10-31-2023, 01:44 PM
(This post was last modified: 10-31-2023, 01:49 PM by KillerLeft.)
Sorry if this has been covered, but I'm interested in Toronto's situation. One or both of Siakim and Annunoby are going to be on the market this year. That seems inevitable. Now, the main obstacle there is the insane sticker price Ujiri tends to place on his talent, but let's assume for a second that those prices drop down into the Mavs' price range at some point soon (far, far from a given): which one do we want?
Siakim is the better player and the bigger name. He also represents a lot more near-future risk for Toronto, contract wise, so I think he's the most likely to get moved in a world where Toronto doesn't love the offers they're getting. He also satisfies Dan's itch of acquiring someone who pushes Grant Williams to the bench. I think that's a premature selling short of Williams, but I can kind of see where he's coming from and can't deny that Siakim is a better player than GWill (at least in some ways), despite my suspicion that the things people find limiting in Williams' game are the things that make him an ideal fit with Luka. He DOES have the mentality of a role player, so he WILL focus on defense, and he IS "just" a shooter from to a certain extent, but that IS what makes him ideal with Luka and a pick and roll big like Lively. I actually think the coming months will teach us that Williams has more potential than we think, but I can't deny that Siakim has more offensive variety and agency in his bag. Just not sure that's necessarily a step forward. Synergy is so, so important.
OG CAN play the 4, certainly, but can also play a little 3. I think it's super clear that if he were here right now, he'd take the starting spot currently occupied by DJJ, and probably the closing spot currently held by Green. I continue to believe they wanted O-Max to win DJJ's part of that and so in a very real way, THAT is where I believe THE MAVS think their current biggest hole is. But, what does that acquisition do to Green? What does it do to O-Max? Does it stifle progress for either of them? Do we care? Is there room for all three to thrive, and is it possible that OG could eventually be the starting 4, if Dan is ultimately correct that Williams, not Green, will be the weakest link in the closing 5?
I have been on the Siakim to Dallas bandwagon for years, but I think given where things are right now I'm finally leaning OG. Not 100% sure though. Obviously, neither will be a Maverick because the Mavericks haven't learned to collect picks in a big pile to have available for times like this, but it's still fun to think about.
Discuss.
Siakim is the better player and the bigger name. He also represents a lot more near-future risk for Toronto, contract wise, so I think he's the most likely to get moved in a world where Toronto doesn't love the offers they're getting. He also satisfies Dan's itch of acquiring someone who pushes Grant Williams to the bench. I think that's a premature selling short of Williams, but I can kind of see where he's coming from and can't deny that Siakim is a better player than GWill (at least in some ways), despite my suspicion that the things people find limiting in Williams' game are the things that make him an ideal fit with Luka. He DOES have the mentality of a role player, so he WILL focus on defense, and he IS "just" a shooter from to a certain extent, but that IS what makes him ideal with Luka and a pick and roll big like Lively. I actually think the coming months will teach us that Williams has more potential than we think, but I can't deny that Siakim has more offensive variety and agency in his bag. Just not sure that's necessarily a step forward. Synergy is so, so important.
OG CAN play the 4, certainly, but can also play a little 3. I think it's super clear that if he were here right now, he'd take the starting spot currently occupied by DJJ, and probably the closing spot currently held by Green. I continue to believe they wanted O-Max to win DJJ's part of that and so in a very real way, THAT is where I believe THE MAVS think their current biggest hole is. But, what does that acquisition do to Green? What does it do to O-Max? Does it stifle progress for either of them? Do we care? Is there room for all three to thrive, and is it possible that OG could eventually be the starting 4, if Dan is ultimately correct that Williams, not Green, will be the weakest link in the closing 5?
I have been on the Siakim to Dallas bandwagon for years, but I think given where things are right now I'm finally leaning OG. Not 100% sure though. Obviously, neither will be a Maverick because the Mavericks haven't learned to collect picks in a big pile to have available for times like this, but it's still fun to think about.
Discuss.