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Are we concerned by the team's 2-8 stretch or are the concerns overblown?

I'm of the opinion that we are thriving on the growth and development of our stars, but significantly downgraded our bench. That isn't necessarily on the coaching staff or any one individual player. When we lose on of our rotation guys, it is noticeable.

That isn't to say that I always agree with the rotations. I couldn't stand the idea of only playing Bane half of the 4th quarter after he caught fire late 3rd against the Warriors.

Yeah I think our depth was overblown and we are feeling the loss of Anderson and Melton right now with others out. When healthy we should be able to find a rhythm again, but health is always tough. Some of the extra Ja noise with opposing teams having additional motivation against us isn't helping us right now.

Some things are on Jenkins. Bane is 4/7 from deep in the 1st half and takes no 3pt shots in the second half. Can't have that happen. Draw a play up for him with multiple actions to get him free. But I think the concerns will somewhat work themselves out in time. We could use another playoff-caliber player if possible this deadline but we will see what happens.

I really believe we could use a secondary ball handler or OG. That would do wonders for this team.

My thoughts are that it can be a concern. The thing here that we have to keep in mind, these guys are twenty something year old young players. Albeit up to the last two weeks, they have played very well. These guys know they are good. But they are not ready to be great. They are mixing confidence with arrogance right now. That's not good. Plus with resting players and missing Adams right now, this rough patch right now is nothing nice. This team needs to find their focus and get back on track. The West is tight and any crucial losses can send them back from top to bottom real fast.

jman3134 wrote:I really believe we could use a secondary ball handler or OG. That would do wonders for this team.

It sounds like you have a player in mind as a secondary ball handler, who are you thinking of?

SD2042 wrote:

jman3134 wrote:I really believe we could use a secondary ball handler or OG. That would do wonders for this team.

It sounds like you have a player in mind as a secondary ball handler, who are you thinking of?

In the offseason, I really wanted Anfernee Simons and would've traded anyone (picks included) besides our Big 3 to get him.

Now - Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, or Bones Hyland are possible options.

OG Anunoby would be a great addition as well, not necessarily for ball handling purposes though.

I think resting players, being overly cautious in returning players from injury, and players missing games due to actual injuries is causing some issues in establishing rhythm because we're trotting out different lineups without any real consistency. Our late game execution has been terrible in this stretch, and this could be a culprit IMO.

I also think Adams being out is bigger than anyone realized it would be. We're not a very good half court team and, other than Bane, we're not a very good shooting team period. We win by creating easy shots in transition and simply taking more shots than the other team by getting offensive boards, closing out defensive possessions with a rebound on the first miss, and forcing turnovers. Adams's rebounding on both ends and screen setting in the halfcourt is sorely missed.

Finally, I think Jenkins is a little too "set in his ways" with respect to rotations. If Dillon is jacking up a bunch of trash shots, then bench him that night. If Bane is hitting everything he throws up, then give him more minutes that night. If JJJ isn't in foul trouble, then don't limit him to 28 minutes. I suspect as we approach and enter the playoffs Jenkins will play our best players more rather than slavishly sticking to a Hubie Brown-esque 10-to-11 man rotation. Our best player - Ja - plays only 32 minutes per game; I would bet this is one of the lowest minutes per game among team leaders in the NBA.

jman3134 wrote:

SD2042 wrote:

jman3134 wrote:I really believe we could use a secondary ball handler or OG. That would do wonders for this team.

It sounds like you have a player in mind as a secondary ball handler, who are you thinking of?

In the offseason, I really wanted Anfernee Simons and would've traded anyone (picks included) besides our Big 3 to get him.

Now - Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, or Bones Hyland are possible options.

OG Anunoby would be a great addition as well, not necessarily for ball handling purposes though.

Another scorer is needed for sure to help expand the offense much more. Especially with the team's championship window open, albeit within a tight race. As for Caris LeVert, I can see him as a potential second or third playmaker on a team like the Grizzlies. His vet experience can be reliable off the bench. Just have to be mindful of his history of injuries.

jefe wrote:I think resting players, being overly cautious in returning players from injury, and players missing games due to actual injuries is causing some issues in establishing rhythm because we're trotting out different lineups without any real consistency. Our late game execution has been terrible in this stretch, and this could be a culprit IMO.

I also think Adams being out is bigger than anyone realized it would be. We're not a very good half court team and, other than Bane, we're not a very good shooting team period. We win by creating easy shots in transition and simply taking more shots than the other team by getting offensive boards, closing out defensive possessions with a rebound on the first miss, and forcing turnovers. Adams's rebounding on both ends and screen setting in the halfcourt is sorely missed.

Finally, I think Jenkins is a little too "set in his ways" with respect to rotations. If Dillon is jacking up a bunch of trash shots, then bench him that night. If Bane is hitting everything he throws up, then give him more minutes that night. If JJJ isn't in foul trouble, then don't limit him to 28 minutes. I suspect as we approach and enter the playoffs Jenkins will play our best players more rather than slavishly sticking to a Hubie Brown-esque 10-to-11 man rotation. Our best player - Ja - plays only 32 minutes per game; I would bet this is one of the lowest minutes per game among team leaders in the NBA.

I agree with all of your points as to why we are struggling, though it speaks more to our lack of bench quality. With that said, given Ja's playstyle, I actually think it is a good strategy to limit his minutes a bit during the regular season to avoid injury. The amount of running and jumping that he does when he is in the game is incredibly exciting, but it also increases the risk probability for injury, considering the fact that he isn't strength training in the same way as players from the past. When Michael Jordan or some of these other guys played the way they played, they looked to build muscle mass to avoid injury. We are seeing more injuries now because this preventative approach isn't really taken, despite the "load management".

To avoid another playoff injury, the team is being very cautious with Ja, as they should. The same could go for JJJ coming off of a meniscus injury. It may hurt our short term prospects, but we will be more set up for playoff success, which inevitably is all that matters. If Ja isn't hurt against Golden State, who knows what happens? We need to avoid that at all costs.

To this point, we do need another ball handler/shot creator to either provide an instant bench spark or take Dillon's place in the starting lineup imo. Aldama is coming along nicely, though I have questions about his team D in a playoff situation.