And why isn't he the obvious answer to replace Nene? I guess I get shortening the rotation during the playoffs, but now that Nene is down, why aren't we going with the guy who rotated with him all season and even Dantoni credited as being a very good player deserving of more PT? Just doesn't make sense to me. Love this guy's energy.
Because the spacing worked well last night and the rebounds were not a problem when we were lights put beyond the arc. They actually only beat the Rockets 11-7 in offensive rebounds. Problem is when the three doesn't work and they keep driving in we will have problems. LA and Pau are too fast for Capela, and too strong for Anderson.
Harrell can't play C because he can't get defensive rebounds or protect the rim...we also can't put him at PF because he doesn't space the floor Ryno will get time at the 5 because that makes our offense unstoppable D'antoni also isn't gonna have much faith in 1st or 2nd year players come playoff time
This offense needs a rim runner in the game. Harrell is a gamer, too. I expect him to play Nene's minutes and get about 12 points tomorrow.
Pretty much this. I think D'Antoni will have to play Harrell a little(especially if Capella picks up some cheap fouls or the refs call some cheap fouls) but I think this injury just forces Houston to play more small ball and increase Capella's minutes. Harrell is a little lesser as a defender & rebounder than Nene and A LOT worse offensively(Nene is so skilled) so you mind as well go small to keep that elite offense humming - the defense won't be THAT much worse. and we are sunk if our offense is anything less than elite. The one thing this does however is expose a depth problem we have with our bigs. I get that you don't want to get too many traditional bigs on your roster in the age of Small Ball but we were definitely playing with fire considering Nene and Capella's injury history and Capella's up and down play.
Because it is D'antoni and Morey's destiny to lead a team to the finals with only one rotation player who doesn't shoot 3's. Ryno will get Nene's minutes, Ariza and Dekker will take some Ryno minutes at the 4, and three guard lineup will take some of Ariza's minutes at the 3. Houston will launch a gazillion more three pointers and set a record for attempts in a playoff game, that won't be broken until next year when the Rockets feature a rotation where everyone shoots 3s (Capela's practicing, by next year it'll be in the game plan...)
I disagree with that last part. Dekker is getting minutes despite being essentially a rookie. I think D'Antoni just views Harrell as a guy he'll only play out of necessity. He couldn't get any minutes during the season(at least after January) any night Nene was available. Maybe that changes now, but I do agree that he'll stick with Anderson at the 5 unless the Rockets are getting massacred on the boards or are giving up a bunch of layups.
He does not match up well against the Spurs height and size down low. He will likely get around 5-10 minutes against the David Lee at center lineup and that's about it. If we make it to the conference finals to play gsw it's a slightly better match up but he will still be limited to situations. Anderson will get a lot of burn at center now. And that's a great option against gsw. Bev Gordon Ariza Harden Ryno Is a dangerous lineup. You just can't sag in the lane like okc and Sas has done a lot.
These are the wingspans and standing reaches of our four traditional bigs. 7'4.5" | 9'2.5" | Capela 7'4.5" | 9'1.0" | Nene 7'4.3" | 9'1.0" | Harrell 7'2.8" | 9'0.5" | Onuaku Harrell is practically identical to Nene in effective height (you don't play defense with your head), and is clearly a better leaper at this point in their careers. I think it's much more likely that it's the mental side of the game keeping him on the bench.
NENE is the only guy who can pick and roll to the basket consistently, Capela only knows how to catch lobs, big difference, we don't have another big body who can defend, rebound and run pick and role, we are doomed....
It's the playoffs, MDA is gonna trust the vets. Also doesn't bring enough rim protecting and rebounding to make him a better option in this series than Anderson at the 5. He will 100% be needed against Golden State but gotta get there first.
I'm in favor of more Harrell. Of course he doesn't have Capela or Nene's size. As if Anderson does? But Anderson can shoot threes, you say! Well... yeah, but he doesn't rim run, roll to the rim, or convert around the rim at 67%. Trez is a 30% better rebounder as well. That said, I get the whole strategy this year has been doubling down on the threes, so a move to triple down on that... seems likely. Just seems like the offense needs at least one interior threat to roll to the rim when Harden or Gordon drives.
Because the professional NBA level coaching staff doesn't believe he is good enough which probably means he isn't.
