Define big that can play with him. Does it have to be a center? Do we have to have a traditional center in today’s NBA? Giannis would have to play some defensive center if you don’t get a beefmaster. Guys like Jabari, Naz, John Collins would be fine against most matchups, but guys like Jokic, Nurcic, etc. would eat them alive. Giannis is strong enough to guard guys like that. Is he willing? I don’t know.
Rockets would need a big that can space for Giannis, but keep him from having to guard centers unless it is a favorable matchup.
Would I include Sengun in a reasonable trade for Giannis? I would consider it, especially if I could keep Bari. Would I trade Sengun and a massive package for Giannis? Probably not.
Yeah anyone who thinks Giannis isn't better is fooling themselves and I am one of senguns biggest fans. My issue is what it would take to trade for him would basically destroy our team and hamper our ability to build a championship team around Giannis before his prime is over.
Edit: Granted, the Rocket probably need that with Amen as well. I hope Amen and Sengun can work, but I still am skeptical. The double big is a fun lineup, but that is just Ime making something work that probably won't work throughout the playoffs.
Y'all think this lineup would work? Sheppard / Green / Amen / Giannis / Bari. Sheppard, Green, and Bari would be able to space for Amen and Giannis, and Bari, Amen, and Giannis would wreck havoc on defense.
Giannis is on the way down with how much he relies on athleticism and is a vacuum on offense. Not sure I want to mortgage our future when I doubt we would win a 'ship in the next 3 years. I'd rather stay young and develop our guys and hope one of these Sun/Mav picks lands us a number one guy if Amen/Sengun can't reach that level.
Well the Sengun defense and the Giannis defense have become much the same. Haliburton got to the rim with no problem. Haliburton is a good player but Giannis has lost a lot defensively. Probably a half block better than Sengun. Giannis can score more (avg) points than Sengun because the Bucks have better outside shooters than the Rockets. Bigs like Brook Lopez (37%) & Bobby Portis (37%) can shoot 3's and open up space for Giannis. Add (3P%) Dame, 38% Kevin Porter jr, 41% Kuzma, 33% (but 4.6 attempts) Gary Trent, 42% T Prince, 44% AJ Green, 43% If Jalen and Sengun had that kind of shooting, Green would avg 30 points & Sengun 28 pts. Yeah you have to throw in about 16M or more in contract to trade Sengun x Giannis deal
That's where I fall on this one too. The problem with Giannis is that the Rockets wouldn't be good enough to win a title with him and whatever's left of the roster in what's left of his prime. I'd actually rather target KD than him. I think the asking price would be less, the Suns will value getting back their own picks more than pieces from our core, and he addresses everything we're missing. A shot maker, a closer, and a vet with championship experience.
This is VERY interesting! At first I was thinking "HELL NO", Giannas is 30yrs old and he may have another 4-5yrs of high level play vs Sengun who is 22yrs old. Both players have the same skill set, good around the basket, not good shooters outside of 10ft., and not great free throws shooters. However, I think Giannas effects the game more defensively and offensively. Also, I think Giannas will open up the court more for Jalen and Jabari too. We all know Jalen plays best in an open court style of play but I think Jabari will be able to get more shots and be featured more w/o Sengun. Finally, I think Giannas would fit Ime's style perfectly. I think a trade of Sengun, Cam and this yrs #1 would be a sufficient offer for Giannas. C- Giannas PF - Jabari SF - Brooks G - Amen G- Jalen Bench - Adams, Reed, Tari, Holiday, FVV, etc.
No. I would trade Jalen, Tari, Cam, Tate and 3 firsts if I was actually going after him for real. The thing is that isn't really the position of need. We would do fine with a legitimate upgrade to Jalen Green and Big Ben to fulfill his role as shooting guru. Just because we are losing to the Warriors doesn't mean the team is bad. No more WoW factor days. On a side note Jabari's shot is finally looking more like what was advertised when we drafted him. Reed's shot was coming through before the playoffs hit. If you look at his release its just a tier below Curry's in speed. We aren't screwed, we are in one of the best situations in the entire league. One of the best assets you can get that is perhaps even better than first rounds landing a good free agent and I think we are now in position to pick those up.
Giannis basically averaged 30/12/7 this season on a great TS% and almost singled-handily beat the Pacers. I see no evidence that he’s “on the way day.”
There are alot of "well it depends on..." in that assessment. Depends on - -Is Reed going to be good in the NBA or a bust? -Is Jalen going to be more consistent? -Is Amen going to develop a shot? -How fast can Bari put on grown man muscle? .... I think more than anything Stone, as soon as the Rockets, and Bucks season is over, just has to start the process of negotiating, and just play it out on different scenarios. I also think if the Rockets trade for a star like Giannis, they probably know they need to also move mountains to go get other players or another sub-star to come along with him before training camp. So I think if you are trading for Giannis you just have to assume the roster will look entirely different next season regardless. I'll be shocked if it's just a Jalen or Sengun + picks for Giannis straight up deal. I think we'll see multiple deals and signings. The hard part is getting Jon Horst on the phone to really engage this Summer, and get far enough to get Giannis' team on board to help make it happen, and help put the best team possible on the court. To answer the question I think you are getting at though... ... No that lineup you mentioned probably is not going to be considered a top tier contender with so many question marks.
I don't think Green and Sheppard will work. Just too easy to get a bigger guys on a smaller guy. Amen will be a starting guard next season. Brooks will still be a starter unless his contract is used for salary-matching purposes.
Well said. Assuming they aren't in a trade, I would expect Amen at one of the guards, Brooks at SF, Giannis at PF, and Stone having to fill a guard and a C. I'm not convinced internal options are ready unless the guard is FVV in which case I would try hard to upgrade Brooks (though I expect it would the other way). I would not go out to replace FVV unless you add a star like Giannis as I would not want to spend the resources on an upgrade until the Rockets know what players they are building around. Even if the Rockets get a better guard to team with Amen, I would still try to convince FVV to be a backup PG.
Just like I just said, Giannas and Sengun have the exact same skill set. I thinknit would be a bad pairing. Giannas need to be next to a player who can space the floor like Jabari, not Sengun. I think the reason the double big works so well is because of Adams. He’s huge and creates space. Sengun and Giannas would be considered smaller bigs, if that makes sense. The reason why I suggested a Jabari and Giannas front court is because both players rebound, block shots and play defense well around the basket.
