TimBC

Yeah - some guys can play on any team, others have to find the right fit. And his shooting: As Yogi Berra said, 90% of this game is half mental. And while people laugh at that, it's TRUE. There are only a few things in both baseball and basketball that you can do without thinking and planning and visualizing. Someone out there can unlock Ben's shooting. Just doesn't appear to be Doc.

Adams is also pretty good at pick'n'roll, as I recall, and that might be useful at times.

Adams starts a few games early, out of respect, and depending who we play. But Coach has to see whether JJJ is ready to be the main 5. Likewise, Bane has to get enough time early with the starters to see if he is an option. I guess DB might have to go between 2 & 3 sometimes. Melton has to have a chance to get his 3 stroke grooved too. The good news is if they all fit OK it doesn't really matter as long as Coach can somehow keep them all happy. Maybe one of them will prove more productive in the second unit, grooving with Clarke. Too many pretty-good players, what a good problem to have.

Can they sign him, put him on the nudge-nudge-wink-wink injury list, and bring him forward if anyone gets hurt?

Can a guy sign a contract with himself?

If we have Culvert maybe we should go after Bridges.

I don't think basketball has nearly as much entrenched lore. One example of baseball is having the pitcher always try to throw a strike on the first pitch. Everyone knows this, yet everyone is amazed when the Blue Jays (and few others) hack away at first pitches. Duh. Then we get into "never make the second out at third base with your #9 batter at the plate against a righty on a cloudy Thursday west of the Mississippi." Maybe the NBA will drift even deeper into "shoot more threes" but I hope we'll see a couple of teams find a new approach that makes the pendulum swing back. I want every season to be a little bit different.

"Sorry, Marc," the Lakers said, "you're not old enough to play with us."

I reckon coach has some more work to do on which combinations work. And how many starters to rest at once, and the effect of that on the second unit. After the first 7 minutes, will we see a loop of 4-starters-plus-one as we rotate the rest break? Will the bench be maybe three standard guys plus two of the deeper bench guys, and if so who are the three? Which players shouldn't both be on at once?

Hmm, seems reasonable: https://ca.nba.com/news/who-are-the-best-coaches-in-the-nba-entering-the-2021-22-season-ranking/1mng22uytr4k71157lcfpgy05j We get frustrated sometimes, but not about big, fundamental things, and he's built team spirit, developed players, and probably got about as many wins as we deserved.

Hey, four letters, I was close. Brain freeze.

Gee, what's different about the playoffs that could lower a player's efficiency? Oh, yeah, I know - the weak teams don't play. What else? Ah, yes … we played the Suns, who are kinda good.

So ... which teams do you start Adams at C against so JJJ doesn't get beasted? I suspect that in the 2022-23 season the answer might be "none", but maybe he's not there yet? Part 2 - what's your starting lineup the first time we face JV?

Remember, at least ten other teams also added an excellent new player this year. Some of those new players will push their team upward before Ziaire is ready to join Ja and JJJ in doing the same. I see this as our getting-ready season.

Simmons #42 on nba.com rankings (Ja is #41. JV #43) On NBA2K - just released - he's rated 84, same as LaMelo Lavine's 87 Gobert 88 Jrue 85 Juancho 75 How much is that worth? If I was a GM who had to decide, I'd play it safe and look for another player at a similar level to go after. Or I'd make a lowball offer and see what happens.