S.W.A.N wrote:Clutch0z24 wrote:S.W.A.N wrote:
I'd argue that Pascal has proven to be that guy. His ability to iso translates well to the playoffs.
And if Pascal isn't a great 1st option he is certainly an above average 2nd option. He was a great robin to Kawhi's Batman. Now he he slowly improving his batman routine.
The thing this team will have that most won't is depth and versatility. I am a big believer in Scottie and Precious. I think they both are going to have real progression this season and it is going to make a huge difference.
And if Precious forces his way into starting lineup with good play, suddenly your bench is Gary Trent, Boucher, Thad, and Porter.
Mainly my belief stems from belief that we have a legit chance of having a top 5 defense and a top 10 offense next year with the rotations as they stand. When you can be top 10 in both cats you traditionally have a strong chance of playoff success.
We might not have a true superstar as it stands but we have balance and depth and if Scottie or Pascal leads us to the finals you can throw all that talk about not having a superstar out the window.
Sorry but Pascal as great as hes been has not proven to be that guy yet....We havn't made it past the 2nd round with him as the lead guy and got blown out in 3 of 6 games this last playoffs to a 4 man team in the 76ers .....Even if you say Raps were banged up....Embiid was injured as well....
Could Pascal become that guy? well its hard for me to say he could because his lack of jump shooting.....Most guys who are that guy have a pretty high level mid range or outside game....If you shut Pascal in the paint down hes pretty limited and thats what makes him a tier below the true number 1 guys....He would be an elite Robin though if we did have that guy...
You can be top in cats on OFF and DEF and still flame out in the playoffs because playoffs is a whole different season than the reg season and comes down to matchups, And talent....Usually teams with the better mismatches and the better talent advance....
Barnes/Siakam is a good duo but is it as good as some of the other Duos in the league? im unsure especially with some of them elite teams have legit number 1 guys on them....
I'm not worried about our duo being the best. I think we are building the detroit pistons model.
3-4 all-star level starters.
1-3 ++ starter level players.
2-3 ++ bench level players.
Fred and Pascal are already all-star level starters, OG is on the door and is going to hit it with a sledge hammer.
Scottie is the biggest question mark. He's also the guy with the most upside. If he takes one of those big second year leaps that we've seen superstars take.. He's an all-star.
Precious, Gary Trent Jr, and Porter Jr are all arguably starter level players, although Precious hasn't shown it for more than half a season yet.
Boucher and Thad are definitely ++ bench level players. And there a real chance that at least one of Malachi, Banton, Champaigne could join that list. They aren't there yet, but they all have skillsets that could add them into the group.
I don't think we are elite yet, but a definite dark horse team that is capable of beating any team in a series if things go well. Last year was a massive learning curve for multiple players on our team and this year we are going to see the results. And it is going to be awesome.
I wouldn't lump GTJ in with Precious and Porter. Those two guys haven't shown they are capable of taking over games and being unstoppable. At least we had a glimpse of this from Gary. Otto is past his prime, but not far past, so all we can hope for is he gives us what he gave Golden State. Precious could turn into 'that guy' in the future. GTJ was 'that guy' at times last season.