I'm just curious as to what's everyone's take on the importance of having Tall Lengthy players? Jabari, Sengun, Brooks, Green and even FVV do not really have exceptional Wingspans for their height. I almost feel like we also have shorter wingspans than most of our opponents. Is this a problem and if it is why is Stone taking guys with shorter wingspans? Our players with long wingspans like Amen and Eason are also coming off the bench. So I'm wondering what's people's take on this?
Kinda important to me but not everything. I would have stayed away from Emonti Bates because of his negative wingspan and been right (so far); I pushed for Miles McBride (for defense) but has yet to be exceptional at 6'1" and 6'9" wingspan. Other factors also matter Speed Lateral Quickness Basketball I.Q. Leaping ability Muscle memory Quick twitch Reactions Weight (200 pounder will hold his ground better than a guy "a buck 80") Strength (or lack of, knowing leverage) I prefer 3 & D players approximately 6'6" to 6'9' as a baseline, longer wingspan helps me accept those players under 6'6". Topic is around 6'6" but I believe he has a negative wingspan. I would avoid Topic. As a rule I push for long wingspans, take factors into consideration with those of average wingspans (to their height)....and I stay away from those with negative wingspans.
on the perimeter it matters more when you gamble or recover but anticipation & timing, positioning & moving your feet are still the main basis for shutdown D for bigs in the paint protecting the rim, that’s where long reach is really a factor
She said wingspan is important … but for real, I think there has been a correlation between wingspan and stocks (steals + blocks). where the analytics folx at…
You don't need to have great wingspan to be good on defense (Caruso, Suggs, etc.). However, there is a reason that most excellent defenders have great wingspan (Gobert, Bam, OG, McDaniels, Kawhi, etc.). Smith's wingspan is 7'1. That's pretty decent.
Very important for a big deterring shots in the paint especially on guards and forwards slashing into this area. Jokic isn’t a great defender but his size and wingspan which is 3 inches more than Sengun deters a lot of shots making players think twice about going up. I noticed 2s and 3s don’t respect Sengun’s paint defense (although his defense was much better last year) often drive their body into him as they go up for a layup likely due to scouting report on his fouling tendencies but he is also a smaller player with a shorter wingspan.
Most important for backcourt players and smaller forwards in my opinion--helps with steals and ball pressure, contesting shots, etc. Taller forwards usually can still be effective with a neutral or nearly neutral wingspan, as we've seen with Jabari, for example. Amen's 7-foot wingspan is one of the reasons he's such an effective defender. It can be important for shotblocking centers depending on other factors. However, just being really tall and reasonably athletic can be enough to be an effective rim protector.
