DNP-Old wrote:MarxyLebronist wrote:I see where you're coming from on all the other ideas you mentioned before this minutes breakdown, too, and Caruso's value is clear- he's one of my favorites. I gather there's a wait and see idea about THT, and I liked what he flashed too for sure. The main reason I and others are thinking of a higher quality, higher impact player who can impact a game and steady a team's offense, indeed, when others rest, is the Kuzma problem. He fell below Caruso's minutes come playoff time, deservedly, and now you have him at well under a third of his 19-20 MPG. That's not good for him, even if it's good for the team (it is!). So I thought maybe he'd like to go home (DET) and maybe Rose was the kind of savvy vet player with lots of plus play to offer in the right rotation role. But you're all right that the defensive side is the wing value and need and Wes Matthews just filled a major role.
I also like the team's dedication to a really low turnover percentage. KCP and Wes are elite for their careers in fact, among other strong Lakers players in this regard, Bradley was also a leader in this, and even JR Smith was better than Danny Green. Rose is decent for this, but at very high usage rates historically. He's not much better than others like Curry, and he's right ahead of James, but basically the idea is that he's a responsible ball management player. It's also encouraging to see his new commitment to passing lane defense- another Laker emphasis. For the quick, shallow stat sheet check, his steal numbers alone in the last two years show a marked improvement over his career (higher SPG rate but at 10 MPG fewer than his prior high very early in his career when his constant activity did the trick).
Anyway, the point is that 12-15 minutes of fully matured and motivated Derrick Rose is way better than any developmental minutes from Kuzma/THT/McKinnie. There's not even an argument- Rose would simply be the best 8/9 man in the league, and the veteran defensive geniuses on the team and coaching for defensive systems would make him as elite as the team. Kuzma was still missing assignments all the time and lazing about, even come playoffs. The motor just isn't there. Much more optimistic about THT for sure, but perhaps only because he's been so rarely featured and hasn't been relied upon, whereas Kuzma, like Green, has disappointed in high leverage moments many times now.
The problem is it would take Kuzma, THT and McKinnie to acquire Rose. You can swap Caruso for either Kuzma or THT & McKinnie but either way it is a 2 for 1 or 3 for 1 trade and LAL being up against the hard cap there is no room to replace the other bodies on the roster.
Fellows,
We have Lebron James here = offense is never gonna be a problem, specially now that Dwight and McGee are gone. We finished last season with ORTG - 112.83 which is elite in itself. 2015-17 GSW and Rockets recorded 115-116 ORTG; Mavs broke that record this year with 117.41. You guys don't think we'll easily add another 3-5 points with these changes? (copy + paste from my last post)
- Better shooters added
- Floor spacing stretch bigs
- Average Basketball IQ going way up with the addition of Gasol, Wes, Trez & Schroeder
- Championship experience and confidence in the youngsters
- Addition of 2 6MOTY candidates who both averaged 19 ppg last year
- Enough playmaking from Bron, Schroeder, Gasol, Caruso, AD
We are short on minutes and possibly thin on big wing defensive depth outside of Lebron and Wes, specially in Covid open season, until the vaccines truly kick in. Kuz / THT and McKinnie are their really low level backups, we absolutely can't afford to sacrifice for a smaller guard whose defensive commitment and fit is questionable at best. Giving up that kinda size and potential could leave us very very exposed against teams with multiple big wings -
Clips - Kawhi, PG & Marcus Morris
Nets - KD, Lavert, Harris, Dinwiddie
We can pickup a waived PG around the deadline if we see the need.
Glad folks respect him again, even though he's not the athletic marvel he used to be. Prime moment for his best play this year, and no one will mistake him for a 3-ball spammer lol. 
