Fencer reregistered wrote:cloverleaf wrote:Fencer reregistered wrote:
I can certainly see Hayward going to the bench while he's still a better player than Langford. But, even with expected improvements from Tatum and Brown -- and the chance of Rob Williams eventually starting -- that could leave too little in the way of ball-handling in the starting unit. So Hayward's replacement in the starting unit might actually be Smart, with Langford ascending down the road in replacement of Walker.
So far at least Langford's not shown his purported PG skills at 0.6 assists per 36, but it seems contradictory to say that Langford shouldn't replace Hayward because of ballhandling and then that he could be Walker's replacement. (Again, I'm giving Romeo a full year off the bench but with big minutes next season.) Also, remember, Rob is a great passer and a year and a half from now, after a full year starting, they will likely really be taking advantage of that in the starting lineup, as well as the Jays having another year and a half to develop their playmaking.
In my hypothetical scenario, by the time Langford gets to the starting lineup, he's playing next to Smart rather than Walker, and everybody has had one or more extra seasons of development.
Presuming Hayward is back next year (and healthy) it should be what will turn out to be his best year on this contract--and I don't see any reason to start Smart ahead of him.