sillent

Can he dribble, pass, shoot, defend wings? Positionless basketball people. He can be whatever we mold him as. A GM in a box is a losing GM. Who's to say we can't mold him into our Ben Simmons (with a j) within the next 2yrs?

I agree. I'm higher on Mark Williams now then Duren

I'd rock with this squad. Of course it would be after a little more development but we'd be a sneaky defensive juggernaut and still stay consistent with highlights. Besides John and probably Gallo our 3pt game hasn't ever been consistent so it won't be effected much. PG Trae Young SG Jalen Johnson SF DeAndre Hunter PF John Collins C Rudy Gobert PG Sharife Cooper/Anthony "Cat" Barber SG Skylar Mays/Kyle Anderson SF Kevin Huerter/Eric Pascal PF Onyeka Okongwu/Danilo Gallinari C MarkWilliams/ Jalen Duren

Honestly I agree. For me it's difficult because who is available that would be worth it for who we're trading? A lot of the young up and comings may not be leaving their teams and other stars are short (Beal, Victor)/ questionable (Ben Simmons/Ayton defense as the 2nd guy) or too old to build long term with. What are some suggestions. I do like Ben and Ayton on paper.

I respect your thorough breakdown. Ben Simmons and DeAndre Ayton look great on paper but these past few yrs makes me analyze team building a little differently. In a perfect world they both would be almost perfect additions. Both filling the 2nd/3rd star role and great to decent defense. My conflict with them only comes with the mentals of the game (which is 70 - 90% of the game). Miami beat us up physically and mentally. The physical beating actually affected our mentals. I don't think I have to put Ben's mentals on the forefront. As good as it would look on paper with Trae, betting that Ben would have the mental capacity when things get shaky and rough is very hard to see right now. Ayton has had issues of his own but Chris Paul a player who has earned his admiration and respect has given him better guidance. He is still young though and what happens when a vet like Chris Paul isn't around and DeAndre is frustrated? I'm saying that but I'd still rather see it than speculate. Still something tells me they may not live up to expectations with us. I'm old enough to remember the playoff promise team when we had Jason Terry, Stephen Jackson, Glen "Big Dog" Robinson, Shareef Abdul Rahim & Theo Ratliff and yes playoffs definitely seemed like a lock compared to the rest of our conference. Of course we didn't make it then it was a very disappointing 32 win season I believe but hopefully if we do this it'll be a different story.

Can you move my post? I was looking for an offseason post.

Definitely an advocate for Mark Williams. We can be scary if we have him Gobert and Onyeka.

If we waive and then resign Gallo I can see us looking more like this plus or minus a rook or two. The rook would more than likely replace Sekou/Tacko. PG Trae Young (offensive star) SG Kyle Anderson (second ball handler/solid all around) SF DeAndre Hunter (2nd star offensively/defensively) PF John Collins (40% 3ptr back to 20/10 + handles/defense) C Rudy Gobert (defensive star) PG Anthony "Cat" Barber (microwave/ solid all around on both ends) SG Kevin Huerter (offensive threat/solid all around) SF Eric Pascal (solid inside/defense) PF Danilo Gallinari (good inside out offensively) C Onyeka Okongwu ( Bam Adebayo mold) PG Sharife Cooper ( Trae Young lite) SG Skylar Mays (grit/chemistry/do what it takes guy) SF Sekou Duombouya ( inexpensive project) PF Jalen Johnson (JC/offensive JSmoove lite) C Tacko Fall (Tall, aggravating body to score over anywhere in the paint or when his hands are up) All of these players are tough in their own right and have hard work ethics which is big when it comes to fighting past tough competition. They would also be highly underestimated which gave us the edge the yr before last.

I definitely need to scout him since this is my second time in a row hearing about him. Right now I'm not too familiar.

I can see us waiving and resigning Gallo too to keep more fire power. Clint and Bogi would have to go to get Gobert and I can see them forcing us to add Delon Wright into the mix while we possibly squeeze a draft pick and Eric Pascal.

Based on the available free agents and options we have what is a realistic way to build this team for next season? Understanding chemistry is important (keeping a core), Cap room, happiness/playing time and most importantly the right collection ( players that will play hard and together/like a fist) and fit into Nate McMillan's static (but decently deep) rotations how would you build? So far this is a reasonable rebuild I can see. I'm struggling with a tall SG (not named Cam Reddish) so trying to get creative in this positionless basketball era but this makes us bigger, tougher and gives a chance for our surviving core (Trae, Huerter,Dre, JC,OO) to step up their roles which should ultimately make them happier and play harder. PG Trae Young SG Kyle Anderson SF DeAndre Hunter PF John Collins C Rudy Gobert PG Sharife Cooper SGKevin Huerter SF Jalen Johnson PF Eric Pascal C Onyeka Okongwu PG Anthony "Cat" Barber SG Skylar Mays SF Patrick McCaw PF Sekou Duombouya/(Kevin Knox) C Tacko Fall Players like Hunter/ JC get to step up their offense which is what they wanted and will definitely go harder for. Kevin Huerter can fight Herro for 6man. The whole second unit should be better by individual improvement and that 3rd unit may be slept on but a lot of the top teams have those kind of guys that often play key roles. This squad is taller and tougher without loosing too much of the finesse and highlights that Atl loves to see.

If we do keep our picks I was looking at Duren myself. I haven't checked out M Will yet

JC usually dominates Miami so a healthy JC would've made a difference. The roster constructed above is from our options and speculation. I personally would've built differently from the start but my question is what do we/would you do now?

So we didn't get what we wanted or expected but definitely what we deserved based on how we played all season. Trae definitely needed this humbling experience. Since many of our weaknesses defenss/offense were exposed (team was built on/for commrradory meaning as a fist/one unit & efficiency which we definitely weren't) our team will go thru alot of changes come next season. If rumors are true our team could look something like this next season Starters PG Trae Young SG Miles Bridges SF DeAndre Hunter PF Onyeka Okongwu C Rudy Gobert/DeAndre Ayton Bench PG Delon Wright/Sharife Cooper SG Kevin Huerter SF Kyle Anderson PF Jalen Johnson C Clint Capela Bigger with better individual defenders. What do you all think? Who should we keep or how would you build based on free agency and circumstances?

I couldn't watch the Dream last yr even though there have been a few WNBA players that have caught my attention. The Dream to me last yr was nothing to see nothing to look at (looked bad and played bad) so hopefully this turns that around. Something definitely had to give. With the draft and new changes made it sounds like we're moving in the right direction.

I don't think many fully understood what I meant with this post. Not going to try to explain right now but hopefully the picture gets clearer after these next few games. All I will say is we have a true villain on our squad whose towing with the league.

We definitely do need a 7fter. I've been saying and hoping that since last yr to help Clint/OO go against Embiid, Brook Lopez Cavs and up and coming teams like the Magic (laugh now and other teams who understand the importance of size). The huge front court wouldn't be bad but huge defensive/perimeter wings like Hunter, Cam smh, Jalen Johnson and John Collins with handles and better defense. JC is a few handles away from being able to be a hybrid 3 when necessary. Our lack of height does add/keep players that can run with Trae like Clint/OO/JC/JJ and efficient 3pt shooters across the board. Trae needs a Cam like wing that can also handle guard duties. Hopefully Jalen Johnson can become that. Huerter isn't bad but doesn't make up for the defense Trae lacks. Hunter is a great addition with Trae. It would've been great if we kept/satisfied Cam and had Bogi, Huerter and Gallo off the bench with strong defenders like Delon and Onyeka. I haven't checked out the draft but definitely 6'8 and up tenaciously defensive wings is what Trae needs most to start with. We were on the right path and not too far away.

It was a weird yr

Great podcast I actually didn't fall asleep lol. Great insight on the inside of our organization, their mindsets and their overall view and perspective of ownership and the front office.

You pretty much hit my point on the head. Every single one of our players has their vice (which is normal). The great thing about our team is all of our players are special weapons in their own right especially when they play their role to perfection. Like you say Gallo rarely takes his finger off the trigger but his height advantage and surprising mobility makes him a clear advantage for us on the court. Kevin's mid range is a weapon. Delon, Clint and OO energy, rebounding and defense. I can go down the line with each of our players. Iso Bogi is a weapon when he's in his zone mixing up the bag in the midrange and being a team player. When he's Iso Bogi alone he's a problem. Yesterday was a great example because he was great when he was playing within the team game (catch and shoot, mismatch Iso's, mid range and driving). I almost thought someone talked to him watching the 1st quarter lol. After that though he did fall a little into just Iso Bogi again which will not cut it in the playoffs. It doesn't give us that extra edge like utilizing all our weapons and their specialties. We definitely gotta keep that edge/advantages because that's what's going to win us the chip this yr.

I'm not going to hate on his defense effort but yeah the capability lacks hence the reason I definitely miss Cam. I hope his basketball IQ is better than he's been showing lately.

Get back to the basics. Bogi's hero ball/shots have been more detrimental than helpful to the team. I know he may make those shots in practice all the time but it's not productive on many occasions in the game. I hate to say it but TLC probably would've been a better option in the last game in the 4th quarter. I understand Nate's logic (allowing Bogi to finish) but it was a clear disadvantage that last 4mins with the game tied and this occurrence has been happening a little too often. I'm glad there was a chance to clearly see some of our flaws and hopefully shore them up before the Play In/Playoffs.

I'll just leave this here since it's more relevant. It's not a challenge if it's not a tall order.

Sounds good and definitely comparable except Bogi is closer to Iso Joe than J Rich. Hunter might ironically have a better career than Richardson. Marion is more like what JJ can become. We can stretch a few teams possibly that could match but we all know where Travis came from. We know.... We know... Maybe just maybe he was trying to make the Warriors of the South and made the Suns. Whatever taste better I guess

Guys definitely have to hit shots. A PG's duty is to make sure guys are in position to take/make the best shot but they still have to take and make it. It's been half and half why Trae's assist numbers aren't consistently up. Of course the bunnies and open misses as well as a few times where Trae hasn't been getting them the ball in the right spots. I won't go in to detail into why but it has usually been around the end of games when precision is important but Trae is gearing up for the playoffs so I can almost bet that most of what we saw earlier in the season till now will be in the past. People may not even remember how up and down the season might have been if we make the noise we're supposed to make in the post season.