Not sure if serious, but Lin always set up Novak for threes and Casspi is nowhere near the shooter that Novak is. Actually I wouldn't mind the rockets getting a knockdown 3 pt shooter like Novak, they don't really have one
This makes things interesting, because against smaller lineups we might see Casspi start. McHale seemed to suggest that he would use different lineups through November and December. This means that we can have different starting PFs and PGs according to matchups. Lots of options. In fact we may go the entire season with...Bev starting some, Lin starting some, and either Asik, Casspi or DMo/JOnes at the 4.
No way Asik starts every game against every team at PF. McHale himself said in one of his early interviews (i.e. before the first preseason games) that he might "have Casspi start". Is OP suggesting then, that when McHale said "I have TWO starting point guards" that he really meant what he said? Of course we fans like to have things set in stone: i.e. this is the starter, this is the bench guy; however "labels" aren't always applicable when you've got two great players at the same position who bring two very different skillsets to the table. McHale is still experimenting, guys: don't get things too set in your minds just yet.
Let see if I understand OP properly. OP is saying the coach believes Lin is not as compatible with traditional non-shooting PF as Beverley is. Therefore, the coach makes an item out of Lin and another stretch 4. Does the coach really believe Lin needs a stretch 4 because he is not very compatible with traditional PF? I don't think so. Lin works just fine with an Asik-Smith frontline if you look at the +/- of the 3-man lineup. Those 3 played together in 16 games last season for an average of 12 min in those games, giving the team a +/- of +1.4. Lineups with Smith replaced by stretch 4 like MM, PPat, and Delfino do not give the team significantly better results. See below: O, Smith, Lin +1.4 O, PPat, Lin +1.4 O, MM, Lin +0.2 O, Delfino, Lin +1.5 (Source: NBA stats) There is no reason that the coach should believe Lin must be paired with a stretch 4 to be effective, so I don't think the coach is making an item out of Lin and Casspi.
Interesting observation. Beverley's on-ball pressure seems ideal for the Asik/Howard lineup, which kind of leaves Lin odd man out there. Otherwise, the only PF we have who absolutely has to be close to the basket is Smith, and we aren't likely to see much of him this year. Everyone else is close enough to a shooting 4 that it is kind of a moot point.
True, Novak is an elite shooter, but have you not been watching Casspi and Garcia this preseason? They're both knocking down shots at an extremely high clip. i don't think either of them have ever played on a team that enabled them to get shots that wide open. Also, I'd rather have guys who can shoot AND do something else (Garcia - defense; Casspi - rebounding). Are you kidding me with this?! Here, we have the OP making a thread that is reasonable and well-thought-out, explaining how a pairing of Lin and Casspi may help the Rockets be most effective throughout the course of a game. Yet, this response is so focused on defending Lin's ability to play with a traditional PF that it ignores the more important point of maximizing the TEAM's effectiveness over 48 minutes. Have you stopped to consider that maybe BEVERLEY is incapable of maximizing the effectiveness of some of the Rockets' rotation bench players and that the team might feel that LIN is more capable in this regard? I honestly don't understand why people get so hung up on who starts. I personally view this is a nod to Lin's ability to carry an offense, versus Beverley's need to be a bit player in an offense with better options (Harden, Howard) carrying the offensive load. I'll be fine with either Lin or Beverley starting. I like both players. But arguing that a player ought to start just because he is able to play with a certain type of PF--without factoring in what is best for the team overall--is just short-sighted to me.
A few responses: 1. I think it's a mistake to think of any lineup in a binary way-- in terms of just "it works" vs. "it doesn't work." There are different degrees of how well things work, and some lineups may do better in a certain situation than in others. Coaches must search for the lineups that tend to work the best rather than simply avoiding ones that are total disasters. 2. I suspect that, when you have Harden and Howard and the talent on this team, there are many combinations out there that will work well enough to win a good number of games over the course of the season. Remember, the starting lineups for the first few preseason games with Jones and DMo outscored the opponents and now both of them seem to be out of the rotation. Just because a lineup did just fine doesn't mean it's the optimal combination. 3. The same goes with Lin and Asik+Howard (+Parsons+Harden). I suspect that this combination will not be a disaster in the long run, i.e., it will "work." However, I think that starting Beverley may work the best with this combo, with Lin+Casspi coming in to relieve Beverley and Asik as they have vs. Memphis and SA.
I believe McHale when he says he doesn't put as much emphasis on starting and bench positions. Outside of our star players (who will be there regardless), everybody else is just an equal. Whoever is playing well will finish the game.
BimaThug, don't get hung up on the Lin v. Bev competition and you shall see what I really wrote as oppose to what you thought I wrote. Still find my writing too obscuring to understand? Long story short, here is my argument: The coach knows Lin can mesh with traditional 4. His pairing of Casspi with Lin has nothing to do with Lin's capability to play alongside non-shooting PF.
I'm pretty sure this thread is the exact opposite of knee jerking. It's giving a thorough analysis and explanation on what the coach might be trying to do.
First of all, neither Asik or Howard are "traditional 4s". Second of all, that second sentence doesn't follow from the first. Even if there is evidence from last year that Lin can play with two front-court players without outside-the-paint ball skills, that doesn't mean he better suited for that than Beverley.
Nobody in the league can shoot 3's like Novak, because that's all he does, he is the quintessential one-dimensional player. Casspi and Garcia can play some defense, grab boards, and put the ball on the floor when defenders take away the 3-point shot. Which gives the offense more options in terms of scoring.
