01-08-2021, 10:19 AM
(01-08-2021, 08:06 AM)DanSchwartzman Wrote: Its a little early to be looking at lineup data, but what we have on Maxi is striking. Play him with Powell...fantastic. Play him with Willie...also fantastic. The net ratings are off the charts for both pairings. He's easily the most malleable big in terms of which other big he can play with. Play him as the lone big...abysmal.
It should be safe to assume Maxi could start with KP also. But the history we have (the data from last season) says Powell/KP was the better pairing. The main reason we'll probably see Powell/KP given a chance at some point is it is easier to construct rotations if you split up the outside shooting ability of KP and Maxi to where one is always on the floor. You certainly could start out with KP and Maxi and that is very likely to be the finishing lineup many nights. But starting Maxi makes the rotation pairings more difficult if you assume they want to avoid Powell/WCS playing together.
I'm a little skeptical of the data suggesting Powell is a better pairing with KP than Maxi. For one, it was still a fairly small sample (roughly 30 games each) and it was at different points in time. All of the Powell/KP minutes were at the beginning of the season when everyone was healthy and the team as a whole was clicking. Most of the KP/Maxi minutes were second half of the season when we had a lot of injuries and depth issues and were not playing as well as a whole. Plus, it just doesn't make any sense. KP's offense exploded once he started playing in 5 out lineups and Maxi is our best defensive big. My guess is that the numbers will look a lot better this year.
As for Powell, until he regains most of his athleticism (which may not be this year or ever) we can't really use data from last year. He is a shell of his former self. He has already lost his starting job to WCS, and my guess is if Rick wants to tinker with playing a center with KP, he will start with WCS.