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MasterIchiro wrote:Also Roberts is killing us and Kemba so we absolutely have to put Lance on the 2nd unit.

MasterIchiro wrote:Kemba Walker - PG
Gerald Henderson - SG (turn him into Afflalo via trade or if Hendo opts out use the money towards Afflalo in free agency)
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist - SF
Cody Zeller - PF
Bismack Biyombo - C

The 1st unit continues to produce at the current clip or even better if Afflalo or a comparable shooter is added in place of Hendo. This simply creates more open space for Kemba and we already see how the absence of Al clogging driving lanes has benefited Kemba.

Brian Roberts - PG
Lance Stephenson - SG
PJ Hairston - SF
Marvin Williams - PF
Al Jefferson - C

The key here is Al and Lance would turn our bench from a huge liability to a significant asset. That 2nd unit works for Roberts with Lance as ball handler and it works for Al being surrounded by 3 shooters and a playmaker. It works for Kemba because you can keep Roberts on the floor longer with Lance running offense.

This way we get better overall now and develop better for the future and don't have to sell off assets for pennies on the dollar.

yosemiteben wrote:All depends on what Lance looks like, but I don't think running him with Al is going to end as the best strategy.

Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford gets a lot of questions these days about who does and doesn’t play in any given game.

His reply?

“You can’t play them all,” Clifford said Wednesday, following a 78-76 victory over the Miami Heat.

Some of the questions media and fans are asking: Will center Bismack Biyombo still have a featured role once Al Jefferson regains game shape? Why does rookie P.J. Hairston play in some games and not others? How does backup point guard Brian Roberts fit in with Kemba Walker getting back to heavy minutes?

Those questions harken back to what has been a season-long problem: The series of injuries to core players has made it hard for Clifford to set a rotation where players know precisely what their roles are.

“We haven’t established playing groups,” Clifford said, and by that he means some players (Hairston, Gary Neal and Roberts, for instance) play heavy minutes one game and little or none the next.

That’s not how Clifford wants to coach. He’d prefer to narrow the rotation to no more than nine players who could count on steady enough minutes to establish a rhythm the rest of the season.

Clifford played 10 against the Heat, which he says is one too many. Eleven he considers out of the question.

“Playing 10 is not good coaching,” Clifford said. “To really play really good, you play nine. Playing 11 is impossible.”

Clifford said Monday he’d like to play Hairston more than he has, but there just aren’t enough minutes. He emphasized Wednesday that Hairston not playing wasn’t about how he’s performed, but rather the circumstance of having an abundance of wings.

“It’s not really a reflection on him,” Clifford said. “I’ve said he has a bright future.”

Something similar happened early last season when Clifford chose to sit Ben Gordon in order to get steadier minutes for Jeff Taylor. Clifford’s philosophy is players can’t perform playing only spot minutes.

“It’s very, very difficult to play well if a player is getting 12 minutes a night,” Clifford said.

As an example, Clifford mentioned how Roberts thrived when an injury to Walker raised his playing time to 20 or more minutes a game. That isn’t always possible because Walker is so crucial to the Hornets’ offense.

Bottom-line, Clifford has to move toward a more settled rotation in the remaining 39 games and have players accept those decisions.

“That’s going to be key for our team,” Clifford said. “Figuring out how best to do it and then guys embracing their roles.”

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2015/0 ... MGTgHMo6tU#storylink=cpy

JDR720 wrote:

Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford gets a lot of questions these days about who does and doesn’t play in any given game.

His reply?

“You can’t play them all,” Clifford said Wednesday, following a 78-76 victory over the Miami Heat.

Some of the questions media and fans are asking: Will center Bismack Biyombo still have a featured role once Al Jefferson regains game shape? Why does rookie P.J. Hairston play in some games and not others? How does backup point guard Brian Roberts fit in with Kemba Walker getting back to heavy minutes?

Those questions harken back to what has been a season-long problem: The series of injuries to core players has made it hard for Clifford to set a rotation where players know precisely what their roles are.

“We haven’t established playing groups,” Clifford said, and by that he means some players (Hairston, Gary Neal and Roberts, for instance) play heavy minutes one game and little or none the next.

That’s not how Clifford wants to coach. He’d prefer to narrow the rotation to no more than nine players who could count on steady enough minutes to establish a rhythm the rest of the season.

Clifford played 10 against the Heat, which he says is one too many. Eleven he considers out of the question.

“Playing 10 is not good coaching,” Clifford said. “To really play really good, you play nine. Playing 11 is impossible.”

Clifford said Monday he’d like to play Hairston more than he has, but there just aren’t enough minutes. He emphasized Wednesday that Hairston not playing wasn’t about how he’s performed, but rather the circumstance of having an abundance of wings.

“It’s not really a reflection on him,” Clifford said. “I’ve said he has a bright future.”

Something similar happened early last season when Clifford chose to sit Ben Gordon in order to get steadier minutes for Jeff Taylor. Clifford’s philosophy is players can’t perform playing only spot minutes.

“It’s very, very difficult to play well if a player is getting 12 minutes a night,” Clifford said.

As an example, Clifford mentioned how Roberts thrived when an injury to Walker raised his playing time to 20 or more minutes a game. That isn’t always possible because Walker is so crucial to the Hornets’ offense.

Bottom-line, Clifford has to move toward a more settled rotation in the remaining 39 games and have players accept those decisions.

“That’s going to be key for our team,” Clifford said. “Figuring out how best to do it and then guys embracing their roles.”

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2015/0 ... MGTgHMo6tU#storylink=cpy

Im not sure a 9 man rotation is possible for this team

JDR720 wrote:Im not sure a 9 man rotation is possible for this team

Liver_Pooty wrote:Can't play Lance with Kemba. Apparently can't play him with Jefferson. Him and Zeller havent been on the same page multiple times as well. Maybe Lance should change his game up a little bit to fit others.

catch20two wrote:

Liver_Pooty wrote:Can't play Lance with Kemba. Apparently can't play him with Jefferson. Him and Zeller havent been on the same page multiple times as well. Maybe Lance should change his game up a little bit to fit others.

My question is what type of player fit next to Lance? He don't pass the ball on time to perimeter players because he's too busy dribbling or stopping the ball. Him and Biz work because Biz defender never even pay him any attention because he's not a scoring threat. But outside of Biz nobody actually benefits from Lance. Personally I want Lance traded but nobody want him so we gotta play him until he either (a) fit in or (b) build his trade value up enough to dump him or (c) none of the above and just become a horrible contract that we have to eat while giving him DNPS.

Liver_Pooty wrote:

catch20two wrote:

Liver_Pooty wrote:Can't play Lance with Kemba. Apparently can't play him with Jefferson. Him and Zeller havent been on the same page multiple times as well. Maybe Lance should change his game up a little bit to fit others.

My question is what type of player fit next to Lance? He don't pass the ball on time to perimeter players because he's too busy dribbling or stopping the ball. Him and Biz work because Biz defender never even pay him any attention because he's not a scoring threat. But outside of Biz nobody actually benefits from Lance. Personally I want Lance traded but nobody want him so we gotta play him until he either (a) fit in or (b) build his trade value up enough to dump him or (c) none of the above and just become a horrible contract that we have to eat while giving him DNPS.

He needs to focus on just facilitating. I don't care what anyone says he was a 4th option a lot of the time last year behind George, Hibbert, and Hill. He let the offseason hype get to his head. He can still be a great contributor, but he's going to have to change his game up.