Starting SG if Dunleavy is back

Crossova21 · Post #1 » by **Crossova21** » Tue Aug 18, 2009 10:44 pm

I think Rush will be the starter just because Dunleavy hasn't seen much on the court action. But I think Dunleavy would be the better starter in the long run because of his movement and his size. Then again Rush is the better defender. I sort of want Rush to come off the bench with Jones tho.

bravesatl · Post #2 » by **bravesatl** » Tue Aug 18, 2009 11:02 pm

jrandis04 · Post #3 » by **jrandis04** » Tue Aug 18, 2009 11:36 pm

The way Rush played at the end of last season, start Rush. Mike will make a hell of a 6th man if he is 100% and plays the way he did a couple years ago.

Dunthreevy · Post #4 » by **Dunthreevy** » Tue Aug 18, 2009 11:37 pm

As much as I love Rush, I think the idea of Granger and Dunleavy starting and providing tons of points, then Rush and Jones subbing in for them, and providing Rush's offense + whatever offense Jones can add, but most importantly their defense, would be a really solid rotation.

Remember that problem we all thought we had with depth at the wing?

Looks like it might not be as much of a problem as we thought.

Actually now that I think about it, Granger and Jones starting, with Dunleavy and Rush coming in off the bench would be pretty awesome too. Our 2nd unit would have as much offensive firepower as nearly any team in the east with those 2 coming off the bench.

Not that I want Jones to start over either of them, but it's an idea worth tinkering with I think. We just need to find a good balance of offense and defense with both our starters and our 2nd unit. Right now it looks like our starters will provide most of the offense with the 2nd unit being almost strictly a defensive unit.

Post #5 » by **PR07** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 12:27 am

I'd make Rush the starter either way.

pacershereiam · Post #6 » by **pacershereiam** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 12:34 am

I would start Rush. When Granger and Rush comes out of the game, the other teams start player will most likely be on the bench too. When Dunleavy comes in he will be guarding the next man usually. I like the Granger/Rush and Jones/Dunleavy. You have defense/defense with offense/offense and defense/offense.

kombayn · Post #7 » by **kombayn** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 12:51 am

Dahntay Jones is going to be the starting SG, they'll use him like Denver did.

10-Man Rotation:
PG - T. Ford/E. Watson
SG - D. Jones/B. Rush
SF - D. Granger/M. Dunleavy
PF - T. Murphy/T. Hansbrough
C - R. Hibbert/J. Foster

That's how I see it working out.

Post #8 » by **Miller4ever** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 1:31 am

Pairing scorer + defender at the wings is a good idea. I think Granger and Dunleavy should not be on the court at the same time for some of the game, and the same goes for Dahntay and Rush.

Rush will be our starter.

Kuq_e_Zi91 · Post #9 » by **Kuq_e_Zi91** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 1:49 am

Start Rush. Mike fits better with the 2nd unit anyways. His scoring and playmaking will be needed with that bunch.

You start Rush and Danny doesn't have to expend more energy on the defensive end.

basketballwacko2 · Post #10 » by **basketballwacko2** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 2:15 am

What I like is the versatility of those 3 guys, Rush, Jones and Dunleavy each can play 2/3 and each has varied skills to offer!

pacershereiam · Post #11 » by **pacershereiam** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 2:56 am

I like Rush starting cause I think Dunleavy can score more as a bench player than as a starter. I dont think Rush could have as big of an impact off the bench. Rush doesn't have to be the main guy like Dunleavy does for the second unit.

Boneman2 · Post #12 » by **Boneman2** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 3:42 am

Initially Rush will be the man, while Mike eases back into action. Although, Rush will be on a short leash because Danny and Mike are a proven duo. Jones is clearly the b/u (defensive specialist) and will be used accordingly.

I could see the available minutes being split like this.

Granger/ 38 min. ( playing about 4 spot minutes @ pf when we go small)
Dunleavy/ 25 min.
Rush / 20 min.
Jones/ 17

More interesting is who finishes the game! Granger / ?????

Reginald Wayne · Post #13 » by **Reginald Wayne** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 4:00 am

Dunthreevy wrote:As much as I love Rush, I think the idea of Granger and Dunleavy starting and providing tons of points, then Rush and Jones subbing in for them, and providing Rush's offense + whatever offense Jones can add, but most importantly their defense, would be a really solid rotation.

Remember that problem we all thought we had with depth at the wing? Looks like it might not be as much of a problem as we thought.

Actually now that I think about it, Granger and Jones starting, with Dunleavy and Rush coming in off the bench would be pretty awesome too. Our 2nd unit would have as much offensive firepower as nearly any team in the east with those 2 coming off the bench.

Not that I want Jones to start over either of them, but it's an idea worth tinkering with I think. We just need to find a good balance of offense and defense with both our starters and our 2nd unit. Right now it looks like our starters will provide most of the offense with the 2nd unit being almost strictly a defensive unit.

I think starting Jones would be an awesome idea. He can come in and wear one of the opposing guards down so that Rush and Dunleavy can sub in and work against the bench or the worn out starter. Besides, I think we have enough offense with Granger, Ford and Murphy, that we can afford to have Rush coming off the bench. Also, he won't have to defend the starters which would allow him to flourish more on the offensive side, thus further improving his confidence. Our bench would be pretty sweet. We'd have offense in Rush and Dunleavy, and the hustle of guys like Foster, Psycho-T, and Watson. I llike the Jones idea, although the other options aren't bad either.

fienX420 · Post #14 » by **fienX420** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 4:24 am

If Rush can legitimately beat out Dunleavy as a starter, that would be sweet. Because that means we have 3 starting caliber wings. If one of them isn't quite up to snuff though, we could start Jones ala Denver and bring the best one off the bench as our sixth man. My prediction is that Mike will be back in top form, while Rush and Jones will under-perform. Not sure if Coach will opt to bring Mike off the bench as a strong offensive option who can add veteran leadership to the 2nd unit (I'd say we could probably use extra offense and leadership on the first unit).

writerman · Post #15 » by **writerman** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 5:26 am

Makes no difference who starts there...having Dunleavy back on either unit makes this a much more dangerous team if he plays anything like he did two years ago...

Actually I kind of like the second unit idea if he still gets major minutes...his smarts and leadership there could make that a very potent unit.

I think this team has a great chance to surprise the hell out of the "expert" prognosticators...

8305 · Post #16 » by **8305** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 12:17 pm

I like the idea of Dunleavy off the bench. One way or another he's on the floor at the end of the game. As to who starts? Depends on how accomplished a defender Rush can be. I like the logic of having a very good defender on the floor at the start of each half. It means the opposing teams best offensive wing has to deal with that defender at the games outset. If it turns out there isn't that much difference between Rush and Jones defensively then you go with Rush because of his superior offensive game.

Orlock78 · Post #17 » by **Orlock78** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 1:34 pm

To me the biggest stat that stands out is Assists. Dunleavy averaged 3.5 assists in 07-08, and then (understandably) less in 08-09 at 2.4. neither Rush or Jones have ever averaged more than 1 assist per game. Granted Rush is going to improve, I still don't see him as any kind of facilitator. So then the question is who do you want starting? Better Defence, Better Offence, or a Better Facilitator.

Personally I'd have to stick with Mike D (barely over Jones) but honestly I'm not going to be upset at any of the 3 starting.

fienX420 · Post #18 » by **fienX420** » Wed Aug 19, 2009 6:36 pm

writerman wrote:I think this team has a great chance to surprise the hell out of the "expert" prognosticators...

Agreed.

Boneman2 · Post #19 » by **Boneman2** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 6:22 pm

Orlock78 wrote:To me the biggest stat that stands out is Assists. Dunleavy averaged 3.5 assists in 07-08, and then (understandably) less in 08-09 at 2.4. neither Rush or Jones have ever averaged more than 1 assist per game. Granted Rush is going to improve, I still don't see him as any kind of facilitator. So then the question is who do you want starting? Better Defence, Better Offence, or a Better Facilitator.

Personally I'd have to stick with Mike D (barely over Jones) but honestly I'm not going to be upset at any of the 3 starting.

I don't know Orlock, pretty sure Mike is better than Brandon offensively.

A better way to put it would be Mike is pure offense ( although he recently led the league drawing charges), Jones is pure defense and Brandon has the potential to do both at a high level. The question becomes, ' is Brandon ready to assume the starters role for an 82 game season, while a proven vet waits to assume his position?

Orlock78 · Post #20 » by **Orlock78** » Thu Aug 20, 2009 7:58 pm

I agree with you that Dunleavy is currently the better offensive player, but I think that Rush has a higher offensive ceiling than Mike. I think if Rush starts its going to take him at least a couple months to regain the form and confidence he displayed at the end of last season. I also think that Dunleavy is the kind of player that will play consistently better if he is the starter, and that Rush will do better coming off the bench. I will say however that if by the All-Star break Rush is showing confidence, and playing defence at a high level, he could easily be the better starter.

Problem is that assuming Mike isn't injured or obviously playing below expectations, it would be hard to justify swapping them out at that point, him being the veteran and all. But honestly this team has such great chemistry, I don't think its really going to matter to the wing players who starts. I think we are going to see a lot of different looks from Obie, taylored to whoever we happen to be playing. Regardless I am psyched to see what happens.

Who do you think should start at shooting guard?