than ever to play C. So where does this leave Wendell?

I personally have the bad feeling the Magic are going to cater to feelings again and make the mistake of starting him again. What do you think?

This forum has a memory of elephants in the room.

I didn't notice the Suggs post when I posted this haha. I know it is a joke but that is pretty funny how many elephants the Magic are collecting

We should petition the Seminole county zoo to take in more elephants and name them after Orlando Magic players.....

[VFX]

Goga should be starting on this roster for obvious reasons.

If KCP was a shred of what he was advertised as there wouldn't be a reason to keep Carter in the SL.

He needs to be moved or needs to accept a role off the bench splitting time with Moe. Preferably the former than the latter.

[JF5]

I've always liked Goga... we've had this convo before. Against teams that are average and mediocre he's okay to plug in with no dropoff. But against Elite teams he's pretty much useless. That's why against teams like the Sixers, Cavs, and Celtics he's unplayable on both sides of the ball.

[flying_mollusk]

If I recall, moving WCJ back into the starting lineup over Isaac against the Cavs was a big reason we flipped the playoffs series around last year. I love Goga, but a healthy Carter brings defense and shooting/floor stretching, which is valuable to have for specific matchups.

At the end of the day, maybe we should just be content with having depth? In this instance, an injury won't derail us like in the past

[eyriq]

If I recall, moving WCJ back into the starting lineup over Isaac against the Cavs was a big reason we flipped the playoffs series around last year. I love Goga, but a healthy Carter brings defense and shooting/floor stretching, which is valuable to have for specific matchups.

At the end of the day, maybe we should just be content with having depth? In this instance, an injury won't derail us like in the past

Playing at home was the big reason we "flipped" the series

[JF5]

If I recall, moving WCJ back into the starting lineup over Isaac against the Cavs was a big reason we flipped the playoffs series around last year. I love Goga, but a healthy Carter brings defense and shooting/floor stretching, which is valuable to have for specific matchups.

At the end of the day, maybe we should just be content with having depth? In this instance, an injury won't derail us like in the past

Playing at home was the big reason we "flipped" the series

Wendell in crucial aspects, especially in game 6 against the Cavs was able to impede Mitchell on switches and even blocked a shot.

Goga in switching situations turns into a turnstile that weakens the defensive integrity against great teams. You'll rarely ever see a game against top teams where Goga is able to stay on the court for long periods of time.

[eyriq]

If I recall, moving WCJ back into the starting lineup over Isaac against the Cavs was a big reason we flipped the playoffs series around last year. I love Goga, but a healthy Carter brings defense and shooting/floor stretching, which is valuable to have for specific matchups.

At the end of the day, maybe we should just be content with having depth? In this instance, an injury won't derail us like in the past

Playing at home was the big reason we "flipped" the series

Wendell in crucial aspects, especially in game 6 against the Cavs was able to impede Mitchell on switches and even blocked a shot.

Goga in switching situations turns into a turnstile that weakens the defensive integrity against great teams. You'll rarely ever see a game against top teams where Goga is able to stay on the court for long periods of time.

Counterpoint: you'll never see a season where WCJ is able to stay in the starting lineup for long periods of time.

[Knightro]

If I recall, moving WCJ back into the starting lineup over Isaac against the Cavs was a big reason we flipped the playoffs series around last year. I love Goga, but a healthy Carter brings defense and shooting/floor stretching, which is valuable to have for specific matchups.

At the end of the day, maybe we should just be content with having depth? In this instance, an injury won't derail us like in the past

I would say that had more to do with Isaac not really being equipped to play 25 MPG at center against a team with two physical 7 footers more than anything else.

[Last Guardian]

If I recall, moving WCJ back into the starting lineup over Isaac against the Cavs was a big reason we flipped the playoffs series around last year. I love Goga, but a healthy Carter brings defense and shooting/floor stretching, which is valuable to have for specific matchups.

At the end of the day, maybe we should just be content with having depth? In this instance, an injury won't derail us like in the past

Absolutely Carters strength was more helpful than Isaacs length in that matchup. I don't think that really is an argument for Wendell over Goga though, as I think Goga would have had the same impact being a larger, traditional C over Isaac.

[GelbeWand09]

If I recall, moving WCJ back into the starting lineup over Isaac against the Cavs was a big reason we flipped the playoffs series around last year. I love Goga, but a healthy Carter brings defense and shooting/floor stretching, which is valuable to have for specific matchups.

At the end of the day, maybe we should just be content with having depth? In this instance, an injury won't derail us like in the past

Playing at home was the big reason we "flipped" the series

Wendell in crucial aspects, especially in game 6 against the Cavs was able to impede Mitchell on switches and even blocked a shot.

Goga in switching situations turns into a turnstile that weakens the defensive integrity against great teams. You'll rarely ever see a game against top teams where Goga is able to stay on the court for long periods of time.

I like Wendell and he is really good at switching for a Center & he is our best post defender vs. big dudes but him and Paolo together offer no rim protection and resistance when our PoA defense is broken.

[VFX]

Playing at home was the big reason we "flipped" the series

Wendell in crucial aspects, especially in game 6 against the Cavs was able to impede Mitchell on switches and even blocked a shot.

Goga in switching situations turns into a turnstile that weakens the defensive integrity against great teams. You'll rarely ever see a game against top teams where Goga is able to stay on the court for long periods of time.

I like Wendell and he is really good at switching for a Center & he is our best post defender vs. big dudes but him and Paolo together offer no rim protection and resistance when our PoA defense is broken.

This.

The problem with Carter has more to do with his pairing with Paolo than it does with what he provides at face value.

That's just the bottom line. The other side of it is him requiring the ball on offense to be as effective as possible. Goga doesn't need the ball. He just needs to focus on rebounding the ball, setting picks, and defending the rim.

[Skybox]

WCJ should be the best backup C/PF in the league...He's so versatile and I don't know if I'd say Goga is just plain better...but - they win with Goga and WCJ is constantly in and out of the lineup. We've accommodated Isaac and found ways for him to contribute while protecting him...maybe we need to look at WCJ in a similar way and really go all in on furthering Goga's chemistry and development as a "set" starter rather than bounce him in and out...Maybe he's got another gear with that kind of commitment/chemistry/familiarity. I'm not sure what this means for Mo. Honestly, any 2 of the 3 would be sufficient with Isaac as a "just in case" Center, but my money is leaning Goga/Mo with WCJ's extensin