I think a Dwight/Asik front line could work. Just because they would clog the paint in a traditional offense doesn't mean they couldn't work in ours. The way I see it Harden/D12 pick & roll, if Harden can penetrate he goes to the rim with Howard rolling. If they stop Harden, he passes to Howard for the flush. If they overload (3 defenders vs Harden and Howard) Harden kicks it out to the weakside Parsons or Lin. If the 3 isn't there right away, Asik sets a quick pick, and repeat on the weak side. As long as we have 3 capable ball handlers on the court at all times, I think, in theory, this offense should work. Basically a significant upgrade over our Greg Smith/Asik lineup.
But it would clog up the paint for harden and Lin. It would be a significant upgrade over Smith/asik but it wouldn't fix the problem w seen in game 1 for instance. Which is, against good interior defenders harden would be limited because all the traffic and lack of spacing. I have no qualms of having both on the same team, but asik would have to be coming off the bench, and only under extreme circumstances, such as against Memphis, should they play together.
Yes, but they have a very realistic chance of alleviating pretty much all of their cap woes by either amnesty or trade.
If you move the ball effectively, that creates spacing. Yesterday, we didn't have spacing simply because we had a Lin/Bev/Harden/CP25/Asik lineup, but because we moved the ball from side to side quickly with decisive passes. If the Clippers can score efficiently with Blake Griffin (who is an average perimeter shooter) and DeAndre Jordan, we should be able to. Of course (in the case that we do get Howard), Howard/Asik shouldn't be together the entire time. You can get the lineups where both play healthy minutes without the other for the type of spacing you desire.
I think Les and Morey are adamant that the future NEW AGE = Run & Gun. Not so sure Dwight and Asik would be in the ideal run and gun players at PF & C. If we have a good showing against OKC (taking 2+ games) then we might have an outside chance at Dwight. At the moment I feel we have no chance.
you need a stretch 4 or small ball against okc to force ibaka away from the basket. That's why a lot of us are so in favour of Love, no one makes Ibaka accountable away from the paint like Love.
I give Dwight lots of credit for keeping his situation under wraps a lot more this season. Only today was it leaked that he and Stan Van Gundy have been friendly this season, as Dwight supposedly doesn't like Mike D'Antoni. SVG's teams in Orlando were characterized by 3 things: A. Dwight Howard, inside presence who defends, rebounds, and can have 30/15 games B. An array of 3-point shooters, such as JJ Redick, Jason Richardson, Ryan Anderson, etc. C. A guard-forward bringing the ball up the court often (Hedo Turkoglu) SVG got this type of team to the finals. If Dwight Howard sees the light and comes to Houston, which even I consider a longshot, these 3 things can be easily replicated by hiring SVG. Howard, in his prime, would be a dominant 25/13 bigman. 3 point shooting is the Rockets' current forte, and would fit into an inside-out offense easily. James Harden would continue acting as a play initiator and distributor, as Jeremy Lin hasn't been totally impressive this year, and the team will be more skilled than Dwight and SVG's Orlando teams. Kevin McHale would be fired or placed in a front office role similar to the one he had in Minnesota, and Houston would have a contender. Just my thoughts.
