Add one player game . . . .

[Menace2Sobriety]

IMO they player would need to be:
- Alpha type personality and hyper competitive
- Elite or potentially elite both offensively and defensively
- Front court, pairs well with Zinger and Deni
- Not an ****

This leads me to Giannis or if looking longer term, Mobley.

Morris
Beal
Deni
Giannis
Zinger

[Dat2U]

Swap out Gafford with Jokic and you got a legit contender.

[bsilver]

Assuming starting lineup of PG-Morris, SG-Beal, SF-Kuzma, PF-Porzingus,C-Gafford, I'd go with,
PG-Morant - replace boring with excitement
SG-SGA - replace too small and horrible contract with great size and contract
SF- Durant - replace inefficiency/inconsistency with maybe greatest offensive forward of all time
PF - Giannis - by far the best
C - Embiid - Tired of Gafford pushed around. Jokic may be better, but don't see him working well with Porzingus.

And the winner is Durant. I think Kuzma is our weakest link.

[NatP4]

Jaren Jackson would make this team a contender

Morris Wright
Beal Nunn
Kuzma Kispert
Porzingis Avdija
Jackson Gafford

[payitforward]

I think we're really just one stud PG away from being competitive. Anyone from Jamal Murray on up works: Fox, Haliburton, Garland, SGA, Dame, Ja, Kyrie....

Add a better player, & you're a better team.
But... that's true for any team. It doesn't say anything particular about this particular team.
Not to mention that our biggest problems are NOT at PG. That's a myth.

2 swaps gets us to be actual contenders... upgrade Kuzma to a Markkannen, Luka, Tatum, Butler level SF....

Oh?
You think Luka instead of Kuzma makes us better...? Let me think about that....
Yeah! You're right!

Was this post really necessary, PIF?

I meant a light-hearted joke & no more! Gotta find an emoji that communicates it correctly.

Hey pancakes3 -- I'd love to have any of the players you mention!

[JAR69]

Thanks. Toaster was just the strangest one, I work with a lot of autistic and developmentally challenged kids and they were just throwing random words at each other it seemed.

I've also had a class on insulting people directly and not their mothers as well as a recent one on insults that carry racial or other components (monkey, moron, etc.) that can come across as much nastier than you actually meant.

Also would have been a great opportunity to play some ska (and reggae and dancehall ...), where "toasting" has a long tradition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toasting_(Jamaican_music) And has links to hip hop. https://dancehallgeographies.wordpress.com/2013/11/10/retrospecting-musically-the-link-between-ska-toasting-hip-hop-and-dancehall/

Have some U Roy. [url]

Watch on YouTube

[/url]

[payitforward]

you're a towel

Is this a legit trash talking term? One year before I started coaching, I was listening to the guys playing at lunch and one of them was like, "You're a toaster."

The next day I had a full period discussion in my English class on how to trash talk effectively.

trash talk has no rules, man.

towel is a south park reference, and i'm sure is not cool w the kids any more. toaster sounds like praise to me. i'm a toaster bc i'm toasting you fools. but also, i'm a bad toaster and i make burnt toast. bad wiring.

Pancakes -- per other post, honestly, I really didn't mean anything at all by my Luka "joke."

Still, I'll try never to toast the towel again -- hope my apology's accepted!

[pancakes3]

Is this a legit trash talking term? One year before I started coaching, I was listening to the guys playing at lunch and one of them was like, "You're a toaster."

The next day I had a full period discussion in my English class on how to trash talk effectively.

trash talk has no rules, man.

towel is a south park reference, and i'm sure is not cool w the kids any more. toaster sounds like praise to me. i'm a toaster bc i'm toasting you fools. but also, i'm a bad toaster and i make burnt toast. bad wiring.

Pancakes -- per other post, honestly, I really didn't mean anything at all by my Luka "joke."

Still, I'll try never to toast the towel again -- hope my apology's accepted!

I didn't think anything of it. We're all sarcastic curmudgeons on this board. Keep toasting, brother.

[payitforward]

[doclinkin]

Also would have been a great opportunity to play some ska (and reggae and dancehall ...), where "toasting" has a long tradition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toasting_(Jamaican_music) And has links to hip hop. https://dancehallgeographies.wordpress.com/2013/11/10/retrospecting-musically-the-link-between-ska-toasting-hip-hop-and-dancehall/

Links. Hell, hip hop exists in large part because of DJ Kool Herc, born and raised in Jamaica, spinning break beats and toasting over the top of it.

Watch on YouTube

I remember when outdoor parties started playing just the breakbeats, when it started to spread in the 100 mile radius around NYC, and DJ's keeping up patter on top of it, before it became real rapping and scratching.

[JAR69]

Also would have been a great opportunity to play some ska (and reggae and dancehall ...), where "toasting" has a long tradition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toasting_(Jamaican_music) And has links to hip hop. https://dancehallgeographies.wordpress.com/2013/11/10/retrospecting-musically-the-link-between-ska-toasting-hip-hop-and-dancehall/

Links. Hell, hip hop exists in large part because of DJ Kool Herc, born and raised in Jamaica, spinning break beats and toasting over the top of it.

Watch on YouTube

I remember when outdoor parties started playing just the breakbeats, when it started to spread in the 100 mile radius around NYC, and DJ's keeping up patter on top of it, before it became real rapping and scratching.

Oh, I’m staying out of the Pete DJ Jones vs. DJ Kool Herc argument.

(But I agree there is a straight line from Jamaica to hip-hop.)

[Ruzious]

Matt McClung. But seriously, either Luka or Ja. I like NatP4's choice of JJJ - if I could add 2 players, he'd be my second choice.

[payitforward]

Ruz -- your pick of McClung made me think of a variant on this game.

Suppose we think not of adding a player but of replacing one.
& suppose we approach this differently -- not who is the single star/superstar (like Morant, Durant...) but who's an under the radar, under-valued guy at the same position of the guy we're replacing -- someone you might not think of otherwise but who would, or at least might, make us significantly better?

Since Kuzma is in question anyway, given he's turning down his option, let's start by asking for a relatively (or totally) unheralded player who would actually make us better if he replaced Kuz on the roster? Or at least might do so?

[B8RcDeMktfxC]

Ruz -- your pick of McClung made me think of a variant on this game.

Suppose we think not of adding a player but of replacing one.
& suppose we approach this differently -- not who is the single star/superstar (like Morant, Durant...) but who's an under the radar, under-valued guy at the same position of the guy we're replacing -- someone you might not think of otherwise but who would, or at least might, make us significantly better?

Since Kuzma is in question anyway, given he's turning down his option, let's start by asking for a relatively (or totally) unheralded player who would actually make us better if he replaced Kuz on the roster? Or at least might do so?

Randle? I mean, he's formally an all-star, but (I) the cojoice of Knick dhould probably have been Brunson and (ii) his contract is something like 103/4.

[doclinkin]

Ruz -- your pick of McClung made me think of a variant on this game.

Suppose we think not of adding a player but of replacing one.
& suppose we approach this differently -- not who is the single star/superstar (like Morant, Durant...) but who's an under the radar, under-valued guy at the same position of the guy we're replacing -- someone you might not think of otherwise but who would, or at least might, make us significantly better?

Since Kuzma is in question anyway, given he's turning down his option, let's start by asking for a relatively (or totally) unheralded player who would actually make us better if he replaced Kuz on the roster? Or at least might do so?

Right? Wish I had thought of this question before. Hmm, if I had to do this exercise I think I might go with something like this:

The game then changes to picking a Diamond in the Rough. (DITR)

The exercise is: what team has a bench player who is highly productive in the minutes they play, but who is starved for minutes behind a big name/better paid star, or who split minutes on a deep bench. Search for whatever criteria you like, restricted to players who currently earn 20 mins/game or less.

With this metric I'd be looking at:

Isaiah Joe SG -- OKC. Playing behind SGA, but posting 2FG/3FG of .531/.458 and per 36 minutes would be earning 20 pts, 5rb, 1.5 steals

Santi Aldama F --MEM. Behind JJJ. And splitting minutes with Brandon Clarke. Shooting .603/.367. With a Per36 of 16/8rb/1s/1b. Not strictly stunning numbers per 36 but he showed a big jump in efficiency from last year.

Replacing Kuz with Santi Aldama seems like a similar type player with better shooting, if lesser boardwork.

And yes of course Brandon Clarke, who is the exact sort of player I'd like to play next to Porzingis. But good luck prying either away from the Grizz.

Xavier Tillman is unrestricted though. His 3FG and FT% are trash, but he's a smart savvy player in other respects. XT with a shot guru?

[payitforward]

Yes, I'd forgotten your mention of Aldama & Joe, but it must have been active in my mind subliminally, because those would have been among the first guy's I thought of along those lines.

I don't know what they're feeding Isaiah Joe in Oklahoma City, but he seems to be a completely transformed player. Guy played 992 awful minutes for Philly in 2 years. He's only playing about 15-16 minutes a game for OKC this year, but he's just absolutely killing it.

Presti won't trade him I don't think. Not for a reasonable price that is.