ChipotleWest wrote:Mavrelous wrote:ChipotleWest wrote:
Fair point, now do THJ and Maxi. They're hurting the team every time they're on the floor.
I'd give all THJ minutes to Hardy, but Maxi is needed, this team needs switchable stretch 5 for certain matchups, Maxi in 2022 was in a very bad shooting slump and woke up in the PO.
I don't see him being a stretch 5 anymore, he's not who he was 5 years ago. In the games when they kept him in instead of Gafford we got ran off the floor with 3's against us he didn't help at all. At least they figured out Gafford is too valuable to be benched. Between Maxi and Washington, Washington is the better defender and it's not close. Obviously Lively over him on defense as well.
I'd be fine with 10 minutes or less per game, but he still got 22 minutes against the Spurs tonight.
Maxi Kleber is not back in his form of 2022 playoffs. However, he is doing better than most casual fans see.
We won Spurs game by 6 points where Maxi Kleber posted +/- rating of +27.
I am not saying he is +27 level of star player or sth. This stat may have some flaws but this kind of discrepancy indicates that Maxi Kleber minutes were helpful for the team.
On offense, he brings better spacing. Without him scoring the 3s, he still contributes with movement and spacing to the team. When Gafford-Lively plays, other teams bring help to the ball handler more. This ball handler can be Luka-Kyrie-Exum. When Maxi plays, there are vastly more space inside and when help defense arrives, there is an open 3 available.
On defense, he used to be more switchable than some centers. He doesn't look as good as he was. But the idea is basically having worse defense/rebounding and trading that with superior offense.
I trust Maxi to gear up in playoffs. He was solid in the 2022 playoffs. PJ-Gafford-Lively-DJJ dont have playoff experience so
if we can improve Maxi's form, he'll be an asset in playoffs whether it's 15 or 22 mpg based on the matchup.