07-05-2021, 08:25 AM
(07-05-2021, 06:46 AM)dirkfansince1998 Wrote: Yes the Mavs need to find another playmaker but they also have to avoid defensive liabilities (Lavine, DeRozan). Same for the front court. I am all in on Collins. But only if KP is gone. Not enough touches for two max or near max front court players and big concerns about the defensive fit.
It is kind of funny, there is always someone objecting to whichever player is brought up as a possible add here. I'm probably out of step with most, but I agree that I wouldn't expend assets to bring LaVine here. As good as he is, I'd also pass on putting Beal next to Luka...especially if KP is still here. If you are "stuck" with Luka, KP and X as your big three, X has to play some defense. Obviously Y and Z do also. It points to how challenging roster building is going to be if KP isn't having a positive impact on the defensive end. He can't cover the perimeter, so the other big has to. If you don't want Luka covering the point of attack, then the other guard has to do it. LaVine and Beal are guys you build around. I'm not sure they are guys you add to a Luka backcourt.
Which begs the question, if not them, than who? Collectively we are great at pointing out flaws. This guy is too this. That guy isn't good at that. Sooner or later, given what we have to offer, we have to pick some flawed candidate and make our move. If I'm holding KP/Luka/DFS as constants, what two players do I add (outside of the obvious all-star pipe dreams)? The good news is DFS and Luka are multi-positional, so it can be just about anything but a center. To me, Jrue Holiday is the ideal. But, that isn't happening. It is really hard to find anything close to all the things Holiday does for a team. Conley probably comes closest. Who else? I can see the argument for Ball. I just think he's soft. You have to play with force in the playoffs and he doesn't do that at all. We've seen the last two years how important the three point shot is for this spot. If all that was necessary was to hit 3's, then just keep THJ. But, this spot has to defend, create and hit 3's.
Filling the PF spot next to KP isn't easy either, but I can at least find some names. It is a challenging position to defend as one night this spot will cover Anthony Davis and Zion and the next they may catch a small ball team with a creator like Kawhi or Randle at PF. Covington, Boucher, Batum, Crowder and P. J. Washington are all guys who rate highly as defenders and can hit a 3 (though I'm not sure I trust Boucher as a 3 point shooter yet, especially from the corner). I think you can make a defensive argument for Theis and Thaddeus Young, but the 3 point shooting isn't ideal. NY has this guy Julius Randle...maybe you've heard of him...who almost out of nowhere started playing D and hitting 3's (clearly aliens did away with the original and replaced him with this version). I was also surprised at how good of a year Tobias Harris had. His situation might be instructive as it relates to Collins. Harris at $20 million is someone you love. Harris at a max is someone you are disappointed in. Collins is a better overall player than most of the other PF's listed. But, if you do that, then you are looking at Caruso or McConnell as your starting guard next to Luka. I think I like the PF's listed above next to Conley better than I do McConnell or Caruso next to Collins. All of this might change if you have Holmes instead of KP. But that is a post for another day.