After this draft, we should be at least 2 deep at every position. Which team is the deepest in the league? Will we be in the top 5? 1)Kings 2)Mavs 3)Rockets 4)Clipps What teams am I forgetting?
Portland (multimillion dollar talent all the way down the bench) New Jersey (we helped them out with Jefferson and Collins) San Antonio (solid backups at every position) Detroit (league's highest scoring bench) Charlotte (deep frontcourt at least) Milwaukee (can't even find enough PT for Thomas) Pacers (talented squad makes setting rotation tough choice)
San Antonio????? The same team with a bench that features Danny Ferry, Cherokee Parks, and Antonio Daniels??? Solid backups??
Portland- I thought about them. Too old. Who plays center? New Jersey-I thought about them but I just do not like their team. I bet they are an 8th seed next year. KM and who play PF? San Antonio- One man team! Detroit-Highest scoring bench because their starters can't score! Charlotte (deep frontcourt at least)- Name another guard? Bryce? But bery deep front court! Milwaukee- Center? PF? Pacers- I forgot them. Nice team.
San Antonio can hardly field a starting 5 Aaron Williams is a dependable PF The Clippers have put together the most talent in the league, a few good trades, and I realize this is asking a lot of this organization, and they will be contenders for this list
Will we? C - Ming/Cato PF - Taylor/Griffin/Thomas SF - Nachbar (or someone else)/Rice/Morris SG - Mobley/Torres PG - Francis/Moochie To be honest, the only quality backup out of all those who has actually had one good season in the NBA or is not miles past his prime is Kenny Thomas. I don't think we're very deep at all. Hell, when we start the season we might not even have a true <b>starting</b> small forward or center, much less backups. I would rank us closer to the least deepest team than the most.
Kings are anything but deep. The only players they have who log decent time off the bench, are Pollard, Jackson, and Hedo. They have quality off the bench, but they definitely aren't deep.
What it really comes down to is injuries, or lack of. IMO that looks like a legitimate nine or ten-player rotation assuming everyone's healthy. Further assuming no trades and also that you've got the starting lineup correct, first off the bench will be EG or KT, followed by Moochie (although we can only hope we've seen the last of the three-guard offense). Cato and Rice should see ample PT as well. Most teams in the league would be thrilled with a solid ten-player rotation. Does this mean the Rox have a premier bench? Not quite, unless a couple of these players really step it up a notch. But they certainly would be far from the worst.
I have to agree ... Hustons bench doesn't look that impressive to me ... If it was as impressive as some suggest here, the team should have managed last years injuries much better then they did and not been one of NBA's worst tems ... They should be better the coming season with the #1 and #15 pick however it is dangerous to expect rookies to be able to contribute from day one so getting a veteran SF should be a priority ...
Based on current roster, your projection looks about right. Not fear striking or anything close, not bad either. I expect a trade somewhere. Either Thomas. Norris, Taylor, or Rice to be gone by start of season. We will definitely be better. No NBA champs just yet. Good work.
I don't know about deep but all those guys with the exception of Cato and maybe Rice can create their own shot.
Houston is not near a deep team. There are few deep teams. Maybe the Kings who played championship caliber with out Pedra. Deep means you can win without one of your top players- How did Houston do without Francis How does LA do without Shaq or without Kobe? To be deep means more than bench strength- because some teams seem to have strong benches because the starters are just not that much better. Which teams can survive without their stars for a limited time?
The BENCH is overated, it is a group of guys who play less then 20% of the time. Does anyone remember who was on Chicagos bench, or who is on the Lakers bench? No? Why not? Because, STARTERS is where the game is won and lost. The Bench....sheesh...what has a good bench gotten Portland.....? DaDakota
LOL Let's see. Everyone hates Moochie, so that means we have no backup PG. Everyone thinks Mobley is a bench player, so that means we have no starting SG. We have no starting SF or backup. So really, we are only deep at PF and C, right?
Well, on paper, it's a nice rotation IF everyone's healthy. Say what you want about Mo, he's a solid pro. As for Rice, last year could have been a bit of a blessing. Got a chance to really get his body right (plantar fasciitis (sp?) that requires rest, knee), you have to believe that he at least has a couple of years left in his body. If so, the SF position isn't as bad as it seems. Eddie and Terrence, if they are worthy NBA players, will at least show improvement and more consistency this season. The addition of Ming gives the Rockets at least a competent '3-headed monster' at C. Whatever they do @ #15, they should come out with a talented prospect considering the depth of the draft. We shall see.
Non other than the 6th Man of the Year, Toni Kukoc. DaDakota, saying a bench is overrated is overrated. Every 80's title was won by who had the better bench...every one. The Knicks nearly beat us because they had a better bench, but we had super mario and sam cassell. Sure Jordan won 3 without a bench, and Shaq/Kobe won three. But if Divac's tip ball bounces different, the superior bench wins this year, because the Kings owned the 2nd quarter, which allowed them to withstand Kobe's 4th Q heroics, which the Spurs couldn't at all.
