Preseason GT # 4| Wiz vs Raps - Oct 20 @ 730 pm Eastern TSN/1050

[Johnny Bball]

Agree. The idea of what FVV provides was always beneficial. He could have been the perfect PG. But his personality always got in the way and I never trusted his ego to adapt.

Look at what siakam has had to do in this system. I still think he needs the ball more, but he's had to swallow his pride to Play in this system. Sometimes he's just standing in the corner, as a result. Does anyone really think fvv would've been okay barely touching the ball.

To answer these kind of FVV questions, just go back to the beginning of last year. He started training camp and the first 5 or so games as a more traditional PG with good ball movement and getting teammates involved. Then he had a few games off with back issues. When he came back, it was chuckfest Fred again and early Fred never returned. Then we saw his appearance with JJ Reddick, I think, where he complained of his early season role and what the team wanted from him. Fred was a guy that ultimately did his own thing, turns out.

Dammit, I hate talking about that guy. Last time

People forget. Siakam got hurt, missed almost November. Nurse changed it all back to FVV on ball. Then Siakam came back. The same game Nurse benched GTJ and Barnes. That wasn't FVV benching them. Then it all fell apart in December. These aren't coincidences. But yeah, it should end soon enough.

[mihaic]

I know some of you want to think its FVV, but the person running the offense was in fact Nurse. Because the ball movement now isn't because of new players and isn't his replacement Schroder making the difference, its a new coach (and directive from up on high) to get back a better way of playing.

Yeah, but the players doing it have to buy in and imo this type of style isn't suited for FVV's game.

We shared the ball well in 2019-20 and he fit fine. Every time I hear anyone in the NBA talk about FVV its that he can adapt to a number of styles and play beside anyone. I mean, he's gone and I could care less at this point, but there is the reality. The bigger problem with FVV isn't that he couldn't play that way, its that he is oft-injured and it really impacts his game more than most apparently, and he might be still injured.

I was thinking about this. I think he was kept in check by Lowry. He always looked up to Lowry.

[mihaic]

His body would combust if he was a starter.

He cannot play more than 4-5 minutes a half for sure, and you'd have to hide him on whoever the 5th starter is, but it's a very low responsibility role. He'll be asked to stretch the floor and cut and move in motion when necessary, but the rest of the starters would do all the heavy lifting.

We're just trying to make those initial Poetl minutes functional in the halfcourt.

Pöltl or Schröder initial minutes you mean. The Pöltl/Schröder won't work well enough since neither can shoot and the spacing in that starting unit is bad. The only shooter in that starting lineup is OG and he is not much of a release valve since he struggles to attack closeouts and put the ball on the floor. The starting unit has gotten off to slow starts in the preseason and Darko will most likely have to change it cause against good defensive teams it will get ugly or make quick subs. Schröder is the least tenured player, is the worst player in that starting five IMHO, has the smallest contract and is the clear answer to remove for better spacing. Also Schröder has been a backup for many years so why pretend he is a starter now. It's funny cause that unit starts together yet Darko waits so long into the 2nd to bring them back together. When we made our runs it was Scottie/Pascal with spacing. We all know that unit won't end much games together so starting them is being stubborn. Lastly Darko starting his guy is a bit like Nurse with Fred and we don't want anymore favorites this year. If it works great but if not win the locker room and fanbase and just start Gary who has earned it and has serious chemistry with Barnes.

If preseason is any indication Darko wants a PG at all times on the floor.

[bballsparkin]

Watch on YouTube

;si=ehzON-d4Ksv0-pPQ

That last play with the bench players moving the ball and getting the ball to Flynn for the best shot was lovely. I have no shade against NN but at the same time, ...see ya coach!

[bballsparkin]

Pöltl or Schröder initial minutes you mean. The Pöltl/Schröder won't work well enough since neither can shoot and the spacing in that starting unit is bad. The only shooter in that starting lineup is OG and he is not much of a release valve since he struggles to attack closeouts and put the ball on the floor. The starting unit has gotten off to slow starts in the preseason and Darko will most likely have to change it cause against good defensive teams it will get ugly or make quick subs. Schröder is the least tenured player, is the worst player in that starting five IMHO, has the smallest contract and is the clear answer to remove for better spacing. Also Schröder has been a backup for many years so why pretend he is a starter now. It's funny cause that unit starts together yet Darko waits so long into the 2nd to bring them back together. When we made our runs it was Scottie/Pascal with spacing. We all know that unit won't end much games together so starting them is being stubborn. Lastly Darko starting his guy is a bit like Nurse with Fred and we don't want anymore favorites this year. If it works great but if not win the locker room and fanbase and just start Gary who has earned it and has serious chemistry with Barnes.

It's a bit of politics. Gary is expiring and younger so showing Schroder some respect. Perhaps coach sees Schroder as the teams only viable PG at the moment. If it doesn't work out hopefully Darko is not stubborn like NN.

[Rodrickle]

Really a fan of Dreadhead Kobe. JFL had his birthday yesterday and he could have been selfish and chucked shots, but instead he was boarding and kicking out to shooters and just being the best type of teammate.

To me, he could be a future x-factor for this team. He just seems so much stronger than all our other guards and his drives are powerful as a result - no one is knocking him off balance. In a half year I might even like him better than Gary.

Maybe it’s the dreads but he gave jrue vibes.

Its the dreads. They’re not the same type of player.

He looks really good, especially with his decision making. Was reading a Bulls article about how similar he is statwise in the G league to Spencer Dimwiddie back in the day. JFL's stats are actually slightly better with the same Bulls G league team. Similar situation where the Bulls didnt retain him. Spencer then went to the Nets and turned out to be a pretty good player.

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[Winterfrost]

Yeah, but the players doing it have to buy in and imo this type of style isn't suited for FVV's game.

We shared the ball well in 2019-20 and he fit fine. Every time I hear anyone in the NBA talk about FVV its that he can adapt to a number of styles and play beside anyone. I mean, he's gone and I could care less at this point, but there is the reality. The bigger problem with FVV isn't that he couldn't play that way, its that he is oft-injured and it really impacts his game more than most apparently, and he might be still injured.

I was thinking about this. I think he was kept in check by Lowry. He always looked up to Lowry.

Yeah I agree with this. FVV I think would work well in a team with established vets that he respects and if he stays healthy. He clearly has shown in the championship run that he can be a great role player and isn’t afraid to take clutch shots when needed by the team. Last year being a contract year on a team that’s not going anywhere that season, surrounded by younger players that he didn’t trust I think is what caused the selfish playstyle that we saw. And I hope he does well in Houston but for where the Raptors are right now, I’m glad we didn’t re-sign him.

[HiJiNX]

Of course I'm loving what I see from Scottie because he's showing more aggressiveness & the shot seems like it's cleaning up...it's reminding me how Pascal's shot progressed which is exciting af since Scottie's so much stronger to do even more damage around the post & his passing...

I do like Darko's added ball movement BUUUUUT we didn't face any good defensive teams so I think some of you need to pump the brakes on acting like we're set to have a great season. I need to see what it looks like by say mid-season once teams have started to scout the changes we made & the better defensive teams make those jumpers tougher.

Personally I'm still not sold we're a Playoff team...but I'm encouraged.

It’s a good thing most teams in the league aren’t great defensive teams.

I know, I know—we should temper expectations and whatnot because preseason success can be an illusion. But the reality is this team looks good. And the way that we play can be effective against any team because it’s not about your two or three most talented players doing the work, it’s truly a team oriented approach that if executed properly and with consistency, should garner success against most opponents.

[Nebuchadnezzar]

All that really matters for this team is if Scottie can hit threes as it unlocks a number of things:
1. His ability to keep defences honest, opening up his attacks at the basket.

2. Helps prevent defences from doubling in Pascal, making Pascal unstoppable in the post

3.wheras before his presence was a net negative behind the line, if he is one more shooter on the outside the raptors can have 3 and 4 three points threats at a time on the floor along with Scottie and Pascal - which was difficult last year.

[Chalky_White]

Really a fan of Dreadhead Kobe. JFL had his birthday yesterday and he could have been selfish and chucked shots, but instead he was boarding and kicking out to shooters and just being the best type of teammate.

To me, he could be a future x-factor for this team. He just seems so much stronger than all our other guards and his drives are powerful as a result - no one is knocking him off balance. In a half year I might even like him better than Gary.

He's been very good so far, just as he was in summer league. I can see him stepping in for a larger role if the team deals Gary at the deadline if they don't think they'll be able to re-sign him.
Like you said he's been really good fitting to be a connector on offense and also scoring when needed to. These type of players tend to stick around and make good money fulfilling needed roles on winning teams. Still surprised Bulls were fine with letting him go.

[Los_29]

I’m definitely much more impressed with some of our bench options this year. McDaniels looks good and will serve an important role this year. That’s 15-20 minutes a game from the bench that we didn’t have last year. Gradey is going to figure it out and his shot alone addresses a huge need for this team. If Precious can have a bounce back year then our depth is going to be much better than last year.

[Zeno]

I think part of our problem to start games is the beginning possessions are halfcourt ones. If the defensive intensity isn’t there to start the game, we going to be down after the first 4 minutes in nearly every game no matter starts. We should maybe try intentionally losing the tip and focus on getting stops and getting out and running right away.

[ATLTimekeeper]

Of course I'm loving what I see from Scottie because he's showing more aggressiveness & the shot seems like it's cleaning up...it's reminding me how Pascal's shot progressed which is exciting af since Scottie's so much stronger to do even more damage around the post & his passing...

I do like Darko's added ball movement BUUUUUT we didn't face any good defensive teams so I think some of you need to pump the brakes on acting like we're set to have a great season. I need to see what it looks like by say mid-season once teams have started to scout the changes we made & the better defensive teams make those jumpers tougher.

Personally I'm still not sold we're a Playoff team...but I'm encouraged.

It’s a good thing most teams in the league aren’t great defensive teams.

I know, I know—we should temper expectations and whatnot because preseason success can be an illusion. But the reality is this team looks good. And the way that we play can be effective against any team because it’s not about your two or three most talented players doing the work, it’s truly a team oriented approach that if executed properly and with consistency, should garner success against most opponents.

I disagree, mostly because good teams control the pace and that would expose our critical flaws. I think we can scrap to .500ish with top 5 defense, but that takes a load of togetherness. Darko may care about each and everyone on the team, but I think Masai has made it clear he's more about transactional relationships with this team. And with only so much cap to give to three potential UFAs, the togetherness is closer to the first episode of Survivor where everyone is just happy to be there. Once the losses materialize, the knives come out.

[HiJiNX]

Of course I'm loving what I see from Scottie because he's showing more aggressiveness & the shot seems like it's cleaning up...it's reminding me how Pascal's shot progressed which is exciting af since Scottie's so much stronger to do even more damage around the post & his passing...

I do like Darko's added ball movement BUUUUUT we didn't face any good defensive teams so I think some of you need to pump the brakes on acting like we're set to have a great season. I need to see what it looks like by say mid-season once teams have started to scout the changes we made & the better defensive teams make those jumpers tougher.

Personally I'm still not sold we're a Playoff team...but I'm encouraged.

It’s a good thing most teams in the league aren’t great defensive teams.

I know, I know—we should temper expectations and whatnot because preseason success can be an illusion. But the reality is this team looks good. And the way that we play can be effective against any team because it’s not about your two or three most talented players doing the work, it’s truly a team oriented approach that if executed properly and with consistency, should garner success against most opponents.

I disagree, mostly because good teams control the pace and that would expose our critical flaws. I think we can scrap to .500ish with top 5 defense, but that takes a load of togetherness. Darko may care about each and everyone on the team, but I think Masai has made it clear he's more about transactional relationships with this team. And with only so much cap to give to three potential UFAs, the togetherness is closer to the first episode of Survivor where everyone is just happy to be there. Once the losses materialize, the knives come out.

I don’t disagree with your premise. I agree that good teams will expose our flaws, because the flaws we have are glaring. I just don’t think there are that many teams in the league that will be able to do that, and in particular, I feel confident that there are more teams that won’t be able to flummox our system than those that will be able to. With that perspective, mathematically speaking, we will win more games than we will lose. I wouldn’t be surprised to see us win 45-48 games.

[Agimat]

Really a fan of Dreadhead Kobe. JFL had his birthday yesterday and he could have been selfish and chucked shots, but instead he was boarding and kicking out to shooters and just being the best type of teammate.

To me, he could be a future x-factor for this team. He just seems so much stronger than all our other guards and his drives are powerful as a result - no one is knocking him off balance. In a half year I might even like him better than Gary.

He's been very good so far, just as he was in summer league. I can see him stepping in for a larger role if the team deals Gary at the deadline if they don't think they'll be able to re-sign him.
Like you said he's been really good fitting to be a connector on offense and also scoring when needed to. These type of players tend to stick around and make good money fulfilling needed roles on winning teams. Still surprised Bulls were fine with letting him go.

Quite the opposite, ask the Bulls fans

[NBA Sheady]

Yes, it's preseason but it's also only 4 games with a new coach and system. In theory our offensive execution should get much better.