2022-23 Season Discussion and Speculation 5 - The KD era begins

[GreatSunnyNorth]

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Probably good to add:

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The best possible spin on Noel is as a fully-developed version of the defender Bazley might become - not quite a true big, but able to switch multiple positions and rack up stocks with length and athleticism. But that with near-zero offence doesn’t crack the regular rotation, and there aren’t many matchups where his D would be much of an upgrade over other depth options (Biz as a rim protector, Okogie as a perimeter disruptor).

So...this probably is the final version of the roster, isn’t it?

[Slim Charless]

I think TJ would be more likely than Jock. A guy not playing and likely for sure not here next year. They do like wing depth though. We will see.

Yeah I feel like if it's going to be TJ it will be done tomorrow out of respect for a veteran and his ability to catch on with another team.

But if I had to guess I'd say this is the 15 man roster they go into the playoffs with. If they have an injury to CP or Payne then it's Booker PG time vs playing any of these guys off the street.

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Yeah, Booker can play and KD can handle and is a very good passer. 5.3 apg this year and last year with Kyrie out more 6.4 apg. Then Shamet can play backup. I think we really have plenty of ballhandlers. Now if both CP3 and Payne are out, then it hurts, but hopefully that won't happen again (or worse yet, both of them and Booker out again...and Shamet).

Speaking of PGs and this is completely off the subject but Lamelo just broke his ankle today playing for a Hornet team going nowhere....

That kind of nonsense has to be frustrating, as is the buffoonary of the team and the cheapskateness of MJ. Point is....

What if he signs the QO? He'd be up for UFA, next summer but if he's over the Charlotte experience then he signs and he's done the following summer.

Coincidentally that's when cp3 is off our books, Ayton would be an expiring and I believe that's when the cap expands. Not a bad deal if we're a champ and need another star to carry us with Booker.

Food for thought

[lilfishi22]

Yeah I feel like if it's going to be TJ it will be done tomorrow out of respect for a veteran and his ability to catch on with another team.

But if I had to guess I'd say this is the 15 man roster they go into the playoffs with. If they have an injury to CP or Payne then it's Booker PG time vs playing any of these guys off the street.

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Yeah, Booker can play and KD can handle and is a very good passer. 5.3 apg this year and last year with Kyrie out more 6.4 apg. Then Shamet can play backup. I think we really have plenty of ballhandlers. Now if both CP3 and Payne are out, then it hurts, but hopefully that won't happen again (or worse yet, both of them and Booker out again...and Shamet).

Speaking of PGs and this is completely off the subject but Lamelo just broke his ankle today playing for a Hornet team going nowhere....

That kind of nonsense has to be frustrating, as is the buffoonary of the team and the cheapskateness of MJ. Point is....

What if he signs the QO? He'd be up for UFA, next summer but if he's over the Charlotte experience then he signs and he's done the following summer.

Coincidentally that's when cp3 is off our books, Ayton would be an expiring and I believe that's when the cap expands. Not a bad deal if we're a champ and need another star to carry us with Booker.

Food for thought

Unfortunate that family can't stay healthy. Lonzo hasn't played in a year and has already been ruled out for the season. Lamelo is probably done for the season, not that there was anything to play for. I feel for them. I really didn't like the Ball family when they were coming into the league but that was largely because of Lavar and his BS but both kids have turned into good to really good players without all that off-court distraction.

As for moving forward with Lamelo, I'd be super cautious. This isn't the first time Lamelo has dealt with ankle issues. I think he was kept out earlier in the season because of ankle issues.

[Ghost of Kleine]

Yeah, Booker can play and KD can handle and is a very good passer. 5.3 apg this year and last year with Kyrie out more 6.4 apg. Then Shamet can play backup. I think we really have plenty of ballhandlers. Now if both CP3 and Payne are out, then it hurts, but hopefully that won't happen again (or worse yet, both of them and Booker out again...and Shamet).

Speaking of PGs and this is completely off the subject but Lamelo just broke his ankle today playing for a Hornet team going nowhere....

That kind of nonsense has to be frustrating, as is the buffoonary of the team and the cheapskateness of MJ. Point is....

What if he signs the QO? He'd be up for UFA, next summer but if he's over the Charlotte experience then he signs and he's done the following summer.

Coincidentally that's when cp3 is off our books, Ayton would be an expiring and I believe that's when the cap expands. Not a bad deal if we're a champ and need another star to carry us with Booker.

Food for thought

Unfortunate that family can't stay healthy. Lonzo hasn't played in a year and has already been ruled out for the season. Lamelo is probably done for the season, not that there was anything to play for. I feel for them. I really didn't like the Ball family when they were coming into the league but that was largely because of Lavar and his BS but both kids have turned into good to really good players without all that off-court distraction.

As for moving forward with Lamelo, I'd be super cautious. This isn't the first time Lamelo has dealt with ankle issues. I think he was kept out earlier in the season because of ankle issues.

That's really unfortunate and I really feel for he and his brother! Long term injury concerns are horrible. But at least a top 2 pick and either Wemby or Scoot will be a really nice consolation prize for them this summer!

[lilfishi22]

Speaking of PGs and this is completely off the subject but Lamelo just broke his ankle today playing for a Hornet team going nowhere....

That kind of nonsense has to be frustrating, as is the buffoonary of the team and the cheapskateness of MJ. Point is....

What if he signs the QO? He'd be up for UFA, next summer but if he's over the Charlotte experience then he signs and he's done the following summer.

Coincidentally that's when cp3 is off our books, Ayton would be an expiring and I believe that's when the cap expands. Not a bad deal if we're a champ and need another star to carry us with Booker.

Food for thought

Unfortunate that family can't stay healthy. Lonzo hasn't played in a year and has already been ruled out for the season. Lamelo is probably done for the season, not that there was anything to play for. I feel for them. I really didn't like the Ball family when they were coming into the league but that was largely because of Lavar and his BS but both kids have turned into good to really good players without all that off-court distraction.

As for moving forward with Lamelo, I'd be super cautious. This isn't the first time Lamelo has dealt with ankle issues. I think he was kept out earlier in the season because of ankle issues.

That's really unfortunate and I really feel for he and his brother! Long term injury concerns are horrible. But at least a top 2 pick and either Wemby or Scoot will be a really nice consolation prize for them this summer!

I hope for Wemby's sake, he doesn't end up in Charlotte. I don't trust MJ to do right by Wemby

[Slim Charless]

Yeah, Booker can play and KD can handle and is a very good passer. 5.3 apg this year and last year with Kyrie out more 6.4 apg. Then Shamet can play backup. I think we really have plenty of ballhandlers. Now if both CP3 and Payne are out, then it hurts, but hopefully that won't happen again (or worse yet, both of them and Booker out again...and Shamet).

Speaking of PGs and this is completely off the subject but Lamelo just broke his ankle today playing for a Hornet team going nowhere....

That kind of nonsense has to be frustrating, as is the buffoonary of the team and the cheapskateness of MJ. Point is....

What if he signs the QO? He'd be up for UFA, next summer but if he's over the Charlotte experience then he signs and he's done the following summer.

Coincidentally that's when cp3 is off our books, Ayton would be an expiring and I believe that's when the cap expands. Not a bad deal if we're a champ and need another star to carry us with Booker.

Food for thought

Unfortunate that family can't stay healthy. Lonzo hasn't played in a year and has already been ruled out for the season. Lamelo is probably done for the season, not that there was anything to play for. I feel for them. I really didn't like the Ball family when they were coming into the league but that was largely because of Lavar and his BS but both kids have turned into good to really good players without all that off-court distraction.

As for moving forward with Lamelo, I'd be super cautious. This isn't the first time Lamelo has dealt with ankle issues. I think he was kept out earlier in the season because of ankle issues.

He has. That's my point. Charlotte should've shelved him and made 100% sure he was good to go. They're playing for Wemby anyways and now they might've done God knows what kind of damage to the 1 player that's worth anything on that team.

He had like 4 sprains before this. No reason to play him. I imagine Mike had something to do with it. He seems like the type of person to force that on his players.

Could come back to bite them as Melo could just say "**** it. I'm out" when it's time to pay him.

[lilfishi22]

Speaking of PGs and this is completely off the subject but Lamelo just broke his ankle today playing for a Hornet team going nowhere....

That kind of nonsense has to be frustrating, as is the buffoonary of the team and the cheapskateness of MJ. Point is....

What if he signs the QO? He'd be up for UFA, next summer but if he's over the Charlotte experience then he signs and he's done the following summer.

Coincidentally that's when cp3 is off our books, Ayton would be an expiring and I believe that's when the cap expands. Not a bad deal if we're a champ and need another star to carry us with Booker.

Food for thought

Unfortunate that family can't stay healthy. Lonzo hasn't played in a year and has already been ruled out for the season. Lamelo is probably done for the season, not that there was anything to play for. I feel for them. I really didn't like the Ball family when they were coming into the league but that was largely because of Lavar and his BS but both kids have turned into good to really good players without all that off-court distraction.

As for moving forward with Lamelo, I'd be super cautious. This isn't the first time Lamelo has dealt with ankle issues. I think he was kept out earlier in the season because of ankle issues.

He has. That's my point. Charlotte should've shelved him and made 100% sure he was good to go. They're playing for Wemby anyways and now they might've done God knows what kind of damage to the 1 player that's worth anything on that team.

He had like 4 sprains before this. No reason to play him. I imagine Mike had something to do with it. He seems like the type of person to force that on his players.

Could come back to bite them as Melo could just say "**** it. I'm out" when it's time to pay him.

My point being I don't want him going forward even if he's available. Dude has had way too many lower body injuries for me to feel comfortable about his health going forward.

[NapoleonII]

Once KD's back, we should remove Cam Payne from the playoff rotation and go big when CP3's on the bench.

CP3 and Payne are hit-and-miss on offense, and too often they're more miss than hit. It's simply risky to give all our PG minutes to those two. But Paul will play. Ross, Lee and Warren can shoot - so can Shamet and maybe even Bazley. Those guys should take all of Cam's minutes. Okogie can guard ones, so he should come off the bench for Paul. Paul, KD and Booker should handle the PG duties.

It follows that unless we want Okogie playing 34 MPG, we should bring him off the bench - so Craig starting next to KD. I know for most of you it's a foregone conclusion that Torrey will get start so I'm not saying very much there.

Payne's important. It may not look so in his first game back after a long time off, but he is very important as not only backup PG but as a potential Paul starting replacement when Paul goes down. He is solid with the starters.

Payne has shot over 38% from 3 this year...that's better than Shamet, CP3, Book, Okogie, Wainwright, Ross,etc, and has a 2.5-1 ast/to ratio which is pretty strong for a PG, particularly a backup. Payne's also better from 2 than Shamet. Neither are great, but Shamet is below 39% from 2.

As long as Payne isn't still hurting he will look a lot better once the rust wears off.

I want to believe this, but look at Payne's last couple of series in the playoffs.

He's been hot trash A LOT of the time against playoff defense.

I think this idea might be worth exploring. Monty tries some pretty wonky **** sometimes when it comes to lineups, and if Payne continues stinking it up, I could see the already short leash on him being exchanged for a dog house.

I still believe point Book can work in spurts, especially with KD and Okogie's handling the ball now.

Book
D. Lee (or Shamet)
Okogie
Durant
Jock

and just get out in transition while CP3 rests.

Or hell, give Saben Lee a look and mix it up with TJ Warren.

Saben Lee
D. Lee
TJ Warren
Craig
Jock

[GreatSunnyNorth]

Once KD's back, we should remove Cam Payne from the playoff rotation and go big when CP3's on the bench.

CP3 and Payne are hit-and-miss on offense, and too often they're more miss than hit. It's simply risky to give all our PG minutes to those two. But Paul will play. Ross, Lee and Warren can shoot - so can Shamet and maybe even Bazley. Those guys should take all of Cam's minutes. Okogie can guard ones, so he should come off the bench for Paul. Paul, KD and Booker should handle the PG duties.

It follows that unless we want Okogie playing 34 MPG, we should bring him off the bench - so Craig starting next to KD. I know for most of you it's a foregone conclusion that Torrey will get start so I'm not saying very much there.

Payne's important. It may not look so in his first game back after a long time off, but he is very important as not only backup PG but as a potential Paul starting replacement when Paul goes down. He is solid with the starters.

Payne has shot over 38% from 3 this year...that's better than Shamet, CP3, Book, Okogie, Wainwright, Ross,etc, and has a 2.5-1 ast/to ratio which is pretty strong for a PG, particularly a backup. Payne's also better from 2 than Shamet. Neither are great, but Shamet is below 39% from 2.

As long as Payne isn't still hurting he will look a lot better once the rust wears off.

I want to believe this, but look at Payne's last couple of series in the playoffs.

He's been hot trash A LOT of the time against playoff defense.

I think this idea might be worth exploring. Monty tries some pretty wonky **** sometimes when it comes to lineups, and if Payne continues stinking it up, I could see the already short leash on him being exchanged for a dog house.

I still believe point Book can work in spurts, especially with KD and Okogie's handling the ball now.

Book
D. Lee (or Shamet)
Okogie
Durant
Jock

and just get out in transition while CP3 rests.

Or hell, give Saben Lee a look and mix it up with TJ Warren.

Saben Lee
D. Lee
TJ Warren
Craig
Jock

Isn’t the pattern that Payne forces bad shots when he’s the lone playmaker on an unskilled bench unit, but is much more effective (including as a starter in the postseason) when he can play off a primary scorer? As long as he’s teamed up with one or more of KD, Booker or Ross he should be fine.

[bwgood77]

Once KD's back, we should remove Cam Payne from the playoff rotation and go big when CP3's on the bench.

CP3 and Payne are hit-and-miss on offense, and too often they're more miss than hit. It's simply risky to give all our PG minutes to those two. But Paul will play. Ross, Lee and Warren can shoot - so can Shamet and maybe even Bazley. Those guys should take all of Cam's minutes. Okogie can guard ones, so he should come off the bench for Paul. Paul, KD and Booker should handle the PG duties.

It follows that unless we want Okogie playing 34 MPG, we should bring him off the bench - so Craig starting next to KD. I know for most of you it's a foregone conclusion that Torrey will get start so I'm not saying very much there.

Payne's important. It may not look so in his first game back after a long time off, but he is very important as not only backup PG but as a potential Paul starting replacement when Paul goes down. He is solid with the starters.

Payne has shot over 38% from 3 this year...that's better than Shamet, CP3, Book, Okogie, Wainwright, Ross,etc, and has a 2.5-1 ast/to ratio which is pretty strong for a PG, particularly a backup. Payne's also better from 2 than Shamet. Neither are great, but Shamet is below 39% from 2.

As long as Payne isn't still hurting he will look a lot better once the rust wears off.

I want to believe this, but look at Payne's last couple of series in the playoffs.

He's been hot trash A LOT of the time against playoff defense.

I think this idea might be worth exploring. Monty tries some pretty wonky **** sometimes when it comes to lineups, and if Payne continues stinking it up, I could see the already short leash on him being exchanged for a dog house.

I still believe point Book can work in spurts, especially with KD and Okogie's handling the ball now.

Book
D. Lee (or Shamet)
Okogie
Durant
Jock

and just get out in transition while CP3 rests.

Or hell, give Saben Lee a look and mix it up with TJ Warren.

Saben Lee
D. Lee
TJ Warren
Craig
Jock

Payne was bad last year. He's been pretty good this year overall..up and down and after injury has been struggling. I have been a proponent of Point Book in a post Paul world anyway since it may be hard to find a starting caliber PG after drafting Jalen Smith though so I'm certainly not opposed, but I doubt Payne would be out of rotation. Point Book works even better with KD there since he can definitely create for others well.

The only thing is, if Paul is out and Okogie and Craig are in there, the D could leave those guys and trap/double Book. That was one thing that was pointed out about Okogie bringing the ball up, that the D has to put a defender on him.

It just puts a lot more pressure on him to handle it even more than he does already. I think you definitely want a second guard that can handle and create.

[DirtyDez]

I’d give D-Rose a shot. I don’t trust him but I’ve never never been a Cam Payne guy either. He’s the opposite type of backup PG we need.

[POLI]

I feel sorry for Ball. Bad luck. Then he will be back for next season and everything will be forgotten.
Sometimes breaking a ankle is better than a bad twist. It has a better prognostic and is easier to heal.

I also feel sorry for LBJ. Once he has broken the record and the Lakers had done (stolen) that deal, he was en route to enlarge that record and then probably carry them to the PO. Now he probably will have to sit up the rest of the RS.

As per our things, I believe Noel would be a nice addition to intimidate and be a shoot changing player off the bench. He cannot do much more and even Biyombo, who I dislike as a player (not as a person, as he gives everything he has) can do that, more or less.

[collidingNeurons]

I’d give D-Rose a shot. I don’t trust him but I’ve never never been a Cam Payne guy either. He’s the opposite type of backup PG we need.

Rose's last day to be bought out is tomorrow if he is going to be part of the playoffs for his new team and he says he and NY haven't even discussed a buy out.. so it's pretty much Payne or John Wall at this point, and Wall looked terrible at the end of his clippers run

[Revived]

I know the salary cap has increased an insane amount and that’s the reason why but it’s still pretty crazy that Booker will earn more $$ in the last 2 years of his contract extension than Steve Nash did in the entirety of his career with the Suns.

Booker the last 2 years of his current contract: $120M
Steve Nash entire tenure with the Suns: $87 million

Shoot, DeAndre Ayton almost earns more in his current max contract alone ($133M) than Nash did in his entire career ($143M).

[King4Day]

I wonder if this is a precursor to a possible Rose buyout.

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[Saberestar]

I wonder if this is a precursor to a possible Rose buyout.

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It has to be done today, so probably not.

Players waived after March 1 are not eligible to play in that season’s playoffs. Effectively, that’s the last day for playoff teams to add anyone who is on another team’s roster after the trade deadline.

[SunsRback4Good]

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And the rich get richer.

[sunsbum]

Yeah I feel like if it's going to be TJ it will be done tomorrow out of respect for a veteran and his ability to catch on with another team.

But if I had to guess I'd say this is the 15 man roster they go into the playoffs with. If they have an injury to CP or Payne then it's Booker PG time vs playing any of these guys off the street.

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Yeah, Booker can play and KD can handle and is a very good passer. 5.3 apg this year and last year with Kyrie out more 6.4 apg. Then Shamet can play backup. I think we really have plenty of ballhandlers. Now if both CP3 and Payne are out, then it hurts, but hopefully that won't happen again (or worse yet, both of them and Booker out again...and Shamet).

Speaking of PGs and this is completely off the subject but Lamelo just broke his ankle today playing for a Hornet team going nowhere....

That kind of nonsense has to be frustrating, as is the buffoonary of the team and the cheapskateness of MJ. Point is....

What if he signs the QO? He'd be up for UFA, next summer but if he's over the Charlotte experience then he signs and he's done the following summer.

Coincidentally that's when cp3 is off our books, Ayton would be an expiring and I believe that's when the cap expands. Not a bad deal if we're a champ and need another star to carry us with Booker.

Food for thought

[King4Day]

0 chance Ball would take the QO. Charlotte will offer the max extension and he'll take it. With him now being injury prone, it's even more important that he take it and figure out the rest another time.
Charlotte could be really good if they get a top pick this year and get Bridges back (despite how bad a person he is, he's a difference maker on the court and it sounds like it's inevitable he'll return one day).

[Slim Charless]

0 chance Ball would take the QO. Charlotte will offer the max extension and he'll take it. With him now being injury prone, it's even more important that he take it and figure out the rest another time.
Charlotte could be really good if they get a top pick this year and get Bridges back (despite how bad a person he is, he's a difference maker on the court and it sounds like it's inevitable he'll return one day).

If you guys believe that the league decides things and the refs and everything else is rigged....then there's no way that Wemby plays 1 second in Charlotte.

That team is a dumpster fire. MJ sucks as an owner. It's a small market team with no history of developing players.