For me he should be starting. He doesn’t look comfortable at all in bench role and he’s a plus defender. Yesterday for example I think he played fantastic D on Luka. He has the strength to guard bigger 3s. Nwaba in the starting lineup hasn’t work due to his subpar shooting. I like Tate a lot but his shooting is also inconsistent. For me Eric in the starting lineup would be much more effective.
I like the idea of him bringing offensive power off the bench with Jones. But I definitely see the argument for him starting. Frankly, I’m conflicted...
Let's break this down. I think Jones will start taking McLemore's minutes. Option 1: Wall / Gordon / Brown Oladipo / Jones / Brown Tate / Nwaba Tucker / Tate Wood / Boogie Option 2: Wall / Jones Oladipo / Brown Gordon / Nwaba Tucker / Tate Wood / Boogie Option 1 seems more balanced, whereas Option 2 provides a fireworks starting unit with a strong defensive second. I don't know, man...
I think Oladipo should come in off of the bench. Dipo can play his game without worrying too much about fitting in with the starters. Below is the rotation that I would like to see next game. Brown or Jones go to the bench when Porter is ready. Wall/Dipo Gordon/Jones Tate/Brown Wood/Nwaba Cousins/Tucker
Since a lot of people on this board hate EG, and it's been rumored that the Rockets have been actively trying to shop him since last season. I think the obvious choice then is to start Gordon to showcase him, plus because of human nature (egos no doubt) it just sounds so much cooler to say we traded for a "starter". So this is a pretty easy question to answer in my mind. Wall/Jones Oladipo/McLemore/Brown Gordon/House/Porter Jr Tucker/Tate/Nwaba Wood/Cousins
No. EGo has thrived because he’s had the ball in his hands. That will not happen if he plays a ton of minutes with both Wall and Oladipo.
A ton of playmaking abilities in that group, and then our bench would come in hungry and those guys would be flying all over the place in transition, fighting on defense and bringing in tons of energy. I dont know when we'll see it, but I'd like a peek at it too.
True but Oladipo is kinda passive, he's not very ball dominant. And Wall is more so looking to pass the ball and make the "correct" basketball play for the most part. Gordon's scoring ability is definitely needed as a starter in my opinion, especially after the slow starts we've been having recently. Plus starting EG just makes him much easier to trade in my opinion.
Oladipo has not been passive at all. He’s taking 20 shots per game, with a Harden-like usage rate. He is definitely looking to get his ahead of free agency this summer. Gordon, whether in the starting lineup or bench, has been best when he’s given the opportunity to get enough touches. If we resign him to the offball shooter role, I think we get similar results to last year. Move him to the bench. He will get plenty of touches, and will still be in closing lineups. This may all be moot anyway. My guess is we deal Oladipo in March, and Gordon goes back into the starting lineup.
I think you have to keep starting House and Tucker until we get closer to the trade deadline to keep their value up. Not sure what we're looking to get for them - even if the goal is amassing picks, we're very thin at PF/C so there'd have to be some sort of replacement strategy in play.
20 shots a game is normal range for the "second" best player on your team (I personally don't believe VO is the second best player on the team but we'll just say that he is for arguments sake). And of course Oladipo and the Rockets both want him to showcase himself for obvious reasons. But he has definitely gotten off to incredibly slow starts since he's been here in Houston. Also I don't know if you've noticed this or not but Silas is pulling Vic very very early in the first quarter, and bring him back in mid second quarter. So it's plenty of opportunity there for EG to capitalize on when VO subs out. Personally I agree with you that EG should come off the bench, but if the plan is to trade him then you gotta start him IMO.
Just play him 48 minutes a game, problem solved. But seriously, I like the idea of him starting because he's more of an ISO person. I don't want him messing with the 2nd unit's team-ball mentality.
Negative. Continue to pump Oladipo up with as many minutes as possible and be patient. Victor finding his groove is good for both parties. He needs to get healthy and in total basketball shape.