Thoughts on Birch so far?

[Rodrickle]

Birch has looked like a 80% Ibaka.

But he struggles with size such as Drummand/Davis/Embiids

I've been very impressed. I thought he would be a good back up but he fits really well in the starting unit. Very good Bball IQ. Better shooter than expected. Better passer than expected. Solid defence. He was below average against the Lakers but played really well in every other game.

Ibaka struggled with big centres too

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[Dennis 37]

He is extremely decisive and consistent with the 6-10 foot bunnies that so many players seem to get brain freezes on. It doesn't seem to matter that he doesn't have much of a three point shot as he rarely finds himself on the perimeter being left alone by defenders.

To get a better player than him, we would be spending big bucks.

[Parataxis]

The best thing about Birch is that he gives us time and flexibility.

Can we sign a game-changing centre in the offseason? Great, Birch looks amazing as a backup.

Is there nobody worth the cap-hit that we can sign at C this offseason? That's okay, Birch is functional and can fill the role for a season while we look forward to the next offseason or the trade market.

Not every player needs to be a star. Not every year needs to be a championship or bust scenario.

[Psubs]

The best thing about Birch is that he gives us time and flexibility.

Can we sign a game-changing centre in the offseason? Great, Birch looks amazing as a backup.

Is there nobody worth the cap-hit that we can sign at C this offseason? That's okay, Birch is functional and can fill the role for a season while we look forward to the next offseason or the trade market.

Not every player needs to be a star. Not every year needs to be a championship or bust scenario.

He's a late bloomer like Boucher as evidenced by his multiple career highs under 20 points with the Raptors.

In todays style he's useful against 90% of the matchups and that's good for someone who'll be signed for around the tax payer MLE. Not sure if he'll get a Baynes sized contract with a team option 2nd year.

Since Boucher is hurt, do people think that he'd be more apt to sign an extension now like how JV hurt his groin and signed a cheap extension?

[Ramed Nazored]

Infinitely better than what we had. Numbers indicate he's a serviceable C in today's NBA. Athletic, can flair out to the baselines for the odd corner three, mobile off the pick and roll when diving to the hoop, and has surprisingly strong court vision, defensively strong - gets you a little over a block and a steal, and he can actually box out. What's not to like?

[scirocco53]

Birch has looked like a 80% Ibaka.

Exactly my thought. I don't know if Nurse, or anyone else on the coaching staff gave him tapes of Ibaka last year, and said "do this". Let's be real, he doesn't have the 16 - 17 foot jumper from the top of the key, which made Ibaka lethal. I would be okay with him being developed into a platoon center with Freddie next year.

[RaptorHusky]

As Dennis said, KB price/performance ratio is quite good, Raps cannot expect any better for that $ they actually pay. My 2 cents is that he is obviously lacking playing time he didn't get before joining Raps.

[LBJKB24MJ23]

so far, so good. average at worst. he's been a surprising relevation to the center position (versus Baynes, which was obviously a mistake that had to be made - a lot of us were thinking it was a great idea at that time but we also knew C would be our weakest position going into the season, even with Baynes and Len)

[Spates]

His positioning and awareness is great. And its a small thing but I've rarely noticed him compete with teammates for rebounds. He's a sound basketball player.

[Yeezus_]

HIs passing ability and overall IQ makes me think he can be more than a bench big. If his shot can continue to develop, I don't see why he can't be a starter.

[FreshyFlames]

Guys always look a little better then they are on bad teams. You wouldn't want him as a starting C if you're trying to go anywhere

[T_saurus]

I'm not sure about starting but I like what he brings

[pilkoids]

He looks like he can defend the perimeter a bit too, which is nice

[mdenny]

He has been solid. It might sound ridiculous but I agree that having Birch the whole season we might have won a substantial amount of close games we lost.

Weird because I'm kinda cheering for losses....actually frustrates me to see Birch clean up the glass and box opposing players out. This is what we needed the first 40 to 50 games. Would have made a huge difference.

I was guilty of being overly patient with Baynes. His touch around the net was beyond atrocious. Hard to remember another player missing that many tap ins. He wasnt expected to do much so I kept thinking "just give him some more time" lol.

Birch is doing all the simple things baynes couldnt do.

[Bull-E]

Ideally, I'd feel best slotting him in as a third-string C, who you rotate into the rotation due to injury or when want to go with a super-sized frontline. For example, he may have looked good playing beside Serge in years past.

I'm just not convinced he's a guy you want starting on a first-division team for an extended period. That being said he's certainly proven he deserves more than the forgotten big role he had in Orlando.

[ThemCrookedRefs]

I don't know why people can't wrap their heads around Birch being our starting centre next year. He's been a great fit with the team and we've been very competitive with him in the starting lineup even with the depleted lineups we've been trotting out every night. We just played Gobert and Jokic and he more than held his own. He never had a legit chance to play his game in Orlando. He's tough, smart, can potentially space the floor a bit and fits what we need from that position. If the price is right, I have absolutely no issues with him being our centre.

I've seen people mention that they want to get Holmes from the Kings. How would that really help? You'd have to pay a fortune to get him and is he really that much better (if at all)? In today's NBA, you don't need a dominant big man to give you 20 and 10 a night to win, we proved that (so have countless other teams). How's that working out for KAT? Or pre-Lakers AD? Or Sacramento-era Cousins? Even Embiid and Jokic haven't won anything yet. Teams win with elite guards and wings. We need a competent player that can do typical big man things and that has good basketball IQ. I think Birch fits the bill. It's insane how bad Baynes was for us this year...