Get real guys. Whitmore 14 minutes? Amen 20 minutes? Tari 18 minutes? They will ask out and they will be right to do so. As will FVV if you do that to him in what's essentially a contract year. That's not a fair thing to do where you can go "if they don't like it they can leave". We're not running a daycare here, we're trying to get into the top 6 of the Western Conference. Get real with your minutes. At least one of the core 7 will barely play this season.
We definitely need to make a move to free up time for key players. Jalen Green’s minutes need to be slashed — we need to move on from the thinking that he’s the future for us. He’s a role player. Too inconsistent on offense and no defense. Slashing his minutes or shipping him out would be the most positively impactful thing we could do.
What I see is a really solid lineup with a lot of depth. Numerous young players who will take some time to develop. What I don't see is an elite player, the type of player who could lead them to a Championship. Some of these guys definitely have some high upside, but in my opinion, not one who would be an All NBA player and if you look at teams who have won titles over the yrs you need a player like this. GS (Curry, Durant) Celtics (Tatum) Lakers (Lebron) S.A. (Duncan + Kawhi) Heat (Wade + Lebron) Lakers (Kobe + Shaq) Mavs (Dirk) Cleveland (Lebron) Bulls (MJ + Pippen) Rockets (Dream) Pistons (Isaiah) Celtics (Allen, Pierce + Gatnett) Toronto (Kawhi) Bucks (Giannis) Denver (Nokic) The only team that didn't have an All-NBA player was the 2004 Pistons. That team had Billups, Hamilton, Prince, Wallace and Rasheed as their starters. So at some point the Rockets are going to have to flip some of these player(s) and draft assets for an elite All NBA player if they want to win a title. The team is VERY young and they have a couple of yrs to see how they develop and ultimately who they'll want to hold onto and who to flip. Sengun can certainly be an All-star but if you look at past champions you're going to need a player who is one of the top 10 players in the league. They've certainly positioned themselves with all of these young players and future draft capital to potentially acquire a top 10 player who may demand a trade. Will be fun to see how it plays out.
As soon as we dump dead weight like Jalen Green and DIllon Brooks, there will be more playing time to go around.
Sheppard will likely be out of the rotation to start the season. Given his age and lack of a that's a completely reasonable expectation. If I were a betting man Jalen Green will be out by mid-season when the organization chooses to move on from him for whatever they can get. Udoka will tire of his inconsistent BS when this team is trying to make the playoffs. Whitmore is probably the next most likely. Although injuries will likely create rotation openings before sub par play does. Will be pretty surprised if Sheppard is not playing regular rotation minutes by year end, Although not major minutes.
Sengun(30)/Adams(18) Jabari(30)/Tari(14)/Sengun(2) Brooks(28)/Tari(16)/Amen(4) Green(32)/Cam(16) FVV(30)/Amen(18) I think that's how we start the sesaon Sheppard will likely start in the G-League. He will eventually get a call-up through injuries or trade, probably about the point Cam got here last year. Green, Landale, and Tate fill out the bench. I'd leave the last roster spot open to see if a player becomes available around the deadline that we could trade into our MLE space. Regarding the MLE space: if Jalen isn't showing improvement by the trade deadline, his contract fits into the MLE. I'd be willing to trade him to a team that has the MLE available for a pick/picks.
Sheppard will probably get spot minutes and be gradually integrated into the flock. Given his age and experience, Whitmore will likely get the least minutes out of last year's rotation guys when everyone's at full strength. He did a good job accepting his fate last season, and he'll probably have to do so again. I'm really curious where Thompson will play most of his minutes, though. How invested will they be in making him the starting PG now that they've drafted Sheppard, who on the surface seems the natural successor to FVV?
Yeah, I mentioned that above ..... at this point, I'm doubting that they use the MLE. Most teams only go 8-9, maybe 10 deep. This roster, as it stands now is 9 deep without Sheppard and that doesn't include Tate, Landale or Uncle Jeff. IF they pick a player @44 today, that'll account for 14 roster spots. I could see them leaving #15 open for much of the year. This could also hinge upon how they feel about Jalen Green long term. If you don't believe he's part of the future, maybe you go out and sign De'Anthony Melton with that MLE while giving Green some time to sink or swim to start the season - December rolls around you can relieve the logjam.
They need to unload Brooks. It’s that simple. That provides 30 more mins to distribute. I agree Sheppard won’t see the floor for half a season, unless there is an injury. Cam is the odd man out, if Brooks is not traded. Amen and Tari are going to get their mins. If Brooks is not dumped then I think the mins distribution is reversed for him and Amen.
Ime was a huge factor in signing Dillon. As far as I know, Ime is still a huge fan of his game. So, if we are to free up some starter minutes, I think either demoting or trading Jalen Green is much more likely.
I don't know man. I'm a very big believer in having 48 minutes of 3&D guys who can guard the best wings in the NBA, handle a switch very well and provide spacing. We've lucked into Brooks improving his shooting and Tari being amazing. I don't think I want to mess with that. I also think Cam and that gigantic chip on his shoulder are going to shock a lot of people. I think he'll have a 6MOY calibre season at age 20. Ultimately yes in a year or two we have to unload Brooks because Amen's shooting will start to thrive. I don't think we're there yet. I think Sheppard barely plays and another young guy (and his agent) are going to be very angry and cause problems.
Yep, that is where the minutes have to come from. I love that he takes on the biggest challenge on defense, but he's too slow against the best wings and guards... Just not consistent enough with the shot to keep his spot. I kinda want to trade him for Kuzma, but we're right back where we started looking for minutes. For the minutes reason, I like Thybulle. Vet who plays the same role, but should demand fewer minutes. There will have to be more to the trade for $$ reasons. Also, I don't care where Amen and Tari get their minutes, I have no problem with them playing any position besides point guard.
I'm glad you're shouting this from the rooftops, I totally agree. I brought it up in the Sheppard thread and a lot of people responded and think that it's totally fine and there's enough minutes for everyone but I'm just not seeing it. When we are fully healthy there are definitely not enough minutes for everyone. I think the easiest "fix", if you wanna call it that, is just to dump one player entirely, and then it all fits together pretty nicely, but I don't know if that actually makes us better. Just as an example, if we were to waive Dillon Brooks (lol), you can come up with a rotation where everyone gets minutes and everyone is happy. But unless we get rid of a 30+ minute guy at the 2/3/4 position, we're gonna have guys that are unhappy with their minutes.
It is a semantical argument. Some younger coaches don't even talk about positions, but units on the floor now. On the offensive end Reed can operate as a traditional point guard or as a more traditional shooting guard. I don't know about that. I agree with you that you do not usually want the shortest player on the court guarding shooting guards, but there are exceptions. Kyle Lowery and Chris Paul both defended shooting guards better than point guards. Reed is not a traditional guy on the defensive end. He is a very good off ball and team defender and he plays the passing lanes very well. He uses his really strong and quick hands to make it hard for guys to get comfortable or in position. The biggest issue that he has on the defensive end is at the point of attack. We will just have to wait and see - I think it is possible he can guard shooting guards well in some match ups. First, I don't think that anyone is replacing Green unless he doesn't improve. My expectation is that Green will have a big season in 2025. Having said that, Reed Sheppard isn't just a catch and shoot player. I am not sure where that narrative came from. By the end of the season at Kentucky he was initiating the offense on possessions, he was driving to the basket, finishing or finding cutters. He also showed the ability to get off tough shots inside the lane and finish. He certainly doesn't have the first step that Jalen Green has, but he is capable of getting by people and making smart decisions with the ball. Also - I know that some like to praise Green's defense, but it just isn't very good, especially against shooting guards. It is very possible that Sheppard is a better defender this season, especially in some match ups.
I agree with others about needing to make a move to consolidate and open up minutes. Maybe something like Jalen + Brooks + Draft Compensation for {Insert Star Player} This would free up Amen to start and prioritizes his development and opens up bench minutes for Cam with Reed as back up PG. FVV Amen *Brandon Ingram - (Don’t fixate too much on Ingram, this is just an example of an easily obtainable player) Jabari Sengun
I like this one the most but what if we took 2 away from Sengun and 2 from FVV and gave them to Amen since he can play in the dunker spot. What about Tate and Uncle? They deserve minutes. Missed an opportunity to send Tate to a contender in Dallas last year. Hate this for him. Garm be like:
The challenge is to dump Brooks without getting back a minutes eater. Priority is to get Amen 30+ mins a game, reduce FVV to 28-30 mins a game an integrate Tari into the rotation. Probably 20 mins a game. I see 2 possibilities. Brooks to Phili for 1-2 second round picks. This has to be done before they sign Maxey to the max while they have the cap room. 2nd option is Brooks and a couple of 2nd rounder (maybe even 44 this year) to Washington for Brogdon. Wizards get more picks and we get Jalen insurance without eating into Amen’s minutes. If Sheppard or Cam force their way into the rotation, then you can flip Brogdon or buy him out. He is expiring. Cam is the odd man out no matter whether you keep Brooks or trade him.
I think we're not differing much except I'm holding out Sheppard's rookie season. Is it possible he shocks us and exceeds expectations defensively? Yes. Do I think it's wise for a team with a "no excuses" mentality for making the playoffs to expect Sheppard to guard SG's in his rookie season? It's his rookie season. I'm not picking on him. Even if it were Lowry or CP3 or Gobert or Marcus Smart's rookie season, they're going to make rookie mistakes a lot. I don't think that in his rookie season he'll be able to guard SG's at an average level - and yes I have heard he's not especially good positionally and is more of a free safety type of defender. I'm sure he'll work hard and be safe, but I just don't think it's fair to expect for this coming season even if there's a small chance he surpasses that expectation. He'll only start getting acclimated to NBA defense halfway through the season after a G League stint. He needs to put on muscle. Give the guy some time, I really mean that. It's an awful lot to ask of him or any other guard who's a good defender in this draft. On Green don't get me wrong, I'm not saying he's a very good defender yet. I would say for the second half of last season he was near-average, and for the final 20 games or so he was average or better. Was that because we were desperate to make the playoffs or were the concepts finally sinking in for our not-the-most-cerebral player? I do expect Green to continue putting on muscle and - with the benefit of another summer under Udoka - bring average NBA defense next season. I'm just saying for almost half a season he was near average. That's very difficult for a good defensive rookie to surpass. Regarding Reed as catch and shoot, as far as I'm aware that's his only elite skill. I know he's done other things well in college like steady defense and passing. I do not believe he will be collapsing defenses, I will have to see that in the NBA to believe it.
