Harkless over Leonard

[Scalma]

Bump.

Harkless is the shit. Love him and aminu together, especially defensively. If one of them could just develop a somewhat consistent shot.

I do think Harkless has potential as a post up player though with his quickness and length.

 

[Scalma]

Also, is there any reason why Aminu couldn't be the full time PF going forward into the future? The numbers the past two seasons say that's his best position. He might not have the strength to guard some (and I stress the word some, because there aren't many) PFs but his length bothers everyone, and offensively a lot of fours struggle to run around with him.

 

[Draco]

Harkless has been awesome! He's becoming one of my favorite Blazers along with DameCJ and Ed Davis.

He's started 7 games now. He's had a block in 6 of them. He's scored in double figures the last 6 starts. Dame and CJ are the only starters to do that this season. Hendo has a string of 7 double figure games and Crabbe has two strings of 7 double figure games. Harkless brings great defense, hustle, athleticism, and can drive to the rim. Is he an elite shooter? No, but with DameCJ starting our offense is already lethal. The starting group is crushing opponents by over 16 points per 100 possessions. Very excited to see the MoAl duo the rest of the season.

 

[BlayZa]

all this

100% of this.

pack the bags, meyers.

 

[Blazinaway]

Vonleh > Harkless > Leonard.

And I am fine with that as long as Harkless gets minutes. Vonleh is the future so it makes sense to get him comfortable with our studs.

I think Vonleh has promise and he's only 20, but don't forget hHark appears to be "breaking out" and he's only 22, Harkless IMO is > Vonleh at this time, and as far as Leonard go I hope he's not on the team next year

 

[BlazerCaravan]

Also, is there any reason why Aminu couldn't be the full time PF going forward into the future? The numbers the past two seasons say that's his best position. He might not have the strength to guard some (and I stress the word some, because there aren't many) PFs but his length bothers everyone, and offensively a lot of fours struggle to run around with him.

Can Aminu guard LMA and Draymond Green? If not, your answer is no. If do, sure, why not?

 

[PtldPlatypus]

Can Aminu guard LMA and Draymond Green? If not, your answer is no. If do, sure, why not?

I definitely think he could hold his own with Green. Unless LA takes Aminu into the low post, I don't see any reason why he wouldn't be able to defend him as well. And I think that Aminu would force Aldridge to work a lot harder on defense than a traditional big would. Then on the other side, can Vonleh defend LA particularly well, or more specifically better than Aminu can? Or are we contrasting Aminu at PF with the possibility of a trade/FA addition?

At any rate, I think there's a lot more to the question than just whether or not Aminu can effectively defend Aldridge. Not the least of which is the overall improvement in our team defense when MoeMinu™ is out there.

 

[BlazerCaravan]

I definitely think he could hold his own with Green. Unless LA takes Aminu into the low post, I don't see any reason why he wouldn't be able to defend him as well. And I think that Aminu would force Aldridge to work a lot harder on defense than a traditional big would. Then on the other side, can Vonleh defend LA particularly well, or more specifically better than Aminu can? Or are we contrasting Aminu at PF with the possibility of a trade/FA addition?

At any rate, I think there's a lot more to the question than just whether or not Aminu can effectively defend Aldridge. Not the least of which is the overall improvement in our team defense when MoeMinu™ is out there.

Aminu at PF seems to go hand in hand with Hark at SF, not Vonleh at SF, so we'd be pretty small unless we get a side of beef at C.

 

[Draco]

Can Aminu guard LMA and Draymond Green? If not, your answer is no. If do, sure, why not?

Yes.

Doesn't mean he'll shut them down, their great players. He can guard both as well as anyone on our roster.

 

[Draco]

Aminu at PF seems to go hand in hand with Hark at SF, not Vonleh at SF, so we'd be pretty small unless we get a side of beef at C.

Yeah, we'd be small, but that's a good thing. We still have great rebounding; the drawback of most small teams.

 

[Blazinaway]

Yeah, we'd be small, but that's a good thing. We still have great rebounding; the drawback of most small teams.

I think a Hark/Aminu sf/pf combo with a C like Whiteside could be very interesting, and hopefully Vonleh develops into another PF to throw into the mix and we keep Davis as backup and perhaps Plumlee for another yr

 

[Draco]

I think a Hark/Aminu sf/pf combo with a C like Whiteside could be very interesting, and hopefully Vonleh develops into another PF to throw into the mix and we keep Davis as backup and perhaps Plumlee for another yr

Whiteside would be interesting but I'd be very wary of giving him a long term huge deal. I'd give him a full max offer but only guarantee one season so he has to keep proving he deserves it.

 

[PtldPlatypus]

Aminu at PF seems to go hand in hand with Hark at SF, not Vonleh at SF, so we'd be pretty small unless we get a side of beef at C.

Aminu and Harkless are both 6'9", and plenty long. Obviously neither is as hefty as a prototypical 4, but I don't see that as a problem in today's game. Their defensive instincts and versatility are much more important than their size.

 

[Pinwheel1]

I like Aminu better at PF than SF as well. It doesn't mean we can't use Ed Davis or Vonleh there too .....depending on the matchups . (i.e Davis on LMA) And I still think Meyers should be used at back up center so he really does not effect Aminu's minutes there.

Aminu has a Brandon Wright like wing span and is more versatile on D, so I agree it makes sense. Plus it allows the Blazers to give more minutes to Crabbe and Harkless at SF and Henderson at SG. This is assuming we do not sign a FA wing and we re-sign our guys. (Which is only one scenario of many that Neil will be looking at)

 

[Wizard Mentor]

I really like Harkless, but I'm surprised that others do - especially those that had/have trouble with Batum's consistency.

Harkless feels like feast or famine. A high energy Harkless does it all and is a star caliber player. A low energy Harkless is coasting out there and doesn't deserve to be in the rotation. So, right now Harkless has had a good few games and people are happy. Great! But... try not to get down on him when he reverts to Dr. Jekyll. He's young and still improving.

 

[Sinobas]

I had high hopes for Leonard coming into this season, but Harkless has been a real revelation to me. When Meyers went down tonight against the Jazz, I was surprised at how relieved I was to know we had another, even younger, young stud in there to take his minutes. And that's the thing--we're so used to thinking of Leonard as the young developing kid, but Mo is a year younger.

With Aminu quite capable of playing the stretch 4, you get so much more activity and speed with that lineup of Lillard/McCollum/Harkless/Aminu/Plumlee. It probably means playing Crabbe more as well, which isn't great, but maybe it's time to see what Conaughton has got....

I don't know how long Leonard is going to be out--maybe he's coming back for the next game. But I think he just lost his starting job.

But this has all happened before. Harkless was given playing time over Leonard, played well, then Stotts replaces him in the rotation with Meyers. But I like Harkless/Aminu better than Leonard/Aminu.

 

[B-Roy]

Can Aminu guard LMA and Draymond Green? If not, your answer is no. If do, sure, why not?

Aminu shut down Aldridge during a game last year. You can't really shut down Draymond Green, cause he's not really a scorer, but Aminu has a better chance of chasing him around than any of our bigs.

I've long believed PF is Aminu's best position. I don't know if he's starting quality though.

 

[PtldPlatypus]

I really like Harkless, but I'm surprised that others do - especially those that had/have trouble with Batum's consistency.

Harkless feels like feast or famine. A high energy Harkless does it all and is a star caliber player. A low energy Harkless is coasting out there and doesn't deserve to be in the rotation. So, right now Harkless has had a good few games and people are happy. Great! But... try not to get down on him when he reverts to Dr. Jekyll. He's young and still improving.

IMO, Batum's inconsistency was based primarily on engagement. To date, Harkless' seems more based on role. But when he's on, he's so intriguing and talented, it's hard not to get excited. However, if Harkless remained feast or famine (© @Tunchi) with consistent significant playing time, then I'd be similarly frustrated to how I felt about Nic.

 

[dviss1]

Whiteside would be interesting but I'd be very wary of giving him a long term huge deal. I'd give him a full max offer but only guarantee one season so he has to keep proving he deserves it.

And.... He would never sign that contract and we wouldn't get him. Thinking he'd sign it really isn't realistic. Someone will offer him a way better deal.

I'll say it again:

We need to give Larry Sanders a chance. With leaders like Dame and CJ he'll be fine.

 

[B-Roy]

I really like Harkless, but I'm surprised that others do - especially those that had/have trouble with Batum's consistency.

Harkless feels like feast or famine. A high energy Harkless does it all and is a star caliber player. A low energy Harkless is coasting out there and doesn't deserve to be in the rotation. So, right now Harkless has had a good few games and people are happy. Great! But... try not to get down on him when he reverts to Dr. Jekyll. He's young and still improving.

This.

There have been too many games where Harkless plays a bunch of minutes and literally does nothing. It's hard to trust his consistency but when he's engaged he looks awesome.

 

[Blazerized]

Agreed, convincing Sanders to start up again should be a priority of NO this off season. He would totally thrive in the blazers culture.

 

[B-Roy]

http://www.columbian.com/news/2016/mar/27/aminu-making-mark-for-blazers/

Here's a good article on playing Aminu at the 4.

 

[BBert]

Did Harkless do anything after the first quarter last night?

That's the thing with projects. They play great in spurts but can't sustain it. That's why coach would play Noah 6 minutes a half then sit him the rest of the time.

I definitely think we keep Harkless next season and get him some more experience and see if he can (1) learn to shoot, and (2) gain consistency.

I love his game. I'm calling him Baby Nique.

 

[blue9]

Harkless is definitely a better SF than Aminu. And Aminu is definitely better at PF than at SF. But is Aminu better than Vonleh? A couple weeks back, when we first switched out Vonleh for Harkless, I suggested that we were better simply because Harkless is better than Aminu, and that it didn't really matter if Aminu or Vonleh were at PF. Someone pulled the numbers, and not too surprisingly it somewhat backed up that idea.

If after 6 seasons Aminu is just barely better than Vonleh is in 2ish seasons, I think it's not much stretch to imagine that Vonleh will easily be better than Aminu once he develops confidence.

 

[UKRAINEFAN]

This.

There have been too many games where Harkless plays a bunch of minutes and literally does nothing. It's hard to trust his consistency but when he's engaged he looks awesome.

It would be interesting to go back and see if there are certain types of teams he thrives against and others that he doesn't. I hope it wouldn't be that he doesn't do as well against better, more organized teams.

 

[Draco]

Harkless is definitely a better SF than Aminu. And Aminu is definitely better at PF than at SF. But is Aminu better than Vonleh? A couple weeks back, when we first switched out Vonleh for Harkless, I suggested that we were better simply because Harkless is better than Aminu, and that it didn't really matter if Aminu or Vonleh were at PF. Someone pulled the numbers, and not too surprisingly it somewhat backed up that idea.

If after 6 seasons Aminu is just barely better than Vonleh is in 2ish seasons, I think it's not much stretch to imagine that Vonleh will easily be better than Aminu once he develops confidence.


View attachment 8431

Those stats show Aminu is much better than Vonleh.

 

[blue9]

Those stats show Aminu is much better than Vonleh.

What is it that makes him "much" better? Just curious.

 

[B-Roy]

What is it that makes him "much" better? Just curious.

If judging by those stats, pretty much every basic and advanced stat.

 

[blue9]

If judging by those stats, pretty much every basic and advanced stat.

I don't put much stock in advanced stats, especially when measuring a player who barely gets any minutes, and is barely utilized in the minutes he gets. What I see, looking at Per36 numbers, is that they are fairly even with the main exceptions being:

FGA - Aminu +2.5 (which leads to increased PPG)
3P% - Aminu +10%
RBD - Vonleh +1.5
AST - Aminu +1

Aside from 3P%, nothing too major. Vonleh is supposedly a good shooter, so I think it's just confidence that's keeping him from equaling or bettering Aminu's 3P%.

 

[illmatic99]

I really like the varied looks and extended time these guys are getting at different positions. Will add to their confidence if Terry decides to go to unorthodox lineups in the playoffs. He's been pretty bullish on his lineups in his coaching tenure, but that seems to be changing a bit this season. Good look for sure.