Jalen and Jabari are the weak links. Luckily, we have Amen and Tari. Jalen and Jabari should somehow be packaged with picks to get a solid shooting guard with high %% and low turnovers.
This assumes the rest of the season will play out like it is the first 18 games. Brooks is shooting way above his career averages. JSJ is shooting way below his. If everybody reverts to their norm (which Brooks has done 2 out of the last 3 games) and Jabari has also done the last 5 games your argument falls apart. Sengun, FVV, Jalen, Jabari have all started out shaky on offense. Brooks started out hot and is cooling off. I don't think the Rockets are going to make any changes until they have a larger sample size. My preference is we defer to our future stars, rather than our stop-gap vets, but I doubt any changes are made to the starting lineup unless there is an injury. I think that is the wrong decision, but I don't get to make it. I also don't believe a major trade is in the offing next summer, but I do believe Amen, at least, will be starting by then. Keeping him on the bench is malpractice in my eyes. I think really the only way a major trade happens is if Durant suffers a major injury. Booker is the only major target that MIGHT become available this year or next. I'd love Fox instead of Jalen, but I'm not sure the Rockets would give up all the draft capital it would take to get him. I'd think about it for Haliburton or Lamello, but again would we give up all our draft capital and at least one of our core for them? The second Apron rules make it really hard to get a superstar and still afford a couple more Max contracts that at the very least, Sengun and Amen are going to demand.
Last year was the same for both Jalen and Jabari in terms of their on/off court chemistry with Sengun. The team was playing much better when Sengun wasn't playing with Jalen or Jabari. He was a net neutral with Brooks last year. This isn't some 18-game trend.
Jabari is the youngest of our core and progressed from year 1 to year 2. It is more logical to expect him to take another step forward this year than to expect Dillon to be something he has never been. Maybe he gets sent a wake-up call before the year is out, but I think the more likely outcome is that he ends up being better by year's end this year than he was last year. We need to develop our young players, because their contract timers are ticking. FVV and Dillon have one more year on this team at most. We are not competing for a championship with FVV and Dillon clocking 30+ minutes as starters. Every minute is important to Amen, Tari, and Jabari. It is stupid to delay it, because we are a third seed after a fairly easy opening schedule. We are ahead of Denver, Dallas, Minnesota, Clippers, Lakers, Memphis, Suns and Kings. Do you seriously think we are going to stay at the 6th seed or better with FVV and Dillon starting? This is another development year whether our band wagon fans like it or not. The only scenario where we make the playoffs outright is if most of those teams have significant injuries or Amen becomes the superstar he is destined to be a year earlier than I expect.
I would start him over Jalen at SG. It's closer to a primary ballhandling role (which is what we hope he can eventually do) and the loss in spacing will be less pronounced. Also better team defense that way. If I were starting somebody instead of Dillon, it would be Tari.
If he doubles it again, he'll be the best 3P shooter in basketball I'll settle for him shooting 35% honestly
The game that broke the camel’s back, needs to start over Jalen immediately, that corner 3 was big time. Tiny sample size alert: Amen is shooting over 40% from corner 3s this season.
Amen replacing Green secured us the win tonight. Both shoot bad from the 3 but Amen has way higher bbiq and plays lockdown defense. Also, just me or is Amen from the corner pretty high % ?
I've said it before, and I'll say it again FVV / Amen / Brooks / Smith / Sengun This lineup should get the most time together in games.
I was begging Ime to put Amen back in to close the game. Thank goodness he did. He won this one for us tonight.
