Trade & FA 2023-24: Stein-Ingram Trade Inevitable| LAL Want Lebron Back On Any Terms

[Ghost of Podkolzin]

For the Hardy people, in particular, here's what I see:

1) Lots of hype around him and how excited they are about him this season.

2) They ask him to play PG during summer league, while not really having another option at 3rd PG.

3) He didn't come close to impressing as a PG during summer league. Pretty disappointing, actually.

4) They respond by signing Exum.

Personally, I believe there's a train of causality there. I could be WAY wrong, but I feel like those events are linked.

I think they feel Hardy needs a little functionality as a PG to break in, and I kind of don't blame them. He isn't really a PG (yet) but he's also not an off-ball guy. Almost everything he brings to the table involves him having the ball. To me, it's logical to expect the guy with the ball in his hands to be able to set others up, not just himself. That's not to say he needs to be Chris Paul (he never, ever will be) but on this team, he'll probably need to learn how to run a pick and roll. Like JET did, for example. Ask yourself, do you really believe that on a team with Luka and Kyrie Irving, they are planning to slice off parts of the game every night and say "everyone get out of the way while Hardy plays iso ball"??? I don't imagine that would go over very well.

On the other hand, if the plan is for him to play off-ball, then both THJ and Curry are VASTLY superior to him at the moment, and probably for the next couple of seasons.

At best re PG, Hardy will be a combo guard, heavy on the SG part of that combo.  With J.Green and Kyrie ahead of him (not to mention Luika), and his complete lack of defense, 6th man combo guard is his predictable role for the Mavs.  I see him as J.Terry with less PG skills.  J.Clarkson.  J.Poole.  J.Crawford.  He was a 2ndRnd pick.  Those comps are nothing to sneeze at.

Luka being a point SF/PF gives us so much flexibility in the backcourt.