Game 31 : MEM @ WAS

[ducler]

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[Whole Truth]

Clarke team high +28. Both he & Tillman out performed Jonas the last 2 but in fairness to Jonas he picked up 5 soft calls again while getting hit in the face several times & not seeing the line till the 4th, lol. He's not normally the best defender but he was scorched in this one. Hurt an otherwise strong defensive showing from Memphis.

Credit Jenkins for riding with Jonas despite the poor individual defensive showing. Memphis opened a 20pt lead with him on court struggling defensively.

Dillon showed his worth keeping Beal in check (23pt on 18 shots).

Nice to see Morant drop 35/10/5, haven't seen that in a while.

I know it's early but I'm not seeing the supposed lottery talent in Tillie. Team worse -14 in 12 mins

1 game over 500 & trending in the right direction, all without arguably their 2nd best player, 3J.

[E S V L]

I agree - Tillie has looked weak so far.

Overall impression is that our team looked solid and smoothly, though not easily, outperformed the opponent.

Winslow`s effect on defense does still impress me to the level of overexcitement.

[E S V L]

Melton-Winslow-Kyle is the hell of a defensive squad.

[VCfor3]

I don't expect much out of Tillie (or Jontay for that matter) anytime soon. They missed a ton of time so are just trying to even get into game shape plus need to develop. The potential is there so as end of the bench projects it is still a gamble I like, but they'll need more time before they really get a handle on the NBA game.

Morant was awesome this game. I also like waiting for Winslow to fully be healthy before letting him play. Dude competes every time he is on the court. If we let him come back at 95%, he'd have never recovered that last 5% and would be more prone to injuries which isn't good for a guy who already is pretty injury prone. Hopefully JJJ comes back and is able to look good super quick as well.

[Whole Truth]

Melton-Winslow-Kyle is the hell of a defensive squad.

IMO Melton is a difference maker for Memphis, reflected in his +/- numbers. I hope they aren't considering trading him if they plan to consolidate. What's impressive about that defensive trio you mention, is they are not offensive weak links.

Anderson is shooting a career best 39% from 3 on a career high 4.3 attempts, up from 1.3. IMO, he's a keeper & potential MIP player., if not the league, for Memphis.

Melton is shooting a career best 41% from 3 on a career high 3.9 attempts, up from 2.3. IMO, he's a keeper & also showing considerable growth in his 2 way game as a 23 yo.

If Winslow when up to speed can shoot league average as the Heat fan believes & said. When 3J returns shooting his 6 3;s at 40% teams are going to have nightmares with Melton, Winslow, Kyle, Jaren playing in front of Ja. That's 4 versatile defensive players capable of play making & hitting the 3 ball on volume at a near 40% clip on average, with Morant pushing the pace & distributing in what should be effective spacing. If Morant never develops defensively & only adds the threat of a 3 ball, IMO that's still potentially a championship caliber team with quality depth featuring Jonas/Tillman/Clarke/Brooks/Allen or Bane/Tyus.

If Memphis can draft a 2way SG/SF to upgrade/replace either Dillon or Winslow (if he shows he can't stay healthy) on rookie scale & control. My consolidation players would be (Dieng/Allen/potentially Brooks or Winslow), Other than that, I think Memphis just need to exercise patience & let the chemistry grow for the most part.

Dieng is 30 & expiring at a position Memphis are deep at. He has value both as a player & as an expiring contract.

Allen is a streaky shooter, less versatile than Melton & not as consistent a 3pt threat as Bane.

Brooks if he can be upgraded by a more efficient 2 way option.

Winslow, if he shows he can't stay healthy, he too would also have value as a big wing defender & potential expiring contract.

[E S V L]

I stay firm on my position that by trading Bane we loose close to nothing due to our SG depth while may win a lot by coupling him with our 1sts in order to trade up for a SF, if available.

[E S V L]

I don't expect much out of Tillie (or Jontay for that matter) anytime soon. They missed a ton of time so are just trying to even get into game shape plus need to develop. The potential is there so as end of the bench projects it is still a gamble I like, but they'll need more time before they really get a handle on the NBA game.

Morant was awesome this game. I also like waiting for Winslow to fully be healthy before letting him play. Dude competes every time he is on the court. If we let him come back at 95%, he'd have never recovered that last 5% and would be more prone to injuries which isn't good for a guy who already is pretty injury prone. Hopefully JJJ comes back and is able to look good super quick as well.

Ja looked like a veteran in a very good sense.

[VCfor3]

I stay firm on my position that by trading Bane we loose close to nothing due to our SG depth while may win a lot by coupling him with our 1sts in order to trade up for a SF, if available.

If Bane is the piece we have to use in order to upgrade elsewhere then sure use him, but I'd be trying to keep him otherwise. I still don't know how to feel about Brooks. He has been decent on defense and has a ton of heart, but his shot is poor and his offense can hurt us. Melton is the better player I feel like but he doesn't have the same energy boost you get from Brooks.

[E S V L]

I stay firm on my position that by trading Bane we loose close to nothing due to our SG depth while may win a lot by coupling him with our 1sts in order to trade up for a SF, if available.

If Bane is the piece we have to use in order to upgrade elsewhere then sure use him, but I'd be trying to keep him otherwise. I still don't know how to feel about Brooks. He has been decent on defense and has a ton of heart, but his shot is poor and his offense can hurt us. Melton is the better player I feel like but he doesn't have the same energy boost you get from Brooks.

Let me then be clear: Brooks can easily create for himself, unlike Bane and Melton. Brooks is a self-sufficient scorer, whereas Bane and Melton are shooters which offence almost utterly depends on someone creating an opportunity. Brooks should stay. If offence struggles for any reason, you need that guy to break the window, the guy who can score at will. He costs us only 10m.

[VCfor3]

I stay firm on my position that by trading Bane we loose close to nothing due to our SG depth while may win a lot by coupling him with our 1sts in order to trade up for a SF, if available.

If Bane is the piece we have to use in order to upgrade elsewhere then sure use him, but I'd be trying to keep him otherwise. I still don't know how to feel about Brooks. He has been decent on defense and has a ton of heart, but his shot is poor and his offense can hurt us. Melton is the better player I feel like but he doesn't have the same energy boost you get from Brooks.

Let me then be clear: Brooks can easily create for himself, unlike Bane and Melton. Brooks is a self-sufficient scorer, whereas Bane and Melton are shooters which offence almost utterly depends on someone creating an opportunity. Brooks should stay. If offence struggles for any reason, you need that guy to break the window, the guy who can score at will. He costs us only 10m.

If our starting lineup is Ja/?/Winslow/JJJ/JV then the others can handle shot creation. Melton is able to do a little facilitating to help create shot opportunities even if one on one creation isn't his strong suit. Dillon's shot creation is more important for the bench potentially but Tyus and Anderson can anchor that unit while feeding Clarke. Having guys who can knock down open 3's at a high rate is probably more important which is where Allen and Bane come in. Ideally whoever we get as our "missing piece" is able to create for themselves too. I still think Dillon's energy and defensive intensity in one on one matchups is the biggest asset he brings to the team.

[E S V L]

If Bane is the piece we have to use in order to upgrade elsewhere then sure use him, but I'd be trying to keep him otherwise. I still don't know how to feel about Brooks. He has been decent on defense and has a ton of heart, but his shot is poor and his offense can hurt us. Melton is the better player I feel like but he doesn't have the same energy boost you get from Brooks.

Let me then be clear: Brooks can easily create for himself, unlike Bane and Melton. Brooks is a self-sufficient scorer, whereas Bane and Melton are shooters which offence almost utterly depends on someone creating an opportunity. Brooks should stay. If offence struggles for any reason, you need that guy to break the window, the guy who can score at will. He costs us only 10m.

If our starting lineup is Ja/?/Winslow/JJJ/JV then the others can handle shot creation. Melton is able to do a little facilitating to help create shot opportunities even if one on one creation isn't his strong suit. Dillon's shot creation is more important for the bench potentially but Tyus and Anderson can anchor that unit while feeding Clarke. Having guys who can knock down open 3's at a high rate is probably more important which is where Allen and Bane come in. Ideally whoever we get as our "missing piece" is able to create for themselves too. I still think Dillon's energy and defensive intensity in one on one matchups is the biggest asset he brings to the team.

Some might argue that if you place Brooks in a position of pure shooter, he will perform at the same level as Bane and Allen. While when you ask Bane and Allen to create for themselves, then you’ll notice the difference.

There are plenty of very talented SG’s on this draft. Like close to the star level. Should we draft based on talent, not position?

[VCfor3]

Let me then be clear: Brooks can easily create for himself, unlike Bane and Melton. Brooks is a self-sufficient scorer, whereas Bane and Melton are shooters which offence almost utterly depends on someone creating an opportunity. Brooks should stay. If offence struggles for any reason, you need that guy to break the window, the guy who can score at will. He costs us only 10m.

If our starting lineup is Ja/?/Winslow/JJJ/JV then the others can handle shot creation. Melton is able to do a little facilitating to help create shot opportunities even if one on one creation isn't his strong suit. Dillon's shot creation is more important for the bench potentially but Tyus and Anderson can anchor that unit while feeding Clarke. Having guys who can knock down open 3's at a high rate is probably more important which is where Allen and Bane come in. Ideally whoever we get as our "missing piece" is able to create for themselves too. I still think Dillon's energy and defensive intensity in one on one matchups is the biggest asset he brings to the team.

Some might argue that if you place Brooks in a position of pure shooter, he will perform at the same level as Bane and Allen. While when you ask Bane and Allen to create for themselves, then you’ll notice the difference.

There are plenty of very talented SG’s on this draft. Like close to the star level. Should we draft based on talent, not position?

We should grab the best SG/SF talent we can. Ideally that person will fill the "?" in the starting lineup since Winslow could function as a SG if we really wanted and then move to PF when we go small.

But ideally we have someone better than Brooks creating shots. I'd rather have Bane who is one of the top 3pt snipers taking the regularly created open looks as opposed to inserting Brooks for the *hopefully* rare scenario of him having to create late in the shot clock. I'd rather Ja, JJJ, and maybe even Winslow be the one in those moments with the ball in their hand.

[E S V L]

If our starting lineup is Ja/?/Winslow/JJJ/JV then the others can handle shot creation. Melton is able to do a little facilitating to help create shot opportunities even if one on one creation isn't his strong suit. Dillon's shot creation is more important for the bench potentially but Tyus and Anderson can anchor that unit while feeding Clarke. Having guys who can knock down open 3's at a high rate is probably more important which is where Allen and Bane come in. Ideally whoever we get as our "missing piece" is able to create for themselves too. I still think Dillon's energy and defensive intensity in one on one matchups is the biggest asset he brings to the team.

Some might argue that if you place Brooks in a position of pure shooter, he will perform at the same level as Bane and Allen. While when you ask Bane and Allen to create for themselves, then you’ll notice the difference.

There are plenty of very talented SG’s on this draft. Like close to the star level. Should we draft based on talent, not position?

We should grab the best SG/SF talent we can. Ideally that person will fill the "?" in the starting lineup since Winslow could function as a SG if we really wanted and then move to PF when we go small.

But ideally we have someone better than Brooks creating shots. I'd rather have Bane who is one of the top 3pt snipers taking the regularly created open looks as opposed to inserting Brooks for the *hopefully* rare scenario of him having to create late in the shot clock. I'd rather Ja, JJJ, and maybe even Winslow be the one in those moments with the ball in their hand.

There are plenty of very talented SGs. I am inclined to target them as they are shot creators, unlike all SF prospects, who aren`t more than 3&D or high volume shooters. All 2021 draft talent looks like is in PG/SG prospects, not in SF, unfortunately.

I want you to be right in your assessment of Bane`s skills, but I think you overestimate his ceiling. His lateral move is not quick enough to guard elite SG opponents and his hands are short.

[VCfor3]

Some might argue that if you place Brooks in a position of pure shooter, he will perform at the same level as Bane and Allen. While when you ask Bane and Allen to create for themselves, then you’ll notice the difference.

There are plenty of very talented SG’s on this draft. Like close to the star level. Should we draft based on talent, not position?

We should grab the best SG/SF talent we can. Ideally that person will fill the "?" in the starting lineup since Winslow could function as a SG if we really wanted and then move to PF when we go small.

But ideally we have someone better than Brooks creating shots. I'd rather have Bane who is one of the top 3pt snipers taking the regularly created open looks as opposed to inserting Brooks for the *hopefully* rare scenario of him having to create late in the shot clock. I'd rather Ja, JJJ, and maybe even Winslow be the one in those moments with the ball in their hand.

There are plenty of very talented SGs. I am inclined to target them as they are shot creators, unlike all SF prospects, who aren`t more than 3&D or high volume shooters. All 2021 draft talent looks like is in PG/SG prospects, not in SF, unfortunately.

I want you to be right in your assessment of Bane`s skills, but I think you overestimate his ceiling. His lateral move is not quick enough to guard elite SG opponents and his hands are short.

Kuminga and Kispert would be SFs and Kispert screams "Memphis pick". There are a couple other SFs in the lottery range but none that I'd want us to take.

[E S V L]

Kuminga and Kispert would be SFs and Kispert screams "Memphis pick". There are a couple other SFs in the lottery range but none that I'd want us to take.

Kuminga is a top-5 pick. Let`s forget about him unless you want to join me in my desire to trade JJJ for him.

Let`s talk about Kispert. I don`t believe he can defend starting SFs in NBA. To me, it`s a red flag. I`ll be happy to know that I am wrong, aren`t I?

[VCfor3]

Kuminga and Kispert would be SFs and Kispert screams "Memphis pick". There are a couple other SFs in the lottery range but none that I'd want us to take.

Kuminga is a top-5 pick. Let`s forget about him unless you agree to trade JJJ.

Let`s talk about Kispert. I don`t believe he can defend starting SFs in NBA. To me, it`s a red flag. I`ll be happy to know that I am wrong, aren`t I?

He will never be a high end defender but I think he can be passable. Jman probably is the one to ask, but his NBA comp that I like is Joe Harris.

Jalen Johnson, Franz Wagner, and Zhaire Williams are the other SF options but I prefer SGs in range of our likely pick over them.

[Whole Truth]

Some might argue that if you place Brooks in a position of pure shooter, he will perform at the same level as Bane and Allen. While when you ask Bane and Allen to create for themselves, then you’ll notice the difference.

There are plenty of very talented SG’s on this draft. Like close to the star level. Should we draft based on talent, not position?

We should grab the best SG/SF talent we can. Ideally that person will fill the "?" in the starting lineup since Winslow could function as a SG if we really wanted and then move to PF when we go small.

But ideally we have someone better than Brooks creating shots. I'd rather have Bane who is one of the top 3pt snipers taking the regularly created open looks as opposed to inserting Brooks for the *hopefully* rare scenario of him having to create late in the shot clock. I'd rather Ja, JJJ, and maybe even Winslow be the one in those moments with the ball in their hand.

There are plenty of very talented SGs. I am inclined to target them as they are shot creators, unlike all SF prospects, who aren`t more than 3&D or high volume shooters. All 2021 draft talent looks like is in PG/SG prospects, not in SF, unfortunately.

I want you to be right in your assessment of Bane`s skills, but I think you overestimate his ceiling. His lateral move is not quick enough to guard elite SG opponents and his hands are short.

Kyle Korver had average size, athleticism & length for his position but his 40% shooting & high IQ led to an Allstar appearance & solid trade value.

Bane is shooting 45% from 3 as a rookie on 6 apg. What's left to be seen is if he has the ball IQ to take advantage of that elite skill. He repeats his ability from range next year & his value increases considerably.