toooskies wrote:jbk1234 wrote:toooskies wrote:Starting Sexton is still very much on the table if we bring Sexton back. If we're treating him as a bench guy we may as well trade him to Dallas now, no team is going to be as desperate and willing to pay for him as they probably are.
We shifted to tall-ball last year because we ostensibly had 4 viable big men for only two spots on the court-- specifically three players whose best position is PF. This year, the glut is worse at SG than it was at PF last year, with four guys who should be playing SG. I certainly wouldn't rule out a trade to balance the roster, but seeing tall-ball go away and putting one of Agbaji/Okoro/LeVert at the starting 3 is certainly on the table. We might platoon the starting 3 depending on who we're playing.
Playing LeVert at the backup 3 in Cedi's role is also a pretty strong option, especially if Love/Markkanen/Agbaji are getting minutes with the second unit and we don't need Cedi's shooting as much.
I sincerely hope (and suspect tbh) the Cavs front office disagrees. Sexton should see as few minutes on the floor with both Allen and Mobley as possible unless or until he's better able to play within an organized offensive. Starting, and then demoting him, could have serious repercussions, and given the fact that JBB had already started benching him to close out game before he got injured, I suspect a demotion would be almost inevitable. The idea that you would pull Lauri's shooting out of the starting unit and swap him with Okoro/LeVert, so you can force Sexton into the starting unit, seems completely bonkers to me. The spacing would be irreparable and you would handicap two, if not all three, of your best players.
I would say that it's likely that the Cavs' front office is divided on the issue of what role Sexton should have (thus giving us a disproportionate number of "is he an NBA player"/"is he an NBA starter"/"he almost got benched" stories over the years for a young guy on a rebuilding team) but the decision makers have only put him in the starting role since a few weeks into his career. We don't talk about inevitable benching of LaMelo Ball just because he sometimes got pulled at the end of games last year (including against us). JBB was just working to establish with Rubio that he was viewed as sort of the 6th starter. JBB wanted to keep Sexton out there enough that he was willing to try Garland/Sexton/Rubio lineups to close games.
Ultimately what I'd say is that right now Sexton has the best chance of being the answer at the 2 on this roster long-term if Markkanen stays at the 3 because we need a second playmaker. (I know you like LeVert more in that role, and that's fine-- other than his height, though, he shares many of Sexton's weaknesses.) And even if we shift Markkanen to the backup 4 if/when Love departs, we don't have any idea who our 3 is going to be when that happens, so there's no point in planning around that hypothetical player's skillset.
Sight unseen, I'd actually like to se what Agbaji looks like as a starter, but I wouldn't *give* the starting job to anyone. The idea of max spacing with that starting unit so that Allen, Mobley, and Garland can all go to work is one I find very appealing. The answer to your secondary playmaker might be Mobley operating from the elbow. The officials don't allow as much physical play out there as they do around the rim.
I'm just skeptical that asking Sexton to change who he is will end well and who he is is a guy who likes to put the ball on the deck, drive, and use his speed to beat defenders to their spots. That's not going to work well with the Cavs starting lineup. Let Sexton be Sexton off the bench. As soon as Allen or Mobley goes to the bench, bring him in and leave him out there until both Allen and Mobley are back on the court together. There's plenty of minutes for him in that role.
I have LeVert as a hedge against Sexton leaving tbh and if the Cavs end up retaining Sexton, something that looks more plausible now than before the start of F.A., I think the Cavs should move him before the deadline unless both Okoro and Agbaji are playing too poorly to start. Honestly, if Rubio is back by the deadline, they should probably move LeVert regardless of how Okoro and Agbaji are playing.
