Should ALDRIDGE be our Center?

[Blazinaway]

he's been beasting with Camby and Przy out, should we make him our C and instead go after a PFOTF to complement him? There are not that many "true" old style C's anymore, LMA is a tough cover for other teams, get a PF who rebs well - I like the idea.

 

[Wheels]

depends who our HCotF is I guess.

 

[Mediocre Man]

Answer, Who are
Kosta Koufos, David Lee or Louis Amundson and Andrew Bogut?

 

[Wheels]

Answer, Who are
Kosta Koufos, David Lee or Louis Amundson and Andrew Bogut?

I'll take "who are players on better coached teams than the Blazers" for $300 Alex!

 

[andalusian]

Andrew Bogut?

Andrew Bogut is actually a very good center and is currently listed as #7 in the league in PER for centers... He also plays for a team that is #6 in the league in defensive efficiency.

I think it is pretty clear that when LMA is used as a Center and the team stresses running - he is a tough cover for most centers.

 

[illmatic99]

I've been thinking of this too. LA's got the length to hang with the defensive Cs like Chandler, Duncan, and Darko. And he can outrun and outquick the slowfooted guys like Yao, Bynum, etc. Annnnd, there aren't really any legit offensive post threats at C any longer.

A guy like Bass would be a decent fit.

 

[Charcoal Filtered]

On alot of nights we can get away with it. Keeping up with LA is also a tough task for the bigger centers too. Would rather not have him trying to guard Dwight Howard though.

I'll take "who are players on better coached teams than the Blazers" for $300 Alex!

Have you watched Minnesota lose so many close games this year? Rambis and Smart have not demonstrated anything yet. Skiles has not gotten out of the first round either. Nate has atleast done that once.

 

[mgb]

I would only worry about him collecting fouls, but is that more likely play C or PF?

 

[Blazinaway]

On alot of nights we can get away with it. Keeping up with LA is also a tough task for the bigger centers too. Would rather not have him trying to guard Dwight Howard though.



Have you watched Minnesota lose so many close games this year? Rambis and Smart have not demonstrated anything yet. Skiles has not gotten out of the first round either. Nate has atleast done that once.

Yep and frankly how may D Howard's are there? I'd rather set our team up to win as many games as we can against the majority of teams.

 

[illmatic99]

Amare has made the same transition to C as he has gone to NY. He's having a lot of success there with guys like Chandler and Turiaf next to him at PF. But he's also experiencing a lot of wear and tear.

 

[RR7]

And in regards to Howard, and Aldridge getting beat on, How is it that Camby is then a good option at C? He's skinnier than Aldridge is. I'm willing to bet Aldridge is pretty close in size to Joel as well. There's not many people that are way bigger than LMA that we are going to have problems with.

 

[Blazinaway]

And in regards to Howard, and Aldridge getting beat on, How is it that Camby is then a good option at C? He's skinnier than Aldridge is. I'm willing to bet Aldridge is pretty close in size to Joel as well. There's not many people that are way bigger than LMA that we are going to have problems with.

agree and LMA seems pretty darn durable. The key IMO would be getting the right PF to team with him.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Think of Aldridge like Pau Gasol: a natural PF but can play C for long stretches against the right competition. Lately he IS our C. Now, does the team play better with him at C? At the moment, yes, but that's partly because he's our most mobile big man and putting him at C allows us to run and play Wes Matthews, Rudy and Batum at the same time. So he plays C in our currently most dynamic unit.

If you're asking: should we trade Camby and/or Joel for a straight PF, I dunno. Let's see how Aldridge does in the playoffs first.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Amare has made the same transition to C as he has gone to NY. He's having a lot of success there with guys like Chandler and Turiaf next to him at PF. But he's also experiencing a lot of wear and tear.

Transition? He's played the majority of his career at C, certainly for D'Antoni. Unless you count the few minutes he played alongside Robin Lopez...

 

[Rastapopoulos]

I think you want versatility. One reason the Lakers are so successful is that they have big men in Gasol and Odom who have the size to play one position but the skills of smaller men. Notice that Bynum comes back, they become less flexible, and (at the moment) they're less successful. So my advice would be: get an Aldridge clone, play him alongside LaMarcus and ONE of them can be C.

 

[Wheels]

On alot of nights we can get away with it. Keeping up with LA is also a tough task for the bigger centers too. Would rather not have him trying to guard Dwight Howard though.



Have you watched Minnesota lose so many close games this year? Rambis and Smart have not demonstrated anything yet. Skiles has not gotten out of the first round either. Nate has atleast done that once.

I was being more facetious than anything. But I would guess that Skiles never had teams with as much talent as McMillain, in all honesty. Even though the last year and a half injuries took its toll.

 

[Sug]

Answer, Who are
Kosta Koufos, David Lee or Louis Amundson and Andrew Bogut?

Better question. Who are the top ten centers in the NBA?

 

[Wheels]

Better question. Who are the top ten centers in the NBA?

while I get what you are trying to say, none of those top 10 centers are available to us, so we might as well start doing the best we can with the roster we have IMO.

 

[illmatic99]

Transition? He's played the majority of his career at C, certainly for D'Antoni. Unless you count the few minutes he played alongside Robin Lopez...

You're right. It's not a transition.

 

[hasoos]

You know whats really funny? When we drafted Aldridge I wanted him because he was the only guy who I thought might be able to deal with Oden for the next few years. I thought we could swap him over to center, add 30 pounds of muscle on him and that is what we would take to battle against Oden, whoever drafted him.

It seems to me that Aldridge plays better at center because for some reason it sticks in his mind to play more inside. But I think with the reality of the injuries, chances are that is how it is going to go down. It sure would be nice to pick up another front line player to team up with him and Camby though, just so they can have some rest before the fourth quarter.

 

[Mediocre Man]

Better question. Who are the top ten centers in the NBA?

Hmm, that is a good question. In no particular order, here are the top 20 players who play center....IMO

Howard
P Gasol
Horford
Bogut
Noah
Hibbert
B Lopez
Shaq
M Gasol
Jefferson
Bargnani
Amare
Nene
Duncan
Lee
Okafor
Cousins
Kaman
Camby
McGee


Looking at that list, there are maybe 3-4 guys that Aldridge would have a tough time with. The bigger issue for me woul dbe all the power forwards that would run all over Portland with Dante Cunningham covering them.

 

[RR7]

Well the thought would be to not have Cunningham, obviously, but to acquire a PF, if we were trading Camby and/or Joel.

 

[Sug]

Looking at that list, there are maybe 3-4 guys that Aldridge would have a tough time with. The bigger issue for me woul dbe all the power forwards that would run all over Portland with Dante Cunningham covering them.

So then the issue becomes more simple. Brandon Bass could also be acquired and become the starting PF. At the same time, I bet you could get Carl Landry from Sacramento. Overall I think we could agree that we need more depth in the front court regardless if Aldridge is the center or not. Joel and Camby are nice trade chips right now, and getting younger with better health and potential in the front court might be a good idea.

 

[Mediocre Man]

Well the thought would be to not have Cunningham, obviously, but to acquire a PF, if we were trading Camby and/or Joel.

With the way the NBA is today, the 4 and 5 are pretty interchangable. Aldridge, Amare, Gasol, Horford, Duncan, Jefferson, etc. Maybe the thought should be to try and upgrade to a tall black man that is strong and agile, and call it good?

 

[hasoos]

Hmm, that is a good question. In no particular order, here are the top 20 players who play center....IMO

Howard
P Gasol
Horford
Bogut
Noah
Hibbert
B Lopez
Shaq
M Gasol
Jefferson
Bargnani
Amare
Nene
Duncan
Lee
Okafor
Cousins
Kaman
Camby
McGee


Looking at that list, there are maybe 3-4 guys that Aldridge would have a tough time with. The bigger issue for me woul dbe all the power forwards that would run all over Portland with Dante Cunningham covering them.

I would add Gortat, but I don't think it will change the results. A pretty good list IMO overall.

 

[Sug]

If we are thinking of moving Aldridge to center:

Here is my PF Christmas list:
Glenn Davis -Why would Boston do this? Camby.
Tyrus Thomas -Charlotte? Save money from expiring contract, plus they just fired their coach.
Anderson Varejao -Cleveland sucks and they could save money and get an extra draft pick
Kevin Love -Why? Their GM is a nut job
Brandon Bass- Why? They are not happy with current product
Elton Brand -You might actually be able to send them Roy if you took back Iggy and Brand and added in an expiring contract.
Carl Landry-They are terrible
Justin Thompson-Same reason

 

[Nikolokolus]

I would consider it, but I'd want to pair somebody with him with legit size or length (doesn't have to be a bulky guy). If Anthony Randolph is really that deep in D'Antoni's dog-house I'd seriously consider swapping Rudy for him -- if that was on the table -- because i think he's got enough raw ability to defend and block shots that he could also play a little bit of forward-center with LMA. The biggest issue is that there might to be some issues "upstairs" with AR in terms of habits and his mental approach to the game.

 

[RoyToy]

No.

 

[illmatic99]

If a guy like Wallace (good defender and rebounder (8.1rpg) starts at PF, I'd be even more glad to let LA take C.

 

[Blazinaway]

If a guy like Wallace (good defender and rebounder (8.1rpg) starts at PF, I'd be even more glad to let LA take C.

agree, could have a heckuva defensive lineup at times with Nic/Crash/LMA and Wes at at SG, I think Augistine is avg at best at D, nice fast break team as well