If you knew just one of our vets would be traded this season...

I voted Simons, but it was a difficult call for me between he and Grant. Right now this minute I would rather Portland be rid of Simons because he has no value and gets in the way of Scoot, even if he is not ready yet to lead. He needs end game reps. He also will be in the way of Sharpe when he returns. I know there are enough minutes to go around for all three, but there is only one ball and I like the way Scoot shares it mores than Simons. Simons will be an expiring next season, which I take into consideration but he just needs to go. Grant obviously has too many years on his deal and too much money for my liking of fit with this team, but at this time he is not preventing a young forward from getting his run. If we get lucky and draft Flagg or Bailey next season, Grant better be gone. Yes, I would like Grant to defer more, but not as much as I want Simons to. Thybulle is opting out after this season, not a consideration. Time Lord will be on an expiring next season. He is not a consideration at all. Ayton is in no way in Clingans way both this season or next. Trade him if a good deal is offered but I am good with him playing out his deal. Under no circumstances are these five players to be offered extensions unless there is a horrific accident and they are the last resort.

 

We have had the same starting 5 all 5 games, with Sharpe out. Once he is back, Camara likely goes to the bench. Unless Sharpe does. Scoot is averaging 27.8 minutes off the bench, most on the team. Murray is averaging 16.8. Rupert is at 9.8. Walker at 12.8. Camara is at 29.8, Avdija at 28.4. When Sharpe comes back, whose minutes are getting reduced? I don't see how Scoot is being blocked by Simons but(once Sharpe returns) , one of our 4-5 young wings minutes would not be being blocked by Grant.

 

It's not necessarily about minutes, but minutes with the ball. As the decision maker. Dealing with pressure situations.

Ant and Grant took nearly every shot at the end of the Clippers game. That's a lost opportunity, and it's 1 win toward worse odds in the lottery.

 

I voted Williams because he hasn't done squat for us and i want another big who can actually stay on the court.

 

Scoot(again, small sample size for sure) so far this season has shown a big increase in his PER, his TS%, his FTR, his TRB%, his AST%, has dropped his TO%, increased his WS/48, increased his VORP, BPM, higher ORTG, lower DRTG, has improved his overall FG%.

He's taken 42% of his shots within 3 feet of the rim, up from 24% last season. He's increased his FG% on them as well, up to 6% from 50. He's settling for less midrange jumpers, but has improved his %s there as well.

Only 5 players are scoring more off the bench this season in the league than he is.

I think he's coming along nicely. It doesn't look like his development is being hindered currently to me.
And this is what we KNOW is happening currently. We have no way of knowing what he would look like if he was forced in to being the primary ball handler all game, and got double teamed constantly, and what it would or wouldn't do to his confidence or his development. We can speculate. But we can see that he is greatly improved(in small sample size) this season.

 

This is exactly what I was getting at, that RR& missed.

 

The bolded part is the problem. We have no idea. But lets just baby him while Ant, a player we know has no value is in front of him, taking the shots and making the passes at the end of games when Scoot should be doing it.

 

That's all true. I don't care what he would look like in that situation. I just want him to experience it as much as possible.

I don't care if he looks bad. I want him to make mistakes so he can learn from them.

I think the odds are pretty good that we would have lost that game without Ant and Grant. And if we'd won it with Scoot playing those important minutes and making those critical decisions we'd feel a lot better about it than we do now (at least I would). We honestly looked terrible, except that our young guys played great defense.

This is just a lost opportunity. The opportunity will be there again, but if we're going to sit Scoot in the important minutes while letting Ant and Grant jack shots again it'll just be another lost opportunity.

Honestly, it can't be good for Grant and Ants value. They looked terrible.

Anyway. I'm also good with where Scoot is. I just hate watching Ant and Grant play basketball the way they do here and I hate that we're gaining nothing with these games we're letting them dominate. And it's even worse when we wind up winning a game we shouldn't with them dominating the ball and sucking.

 

We're not babying him though. only 4 players in the league have played as much off the bench as he has. It doesn't have to be an all or nothing. All the minutes, sink or swim, or sit and learn. Again, he seems to look much improved, so what they're doing seems to be helping him currently.

 

Great post. Id like to add this:

by nurturing him along as we currently are, we are fairly assured he wont have confidence issues or mental blocks to get over if he were playing poorly due to increase pressure and easing him into that pressure slowly will likely have a fair less chance of breaking him mentally if he makes mistakes under pressure.

But if we thrust him into the forefront night in night out it is NOT fairly assured he would thrive or break down mentally.

One seems like a much safer long term bet than the other for him to eventually be consistent and successful in pressure situations.

The funny thing about the mind is most people think OTHER people think like them and thats how it is.
If one is easily broken, then tend to think all people break.
If unable to break, then ww question the heart of anyone who does happen to break.
No one knows what is in the kids head and how things will affect him. It seems he is pretty mentally strong based on his confidence he portrays. But that could be a front to mask his internal doubt.
No one knows.


Ill take the safe bet over trying right now to see if he cracks. Maybe what cracks him now, wont crack him two years from now with the right nurturing and he is ready to take this team over as the floor general.

 

I voted Matisse to be first....Deni took his job...Toumani took his job...Sharpe took his job...Murray took his job.Rayan as well.I don't see minutes for him

 

Why try to fix or change something that seems to be working?