RealGM

I know it's the time for free agency and at time people (myself included) fall in love with the idea of acquiring a player from another team.

It's easy to do when in every thread about Jeff Green someone makes the remark "I can't see him playing PF long term. He isn't a starting PF on a championship team. He isn't long enough to defend the post. His game is more suited for a SF".

Maybe they are right? And maybe the PF of a championship team would be Kevin Durant with Jeff Green at SF?

Durant is obviously a very gifted player and can stroke the ball from anywhere on the floor. But Durant is 6'9" with incredibly long arms. He has the same standing reach as Tyson Chandler with SG skills.

I know right now Durant is on the slim side to be banging down low. But he did play in the post at Texas and was freakin amazing.

Last offseason Durant put on 15pounds so far this Summer he said he put on another 6 pounds. Say he ends up putting on a total of 15 pounds this offseason and then 10 pounds the next year. That's right around 240-245lbs

240lbs is what LMA from Portland weighs, Josh Smith from Atlanta, and Dirk weighs 245.

Since Durant's weakest links are size/bulk and lateral quickness defensively. Out of those two which one that is the easiest to correct?

I doubt Durant is going to get muck quicker laterally but the guy can put on more muscle. Plus if Durant is guarding PF he won't need to be as quick.

Now Jeff Green has great lateral quickness and will be able to cover SF's with out any problems heck even SG's.

Can or will someone explain to me why Durant can't or shouldn't play PF if he were to bulk up to 240lbs?

I know very few PF shoot 3's but look at Rasheed Wallace. He has a ring.

I would think that once Durant becomes strong enough he would destroy PF's. He'd be quick enough to blow by them if they tried to guard him on the wing. He could bury the 3 if they give him space. And he is long enough that once he gets bigger/stronger he should be able to post up without any problems.

So I say be patient, give it one more year with Green at PF to see what happens with Durant's frame. I think the Jeff Green and Durant front line is still too early to call it unworkable.

Patience sucks but sometimes it's the best idea for the long run.

You don't plant a field of corn and harvest it before there are ears on it. You have to wait for it to mature.

As far as the simple subject of Durant at PF (purely at PF) I would say that Durant has such great perimeter skills that he could play there, but it would be a waste of several of his talents.

Now, when you talk about Green/Durant as our forwards of the future, I love it. I don't see a huge reason to label one as SF and one as PF, but with their combination of skill, perimeter game, and low post scoring they could create all kinds of nightmares for opposing teams while the combination of Green/Durant and any solid defensive center would cover up most vulnerabilities on the other end.

I don't know which position each will show up as, but I'm pretty convinced that these two can be the forwards on a great team.

agreed. I still love teh combo. I agree there is no need to label them as PF or SF. I have said so many times in the past year that positional play of yesteryear is gone! Its about having versatile guys on teh floor.

Just ask Cleveland how having two 6'9"+ guys that can take you out on the perimeter can disrupt a defense.But I think that both defensively and offensively the combo of Durant and Green being successful is predicated on having a center that can guard the rim and command a double team in the post. I'm not necessarily saying that you need Dwight Howard or even a 20/10 guy, but I think that if you get a guy that plays in the block and can average a double double at the center position that this can work.

i love it! if durant gets bigger and play power forward.. he would be unstoppable...

it's a great idea on offense but won't work defensively, obivously, unless one of two things happen:

- either durant or green become competent defenders on the interior
- the thunder acquire a dominant center that can cover for this weakness

i feel that this team has enough scoring on the perimeter to justify trading jeff green for a legitimate interior presence either at pf or c.

for instance, i would definitely trade jeff green straight up for kevin love.

slick_watts wrote:it's a great idea on offense but won't work defensively, obivously, unless one of two things happen:

- either durant or green become competent defenders on the interior
- the thunder acquire a dominant center that can cover for this weakness

i feel that this team has enough scoring on the perimeter to justify trading jeff green for a legitimate interior presence either at pf or c.

for instance, i would definitely trade jeff green straight up for kevin love.

Ok but don't you think that if Durant eventually bulks up to 240+ he should be able to keep guys off the block and become that solid interior defender?

He is so long that he should at least be able to bother/alter shots when he is being posted up. Plus since PF's are rarely trying to cross guys up it's not like he has to worry about is lateral quickness.

And honestly his lateral quickness is only bad compared to guys who are 6'7" and shorter.

He would have no problem keeping up with PF's.



I can understand the argument that if Durant played in the paint more he wouldn't utilize his perimeter skill set.

I actually think he could exploit it even more. Once a pf is covering him he can set up to where he wants the ball and become that coveted triple threat.

I guess that is why Durant is going to be a Superstar in the league because he will be able to do anything he wants to with the ball. He truly will be able to score from anywhere.



But back to Slick's point about Durant or Green becoming a defensive presence in the paint.

Isn't it reasonable to think that if Durant bulks up to 240 he should be able to play solid D in the paint? Therefore not needing to have to trade Green?

And honestly Kevin Love has exceeded all of my expectations in the league so far but I don't really see him being much of a defensive presence. It's not like he blocks a ton of shots. He is an outstanding rebounder and has a solid mid range jumper which is nice.

But I view him in the defensive mold of Nick Collison great position on man to man D but simply doesn't block many shots.

We need a shot blocker in my opinion.

i think kevin durant will eventually end up a pf in the nba but i'm not sure how soon that happens. the important thing for okc to is play durant where he's most comfortable / effective, sort of like how dallas treats dirk. if durant's not comfortable defending the interior then it probably isn't a good idea to pigeonhole him into that role. we'll see how that shakes out.

a shot blocking, defensive minded center would be an instant solution to the problem but those don't exactly fall off trees. it's too bad the tyson chandler trade didn't work out, that would have been great for this team. it'd be easier imo to have a more traditional PF who can at least play good man defense inside and generally be an interior presence than it would be to wait until a center falls into their laps.

you dont trade Jeff Green, its not going to happen. Sam Presti values character commitment and hard work. Jeff Green has without question the best character on this team, he is the perfect human being if there ever was one. He might not be quite as good as Kevin Love but you dont trade the guy who shows great leadership/character and work ethic. That sets a bad example and is opposite of what Presti is trying to build here.

dre_1614 wrote:you dont trade Jeff Green, its not going to happen. Sam Presti values character commitment and hard work. Jeff Green has without question the best character on this team, he is the perfect human being if there ever was one. He might not be quite as good as Kevin Love but you dont trade the guy who shows great leadership/character and work ethic. That sets a bad example and is opposite of what Presti is trying to build here.

In the end he may not have a choice. And trust me if Oklahoma had gotten the #1 pick and therefore Blake you can bet Green would have been on the trading block.

I would love to see Green on a team like Miami. God he woud compliment Wade so well. Sources have told me Pat Riley loves Green and at this point would rather have him than Beasley. Would Oklahoma agree to a straight up swap of the two? Beasley may be the answer at PF for the Thunder.

I like Green as a 6th man, but I would much rather go the Denver route (give Durant two strong big men who can rebound and play post D). I like how they built around Melo, and I think the Thunder have the assets to build/add a more consistent and durable front court.