If we stick with Green next to FVV as the backcourt, who do you want to see get the most SF minutes? Brooks is the default option and will likely start the season there, but he's the one I want to see least, with all the young wings behind him. Amen made things interesting when he played with that group, with his versatility/athleticism. His shooting woes don't help the spacing though. Cam added a scoring punch to the group and seems to play more within himself when he's given more responsibility (instead of just being asked to score off the pine). But him and Green can be redundant if they play too much together. Tari might low-key be the best fit with the group, as the "disruptor" who adds some motor to a starting group without a ton. You could make the case that his energy works best off the bench though.
Amen is the obvious pick, because he proved it and needs 30+ mins a game. Tari is a great bench player. I like Cam and think SF is his best position, but think he is a year or two away from starter material. He is only 19. Brooks needs to be traded, because he can be and we need the minutes. I also think he would not handle coming off the bench professionally, but could be wrong since I’ve never met the man.
Ingram is the man for fans that only watch one end of the court. I’m not worried about it though. Ingram is not an Ime guy.
If Amen doesn't end up being a point guard, he's obviously going to be the best right now and the highest-ceiling guy to put at the 3.
If Green and Sengun come back after the summer having improved their shooting, I'll say Amen. But, if Sengun and Green are shooting around their career averages, you probably need to stick with Brooks.
Its still Dillon and will be Dillon. I do think his time to be traded is coming, but until then hes going to be the starter. His defensive impact and leaderrship on that side of the ball is seriously ignored here. That being said Amen is coming for that spot and hes coming for it FAST. Cam has work to do and will excel in the 6th man role first before becoming a starter. I love Tari, but he may just always be a bench guy and his health is a serious concern.
As of now, Tari is the best option imo. Spacing, rebounding, hustle, defense... overall best package. If he still can't stay healthy it's Dillon. If Amen shoots even a little better it's him.
This is no longer the way to think about this team or even the NBA right now. Like "positions" for the team will be different depending on whether you mean offensive or defensive assignment. On offense, those type of positions don't make sense because the "jobs" associated with traditional positions are now available to every position if they have the skills to do them. On defense, Tari, Amen and Jabari have such versatility to fit multiple traditional positions dependent on the 5 men out there, the match up, and roster fits/injuries. Also, the Rockets will need to cover for guys like Sengun, Jalen and potentially Sheppard if he is the pick, so there will be some cross switching of players.
If Amen had even a below average jumper I'd pick him in a heartbeat. Since its way below average I have to rock with Tari.
As bad as Amen is as a shooter, Tari is just as bafflingly bad at finishing around the rim for a guy with his size and athleticism. Amen is 71% at the rim to Tari's 60% career number. Amen is also a much better passer and ballhandler. Although I will say that it's true our spacing probably can't afford having Amen out there if Jalen is going to spend 2/3 of the season as a godawful 3P shooter again. But for me, if that happens it would be more "okay, time to part ways with Green and start somebody else at SG".
If Amen is only going to be great around the rim then there will have to be some compromise as Sengun is going to dominate that zone on the court most games. I would probably bet that Tari gets better near the rim because there is no reason to believe that he wouldnt as that shot (1-3 feet) is the 'easiest' shot to make on the court. Are you more comfortable with Tari becoming a better finisher or Amen developing an outside shot? You say Jalen is the problem, but I could also say the baby hook offense and lack of spacing is a bigger problem within the constructs of that type of offense and its limitations vs what is winning rings today. I'll say it again here --- 3&D wins championships. Build your offense with that in mind and you will find success. If that means Jalen is gone okay. If that means Sengun is gone okay. If that means Amen is gone okay. Not everyone we draft will pan out or be on this team when championship games will be played. Find an assortment of shooters that can switch everything on defense and lets pop some champagne.
If Sengun comes in next year hitting 3's its such a HUGE piece to the puzzle. If you run the same team back from last year and include Sengun with shooting range we're in the mix at the end.
I don't necessarily believe in the idea that there's one way to win a championship in any given era. 3 and D is the "metagame" if you want to call it that right now, but we literally just saw the Nuggets win a championship as a not-that-great 3P shooting team. People are trying to take lessons like "literally everybody needs to shoot!" from Boston's championship right now, but I would argue it was utterly unsurprising for them to win, not because they had the best shooting, but rather because they had the most talent. With all of that said, spacing obviously does matter a great deal and the 3P shot is extremely valuable. But I think there are still ways to work around having a non-shooter--maybe even two, although that's much harder--in your lineup. Anyway, right now I'm still focused on figuring out who our most talented players are, because at the end of the day, talent is still the most important thing, and fit comes second. To my mind, Amen is clearly more talented than Tari Eason, and it's not particularly close. Though I'm open to being proven wrong.
It goes beyond Boston. Denver was the #4 three point shooting team in the NBA that year you bring up. Top 5 defense. Golden State before them same thing. Milwaukee before them same thing. Lakers, Raptors, Warriors etc.. etc.. Its been a long time since a team has won it all without being elite at these two aspects. The blueprint is there. Amen has more raw tools no doubt about it. Tari will have to develop some of what Amen has, but if Amen never becomes a better shooter and Tari becomes more connective with the ability to guard 1-5 then he is probably more valuable in terms of championship chemistry players.
Depends on how Amen, Sengun, and Jalen develop next year. If all remains relatively the same (shooting wise), Brooks will be the best fit next year.
