I get why people think this and not saying people are wrong to think it. However I’m scratching my head wondering what role it is that Tate actually plays? Floor spacing shooter, 3 and D, defensive ace, rebounder extraordinaire, rim attacker, pick and roll facilitator??? I just don’t really understand personally what Tate is good at to have a specific role. I get that he does try hard. I get that he knows the plays and knows where to be. I also am sure he’s a positive influence in the locker room. But I’m just not sure why any of that merits 20 to 30 minutes a game. I also don’t understand why Boban is on the roster as well and not just an assistant coach. I love Boban but he’s not a role player as well imo… at least as it relates to the actual game. I personally would just prefer Stone and Ime get on the same page here and Stone should also do a better job of either bringing in some higher upside guys at the back of the bench and make some obvious decisions instead of just waiting for the inevitable like he did with the Silas firing.
As you said Tate is a jack of all trades light and does things in an above average fashion but he is no master of anything..... He is also not really talented physically.....
We over glorify hustle and effort around here. Yes he plays really really hard but if it's not backed by actual ability you just look silly out there. I'd rather have someone with talent give a decent effort than someone who's trying to make up for it with hustle alone. Sorry to State but the handle and shooting just aren't there for someone as small as he is. Those wild drives to a spinning hook shot are always gonna look tough when a bigger or more athletic dude could've just gotten a normal layup or dunk in that scenario. Once you reach the "can leave open at the 3 like Andre Roberson" level, you're kinda cooked. Effort can only take you so far.
Easy answer .... Injuries to Tari, Bari and Brooks recently, he's been asked to start in place of both Jabari & Brooks. Prior to that he was getting much less time, and was even inactive twice. In the mean time, he doesn't make many mistakes and can defend 1-4 while doing exactly what we want out of a role player in shooting nothing but shots at the rim or open 3's. The kicker is that he can be a second or third ball handler, His assist to turnover ratio is almost 3:1 and the team is extremely efficient when he is the one to initiate the offense. Once Brooks and Tari return, he'll go back to his spot on the bench .... He's a helpful player to have on your roster, 82 games makes for a long season. Once he goes back to the bench, the only minutes he should get are as a defensive specialist. Trading him doesn't free up minutes for Cam / Amen, there's a logjam at the 3 spot with Brooks, Tari, Cam, Amen & Bullock .... and not enough minutes for either behind Green or FVV and Holiday has gotten many of those minutes. Less Green & Holiday = More Cam.
I think the Tate criticism is fair. Just like criticism for any player if its legitimate. That said, I think Tate has been important as a culture setter for Ime. Not that Tate doesnt have useful skills, but Ime couldnt come in and try to establish a hard nose defensive identity and NOT play Tate. At this point he can be phased out a little, now that it appears the team has bought in and the young guys see what it takes to play. But if someone forgets or needs a reminder that we hustle and play defense here, for now Tate is there as a reminder and can take your minutes quickly.
I think Tate as a culture setter is also overglorified. He had all the chances during the Silas tenure to speak out, but he kept it silent......he is just another guy who is cracking jokes with the young guys but when it comes down to fighting adversity it was always Ime first......he is just a solid 12th man, nothing more and nothing less..... He strikes me as someone who is not really vocal but is following the coaching staff.... whether that is Udoka or Stephen Silas.
He's not great at anything. As I type this though, as an emergency starter he's leading the team in rebounds tonight and also has the best +/- on the team. That's kinda what you want off of your bench, so I'll stand by it. He's NOT the problem. I'll take a role player like him off of my bench any time. But he shouldn't start. That's the real issue.
He shouldn't play off the bench either unless there's an injury. He's the perfect guy to have as basically your first third stringer because of his defensive versatility and hustle. He shouldn't get regular rotation minutes on a good team, let alone start.
We just aren't a deep team and we have injuries. You're right that Tate isn't good but we don't really have anyone to play. Cam is a rookie, he's raw, he's very talented but right now he's not that good. He makes a lot of mistakes. Bullock makes less mistakes, has a lot more experience, but is just not very good. It's just rough when we have both Tari and Dillon out. The roster is not deep. We have to play someone who just isn't that good.
He is a phenomenon that even if you are not really top heavy, you go to a guy who is the 12th man of the roster.
Tate has played in 36 games and only have 4 double digit games. Another player you don't have to guard. Put Cam out there and live with it. He ain't afraid to shoot.
There's no point going from no offense (with good defense) to no defense (with good offense), the result is the same. In this situation Iall else equal 'll take the more experienced player (Tate). Especially since our team is designed to have good defenders at the 1 and 3 to protect our C. Starting Jalen/Cam at the 2 and 3 would be a disaster and there would not even be enough shots to go around with everyone in the starting lineup being shot takers. You guys are just excited to see Cam thrive I get it, but you're suggesting something people just don't do. No one starts scorers at the 2 and 3 without someone who can guard the best wings in the NBA. You do that if you plan to tank.
We're such a deep roster man. Who's 3rd best 3&D wing is Ja'sean Tate calibre? No team seems like a deep team when they lose their top 2 defenders on the wing. Coaches are never happy with their depth, but Udoka constantly talks about how much depth we have. It's just injuries. It's not reasonable for an already overachieving team to absorb the loss of it's best defender and highest impact player.
Of course its injuries but that's the whole point of having a deep team. A deep team can sustain injuries and still be fine. A deep team has players that can slot into the starting lineup and do a great job when injuries happen. A deep team to me is like our rockets teams from years ago where Eric Gordon was our third best guard. Where Luc Mbah a Moute was backing up Ariza. Remember when Nene backed up Capela and he scored like 30 for us on 100% shooting in a playoff game. We also must have huge differences in opinion on Tate. First off I don't even think he's our 3rd best 3&D wing. He's an alright defender but you can't discount his horrible offense. And if you want to ask me how many teams have a third-best forward that is better than Tate I could probably name 20-25 teams. Landale, Bullock, and Tate are all pretty bad. Amen has been bad, but he's a rookie and that's fine. Holiday is alright I guess, probably around average or below average for a backup. Jeff Green has been a rollercoaster, he's had some really really good moments/games and also some really really bad moments/games. His highs have been really high but I think that may be distracting people from the fact that he's had way more lows than highs. I'm not acting like a young team should be deep. It's fine that we're not. But it is what it is. I'm just saying it's going to look real rough out there when our guys get injured and people should expect that and be okay with it. Like you said, we're already overachieving.
I get what you're saying, but your standard is way too high even for a contender. I don't think a contender can sustain losing its 2 best defensive wings and still have someone who can look good out there. Tate is a 32% shooter, a good defender, and a truly excellent passer for his position. Above average rebounder for his position too. Who's 3rd 3&D wing is better than that? And then our 4th is Bullock who has started for some good defenses in the NBA? Curious who has a materially better player there. I can't even think of more than 1 team. Also maybe you're not giving Tari and Brooks enough credit. Their absence makes life harder for everyone, it's a dramatic loss of talent for us. Those are our 2 best wings, our 2 best defenders, Tari is allegedly our highest impact player and they have both been shooting very well. I can understand why Tate's already shaky shooting would decline during this period.
Tate is what they call in baseball a utility man. He can do a lot of different things but not very good at anything. He's the kind of guy coaches like. He plays hard. He doesn't make a lot of mistakes on offense. He is willing to fill whatever role the coach asks him to. Basically a low maintenance guy. Coaches tend to trust this kind of players even though they might not actually impact winning positively. So they tend to get more minutes than they deserve.
He does make mistakes like everyone else under pressure. I do not mind his minutes but he should not be out there against the Tatums and Browns but rather against the Hausers and Kornets.... He is playing way too much against 1st Units.
